Activities in Central Argentina
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Cerro Aconcagua
Mendoza is famous for Cerro Aconcagua, the highest mountain in the Americas, but the majestic peak is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to climbing and mountaineering here. The nearby Cordón del Plata boasts several peaks topping out between 5000m and 6000m, and there are three important rock-climbing areas in the province: Los Arenales (near Tunuyán), El Salto (near Mendoza) and Chigüido (near Malargüe).
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Ampora Wine Tours
Ampora Wine Tours is a well-established operation that concentrates on midrange and top-end wines. It has tours leaving every day (sometimes two) to Luján de Cuyo and Maipú (AR$540) and the Uco valley (AR$600). Tours focus more on tasting than winemaking techniques.
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La Chacra
La Chacra offers horseback excursions lasting from a few hours to multiple days. Prices run about AR$90 for a half-day excursion and AR$450 for two days, including a full asado (barbeque) in the mountains.
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Cerro Aconcagua
Cerro Aconcagua is often called the 'roof of the Americas.' The volcanic summit of Aconcagua covers a base of uplifted marine sediments. Reaching the summit requires a commitment of at least 13 to 15 days, including acclimatization time; some climbers prefer the longer but more scenic, less crowded and more technical Polish Glacier Route. Potential climbers should acquire RJ Secor's climbing guide Aconcagua (Seattle, The Mountaineers, 1999).
The web page www.aconcagua.com.ar is also helpful. Remember you will need to purchase a permit and entrance into the park.
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Las Marianas
One of the prettiest wineries in the region, this one was built in 1922, abandoned in 1950 and reinstated in 1999. The main building is gorgeous, with thick adobe walls and a few examples of the original winemaking equipment lying around. The mountain views out over the vineyard are superb. If you’re coming by bus, catch the 16 (AR$1.30, 40 minutes) near the corner of Santa Fe and Mendoza in San Juan. Get off at the corner of Calle Aberastain and Calle Nuevo, where you’ll see a signpost to the winery (an 800m walk).
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Gran Hotel de Villavicencio
If you’ve ordered mineral water from any restaurant or cafe in Argentina, odds are you’ve ended up with a bottle of Villavicencio on your table. These springs are the source, and their spectacular mountain setting once hosted the prestigious thermal baths resort of the Gran Hotel de Villavicencio. Popular with the Argentine elite during the middle of the 20th century, the resort has been closed for more than a decade; promises have floated around for years that it would ‘soon’ reopen.
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Bus Turístico
If you're here during the summer months, get a route map of the city's Bus Turístico from the Garibaldi municipal tourist office and take in Mendoza's sights from a red double-decker. Good for 24 hours, the ticket allows you to board and reboard at any of several fixed stops throughout the city. The circuit begins at the corner of Garibaldi and Av San Martín, near the municipal tourist office, and goes as far as the summit of Cerro de la Gloria.
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Trout & Wine
Trout & Wine organizes custom-designed full-day tours of Luján de Cuyo (AR$540), Maipú (AR$600) and the Uco valley (AR$640). Maximum group size of six, also offering private tours across the border to Chilean wineries. From November to March it runs fly-fishing tours in the Valle de Uco for AR$920, including all gear and a barbecue lunch out in the highlands accompanied by – you guessed it – some very fine wines.
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Cavas de Zonda
The Cavas de Zonda is in a cave about 16km west of San Juan, via the RP 12, near the town of Zonda. This champagne-maker boasts having the only wine cellar in South America whose ‘roof is a mountain’ and, true or not, its temperatures are perfect for cellaring its excellent sparkling wines. And hey…it’s a darn good marketing tool. Bus 23 leaves the San Juan bus terminal from platform 20 six times daily.
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Volando Bajo
Volando Bajo is the most established of the plethora of tour operators in town. It offers tours to the nearby archaeological/paleontological park at Bajo de Veliz (half-day AR$80), and a trip combining the nature reserve, and Miradors de Sol and de los Condores (half-day AR$60). Tandem parasailing flights cost around AR$200 and last 20 to 30 minutes, depending on wind conditions.
