Where to stay in Pilar to go fishing: hotels, guesthouses and fishing guides

Pilar is the capital of Ñeembucú: it sits on the left bank of the Paraguay River, south of Asunción, with the Argentine province of Formosa on the other side. The catch here is surubí catfish, golden dorado, pacú and boga, and at Easter the town hosts an international fishing tournament that reached its 55th edition in 2026. This note brings together what each hotel and guesthouse in the guide publishes for anglers: who sets up the trip on the river, who has parking, who is open at all hours, and the guides with boats. What we did not find in what these hotels publish (distance to the port, a freezer, room for a trailer) comes at the end, as questions.

Fishing in Pilar: species, seasons, the tournament and the closed season

Season and technique for dorado, surubí and boga, according to the guide:

• Golden dorado: year round outside the closed season; best from March to May and from August to October. Technique: spinning with lures, fly and trolling.
• Surubí: year round (outside the closed season); from June to September it holds in the deep pools. Technique: live bait in deep pools, night drifting.
• Boga: year round (outside the closed season). Technique: corn and dough baits, light tackle.

At Easter the Torneo Int. de Pesca Semana Santa is held. For the 2026 edition, ABC Color reported that the town's hotels were full and that many competitors and their families had to find lodging in other districts of the department. Because the tournament is tied to Easter week, the date changes every year: if you are going to compete, book as soon as you know it. At Colonia Mburicá (Tacuaras) the Torneo de la Corvina y Mburifest is held: the ninth edition of the tournament was scheduled for 16 March 2025. The full calendar is in the note on fishing tournaments in Paraguay.

The other date that matters is the closed season. At Pilar the Paraguay River has Argentina on the other bank, so the rule for waters shared with Argentina applies. The 2026/27 one, set by MADES Resolution 511/2026, runs from November 2 to December 21 (50 days). There is no sport fishing on those days, hotel booked or not. MADES sets the exact dates each year: licence, closed season and sizes.

Hotels in Pilar that set up your fishing trip

Las Hortensias Hotel Boutique describes itself on its website as the first and only boutique hotel in Pilar. Among its packages it offers sport fishing with a boat, a local river guide and bait, eight hours of fishing, with information and bookings at reception or by WhatsApp. It has 20 rooms and suites around a patio with galleries, a garden and a pool, the Humaitá restaurant, which serves continental breakfasts, and Don Luis Bistró. Rates, on the website, are on request.

Casa del Río is a family-run guesthouse in the old town, on Mariscal Estigarribia street, and according to its listing it offers fishing trips to its guests.

In both cases, ask what the trip includes (fuel, how many anglers per boat, whether the guide comes aboard) before you commit. How to compare fishing packages: what a package includes and what is left out.

Parking and breakfast: Hotel Vera, Pilar Plaza and Mburukuja Poty

• Hotel Vera, at the corner of Curupayty and Ayolas: buffet breakfast, wifi, a restaurant and parking.
• Pilar Plaza Hotel, on Avenida Irala between Tacuary and Alberzoni: breakfast included and private parking.
• Posada Mburukuja Poty, on Teniente Mendoza: the stay includes breakfast, wifi and parking, and there is a heated pool and a quincho with a grill. It sleeps up to 80.

Arriving before dawn: Hotel El Paisano, on Route IV

Hotel El Paisano is on Route IV (now the PY04), across from the América field. It has rooms with private bathrooms, parking inside the grounds and a restaurant serving Paraguayan food, and according to its Facebook page it is open around the clock, which helps if you arrive before dawn. On that page it bills itself as the first hotel in Pilar. If you are towing a boat, ask whether the trailer fits on the grounds.

More hotels in town: Las Garzas, Monumental and Malian

• Hotel Las Garzas Ñeembucú: a hotel open every day; the municipality's list puts it on Roberto Cabañas, between Irala and Antequera.
• Hotel Monumental: on Avenida Irala, by Tacuary, with two locations.
• Hotel Restaurant Malian: a hotel with a restaurant on Avenida Irala, between Tacuary and Alberdi.

