Introducing Puerto Madryn
This sheltered port facing Golfo Nuevo is best known as the gateway to the wildlife sanctuary of Península Valdés. Fast-growing with tourism and industry, it does retain a few small-town touches: the radio announces lost dogs and locals are welcoming and unhurried. Madryn holds its own as a modest beach destination, but from June to mid-December visiting right whales take center stage. From July to September the whales are so close they can be viewed without even taking a tour, from the coast 20km north of town or the 500m pier in town.
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Founded by Welsh settlers in 1886, the town takes its name from Love Parry, Baron of Madryn. Statues along the costanera (seaside road) pay tribute to the Welsh: one to the role women have played, and the other, at the south end of town, to the Tehuelche, who helped the Welsh immigrants survive. Madryn’s campus of the Universidad de la Patagonia is known for its marine biology department, and ecological centers promote conservation and education. The city is the second-largest fishing port in the country and home to Aluar, Argentina’s first aluminum plant, built in 1974.
Last updated: Feb 17, 2009
