7 lagos hasta San Martin de los Andes

The 190km road trip from Bariloche to San Martín de los Andes along the Seven Lakes Route has to be one of Argentina’s most scenic drives?

But the start wasn’t quite as planned! It was supposed to be the four of us gals, plus Gio, but the Marias had partied a bit too hard the night before and weren’t in any shape for a road trip. Over breakfast, as we tried to figure out who could drive the manual car we’d rented (a bit of a challenge since only Laura could drive), we met Brian 🇦🇷, a fellow traveler who’d arrived at the hostel the day before. Somehow, we convinced him to join and drive too—specially since the plan was to drop me off in San Martín to meet up with Ado, so I wouldn’t be returning to Bariloche. And just like that, an hour later, we were off! Laura, Gio, Brian and me 🚙

We headed north, following Lake Nahuel Huapi, and saw seven stunning lakes along the way: Correntoso, Espejo, Escondido, Villarino, Falkner, Machónico and Lácar.

Along the route, we stopped at Villa La Angostura, a charming town where we stocked up on mate and grabbed some lunch—maybe a few too many empanadas for another perfect #LunchWithAView!

The trip was a blast, full of photo stops, great music and perfect weather. The company was fantastic, with so much laughter along the way. We also got to know Brian well—he turned out to be one of the kindest, most generous people, and though he was new to solo travel, here he was one day into his trip on a spontaneous road trip with us! 🛣️

We made one last quick stop before reaching San Martín, where, somehow, we ended up dancing Jerusalema on the side of the highway—just before the police drove by (luckily, not the dance police! 😅).

Arriving in San Martín felt a bit like entering Queenstown, NZ, but with better food and way more affordable.

Once there, we met up with Ado at the lodge we’d be staying at for the next few days and caught up with Matheus and another friend from Bariloche at a café before saying our goodbyes. ☕️

I’d miss these beautiful people, but with my bestie by my side and a new place to explore, I was ready to make even more unforgettable memories!

San Martin was pure bliss! Ado worked most days, but each evening we’d head out to explore the town and treat ourselves to good food.

We’d only been there a couple of days when Maria joined us! We’d been trying to reconnect on our travels, and though it was only for three days, we were thrilled it worked out.

The first day she arrived, the three of us went up to Arrayan. From there, we took in stunning views of San Martin before making our way back to town with the sunset. 🌅

With Maria there, I finally had a hiking companion! So on her last day, we trekked to Mirador Bandurrias and La Islita, where we swam in the stunning (but freezing) lake and took in the warm Patagonian sun.👙

That night, we celebrated with beers and tapas at a cool bar in town. It was Maria’s last night, so I met her again in the morning to say goodbye and the following day, Ado and I flew to Buenos Aires for more reunions and good times ahead. ✈️Les mer