esteros del ibera

Few places on our Argentinian odyssey could be more,bewitching, peaceful, or more magical than this huge wetland of floating islands. The invitation to explore its 13,000 km required seditious planning and appropriate guiding. We chose a private four-wheel drive between Mercedes and Colonia carlos Pellegrini, which we used as a base for lagoon exploring on a flat-bottomed boat. The silence is akin to parts of the Everglades around noon. You seem to be at one with the flora and fauna whilst skimming the waters towards remote villages. I read someone's review who claimed that there are so many Yacare(alligators) around that it feels like the whole place is an alligator farm. Our small, flat-bottomed launch glided past the magical mammals and rodents on the banks, while above, the tree-line was awash with the screech and squawk of the most incredible array of bird-life. I take my hat off to the amount of tourists on a budget who try to negotiate their route by luck and non existent time-tables.

The wetlands are fantastic, full of animals. The boat trips on to the water are well worth the effort. See if you can get a guide to walk you out on to the marsh lands/ floating islands. It was a lot of fun.Be aware that the lodges are expensive and not really worth the money. The food served was a lot but it was frozen meals, most of the activities were free walks in the park or ones you can organise from the visitors center, and most importantly if it rains the two only roads into Carlis Pellegrini will be virtually un drivable. We had to get a 4x4 transfer out to Mercedes for $800 pesos for the car.

If you're a budget traveler, think twice before going there. Esteros del Ibera has a beautiful nature and wildlife, but Colonia Carlos Pellegrini, starting point for the visit, is a VERY remote village. Basically you have two options of getting there. First is a regular bus from Mercedes, which goes daily from the bus terminal about noon, but only if it wasn't raining before, and costs approximately 5 USD. Good option, if you are not scared of old dirty buses and have enough time to hang in Mercedes in case it's raining (even 2-3 days). Second one is a private transfer, which I strongly recommend to book in advance at your hotel/hospedaje in Cna. Carlos Pellegrini. It will cost you about 80-100 USD. You can go by transfer either from Mercedes or Gobernador Virasoro. I'd advise to go from Mercedes since the road goes along the national park border and you will enjoy diverse scenaries. Hitchhiking is unlikely, you have to be very lucky to get the car. Our trip was kind of fail. We came from Pto. Iguazu by bus to Gdor. Virasoro via Posadas, since it seemed closer and faster. We tried to find someone going to Pellegrini there or some kind of regular bus not mentioned on the internet. There are none. We hired local taxi for 70 USD, but just 40 km away from Pellegrini they stuck in the mud; only 4x4 SUV can pass there. There are no mobile network signal on the way, so we had to go to the nearest gaucho farm (there are not many along the way, it's pretty much an inhabitant area). Luckily they had a phone, and we called a transfer from the village, for which we paid 80 USD. Thus, we paid for the same transfer twice. Make sure to take enough Argentine pesos in cash, there are no ATMs in Pellegrini, nor they accept credit cards (except for the only one decent hotel, which is very expensive). Also be aware that nobody speaks English there, so you will need at least very basic Spanish knowledge. And there are not so many restaurants/cafeterias/grocery stores. As for the national park itself, it's really nice and wild, though you'll be able to see only a small part of it. But if you have ever seen Ukrainian river Dnipro, you won't be stunned by the scenery)) I'd say those sceneries along the Mercedes road are more interesting. The place is good for nature lovers and biologists; you'll see kaimans, capibaras, deers, monkeys and a lot of birds. The is no entrance fee to the park, and you can take a small boat tour from locals for about 15 USD. As for me it wasn't worth all this money and effort, because I'm not such a fan of wildlife. The best part for me was to see how remote villages in Argentina live and experience this feeling of being in the middle of nowhere.

