Recommended portal for a first visit: paved access, any vehicle
Close to the towns of Loreto, San Miguel and Caa Catí.
167 km from Corrientes via RP5 and RN118, or 220 km via RN12 and the RN118 junction. Then 16 km of gravel road to Puerto San Antonio.
The portal has a camping area. There is no shop, so bring your own supplies and essentials.
Activities: kayaking, birdwatching, hiking on foot and by vehicle, photo safari and a visit to artisans in the village of Loreto.
How to get there
Any vehicle can make it. It is the most accessible portal in the Gran Parque Iberá.
What to do
- 🚣 Kayaking
- 🦜 Birdwatching
- 🥾 Hiking
- 🚗 Vehicle safari
- 📸 Photo safari
- 🌙 Night hiking
- 🏺 Visit to artisans
What to see in Loreto
- ⛪ Nuestra Señora de Loreto Parish
- 🕍 Home chapels
- 🗺️ Founders' Walk and Murals
- 🌿 Loreto Porá circuit
- 🤠 Gaucho Teodoro Fruto trail
- 🏛️ Sacred Art Museum
- 🎨 Mario Bofill Museum
- 🏊 Municipal bathing area
- 🌾 Yaguacua Reserve
Wildlife you will see
- Capybara
- Marsh Deer
- Southern Screamer
- 300+ bird species
- Grassland wildlife
- Riverside wildlife
- Wetland wildlife
Where to sleep and eat
Loreto (best option), San Miguel and Caa Catí. See lodgings in the Services section.
Loreto (the nearest village): at least 4 eateries with traditional Corrientes dishes. Chipá, sandwiches, pizzas and empanadas to go.
Featured places to stay
- Iberá Birding Lodge
A house with two rooms for up to four people, specializing in birdwatching and photo safari. It includes exclusive access to the hide over the lagoon: a camouflaged platform centimeters from the water for bird photography and observation in unique conditions.★ 5.0 - Estancia San Juan Poriahú
Historic estancia in Loreto, with a traditional main house and fields running onto the wetlands. Horseback rides, criollo cooking and genuine gaucho life in the Iberá.★ 5.0 - Esteros del Iberá Lodge
Two 50 m² cabins on a beautiful lagoon. Local construction with a thatched roof and native wood. A private deck with a direct view of the water, free-roaming wildlife all around and unique Iberá sunsets.★ 5.0 - Loreto Guest House Yayetopa
Alojamiento en Loreto con atención personalizada. Habitación doble (simple o matrimonial) $75.000 y triple $120.000 por noche.★ 5.0 - Posada de las Huellas
Cozy inn in Loreto, an ideal base for the San Antonio portal.★ 4.8 - Hospedaje Nderoga
Lodging with a Guaraní spirit in Loreto. "Nderoga" means "your home".★ 4.8
Best time to visit
All year round. Peak in autumn and spring. Ideal stargazing from May to August.
The Estero Bola wetland, which borders the portal, has a stargazing area with almost no light pollution. The guided outings combine telescopes with the Guaraní worldview on the constellations.
The portal in photos
Portal San Antonio: the most accessible Iberá in every sense
San Antonio is the portal usually recommended for a first visit to the Iberá, and there are several reasons for that. Access is along RN 5 to San Miguel and then 16 km of well-maintained gravel: any car can make it, even in moderate rain. The Complejo Turístico Aventura Iberá has a canteen with capacity for 100 to 150 people, a camping area with covered BBQ areas and showers, and an interpretation centre. The Jopará providers' association keeps an up-to-date register of local guides that can be checked before arriving. It is the most logistically organised portal after Carlos Pellegrini.
What sets it apart from Pellegrini is scale: San Antonio receives fewer visitors, the groups on excursions are smaller, and the experience is more intimate. The portal is especially valued for birdwatching: the Strange-tailed Tyrant, the Saffron-cowled Blackbird, the Black-and-white Monjita and the capuchino corona gris are frequent records in the area. Local guides know the best spots to photograph these threatened birds, which few places in the country let you see so easily.
The portal also has an astrotourism area over the Estero Bola, with almost no light pollution. The guided night outings combine telescopes with stories in Guaraní about the constellations. The town of Loreto, 16 km away, has dining, quality lodging such as Estancia San Juan Poriahú, and attractions of its own: the Nuestra Señora de Loreto parish church, the municipal bathing spot and the mural circuit.
How to organise your visit to Portal San Antonio
The essential step before arriving is to contact the Loreto Tourist Information Office, or the Jopará association, to get the contacts of the providers active that season. The portal's guides have to be booked ahead: there is no turn-up-and-go excursion system as in Carlos Pellegrini. Once that is arranged the logistics are simple. Accommodation in Loreto or at the establishments inside the portal is affordable, and the recommended length of visit is two to three nights.
Other portals of the Iberá
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