Arelauquen Golf Club

Few golf settings in South America command the kind of raw scenery that greets players at Arelauquen Golf Club, positioned in the lake district outside Bariloche where the Patagonian Andes rise sharply from the shoreline of Lago Gutiérrez. The course sits within the Arelauquen private residential and resort community, a development that has made it one of the most prestigious addresses in Argentine golf — a members' and resort facility where the mountain backdrop is less a backdrop than a constant, almost distracting presence.

The layout moves through native lenga beech and coihue forest, with holes that open onto lake views before retreating into wooded corridors. Wind off the water is a recurring factor, and the dramatic elevation changes across the property mean that reading distances requires as much attention as reading lines. It plays as a genuine test without leaning on artificial difficulty.

Bariloche itself is Argentina's adventure tourism capital, drawing visitors year-round for skiing at Cerro Catedral in winter and hiking and water sports in summer. Golf here occupies the warmer months, and Arelauquen offers a rare combination — serious golf architecture set inside one of the continent's most spectacular natural landscapes.