Argentina Travel Planet

Cuyo – Wine Country

The region of Cuyo, better known as the wine region of Argentina, is home to the provinces of Mendoza, San Luis, San Juan, and La Rioja, and is most popular for its agro-tourism, wineries, and vineyards, and rich history and culture.

The area is a mix of wineries, red tinted flat land, and mountainous regions, making the region as diverse in its climate as in its tourism activities. The lower areas see beautiful summers and semi-rainy winters, with temperatures that do not fall below 5C.  However, the mountain regions see cool summer temperatures, ideal for hiking, and bitter cold temperatures during the winter months, making the area a snow-filled skiing paradise.

Argentina is the world’s 5th largest producer of wines, exporting wines to countries all over the world, and the Cuyo region is where it all happens. This region produces large amounts of fruits and vegetables, exported nationally and internationally, and of course used to make the region’s diverse selections of wine flavours. The city of Mendoza is particularly famous for its many wineries, scattered in and outside of the city, producing 70% of wine consumed in Argentina, and exporting its red and white wines internationally.

Cuyo is also known as the outdoors enthusiasts dream place in Argentina. The region’s wineries, mountains, rivers, dams, and reservoirs, create a myriad of activities that entertain thousands of visitors who come to take advantage of them ever year.  The mountain Aconcagua and Tupungato, located in the Andes, make for a challenging hike, only available to professional hikers. The mountain slopes of Las Lenas and Los Penitentes are two major ski slopes that attract thousands of Argentines and international visitors every year to come try out their skiing skills. The beautiful green flat lands, and lower lying mountains offer activities such as mountain biking, paragliding, hiking, horseback riding, rafting, and 4×4 adventures, and the region’s large reservoirs are perfect for sport fishing.

Mendoza
The beautiful city of Mendoza, famous for its wineries, vineyards, and yearly wine festivals, gives its visitors the chance to combine culture with wine in the most endearing way.  This city is home to almost 140,000 people, and is absolutely stunning to the eye featuring tree-lined avenues and streets, quaint restaurants, social plazas, gorgeous historical architecture, and people who are as kind as they are hospitable. One of the best times to visit Mendoza is in February-March, when the wine festival takes place and the local mountains and parks are in the fall season, perfect climate for exploring.

San Luis
This little town, on the way between Buenos Aires and Mendoza, makes for a quiet little rest stop where one can meet some friendly locals and wander down its shady streets or grab a drink at a local café. The town is also a good point to checkout the Parque Nacional Sierra de las Quijadas, a 15,000 hectare national park, or canyons and dry lake beds, and wildlife from the region.

San Juan
The small town of San Juan, most famous in Argentina for the site of a major earthquake that shook the whole town, has since been perfectly rebuilt and is now another major producer of wine in the region of Cuyo. One of the major activities in San Juan, besides visiting a few of the wineries, is Sierra de Tontal, a mountain perfect for hiking and mountain climbing or rafting down one of the local rivers.

San Rafael
This town of 100,000 people, also near a few good wineries, is characterized in Argentina as the town of bicycles, where almost everyone in town gets around my bicycle.  This relaxing and care-free form of transportation adds to the already care-free vibe in the area, making San Rafael the perfect spot to relax and spend a few days tasting wine, eating regional food, and wandering down its many cobblestone and tree-lined streets.

La Rioja
The capital city of La Rioja province, La Rioja sits in the most spectacular setting, surrounded by the gorgeous mountain peaks of the Sierra de Velasco. The city itself has a few good restaurants, hotels, and plaza’s, and features daily markets that offer a wide range of regional goods and a few fun festivals throughout the year that bring in people from the region.

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