Recommendations for Mendoza and Salta?

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We visited Argentina in April/May 2014 and our Argentine friends helped plan our itinerary, which included BA, Montevideo, Sacramento de la Colonia, and Salta (the province and the city). We very highly recommend Salta.

BA is a must and is worth several days.

Uruguay is very nice, but probably not worth the time or ferry ride fare, unless you have other reasons to visit. We were visiting our friends' ranch, so no regrets. Otherwise we would have spent those 2-3 days going to Igauzu Falls.

On our friends' advice, we chose the Salta region over Mendoza for several reasons. Both have vineyards and wineries to visit. However Salta offers much more: geology (Quebrada de las Conchas, Quebrada de las Flechas, Los Cardones National Park, Quebrada de los Laureles, etc.); old colonial towns (Cafayate, Cachi); diversity (more natives in the local population, food influences) and culture (MAAM: Museum of High Altitude Archeology).

Although we took a private tour with guide and driver, we saw many young backpackers in the Salta region. Note that while the distances are short the roads are rough and travel times are indeed long, even in a private car. We did Salta / Cafayate / Cachi / Salta in 4 rushed days. A week would do it justice and accommodate slower travel options.

Final notes: Argentina is a good place to go on a budget. It is a meat lover's paradise and their meat is superb. Vegetarians beware. They haven't heard of vegans.

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Don't overdo it. Distances are long and getting from one place to the next is tiring. Even if you fly each leg, why make it so action packed you can't fully enjoy your trip?

Montevideo is nearby, but also, really, Buenos Aires' little brother.

Colonia del Sacramento is also nearby and is cute, if a bit too popular with tourists, perhaps.

Mendoza is mildly interesting as a city, though the nearby wine country is pleasant, if quite touristy.

Cordoba is said (I have not been) a very pleasant town and heavy on culture. You can get there by train from BA, but they are often booked out far in advance.

Iguazu Falls is gorgeous.

So, plenty of options, but it really depends on where your interests are. Buenos Aires alone has enough to offer to keep you busy for two weeks.

(A tip on the side, bring USD and change them at the 'blue rate', the black market under a nicer name, where you'll get about 50% extra for your dollars.)

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I second MastaBaba in that you should take your dollars and change them at the 'blue rate'.

You can do Salta and Jujuy in two weeks at a very comfortable pace but should you choose to do north-west of Argentina, it is best enjoyed by car. Luckily, a small European car would do.

The following suggestions are for the north-west, and with a car. Taking the bus is such a waste of time.

Depending where you start, you could spend a night or two in Tafi del Valle, and on your way to Cafayate, you can do the Pachamama museum. It's lovely to see the local culture. From there and on the same day, you could do Ruinas de Quilmes.

Cafayate is a wine region. A place where you can stay for two or three days. You can do a wine tour go for a stroll to the nearby vineyards.

On your way up to Salta city, you can do Quebrada de las conchas. A beautiful scenic drive to Salta, with impressive rock formations.

In Salta, there is the High Altitude Archaeology museum. It's creepy and at the same time, impressive.

In Jujuy, you can do Purmamarca and Cerro de los 7 colores and drive to the salt planes. The salt planes are ideal for taking silly photos.

If you go there, take food with you as there are no shops. one point it's 4000m above sea levels.

You can also do Tilcara, which is a sleepy little town with a few walks to nearby falls and there are ruins of an old native settlement.

You can also go to Iruya (I didn't quite like Iruya) but from Iruya you can do a two day (round) walk to San Juan. A town in the middle of the andes accessible only by foot. There is no electricity, tv or telephone reception. I would recommend that.

It would help if you have some grasp of Spanish.

If you want to treat yourself, Hotel Termas de reyes is a nice break from backpacking. It's very affordable as well.

If you choose to drive, be very careful. Local drivers are careless.

If you choose to do Cordoba, the city centre is nice and cultural (the rest, I'm not sure) after that you can do Valle de Punilla (La cumbrecita). There are many options. but Salta and Jujuy have more impressive landscapes.

I hope that helps.

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