Kiritina's House Homestay

Lago Argentino (five minutes’ drive), the country’s largest freshwater lake, has several observation decks from which to admire its vastness. On its shores, the diverse habitats of Reserva Laguna Nimez are home to butterflies, foxes and flamingoes. Further east along the lake, Punta Walichu - Reserva Natural y Arqueológica has painted caves and the remains of ancient settlements. Housed in a sleek, contemporary building, the Glaciarium Patagonian Ice Museum (15 minutes) explores the formation of ice and glaciers through interactive audiovisual displays. One of its exhibitions invites visitors to consider the negative effects of human intervention on the planet. On the western edges of Santa Cruz province, Parque Nacional Los Glaciares (an hour and 45 minutes) is a vast area of millennia-old glaciers and a UNESCO World Heritage site. But there is more to this reserve than just ice; it also has large areas of forest inhabited by South Andean deer, red foxes and pumas.