The largest of all Patagonian towns, with a population of 130,000, COMODORO RIVADAVIA is not a place you're likely to want to stay for longer than the time it takes to make your bus connection. Originally founded as a port to service the livestock industry, the town's fortunes were altered dramatically by the discovery of oil here in 1907, found accidentally whilst drilling for water. Recession has bitten deep in recent years, and hopes for an upturn now lie with the Bioceanic Corridor , 570km of upgraded road linking the town with the Pacific Ocean, at Puerto Aisén in Chile. This will be used to truck containers across the continent, thus obviating the need for slow ship passages around the Horn.

The centre of Comodoro, the microcentro , is sandwiched between the San Jorge Gulf and the bald, khaki-coloured ridge of Cerro Chenque (Tomb Hill), and virtually everything you need can be found in these few blocks. The best way of killing spare time is to visit the Museo del Petróleo (mid-March to mid-Dec Tues-Fri 8am-6pm, Sat & Sun 2-6pm; mid-Dec to mid-March Tues-Sun 8am-1pm & 6-9pm; $3.50) in the main northern suburb, Barrio Géneral Mosconi (take bus #6, #7 or #8 from the terminal). The ticket also gives free entrance to the Museo Paleontológico 20km north of town (Sat & Sun 2-6pm; Linea Astra from the terminal), but the collection here is not nearly as impressive as the one at Trelew. Otherwise, visit the resort town of Rada Tilly , 15km to the south, which has several kilometres of beach and is popular with the locals.