A deep economic crisis that Argentina is facing has obviously stricken the tourist industry, especially small and medium-sized enterprises. In a search for new attractions that may draw tourists, the local authorities of the Indian community in the province of Neuquen in the north of Patagonia in the Republic of Argentina have created an ambitious project on eco-tourism development called "International Neuken Towards the Third Millennium" or Neuken 2020. The Mapuce Indians, who make their living by extensive cattle breeding, wood collection and wood sales, are the most numerous group among the Indian communities in Neuquen. The growth of eco-tourism would certainly bring them economic prosperity, but there is an open question of whether this project is plausible, if we consider their inferior position in the regional and national inter-ethnic system.