History

The city of San Carlos de Bariloche was officially founded on May 3, 1902. The name Bariloche comes from the mapuche language. It is a variation on the word vuriloche, which means "people on the other side of the mountain". This was the name given by the mapuches in Chile to the inhabitants of the east side of the Andes, where Bariloche is located. The San Carlos part has its origins in the general store of Don Carlos Wiederhold, a chilean immigrant of german ancestry who settled in 1895 in what today is the city center. When the city was founded, he was incorrectly addressed in a letter as San Carlos instead of Don Carlos ('Don' is a honorific while 'San' means 'Saint'), and his name got mixed with that of the city.

The notorious outlaws Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid lived in a nearby ranch between 1901 and 1905. They fled after learning that they were being tracked by a detective working for the famous Pinkerton agency. They left evidence of their presence on the registry of the general store located at the source of the Limay river, a few kilometers outside Bariloche.

At the end of the 1930s, several buildings were constructed which eventually became symbols of Bariloche. In particular, the Centro Cívico (civic center), the cathedral and the Llao-Llao Hotel. It was around that time that interest in winter sports began to grow, and the surrounding mountains were explored in order to develop them as ski resorts. The first competitions took place on Cerro Otto, whose slopes reach the outskirts of the city.

Location and how to get there

The city is located on the southern shores of lake Nahuel Huapi, in the foothills of the Andes, in the province of Río Negro, Argentina. It is surrounded by three other lakes: Gutiérrez, Moreno and Mascardi, and by several hills and mountains, including Otto, Catedral and Campanario, which have lifts to the top.

The Centro Cívico (civic center) and the main city square are located at 41°08' S, 71°18'37" W, and at around 800 meters above sea level.

Several modes of transport arrive at the city, including domestic and international flights arriving at Bariloche Airport (IATA:BRC, ICAO:SAZS). By car, the city can be reached by national routes 23, 40 and 231.

Bariloche is 1640 km from Buenos Aires by road, which takes around 20 hours by car or bus, or around 2 hours by air.

Climate

Summer:

Warm and sunny days, cool nights and little rain. Due to the high latitude, daytime lasts until around 10:00 PM.

Autumn:

Cool days and cold nights. It rains often during this time of the year.

Winter:

Very cold days and nights, with plenty of rain and snow.

Spring:

Days begin to lengthen and rain becomes less frequent. The temperature begins to rise during the day, while the nights remains cool.

Facts

Language	Spanish English and other languages are spoken at many tourist attractions and shops.
Currency	Peso ($, ARS) The US dollar (USD) is accepted at most tourist attractions and shops. Banks and currency exchanges
Power grid	220 V, 50 Hz, type I and type C outlets.
Telephone	International prefix: 54 (Argentina) Area code: 294
Time Zone	UTC-3
Tourist seasons	High: January, February, July and August. Mid: March, April, September and December. Low: May, June, October and November.

Consulates

	Austria	Petorutti 262	4462600 15-4608984	E-mail
	Chile	Juan Manuel de Rosas 180	4423050 4431680	E-mail
	France	Las Vertientes 130	4441960 15-4508818	E-mail
	Germany	Morales 460	4425695	E-mail
	Hungary	Panque 12465	4461374	E-mail
	Italy	Francisco P. Moreno 234, Floor 3, Office 1	4522616	E-mail
	Romania	España 591, Floor 2, Office B	4427722
	Slovenia	Frey 246, Floor 5	4428169	E-mail
	Spain	Rolando 268, Floor 1	4422975	E-mail