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Viviendo Montañas
For guided hikes further into Cerro Wank mountains, as well as horseback riding (AR$60 for three hours), trout fishing and mountain biking, contact Viviendo Montañas, which has an office on the main road in town. The company can also take you trekking to the top of Cerro Champaquí (2790m), the highest peak in the sierras, for about AR$100 per person.
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Bodega La Rural
Winery tours here are fairly standard (and you probably have the idea by now) but the museum (admission free) is fascinating – there’s a huge range of winemaking equipment from over the years on display, including a grape press made from an entire cowskin. Tours in Spanish leave on the hour. If you want one in English, call ahead, or you can simply walk around on your own.
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Hacer Cumbre
Hacer Cumbre rents good-quality mountain bikes (AR$60 per day) and offers guided rides in the breathtaking countryside around Cerro Ongamina, which you can combine with trekking, horseback riding and 4WD offroading. Day trips, including transfers and food, start at AR$500 for two people and become significantly cheaper if you get a group together.
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Complejo Termal Cacheuta
This excellent, open-air thermal-baths complex is one of the best in the country, due to its variety of pools and dramatic setting on the side of a valley. Midweek is the best time to come as weekends get crowded with kids splashing around on the waterslide and in the wave pool and the air runs thick with the smoke from a thousand parrillas.
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Cabañas Doña Pipa
Cabañas Doña Pipa is home to Ramon Ossa, a Barreal native, who is a highly recommended mountain guide and excursion operator. He knows the cordillera intimately. He can arrange trips to Cerro El Mercedario, including mules and equipment. Another website to check is www.fortunaviajes.com.ar.
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Peñon del Aguila
PeñondelAguila is a theme park offering ‘alpine adventures.’ Rappelling, ziplining, a canopy boardwalk, nature trails and waterfalls are all in abundance, cheerfully guided by folks in Tirolese outfits. The whole show wraps up with a sunset song-and-dance spectacular paying homage to Gambrinus, the king of beer. We kid you not.
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Huentata
Huentata is one of several conventional travel agencies that organize trips in and around town. Among the possibilities are half-day tours of the city (AR$45), and day tours of the Cañon del Atuel (AR$140), Villavicencio (AR$70) or the high cordillera around Potrerillos, Vallecito and Uspallata (AR$110).
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Almacen del Sur
This working farm produces and exports gourmet deli goods that are grown and packed on the premises. Free tours of the production facilities are available. There’s also an excellent restaurant here, serving delicious set lunches (the more expensive ones come accompanied by local wines) in a leafy garden setting.
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Suter
Halfway between Fincas Andinas and San Rafael, Suter is a rather unromantic, modern affair, but a worthwhile stop for some discounted wine. For AR$150 you can set up a half-day tour, visiting the vineyards with an agronomist, tasting specialty wines and eating a big lunch in the vineyard.
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Catena Zapata
Catena Zapata is one of Argentina’s most esteemed wineries. Tours are fairly mundane but are conducted in English, German or Spanish. Tasting – if you put down the cash – can be educational indeed. Get there by taxi (cheaper if you catch a bus to Luján de Cuyo and grab one from there).
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Fabril Alto Verde
The Fabril Alto Verde is a big, state-of-the-art winery that sells 90% of its wine for export; tours here are in English or Spanish and come accompanied by a rather dreary promotional video. The award-winning organic brands Buenas Hondas and Touchstone are produced here.
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Bodega Escorihuela
Bodega Escorihuela, founded in 1884, is one of the country’s oldest wineries. It has an art gallery, a restaurant and a famous barrel from Nancy, France, with an impressive sculpture of Dionysus. Take bus ‘T’ from Mendoza’s Av Sarmiento at Av San Martín.
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Esquí Mendoza Competición
For standard ski and snowboard equipment rental, try Esquí Mendoza Competición, They charge AR$40 to AR$60 per day for a skis-boots-poles package and about AR$70 per day for a snowboard with boots.They rent out gloves, jackets and tire chains, as well.
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Argentina Rafting Expediciones
Located about 1km uphill from the ACA campground, Argentina Rafting Expediciones offers rafting and kayaking on the Río Mendoza. Trips range from a 5km, one-hour Class II float to a 50km, five-hour Class III-IV descent over two days (from AR$500).
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