What TO DO in EL CALAFATE (Aside from Visiting Glaciers!) 🥶 Ice Bar + Dinosaur Museum + Flamingoes 🦩

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Today we’re going to be showing you around the town of El Calafate. In the previous episodes we shared some of the most popular excursions you can do from town - we spent the day at an estancia, we toured the glaciers by boat, and we hiked in Los Glaciares National Park - however, today, we wanted to show you what you can do around town when you’re craving a more relaxed day. So, in this episode, we’ll be walking around a lagoon filled with flamingoes, coming face to face with dinosaurs at a local museum, and hitting up an ice bar while still visiting a few different restaurants. Here a list of the places we'll be visiting in El Calafate:

LAGUNA NIMEZ // Our first stop was Laguna Nimez, which is a nature reserve and bird sanctuary that sits on the shores of Lago Argentino just north of town. It’s a really nice place to enjoy a leisurely stroll, even more so if you’re a bird enthusiast.

HISTORICAL INTERPRETATION CENTRE OF EL CALAFATE // This is a very cool museum that traces the natural history of Southern Patagonia, featuring everything from dinosaur fossils to human artifacts. We really enjoyed learning about the megatherium - a giant sloth that roamed these lands at the same time as humankind.

MI RANCHO // One of our favourite restaurants in El Calafate was Mi Rancho. I ordered the braised ossobuco cooked in the clay oven with a yellow risotto that was a real delight. Meanwhile, Sam ordered the lamb with mushroom risotto and a sweet Calafate berry sauce which was also very good. For dessert, we tried the dulce de leche volcano with chocolate ice cream and wild forest berries. Needless to say, we ate very well in El Calafate!

MI COCINA // What drew us to La Cocina was their pasta tasting menu, which allowed us to try 3 dishes per person. I ordered the tagliatelle with forest mushroom sauce, gnocchi with lamb ragout, and spinach ravioli with a cream sauce featuring ham and chicken. Meanwhile, Sam got the green noodles with a bacon cream sauce, potato and spinach ravioli with Bolognese meat sauce, and squash ravioli with a leek sauce. Overall a great meal!

GLACIARIUM + ICE BAR // Inside the Patagonian Ice Museum we saw a model of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field which is where the glaciers in this area originate, and we also learned about the life of the famous Argentine explorer Francisco Pascasio Moreno. At the end of our visit, we went down to the ice bar which is located at basement level. The walls were covered in ice, the glasses the drinks were served in were also made of ice, and there were even some ice sculptures - a great photo op.

🦩 Relaxed Day in El Calafate: Flamingos, Dinosaurs, Museums, Food & Ice Bar | Patagonia Town Guide

🌅 Morning in El Calafate: A Day of Exploring Town

Hello and welcome from beautiful El Calafate, Argentina! After several days packed with glacier excursions, hikes, and early wake-up calls, we decided to slow down and see what the town itself has to offer. In this video, we take you on a leisurely adventure: bird watching at a flamingo-filled lagoon, discovering Patagonia’s prehistoric past, savoring top local cuisine, and capping it all off with a visit to a frosty ice bar. Whether you’re looking for a rest day between big hikes or want a taste of El Calafate’s local charm, this episode is for you!

🦕 Center of Interpretation Museum: Dinosaurs & Giants of Patagonia

Next, we visited the Centro de Interpretación Histórica (History Interpretation Center)—a local museum brimming with Patagonia’s ancient wonders. Admission was 400 pesos (about $6 USD). Inside, we learned about the region’s dinosaurs, giant mammals, and the first people to call this land home. The highlight was seeing the skeleton of a megatherium, a gigantic ground sloth that stood five to six meters tall and roamed Patagonia until just 500 years ago. The museum offers fascinating exhibits and interactive displays—perfect for families or anyone interested in natural history.

🧊 Patagonian Ice Museum & Ice Bar: Science & Fun

In the afternoon, we visited the Glaciarium (Patagonian Ice Museum)—a must-see in El Calafate. We learned about the Southern Patagonian Ice Field, local glaciers, and the legendary explorer Francisco Moreno. Exhibits include interactive displays, educational films (including 3D glacier documentaries), and a model of the region’s vast ice fields. Tickets were 600 pesos ($10 USD) for the museum and 400 pesos ($7–8 USD) for the ice bar, which comes with a complimentary drink. Donning shiny silver suits and mittens, we entered the ice bar—a neon-lit room made entirely of ice, from the glasses to the walls and sculptures. It’s a unique, chilly, and fun photo op for travelers of all ages!

What TO DO in EL CALAFATE (Aside from Visiting Glaciers!) 🥶 Ice Bar + Dinosaur Museum + Flamingoes 🦩

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