MENDOZA & THE ANDES


MENDOZA: THE PROVINCE
Its vast calm and varied lands, the purifying contrast among its green oasis, the penetratinv strength of its deep rivers, the sounds of silence on its plains, and the pleasure caused by an ever-seeing horizon cuut by the imposing highest mountains in America make Mendoza´s visitor an insatiable conqueror.

Millions of years ago, most of this province lay under the sea water. However, when the Spanish arrived in the middle of the sixteenth century, these lands, exhibiting mild continental half-dry climate conditions were inhabited by three native groups: Incas, Puelces and Huarpes, the lastest represented the greatest in number.

Nowadays, Mendoza (148.827 km2 and 1.474.961 inhabitants), the land that sheltered San Martin during the heroic deeds to free Argentina, Chile and Perú at the bebinning of the nineteenth century, is worldwide known for its economic activities, such as agriculture, mining, tourism, industry, and cattle raising, among others.

Its quiet cities and towns embellished by the drains carrying water from the mountains, its citizens hospitality and the beauty of a unique landscape that allows you to see far, beyond will raise your wish to come back to Mendoza.

MENDOZA: THE CITY
Mendoza city main features lie on its wide clean sidewalks view, its citizens hospitality, its leafy trees, its squares and parades, its low-buildings, and its quiet road traffic. All these conditions lead you to feel far from a big city, due to the lack of crowds, noise and pollution within a big city lung.

The capital city (110.447 inhabitants, 750 metres above sea level and 54 km2) is the commercial and administrative center of Mendoza, which offers a wide range of cultural events through its museums, universities, churches, art galleries, theatres, congresses and conventions.

The city, founded on March 2, 1561 by Pedro del Castillo, makes up the area called Great Mendoza (982.449 inhabitants) together with Las Heras, Guaymallén, and Godoy Cruz neighbor districts.

MENDOZA: THE HISTORICAL AREA
This historical area develops around Pedro del Castillo square (Plaza Pedro del Castillo), where the first stone of the city was set, place which was built down by the earthquake that hit the area in 1861.

In front of this square, in the Foundation Area Museum (Museo del Area Fundacional), on which there used to be the old Council building, you will find archeological excavations, the sculpture modules path and other components of Mendoza´s History, escorted by professional guides.

On the square corner, you will find the San Francisco Ruins (Ruinas de San Francisco), a church build in the seventeenth century that belonged to the Jesuits order until 1767, and from then on to the Franciscan one.

It was in this church where the Flag of the Andesw Army was first blessed and sworn.

MENDOZA: THE CIVIC CENTER
The wooded sides on Pedro Molina Avenue gather the Civic Park (Parque Cívico), Emilio Civit Convention and Exhibition Center (Centro de Congresos y Exposiciones Governador Emilio Civit), where you may visit the Wine Museum (Enoteca Museo del Vino), the Customs Office (Aduana), the Judiciary ()Poder Judicial) anbd the Governor´s House (Casa de Gobierno de Mendoza) on its ground floor, the Flag Room exhibits the emblem San Martín´s army bore at the expedition to free Chile.

Nearby, you may visit the Municipal Palace (Palacio Municipal), whose terrace, at 30 meters high, offer you the possibility to view the surrounding area through a 50 km distance viewfinder.

MENDOZA: SHOPPING TOUR
Mendoza is the ideal city to match walds and shops: wide sidewalks, intense commercial activity in an extensive number of shops concentrated in an area, galleries and excellent customer service make it so.

Thus, you may walk along Sarmiento pedestrian way, San Martín, Las Heras and Godoy Cruz avenues or the adjoining streets to meet you needs, from regional goods to fashinable ones. If you are interested in the regional products do not forget to visit the Central Market (Mercado Central).

Besides, have a rest and benefit from our sidewalk bars and restaurants and get into San Martin, Passageway (Pasaje San Martín) to delight yourself by looking at its roof.

Some minutes away from the center of the city you reach the most important shopping malls: Mendoza P laza Shopping and Palmares Open Mall, which offer an extensive range of goods, bars and restaurants in a fancy and safe scenery. Both malls aoffer the lastest released movies and the highest technology.

MENDOZA: THE SAN MARTIN PARK
Going to the west on Emilio Civit avenue, one of the most beautiful avenues on the city, you reach the imposing early-twentieth century French gates, that welcome tou to the 419 hectares Jose Francisco de San Martín Park. Designed by Carlos Thays in 1897, this city lung has more than 50.000 trees from 700 different species, a big lake and Regattas Club on its shore, water fountains, and a great rose garden with at least 500 types for visitor to deligh in. Besides, on the so-called La Olla depression lies the Islas Malvinas Stadium, one of the Stadiums where the 1978 World Cup was played. At the end of this park, you may visit the Zoo, with more than 700 autochthonous and exotic species, this Zoo is well-known for the high quality environments where the anomals are kept. At the top of the hill Cerro de la Gloria, a natural viewpoint of the area and the city, the monument to the Andes Army was build by Juan Ferrari, and Uruguayan artist. From that point, at night you can look at the city as drawn by the roads lights. Behind the hill, you will find the Frank Romero Day Greek Theatre, big enough for 21.686 people, where our traditional grape harvest party is held.

