Top 5 Places to Visit in Argentina...in 2 weeks

Did the bossman only grant you 10 days off, even after you begged and pleaded for more? Not to worry, that's plenty of time to soak in the best of what Argentina has to offer. Keep in mind that you will have to jet-set a few times, but planned in advance, this should still be affordable. Check out LAN if you have status with United or Aerolineas Argentinas if you have status with Delta. Either of these can offer multi-segment flight passes throughout the country (or continent).

The trickiest part could be deciding when to go. If you're from the midwest US, that's easy. Go during the most brutal part of the winter...January-March, as you will be met with the opposite: Argentina's summer. If you're single, why no skip over Valentine's Day altogether and treat yourself with a mid-February getaway. Hate the same lame New Year's Eve scene? This is your chance to start the new year right...overseas!

So let's get to it...

 

1. Buenos Aires 
You will likely find the cheapest round-trip airfares in and out of Buenos Aires, Argentina's capital city. This is one of the best first places to go in South America, hands down. It has a very European style, with an easy transportation system within the city, and for the most part, is clean and safe for a large city. There are museums, walking tours of historical sites, as well as a huge selection of restaurants and bars. Visit the cemetery where Evita was buried, take some tango lessons, and enjoy some delicious steak and wine!

2. Punte del Este, Uruguay
Day 3 take a ferry and bus ride to Punte del Este, Uruguay. Although it's not actually Argentina, it's such a quick and easy day trip, that you might as well add another stamp to the passport while you are in the area. Be sure to see the infamous fingers coming up through the sand and this is your chance to eat some sushi instead of steak. As a resort, this will be one of the priciest areas, meaning drinks will be the same price as back in the states. You don't need much more than a full day here, so make the most of the beautiful beach scene.



3. Ushuaia
Day 5 take the bus and ferry back to Buenos Aires, where you will fly to Ushuaia (pronounced 'posh-why-ah'). It will be a bumpy landing into a tiny airport, but it will be worthwhile as you are surrounded by beautiful mountains at what is referred to as the end of the world, or the southern most point before Antarctica. Bring your raincoat, as storms are likely to pop up at a moment's notice, as you can't see them coming in over the mountains until it's too late! If you decide at this point to quit your job, or if you just happen to have an extra 2 weeks, why not check out a last minute deal to Antarctica? Ushuaia is the port town for these cruises, so at the very least, take a boat tour to see penguins or other sea birds and lions. Seeing them in their natural habitat beats any day at the zoo back home. Hike around town or at the nearby national park, then grab a brew at a local pub...and stay out until the sun goes down...which could be about 11pm in January!



4. El Calafate/El Chalten
Day 8 flight to El Calafate, then take a bus to El Chalten, the base town for Mount Fitz Roy. El Chalten is about like any other really small mountain town in Colorado or Alaska...even the majority of the other travelers are probably from there as well. Eat some good grub and drink some great brews while hearing others tell you which hiking trails to take the next day. If you have the time and the equipment (or are able to rent), pitch a tent at the base of Mt. Fitz Roy and enjoy the beauty of the true Patagonia for a few days.
Day 10 head back to El Calafate and spend the night there. This is a bit bigger city with more locals, but the next morning you will head out the Los Glaciares National Park, where you will witness one of the world's largest glaciers come crashing in front of your eyes. Plan to spend the entire day there if you wish to take a cruise up to the glacier, or even hike on it.



5. Mendoza
Day 12 fly out of El Calafate to Mendoza, more popularly known as Malbec wine country. There are plenty of wine tours to choose from, or you can be adventurous and take a city bus to Maipu and rent bikes from bodega to bodega...some even offer olive oil tastings as well. This is the last stop so that you can load up your bag with wine to take home to remember the experience! (If you can get it through customs!)

Malbecs and backpackers

We left the bottom of the world and flew to El Calafate, from there took a 4hr bus to El Chalten...a backpacker town of 600, just outside Mt. Fitz Roy, an icon of Argentina. This place felt even more like Colorado, probably because of all the American backpackers in full gear. For our one full day there, we hiked around the mountain...super cold and windy at the top, then toasty warm back in town. That night we headed back to El Calafate. Such great food in both of these towns...think local, some vegetarian, and microbreweries. This hostel had a great view of the mountains, it's a shame we couldn't stay longer. The next morning with a few hours to spare before our flight, we hired a driver and drove to the big glacier park. We saw huge pieces slide off the glacier walls and crash with sounds of thunder into the lake. Best part was that we had the park to ourselves since we arrived much earlier than the tour buses.







That afternoon we flew off to Mendoza, stopping first at Buenos Aires. The BA airport looked very familiar, and we soon realized that we had landed at the wrong airport! We rushed past baggage claim to talk to someone in the office, who told us there was a bus waiting to drive us to the correct airport in town. Then we realized we'd need to grab our checked bags. Thankfully the security is more lenient here and Jess got through without a proper flight ticket and got our bags. We loaded up the bus and away we went to AEP!

Pow! Thump thump thump...went our bus as I yelped a bit. We got a flat! Needless to say, our flight took off without us but we were able to take the next flight. The wine would be waiting! And this was really just the first hiccup of the trip.



Travel books say that you'll know you're in wine country as soon as you arrive in Mendoza, but I didn't feel it until we were a 45min bus ride away in Maipu, on rented old cruiser bikes. It was a scorching 100degrees and I wasn't sure how wines could grow in such a desert! But they do. Thankfully we sampled some chilled Savignon Blancs and Torrentes white wines besides just the typical Malbec.



We rode to 4 bodegas/wineries over about 5 miles, then our last stop was a beer garden where we met fellow Coloradans and English speaking new amigos. Then again, I'm not sure we heard/saw any Spanish speaking visitors at the wineries anyway.



We ate our first tacos of the trip that night. You'd think tacos would be more popular, but I guess that's a tex-mex thing. I've definitely had my share of pizza and ham and meats here! Enough for the year I think...good thing there's wine to counteract the cholesterol, and some fruit street vendors.

We left Mendoza via a 14 hour bus ride, nervously sitting behind a young couple with a baby. We dreaded the worst, but it was fine. Along the drive, the bus attendant had us play bingo. Hilarious!...thankfully Jess translates numbers well. What was even funnier apparently were the jokes the attendant told and we laughed at our cluelessness.

Back in BA, and now that Jess has extended his trip a few days, we've decided to take a bus trip south a few hours to Pinimar for a couple nights stay. We must have bad luck with buses because this one had a tire problem as well, delaying us 30min or so.

Funny how people here don't seem to mind, or realize that complaining wont get them anywhere like it does in the states. Not sure if either side is better, but I think we can learn from each other. Be patient yet stand firm for your rights.

So two more days on the beach, two more in BA then I'm back in denver for two days. Definitely looking forward to getting my fix of cool temps and snowboarding til I hit up round two of travels! Driving past all these lush fields is getting me excited for farming in denver this summer too!