This season, check out one of the most spectacular winter activities in Bariloche: Snow Festival. It coincides this year with the 4-day national holiday for Dia de la Bandera, or Flag Day. This means an even larger-than-normal crowd of both spectators and participants will gather in a plethora of competitions and events, and it celebrates a start to the immensely popular winter in Bariloche.

History of the National Snow Festival

The first festival took place in 1954 in Cerro Catedral, South America’s largest ski resort, and consisted of important cultural and sport events that typify the winter activities in Bariloche. 12 years later, the parade float was added to the festival, which is now a famous tradition that occurs each year. The desert retreat, snow sculpture competition, fox-hunting on skis, and several other contests were added that year. Throughout the 60s, the Bariloche Snow Festival events and popularity grew. More and more shows were added, such as international ski competition, folklore concerts, chocolate competitions, and the appointment of a Reina de la Nieve, or Snow Queen. [caption id="attachment_7312" align="aligncenter" width="640"]The Snow Queen Competition is a hugely popular event during the 2013 Snow Festival in Bariloche. The Snow Queen Competition is a hugely popular event during the 2013 Snow Festival in Bariloche. / source[/caption]

National Snow Festival 2015

This year, the Snow Festival in Bariloche will take place during the national Argentina holiday, Dia de la Bandera (Flag Day), so that tourists who come will be treated to a party that marks the start of winter.   “We want to transform the festival into a great start to the season, so that the tourists that arrive feel that the city is alive” said the Secretary of Tourism of Bariloche, Fabián Szewczuk. [caption id="attachment_7316" align="aligncenter" width="640"]Large crowds gather for the Bariloche Snow Festival each year. Large crowds gather for the Bariloche Snow Festival each year. / source[/caption] The Bariloche Snow Festival will begin on Wednesday, the 19th of June, and will feature several events throughout the weekend, such as the waitor’s race and logger contest just to name a few. On Friday there will be the light and fire shows taking place on the main stage at the base of Cerro Catedral. The festival will take place until Sunday, 23rd of June with musical performances and parade floats to close the event. [caption id="attachment_1135" align="aligncenter" width="640"]Snow Festival in Bariloche during the fireworks display. Snow Festival in Bariloche during the fireworks display. Source[/caption]

Planning Your Trip to Bariloche

Because the Snow Festival in Bariloche takes place during a long weekend, a huge amount of people from Buenos Aires and around the country will be traveling there. We suggest booking everything from transportation to hotels as soon as you can. And while you are there, check out other Bariloche tours of the beautiful city and landscape. Or, if you are travelling to other parts of the country during the holiday, check out our many tours and activities in Argentina. So bundle up and start enjoying some exciting winter activities in Bariloche! By: Alyse DiNapoli For: Argentina4u