Founded by the Welsh immigrants in 1865, Puerto Madryn is the gateway to the Patagonian coast and the Valdes Peninsula (World Natural Heritage Site). The town itself is blessed with beautiful beaches and waters where you can practice many water sports and marvel at the amazing reefs offshore. The city was declared National Capital of Scuba Diving thanks to its underwater beauty. Punta Loma Natural Reserve is located just 19 km to the south of Puerto Madryn and has over 800 sea lions all year round. Worth visiting is the Ecocentro, a centre specialised in sea ecosystems interpretation.

Highlights:

:: Valdes Peninsula: This peninsula, located 77 km from Puerto Madryn, is a meeting point for the southern right whales, which arrive here to complete their breeding cycle between June and December. Trips to watch the southern right whales depart from Puerto Pirámides, famous for its sea lion colonies. The rest of the peninsula is teeming with other animals such as ñandúes, maras and guanacos. In the Peninsula's Punta Norte, there is the world's most important southern sea elephant continental breeding colony.  Elephant seals can reach 7m in length and have an average weight of 3 tons. The Isla de los Pájaros Reserve has thousands of sea birds (cormorants, gulls, terns, herons).

:: El Doradillo: Located 15 km from Puerto Madryn, it is one of the few places where southern right whales may be watched from the shore. On the beach, chosen for its calm and warm waters, the females give birth to their young and breast-feed them between June and November. The whale calves do not develop the fat layer that enables them to float until they are from 30 to 40 days old. Before that, their mothers carry them around on their fin in the area near the shore and have a rest on the pebble bed. Don't forget the popcorn!

:: Punta Tombo Natural Reserve: 190 km south of Puerto Madryn, is one of the most varied sea bird colonies in the world, with the largest number of Magellanic penguins. Over 250,000 penguin couples gather here from mid September to the beginning of April.

:: Scuba Diving: Puerto Madryn is considered to be the Capital of Scuba Diving in Argentina. It's one of the few places in the world where you can scuba dive with sea lions!

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