Buenos Aires Iguazu Falls Ushuaia Calafate Bariloche Mendoza
A comprehensive sweep through Argentina’s classic highlights. From cosmopolitan Buenos Aires, the journey takes you up to the steamy subtropical forest surrounding Iguazú before plunging you into the depths of Patagonia. Highlights include the thunderous Iguazú Falls, the Perito Moreno Glacier, the Lake District’s Seven Lakes Drive and culminates with a relaxing stay at picturesque vineyard overlooking the Andes.
Itinerary Highlights
What’s included
flexibility
This is an example itinerary. It is fully flexible; you can add or detract days and include hotels at your chosen budget. It departs daily.
16
Nights
Price Guide
$00 – $00 pp
Our quotes are bespoke for your customised trip. The prices displayed are indicative only, read more
Fly to Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires – the Paris of the Americas!
On arrival into Buenos Aires, you will be met and driven to your charming boutique hotel. Here, you will have the chance to get over your lag before and explore the classic highlights – from the colourful streets of la Boca and San Telmo to the wide leafy avenues of elegant Recoleta and the iconic Pink Palace. Further afield, you may like to take a boat through the Tigre Delta or even across to the colonial gem of Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay or spend a day at traditional estancia in the surrounding pampas grasslands. Either way, why not round off your stay with a time-honoured Tango Show and dinner or even an evening with a local family preparing a classic Argentine feast.
The Magnificent Iguazu Falls
Fly north to Puerto Iguazu on the border with Brazil and Paraguay, home to the natural wonder of the Iguazu Falls, a booming explosion of water, colour and energy all shrouded in tropical rainforest. You will visit the falls from both sides of the border exploring the stunning viewpoints and trails that crisscross the forest above and below the cataracts. For thrill-seekers, there are exciting boat trips up to (and under) the waterfalls as well as scenic helicopter rides and a host of eco-adventures. The surrounding “interior Atlantic rainforest” teems with wildlife, especially birds while further afield, you may to like to visit the historic Jesuit missions of San Ignacio Mini.
Ushuaia – the ends of the earth
Bid farewell to Iguazu and fly south to Ushuaia, an historic port overlooking the famous Beagle Channel set against the dramatic backdrop of the Martial Mountains. Prior to the Panama Canal, Ushuaia was the gateway from the Atlantic to the Pacific and you may like to follow in the steps of the explorers with a cruise along the channel visiting historic estancias and penguin or sea-lion sanctuaries. Heading west, you can walk, paddle and explore the Tierra del Fuego National Park or even take a ride on the “Train to the end of the world” built by the convicts in the early 1900’s.
Calafate and the Perito Moreno Glacier
Fly north to Calafate at the heart of the Argentina’s Los Glaciares National Park home and visit another of Argentina’s natural wonders – the jaw-dropping Perito Moreno Glacier, the world’s largest (and only advancing glacier) outside of the poles. Trailheads lead to breathtaking panoramic viewpoints overlooking the ice complimented by scenic boat-trips, ice-hikes or even visits to local estancias. Heading deeper into the channels that surround Patagonia’s icefield, you can visit the Spegazzini, Onelli and Upsala Glaciers or even the remote Estancia Cristina and enjoy an incredible walk through the “fossil valley”.
Bariloche & Northern Patagonia
Fly north to Bariloche surrounded by the picture-postcard lakes, forests and volcanoes of the Nahuel Huapi National Park. Adventure capital of Argentina, Bariloche offers wonderful walking, biking, paddling and rafting as well as scenic drives through the “Enchanted Valley” or better still, along the “Seven Lakes Route” to San Martin de los Andes. Out on the lake, you can enjoy beautiful boat-trips to hidden waterfalls and isolated islands under the soaring Andes while heading south past Mascardi and Gutierrez Lakes, you can visit the “black” glacier of Tronador Volcano.
Mendoza & Malbec!
Fly north to Mendoza, skirting Argentina’s central Andes, for some well-deserved R&R at a boutique winery. Mendoza sits under the shadow of Mount Aconcagua, a mecca for walkers and climbers alike, but above all, this is wine country, home to world class cuisine accompanied by Argentina’s iconic malbec. Here you can do as little or as much as you like – tour the boutique wineries, enjoy the incredible views or head into the mountains.
Fly home
A note on price
The prices outlined above are a rough guide to give you an idea of costs and enable you to budget for your trip.
Guide prices are generally for private arrangements based on twin share, in well located, good quality accommodation (excluding international flights).
Please note costs are indicative and may vary due to a number of factors such as; travel date, hotel choice, room category, number of people travelling and prevailing exchange rates.
Price Guide $00 – $00 per person
When to travel
Argentina’s weather is as diverse as the country’s landscapes. In the far south, temperatures reach the high teens during the spring and summer months of November to March (best time to visit) though can drop close to zero at night. Due to its latitude, days are long – 16 hours of light in December which contrasts with around 8 hours in mid-winter when temperatures run close to zero during the day and sub-zero at night. Heading north, the Lake District follows a similar pattern though is warmer over 20° in the summer and wettest in March/April though with beautiful autumnal colours. Buenos Aires and central Argentina enjoys a warm Mediterranean climate with annual highs of 30° while the subtropical north is very hot and sticky with tempestuous downpours during the summer months – Iguazu Falls are particularly impressive in January in February though often the sheer volume of water and surrounding mist shroud the view.
Add on’s
No trip to Patagonia is complete without a visit to Chile’s Torres del Paine just across the border from el Calafate or via a breathtaking cruise from Ushuaia through the Patagonian Fjords past Cape Horn. The Torres del Paine is South America’s most spectacular national park and offers wonderful walking and scenic drives amidst towering granite peaks, turquoise lakes and rich native wildlife. There is a good choice of accommodation from luxurious lodges to rustic tented camps while for walkers the classic W circuit takes some beating.
North of Buenos Aires, Salta and the highlands offers something completely different – breathtaking canyons, rock formations, vineyards and salt-lakes all under the soaring, snow-capped peaks of the Andes.
For the ultimate destination, why not include a trip to Antarctica? Cruises leave from Ushuaia at the tip of Argentina and offer spectacular wildlife, towering ice-bergs and jagged peaks.
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