Comodoro Rivadavia, commonly referred to as just Comodoro, is a port city situated on the Gulf of San Jorge in the southeast of Chubut province in Patagonia, some 1,600 km south of Buenos Aires. The city was originally founded in 1901 as sheep-exporting port, primarily for products from the town of Colonia Sarmiento some 130 km to the west. Many Boers, who were fleeing British rule in South Africa, and Welsh immigrants, were among Comodoro’s early settlers. However in 1907 when large reserves of petroleum were discovered, some of the largest in Argentina, Comodoro Rivadavia became the oil capital of Argentina.

The town has a few museums, including the Museo Nacional del Petroleo, some three kilometres north of the city, which details the history of oil in Argentina, how it was extracted and where it was discovered in Chubut province. There’s also an attractive old railway station that now houses the Museo Ferroportuario, which recounts the history of the railway between Sarmiento and Comodoro. And for a panoramic view of the town climb or drive to the top of Cerro Chenque. Some 20 km to the north of town is the small Museo Paleotologico ASTRA which has a variety of dinosaur and other fossils on display as well as a number of replicas. Some 12 km to the south is the small beach resort of Rada Tilly and its nearby sea-lion colony.