If you arrive at night: according to the list published by the municipality of Pilar (updated for 2024 and 2025), Las Hortensias Hotel Boutique, Pilar Plaza Hotel, Hotel Monumental (the one listed as Monumental I), Hotel Las Garzas Ñeembucú, Hotel Restaurant Malian, Posada Mburukuja Poty and Casa del Río are open 24 hours. The same list includes other hotels, hostels and guesthouses that are not in this guide, with address and phone number; the link is in the sources at the foot of this note.

If Pilar is full: Posada La Terraza is in Humaitá, on the Paraguay River between Paso de Patria and Pilar, and Paso de Patria, on the Paraná, has more guesthouses: fishing the confluence. Hotels and guesthouses in every area: accommodation.

Fishing guides in Pilar

Pilar has its own guides' association: the Asociación de Guías Turismo de Pesca de Pilar runs boat fishing and river trips on the Paraguay, the Paraná and the Tebicuary, with fishing gear and safety equipment. The municipality publishes the list of its members with each phone number, and all of them have a listing in this guide:

• Aldo Pérez: a 115 HP boat for 4 people.
• Luis Martínez: a 90 HP boat for 4 people, plus fishing tackle for sale.
• Jorge Manuel Cáceres: two boats, 115 and 70 HP, for 4 and 3 people.
• David Vargas: two boats, 100 and 115 HP.
• For family members who do not fish: the boat trips run by Leocadio Guillén (up to 45 people) and Ramón Quintana, paseos en lancha.

Fabián Penayo - Guía de pesca, a local guide in the area, also has a listing, and so does Leocadio Guillén, who besides the boat trips is a fishing guide: Leocadio Guillén - Guía de pesca. Rates are agreed with each guide: ask where the boat leaves from, whether they pick you up, and whether fuel and bait are extra. More guides, area by area: fishing guides.

For a day off the water: Federico Vázquez, guía de turismo, with a bicycle tour of the town listed by the municipality.

Tackle shop and licence in Pilar

To complete your gear, Ayolas Pesca y Camping, the fishing and camping store from Ayolas, has a branch in Pilar, and Luis Martínez, from the guides' association, also sells fishing tackle. The MADES fishing licence is mandatory and can be obtained online through SIAM, at the head office in Asunción or at a regional office, and there is one in Pilar. How to get it: the licence step by step.

How to get to Pilar

• By car from Asunción: on the PY19, which links Pilar with Alberdi and Villeta, or on the PY04, which comes from San Ignacio Guazú, in Misiones.
• By bus: the Ciudad de Pilar company runs from Asunción every day along the PY19, and Ñeembucú Monday to Friday; there is also a service between Pilar and Ciudad del Este, via Encarnación, three times a week. Times and phone numbers are on the municipality's list.
• From Argentina: the municipality lists boats and an international ferry that cross to Colonia Cano, on the Argentine side, Monday to Saturday.
• From Brazil: documents, licence, closed season and where to cross are in the guide for Brazilian anglers.

If you bring your own boat: for Pilar the guide lists the port, with the gauge where Paraguay's meteorology and hydrology office measures the river, but no public ramp, so ask locally before launching (river access). To check the river before heading out: today's river levels.

What to ask before booking

• Is the parking enclosed? Will a pickup with a boat trailer fit?
• Do you have a freezer or ice for the fish? (What you can take home has minimum sizes and, for foreign anglers, a trophy limit: licence, closed season and sizes.)
• From what time is breakfast served, if you head out before sunrise?
• How many blocks is it to the port, or to wherever the guide leaves from?
• Do you arrange the fishing trip or pass on a guide's contact? What is included: boat, fuel, bait?
• If the date falls in the closed season, what happens to the booking?

Frequently asked questions