From Andes and pampas to dinosaur digs, snow sport resorts, and world-class fly fishing, Neuquén Province provides a spectacular setting for Argentina’s River House Lodge.
Pronounced “new-ken,” the province was inhabited by Mapuche and other indigenous peoples when the first Spanish missionaries and settlers arrived in the late 17th century. During the South American wars of independence, Neuquén was the last bastion of royalist support in Argentina, as well as a hideout for outlaws like the legendary Pincheira Brothers.
The province remained remote and underdeveloped well into the 20th century, only recently coming into its own as one of Argentina’s undiscovered tourism gems.
Typical for Patagonia, the landscapes are amazingly diverse, ranging from semi-desert and grassy pampas to forests, lakes, snowy mountains and even Alpine meadows and rocky tundra at higher elevations.
Neuquén is also rich in fossils. Its dinosaur digs have yielded ancient giants like the Argentinosaurus that walked the region around 95 million years ago. A skeleton of the huge brontosaurus-like sauropod is the pride of the Carmen Funes Municipal Museum in the city of Plaza Huincul.
Its outlaw days long ago, the province has evolved into an outdoor sporting paradise in modern times. Offering half a dozen adventures from golfing, mountain biking and horseback riding to extraordinary fly fishing, River House Lodge is the perfect place to discover what makes Neuquén such a special corner of South America.
