Tucumán Sights

  1. Casa de la Independencia

    Unitarist lawyers and clerics (Federalists boycotted the meeting) declared Argentina's independence from Spain on July 9, 1816, in the dazzlingly whitewashed late-colonial Casa de la Independencia. Portraits of the signatories line the walls of the room where the declaration was signed, the only actual original part of the structure - the rest has been rebuilt. There's plenty of information in Spanish on the lead-up to these seismic events, but you can also get a guided tour (free) in English.

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  2. Casa del Obispo Colombres

    In the center of Parque 9 de Julio (formerly Bishop Colombres' El Bajo plantation), 18th-century Casa del Obispo Colombres is a museum dedicated to the sugar industry, which the active cleric (an important figure in the independence movement whose promotion to Bishop of Salta arrived in the post a couple of hours after his death at 81) effectively set up. At time of research a costly renovation was almost complete, so there'll likely be an admission charge levied on re-opening.

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  3. Casa Padilla

    Alongside the Casa de Gobierno, this partly restored mid-19th-century house first belonged to provincial governor José Frías (1792-1874), then to his son-in-law, the mayor Ángel Padilla - and to his son after that. A display of European art and period furniture make up the collection housed in the museum.

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  4. Cathedral

    Tucumán's neoclassical cathedral is a handsome presence on Plaza Independencia, and has a Doric facade with a pediment depicting the Exodus. Curiously, Moses is receiving bunches of grapes in the desert; a reference to the fertility of Tucumán's surrounding area. The interior has a petite wooden choir, cheerily alive ceiling paintings, and a canvas of the Annunciation behind the altar.

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  5. Museo Folclórico Manuel Belgrano

    Occupying a colonial house, pleasant Museo Folclórico Manuel Belgrano features a good collection of horse gear, indigenous musical instruments and weavings, Toba wood carvings, Quilmes pottery and samples of randa (an intricate lace resembling Paraguayan ñandutí ) from Monteros, 53km south of Tucumán. Some items are for sale.

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  6. San José de Lules

    Until 1767, San José de Lules was a Jesuit reducción (Indian settlement created by Spanish missionaries) among the region's Lule Indians. After the Jesuits' expulsion, the Dominicans assumed control of the complex - their ruins, which date from the 1880s, once served as a school. The small museum has replicas of colonial documents and a plethora of busts of various Argentine independence heroes.

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  7. Termas de Río Hondo

    Termas de Río Hondo's main attraction is its thermal springs, and even the most basic accommodation has hot mineral baths. Very much a destination for Argentine tourists, Río Hondo is not as interesting for international visitors. That said, you'll be comfortable in the off-season with bargain-basement prices, as competition between hotels is hot.

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