For true dino-freaks, the best place to satiate the hunger for bones is the Centro Paleontológico Lago Barreales, located 90km northwest of Neuquén. It's not open to casual visitors, but if you have a serious interest in dinosaurs, you can get in touch in advance with bilingual project director and renowned paleontologist Jorge Calvo and arrange to pay for a visit to one of the world’s only fully functioning dinosaur-excavation sites open to the public.
The on-site museum is a treasure trove of dinosaur remains, from part of a skeleton of one of the world's largest sauropods and part of a jaw of the world's largest predator to dinosaur eggs, fossils and much more.
But the real pleasure comes from the unique opportunity offered by multiday visits. Under the supervision of Jorge Calvo, volunteers spend their days dusting off Cretaceous-period bones and picking at fossils, and nights in the silence of the desert.
Centro Paleontológico Lago Barreales is a little difficult to reach; contact the site for driving directions or possible transportation options (there are no buses to the site). If you drive, take RP 51, not RN 7.
