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The 'Galápagos of Argentina' Has a New National Park With 60 Islands and Islets—and It's Teeming With Marine Life
A new marine provincial park, the area's first, will change that. Argentina's new Patagonia Azul Provincial Park expands the previous protected sliver of land dramatically, effectively safeguarding a marine coastal area that's roughly the size of Yosemite National Park (or 729,294 acres). Not only does the acreage protect the area's plentiful wildlife, who come to feed and breed, but it safeguards over 60 islands and islets, kelp forests, and rugged coastal habitats.
'This is a resounding win for marine conservation," Sofia Heinonen, executive director of Rewilding Argentina, said in a press release shared with Travel + Leisure . "Patagonia Azul places under legal protection one of the most biodiverse areas of the Argentine Sea with over 50 species of seabirds, many of which nest in the more than 60 islands and islets with kelp forests, islands and rocky intertidal areas that support unique ecosystems where diverse kinds of sea life converge.'
Rewilding Argentina, a conservation organization that purchases private land and donates it for national parks, provided the land that will act as the entrance to the park and its islands. It will also help the park develop facilities for visitors—like campgrounds and trails—and continue monitoring populations of humpback whales, petrels, penguins, and sea lions.
The formation of the park was led by the government of Chubut (the local province), Argentine National Parks Administration, non-governmental organizations, and the local community of Camarones.
The new, expansive Patagonia Azul Provincial Park is connected to other renowned wildlife areas via a scenic coastal road that runs from the Cabo Dos Bahías Protected Natural Area, which is known for its penguin colony, to the village of Bahía Bustamante, the only town in Argentina dedicated to collecting seaweed and mussels.
Plans are underway to make the new park more suited to visitors, including the addition of hiking trails, campsites, a biological station, and marine access points.
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Art Classes Art Studio at Siyam World offers guests the opportunity to explore their creativity and take home their painting as a souvenir. Siyam World Even if you don't consider yourself artistically talented, it's worth signing up for a painting class in this small studio where light streams in through broad windows. The walls are hung with mostly tropical paintings, including those surreal works created by the instructor who hails from Nepal. He helps motivate the guests to paint what interests them, suggesting the appropriate brushes, colors and techniques to best create depth and texture. (You'll be able to take your art home with you as a souvenir to remind you of the Maldives.) Wine Tasting at Barrique Even the entrance at Siyam World's Barrique is unique. Siyam World Even the entry to Barrique, a contemporary underground wine cellar, is unique, down a steep-ish flight of stairs flanked by walls that resemble a mosaic of different sorts of wood. 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And, like so many things at Siyam World, the spa has some unique or unexpected offerings, such as Laughing Yoga, Kids Yoga, Reiki and Maldivian Cowrie Shell Massage — it's the shell of a sea snail. Sound healing, for example, is a mindfulness practice that many people may not be familiar with. The Veyo Spa Plunge Pools at Siyam World are very refreshing. SIyam World The Sound Healing session at the Veyo Spa at Siyam World may be a unique experience for some. Siyam World The spa holds a 60-minute sound healing session using crystal singing bowls, though Tibetan bowls can be used instead. When each of the bowls is struck or the mallet is rolled along the rim, it produces sounds and vibrations that are said to stimulate (and unblock) different energy centers in the body, referred to as chakras. (Guests are informed about how the bowls work and which chakra each is associated with, whether the heart, solar plexus or throat, for example.) 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