Finally after many many years I had the chance to go visit the Esteros del Iberá a chain of ponds and lagoons and swams where the birds and yacarés( local alligator) reign. The guide picked us up at our hotel in Virasoro city, about 30 km away from a private entrance to Laguna Galarza. This laguna is 8000 has. big( about 16000 acres). Just our motor barge, hundreds of different species of birds and so many yacarés that it seemed to be a yacaré farm! Its silence, extension and variety of fauna and flora was amazing.It was a mystical experience for me. I strongly recommend to visit The guide is José an agronomic engineer , owner together with his family of land that is in close vicinity to the lagunas. There is also a fabulous estancia ( big farm) where you can stay overnight , do bird watching including the presence of 4 varieties of birds that only nest at that estancia( unbelievable but true).

Esteros del Iberá is Paradise itself. Wild animals everywhere. You can easily pick from nocturnal excursion or a walk into the rain forest to listen to (and if you are lucky enough) to watch a family of Carayá monkeys. This is a sound you will not easily forget in the years to come. Horse-raiding adventures or catching a boat to be taken to the yacarés, the thousands of birds and the most amazing sunsets! This tours are usually available at every hotel, but if you have any questions you can always go to the Rangers' Office and they will assist you gladly. There is a tiny but quite useful "museum" you wont like to miss.

I definitely recommend to stay there for few nights, try all the activities (incl. the night one) and walk all the paths. You can spot incredible animals even in the campsite, so stay there if you can! The transport for us was a bit headache (on the back of the truck, very dusty road) and expensive, because we didn't want to sleep in Mercedes and wait until morning, but it was worth it. I still regret we stayed only two days.

We visited Campo La Esperanza in Ibera, Province of Corrientes last July 2013 (Ibera Estero Salvaje, has they call it) . Coming from NY, we just looked for wildlife, nature, adventure and comfort. Our 4 kids (25,21,14 & 9) enjoyed the boat rides, mingling with the sheep and lounging in the "Quincho"and "Galerias" around it. Food was traditional and very good (pastelitos deliciosos, BBQ, mate, etc). We saw the local wildlife in the trails around the property close to Laguna Fernandez. At our boat ride we had close encounters with yacares (local cayman). We took millions of pictures but nothing can compare with the human eye! Amazing. The only drawback is that the location is remote, it isn't simple to get there, as the roads can be messy when it rains, but all these PLUS the owners , Claudia and Pedro Noailles, make this place UNIQUE. Campo La Esperanza in Ibera Estero Salvaje was a great choice for our family. We stayed 4 days. Lastly, Pedro, who also does transfers, drove us back to Mercedes (closes town) in his 4x4. The road was amazingly muddy and we saw at least 4 vehicles stucked in the mud. Pedro and my 14 year old son, Sean, helped the others cars without asking questions. I was impressed by his generosity and goodwill (Mr. Noailles, not my son!!) Highly recommended

We discovered Esteros Del Ibera while in Buenos Aires, sorting out our trip north. We aprroached Ibera from the south having spent the night in Mercedes. A very well informed lady occupying a small shop at the rear of the Mercedes bus terminal directed and arranged the whole thing. We found that althiough there is a bus service from Mercedes to Carlos Pelligrini the little town in the Esteros, we found the bus did not run on Sundays. So we hired the services of a local who had a 4x4 ute for about $25 per person who came to our Hostal right on time loaded up our bags and off we set. Trip was a little rough , although the road was under repair. We would have liked to have seen a bus get through especially after rain. Afterabout 2.5 hours we crossed the bridge which separates the 2 lakes and entered Carlos Pelligrini. We had booked our next few nights thanks to the kind lady at the bus terminal with a local tour boat operator and Cabana owner. We arrived arround lunchtime and after looking around the operator called on us and we all piled into the back of a 1967 Ford F100 and off we went to his boat. By this time is was almost on dusk , so the wildlife was just starting to appear. Capybaras, Caymans and birdlife, too many to list. It was a fantastic intro to the area.Our second day was spent on the lake again arriving back in Pelligrini for lunch at one of the local little restaruants located in the backyard of one of the houses. That night we ran out of time to shop so the tour operator was able to get the local general store to open, just for us, where we bought local produce and meat for a wonderful BBQ. Needless to say we were still going strong well into the small hours of the following day.We left Pelligrini having decided we would continue further north to Posadas. The trip was again in a 4x4 wagon as there is no bus service from Pelligrini to Posadas. Road conditions were about the same but would hate to think what happens in the wet season! Our driver was a font of information aboutthe area. We arrived in Posadas after a 3 hour journey. He directed us to a lovely little Petit Hotel in Posadas, but that is another story. All in all a fantastic journey wtih very friendly and helpful locals. If you can spare the time to get off the tourist route, Esteros Del Ibera it well worth it.

