Parry Smart Hotel

A small beachfront hotel with 16 rooms, Parry Smart Hotel suits you if the sea should be part of the view rather than a distant day trip. Direct access to Playa de Puerto Madryn lets you move between room, shore and indoor pool without turning a simple swim into an expedition.

The tone is practical rather than grand. Air conditioning, soundproofing, free WiFi throughout the hotel and daily housekeeping cover the useful parts of a diving stay, while sea views and balconies give you somewhere to look when the kit is put away. The hotel's website is available in English, Spanish and Portuguese.

You are in Puerto Madryn, Argentina, at Vesta 285 and directly on the beachfront. Playa de Puerto Madryn is a few steps away, so the coast is not something you have to schedule between breakfast and the day's plans.

For an outing into town, Welsh's Monument is about 1 mile away and Luis PiedraBuena Dock about 1.5 miles away. Restaurants sit close to the hotel, including La Aguada and Sara Beach at roughly 450 and 600 feet, with Frida about 950 feet away. Bonafide, Havanna and París are cafés around 1.2 to 1.4 miles from the property.

El Tehuelche Airport is about 5 miles away by road. Chacra El Refugio, a natural park, is roughly 10 miles away, while Parana beach is about 4.3 miles on foot or 5 miles by car.

The room choice is straightforward: take the king-bed double if you want a conventional couple's setup, or choose the twin arrangement when separate beds matter more than romance. Family rooms are available, and interconnected rooms give you a more workable layout when travelling with relatives rather than trying to make one compact room do everything.

Sea views are available, with balcony sea views as the more obvious choice if you expect to spend time looking out rather than simply sleeping. The rooms are compact, so the balcony option earns its keep as extra breathing space. Private bathrooms, showers, towels, toiletries and hairdryers cover the return from the beach or the day's excursions.

Air conditioning helps when you come back warm, while heating and soundproofing matter on cooler evenings or when you are ready for an early night. A wardrobe, clothes rack, flat-screen TV and a socket beside the bed keep things functional. Cots and extra beds are not available, so book around the existing beds rather than expecting the room to stretch.

Breakfast is included and served as a continental buffet. Juice and cheese are part of the spread, giving you something more useful than a lonely cup of coffee before heading out for the day.

There is no hotel restaurant or bar to build your evening around, so the local table is close at hand instead. La Aguada, Sara Beach and Frida are all within roughly 950 feet, keeping dinner pleasantly simple when you would rather not organise transport after a full day outside.

For coffee or something small between plans, Bonafide, Havanna and París are around 1.2 to 1.4 miles away. The hotel is therefore better suited to a breakfast-and-go routine with nearby places for later meals than to a stay built around all-inclusive dining.

The indoor pool is the main piece of downtime on site. It gives you somewhere to unwind when the weather turns or when the sensible plan is simply to stop moving for an hour; the pool is described as a space for relaxing rather than as a training facility.

The beach is directly accessible, and the hotel offers the setting for water-based outings such as kayaking, snorkelling and boat excursions. These are the sort of options that work well when you want time by the water without committing to another full day underground.

Wildlife excursions provide the stronger reason to stay a little longer. Whale watching, sea-lion watching, penguin watching and a 4x4 adventure are available, while cultural excursions and wildlife observation add alternatives for a non-diving day. Punta Loma is also associated with snorkelling or diving with sea lions.

Check-in runs from 15:00 to 21:00, and check-out from 07:00 to 10:00. Early check-in and late check-out can be requested, which is useful when transport refuses to arrange itself around your preferred sleep pattern.

An airport shuttle is available on request and carries an additional charge; arrange it with the hotel before travelling. El Tehuelche Airport is about 5 miles away. A further shuttle service is also available, with the details to be arranged directly with the property.

WiFi is free throughout the hotel and in the rooms. Cash is not accepted, and pets are not allowed. Upper floors are reached by stairs only, while non-smoking rooms, a safety deposit box and laptop safes are available for the practical bits of travel.