Holidays in the Esteros del Ibera
Most visitors bypass the humid north of Argentina, flying straight from Buenos Aires to the Iguazu Falls, but they're missing out on one of Argentina's real delights, the fabulous Esteros del Ibera Wetlands.
Because relatively few visitors make the journey, the Esteros del Ibera are blissfully unspoiled and are one of the best places to see wildlife in Argentina, if not the whole of South America. The delicate wetlands ecosystem of lakes and marshes, water meadows and shifting streams is home to a huge variety of wildlife, much of which is endemic to the area.
Wildlife in the Esteros del Ibera
Birders will be in heaven, with over 350 different species resident in the Ibera wetlands, from kingfishers and hummingbirds, to vultures and herons; while if you have a more general interest in wildlife, you'll be able to enjoy seeing rare species such as maned wolves and marsh deer, howler monkeys and giant otters, as well as Argentina's two native species of alligator, the black caiman and the broad-snouted caiman.
Visting the Ibera Wetlands
Undoubtedly one of the reasons the Ibera wetlands aren't visited by more tourists is the lack of infrastructure in the area. Most trips set out from the small village of Colonia Pellegrini, which can be reached by a scheduled flight to the city of Posadas and then either a charter flight or a 4x4 transfer from there.
However, many higher-end lodges prefer to organise tours which include charter flights either to their own private airstrips, or to the airstrip in the small town of Mercedes which is just on the edge of the wetlands.