If you're not in a hurry and are looking for some relaxation and nature, then Ibera and Carlos Pellegrini is the place! A bit hard to get to (check if you can share a ride with some people from Posadas or Mercedes) since the public transport is very limited. Once you're there it's worth it though. Take a boat out in the wetlands and you'll get very close to animals such as alligators, carpinchos and a lots of birds. The boat costs about 100 pesos and is well worth it. But you can also walk around and see monkeys and alligators on your own. Unlike many other parks, this is not swamped with tourists and it feels very genuine and relaxing. However, since it's not a tourist spot, the services are pretty limited. If it's anything you need such as cash, special food, etc - bring it with you! There is pretty much nothing to buy in Carlos Pellegrini. I loved it though, and I would love to go back and stay longer!

On the way to Iguazu we spent 3 days at Estancia San Lorenzo near by the "Luna lagoon"If nature has your interrest it's a place to visit. Calm and beautiful with plenty of birds,caiman,monkey,deer, You can be lucky and meet a ant-eater and be sure to se many capybaras.It's possible to ride througt this wetland. We took a night bus from Buenos-Aires and were picked-up at Virasoro by our host. A very delightful place for us, I wish it would be a next time !

Although it is hard to get here (and expensive if you don't want to lose too much time), it was really worth it. After 14 days in busy Buenos Aires we loved spending a few days there. There are 2 walks you can do on your own (you don't need a guide), on one of these you can see howler monkeys, but you really have to look for them!We did a tour with a boat on the lake and we loved it! We saw so many wildlife. I totally recommend this!!!

Very interesting and beautiful place.Trails near the visitors center are easy and very rewarding. Best to do them before sunset when the light in the forest becomes magical!Boat ride through the swamp is recommended.2 busses a day from Mercedes to carlos pelligrini. 12:30 and 13:30 (40 peso). a tough 3 hour ride...the bus back leaves at 4:00 am. there are also private rides which are more pricy.good option for a group of 4 is to take a 3 hour 4x4 taxi to/from Posadas (1000 peso) which will save you a whole day of traveling for the same price of the busses. ask about it in town.good place to stay is Hospedaje Ibera not far from the entrance. doubles go for about 150. rather clean and one of the cheapest in town.

I did an extensive review of the Posada Aguape property in the Ibera Wetlands, but didn't speak that much of the reserve. It is loaded with birds, reptiles, and mammals. Our favorite mammal is the capybara, the world's largest rodent. Don't be alarmed, the capybara are docile and quite cute. They bark like dogs.....The birding is amazing. You see and hear birds that you'll never see in other places. The caiman are plentiful and not particularly dangerous. Deer, foxes, and small cats should be seen as well. The wetland are worth a visit!

After more than 100 kilometers of poor dirt road from the town of Mercedes (road to Posadas is almost impassable to regular car - even for 4x4 after rain), you find yourself in paradise. Beautifully arranged and maintained municipal campsite, friendly locals and amazing wildlife in unspoiled nature. Morning Boat trip on the lagoon,took us to a real show of the animal world: birds of all colors and shapes, capibarras, caimans, otters, etc.. We observed a rare wetland deer in the pasture. Only problem is lack of food service in the village. Warning! Prior to departure from any side (from north or south) is necessary to obtain information on the state of roads from locals.

A great place to visit the wildlife and birds of the marshes.The journey there is a not so easy but it is well worth the effort.We saw 78 species of birds in 3 days plus all the other wildlife.