I — Río Mate Lodge
A Private Hilltop Estancia
on the Río Negro.
Eight riverside double suites. 105 private hectares. Complete seclusion. The only lodge on the river.
The estancia
Set at the highest point overlooking Uruguay's Río Negro, Río Mate Lodge combines authentic estancia tradition with uncompromising privacy.
Elevation delivers space, silence, and views uninterrupted across river and open grassland. No crowds. Just you, the river, and open countryside stretching in every direction.
3.5 hour drive from either Buenos Aires or Montevideo. 30 minutes by private aircraft.
The Story
Some men are called by mountains. Some by the sea. The Fox brothers were called by rivers. They were wise enough to go.
Twenty-eight years ago, Oggie Fox walked out of a kitchen in Argentina and into something no kitchen could ever hold. He went south into Patagonia. Cold rivers, long days, country that doesn't suffer distraction. What he found there became Las Pampas Lodge: small groups, honest guiding, fires that burn long into the night.
It wasn't philosophy. It was instinct.
Two Brothers. Two Lodges. One Inheritance.
Oggie went south. Max went north. Both followed the same inheritance: not land or money, but a way of moving through wild places with attention and respect.
Las Pampas Lodge in Patagonia. Río Mate Lodge in Uruguay.
The same philosophy: that the land is the host, and we are guests. That the best guides are the ones who learned from someone who learned from someone. That small groups honor the experience in a way that scale never can. That a fire at the end of a hard day, among people who earned it, is one of the finest things available to human beings.
The Second Migration
Years passed. The rivers kept running. And Oggie's story didn't stay in Patagonia. It travelled back to the people closest to him.
Max Fox watched his brother leave for the wilderness and come back changed. Not broken. Clarified.
So Max followed. Not south this time, but north toward another frontier.
Uruguay.
Not the mountains this time. The great lowland rivers. The golden countryside stretching wide and unhurried under a Southern Hemisphere sky. A place where the dorado still holds the water like something it owns. All muscle, all fire, built to resist.
At dusk, clouds of dove and perdiz rise over the fields in numbers that feel borrowed from another century.
Seven years ago, Río Mate Lodge was born. Not invented, not built so much as recognized. A place that was always there, waiting for someone with the right eyes to see it.
02 — Eight riverside double suites
Your Private Sanctuary Above the Water.
Each suite captures the Río Negro from floor-to-ceiling windows, with a private deck that extends your living space into the landscape. Eight suites across 105 hectares means genuine privacy. The kind you feel, not just read about.
- Expansive private deck with unobstructed river views
- Year-round climate control
- Ensuite bathroom with locally-sourced stone
- Starlink connectivity
- Wood-burning fireplace with native hardwood
03 — Feel Uruguay
Where Uruguayan Tradition Meets Intentional Hospitality.
Río Mate Lodge centers around what matters: connection to landscape, authentic Uruguayan hospitality, and spaces that invite you to linger.
The Wrap-Around River Deck
Our signature feature. A continuous deck spans the entire river-facing side of the lodge, offering uninterrupted vistas from every angle. Sunrise coffee. Afternoon mate. Sunset cocktails. The deck moves with the light.
River-Facing Dining Room
Floor-to-ceiling windows frame the Río Negro while you dine. Meals are served when they're ready, at a table built for conversation.
Stone & Wood Living Salon
Local stone and native hardwoods create the lodge's centerpiece: a gathering space anchored by a commanding fireplace. Comfortable, unpretentious, designed for the way people actually relax.
The Asador
Our outdoor parrilla is where tradition happens. Wood-fired asados, estate-raised beef, time-honored technique.
Infinity Pool
Positioned to capture the river vista, the pool offers a different perspective on the same dramatic landscape. It reflects the sky the way the river does. Slowly. Honestly.
Also on property
Playroom & games room
International bar
Indoor parrilla
The table
Savor Uruguay's culinary soul.
Grass-fed beef from the campo, wood-fired over native hardwood. Handmade pasta draped in rich Salsa Caruso. The legendary Chajá dessert. Every meal is an expression of place. Ingredients sourced close, prepared with the pride of tradition.
As the sun melts into the river, join us deckside for handcrafted cocktails and the kind of stories that linger long after the day fades.
Evenings on the river deck
When the place shows its true character.
As the sun drops toward the wetlands, guests gather on the deck. The fire pit crackles to life. Cocktails appear. The infinity pool reflects the changing sky while the river stretches quiet below.
This is the rhythm of the lodge: unhurried conversation, the warmth of fire against cooling air, and that particular quality of light that exists only at this latitude, at this hour. Above, the southern sky reveals constellations impossible to see anywhere with ambient light.
Time stretches. Nobody checks their watch. This is when Río Mate Lodge feels most alive.
The team
The people who make a week here different from a week anywhere else.
Most of our staff has been with the lodge for over five years. Same head guide. Same chef. Same lodge manager. The continuity is the program.
Oggie
Founder, Host & Guide
Maxie
Founder, Host & Guide
Marcelo
Ops Manager & Host
Kito
Guide
Huevo
Guide
Juli
Guide
Getting here
The journey is part of the experience.
This corner of South America remains remarkably unspoiled. The drive in is part of understanding why.
From Buenos Aires
3.5 hours
Cross Argentina's legendary rivers, traverse the wild wetlands of Entre Ríos, and arrive via the majestic Río Uruguay into countryside that feels worlds away.
By Air
~30 minutes
Our private airstrip delivers you directly to the lodge. No transfers, no terminals, no waiting. Just wheels down, boots on, and the river already calling.
From Montevideo
3.5 hours
Rolling hills, colonial towns, open skies. Uruguay's unhurried interior unfolds gradually, easing you into a rhythm the modern world has largely forgotten.