Villa El Chocón is a small town in Neuquén province in Argentina. It is located on the shores of the Ramos Mexia reservoir and has about 4,000 inhabitants (2022).

Understand

One of the neighborhoods of the town, with its typical 1960s architecture

The Ramos Mexia lake, seen from Villa El Chocón

The El Chocón dam on Limay River was built between 1969 and 1977 and feeds the largest hydroelectric power station in Patagonia (1363 MW), one of the largest of the country. It forms the Ramos Mexia reservoir.

Located inside red-colored rocky hills, the reservoir is an attractive and rapidly growing tourist destination with an improving infrastructure. Villa El Chocón is the main tourist center of the region, with several hotels and campgrounds. Bathing in the lake is possible at several places, the best options are west of the city center and on the eastern shore across the dam.

The older parts of the town, built for the workers of the dam facilities in the 1960s, have an interesting modern architecture, seldomly found in Argentina. The Centro Cívico near the roundabout at the town entrance is a touristic-commercial complex which hosts most shops and public buildings and the museum.

Get in

El Chocón is connected with Neuquén (75 km north-east) and San Carlos de Bariloche (250 km south-west) via National Route 237.

There are several short-distance buses per day from Neuquén. Long-distance buses, e.g. those coming from and to Bariloche, may not stop here, better ask in advance before planning the trip.

Get around

There is no public transport. The town is surprisingly large for its size, as it is composed of several neighborhoods, and there are some steep hills. Take this into account if you're planning to get around on foot or per bicycle. Most streets of the main neighborhoods are paved.

See

The Chocón dam

Dinosaur footprints

• 1 Museo Municipal Ernesto Bachmann, Centro Cívico, ☏ +54-299-4217858, museoernestobachmann@gmail.com. Also simply called the Dinosaur museum and is often called the main attraction of the town. Hosts several dinosaur skeletons found in the region and other artifacts from paleontology and geology. (updated Feb 2022)
• 2 El Chocón dam, Ruta Provincial 68. Largest Patagonian hydroelectric dam. (updated Feb 2022)
• 3 Faro El Chocón, Avenida Costanera (at the western end of the street). Small lighthouse with a magnificient view of the lake. (updated Feb 2022)
• 4 Dinosaur footprints, Avenida 9 de Enero (west of the town center, south of Barrio Llequén). Paleontological site with a small walkway. About 500 m west there is a second site. (updated Feb 2022)

Do

Los Gigantes, rock islands east of the town

• 1 Los Gigantes (about 15 km. Cross the dam via RP 68, immediately on the eastern shore go right entering a narrow dirt road, again right at the next junction, and then left). Rock formations and small islands on the eastern shore. It's an excellent place to visit by mountain bike. Going by car is possible but not recommended after rainfalls. (updated Feb 2022)
• Beaches. The best places to swim in the immediate surroundings of the town are south of the town center in the area near the dinosaur tracks, where most campgrounds are located. They are a bit stony. Near the lighthouse there is a very small beach too. An excellent beach is Arenas Blancas on the eastern shore, see below. There are also some good beaches on the Limay River below the dam.

Sleep

• 1 Posada del Dinosaurio, Barrio 1 (on the roundabout near the town entrance, take the leftmost street and continue to the lake shoreline), ☏ +54-299-4901200. Large, modern hotel; mid- to high-price range. (updated Feb 2022)
• Campgrounds are mostly located in the surroundings of the dinosaur footprints, west of the town center, accessible via Barrio Llequén (the westernmost neighborhood, located at RN 237). They have only basic protection for windy weather, infrastructure is regular.

Go next

• 1 Pueblo Blanco and Arenas Blancas. A semi-private village east of Villa El Chocón at the eastern lake coast (in Río Negro province), built with ecological infrastructure. An entrance fee is required. Arenas Blancas, near the village, is probably the best sandy beach of the area. (updated Feb 2022)
• 2 Picún Leufú. About 50 km south-west of El Chocón, a slightly larger (3500 inhabitants) but still quiet town in an oasis near the Ramos Mexia lake. There are several nice lake beaches at 10-15 km of the town reachable via regular dirt road (usable by normal cars, but drive slowly), but only one (the Club de Pesca) has infrastructure with toilets, shadow and a campground for a small fee. The town is pleasant and modern, it has several restaurants and shops and a small gas station. It's not touristy at all, but has several small hotels and apartment complexes, mostly for travellers on the way to Bariloche. (updated Feb 2022)