MENDOZA BY NIGHT
Mendoza offers an extensive diining opportunity including typical food from this region and national cuisine, supplemented by an excellent customer service, which leads you to feel at home, it you feel comfortable there. You may also choose Italian, Spanish or Arabian food , among others.

The bars, pubs, restaurants and discos are located either in the center of the city (Aristides street or Sarmiento street) or in Chacras de Coria, the best place to enjoy night life before being delighted by dawn.

If you feel like gambling, Mendoza city offers you two options in Casinos: Regency, on Espejo and 25 de Mayo, and Provincial, on San Martin avenue and Irigoyen Street corner. Also, have a look at theatre boards to know about plays and shows in the city.

A STREET TO MEET IN MENDOZA
All week long, when crossing the obsolete rails on Belgrano Avenue, you reach a place to relax and clear your mind from daily activities: Aristides Villanueva Street.

When walking up and down this road, you will find lots of pubs and restaurants, which place their tables on the sidewalk to let you enjoy the beautiful city nights.

When the night starts and the Spring weather make you feel like continuing your day, Aristides Villanueva with its lights is the meeting point within the city. Here, you may visit restaurants and bars with pleasant atmosphere.

EXCURSIONS FROM MENDOZA CITY

HIGH LAND: THE ANDES
In Mendoza, you are constantly surprised by its great landscapes, including the road to the high lands: The Andes.

Along the highway, you will cross Cacheuta thermal water center of international fame, at 1200 meters above sea level, and Potrerillos to reach to Uspallata. In the so called town, which used to be a military town , you can visit the vaults (peculiar structures with dome-like roof from the eighteenth century) This valley served as natural stage for the movie: Siete Años en el Tibet (Seven Years on Tibet)

Further up, you will cross the Colonial bridge (Puente Colonial), over Picheuta river, to delight at Tambillos with the Incas Ruins. When reaching Punta de V acas as an introduction to what you will see, have a look at the Tupungato Volcano (6800 meters high).

Along the highway to the Andes mountain range (Cordillera de los Andes), you will reach Penitentes ski center. Ten kilometers further, you will be able to admire the Bridge of Inca (Puente del Inca), an ochre calcareous structure over Las Cuevas river, with thermal water springs. The resort commercially in charge of these springs was built down by an avalanche in 1965.

On your way to the mountains range, you arrie at the Argentina Customs Office (Aduana Argentina) and the road to Aconcagua Park (Parque Provincial Aconcagua), where you should stop and enjoy the view of the Aconcagua Mount (6959 meters high).

Should you continue driving on the highway, before crossing the International Tunnel (Túnel Internacional). To get into Chilean territory, you will reach Las Cuevas, the furthest Argentine town at 3151 meters above sea level.

THE ACONCAGUA MOUNT: ACONCAGUA PROVINCIAL PARK
Once of the many argentina wonders is the Mount Aconcagua (6959 mts), protected by the not less impressing Aconcagua Park. Travelling by the hearth of the mountains greatness means understanding how trivial the man is in this world.

The Horcones Lake (Laguna de los Horcones) composed by 75.000 hectares, is the door to the natural reserve where the "Stone Sentinel" is held. Because of the aggressive weather conditions in the mountains, the begetation and animals are scarce and summer is the best season to visit this wonderful place.

POTRERILLOS
Close to the capital city, Potrerillos will invite you to practive activities so different as relax and adventure. Allocation includes campingroudns, cottages and hotels. Here, adventure activities are available all year long: rafting, horse riding, trekking, mountain bike, and so on.

Nearby, you may visit El Salto and Las Vegas Villages, The Potrerillos Dam (Dique Potrerillos) enlarges the options to enjoy even more the place. Here you may take the road to Vallecitos Ski Center.

VILLAVICENCIO
Encourage yourself to spend half a day to go along a 57-kilometre-way that takes you to the magic Villavicencio Area, named after the Captain who discovered it about 300 years ago. Within a breathtaking frame with frondose vegetation you may view a beautiful hotel opened in 1940 but not in activity nowadays and its paths joining gardens and resting stops, all of which will lead you to go back in time.

Some kilometers away, you will reach the modern mineral water facilities, where therapeutic and healing water from the heart of the Andes is served.

After Villavicencio Area, you may go along the former road to Uspallata, a breathtaking 365-turning road called Snail Road (Camino del Caracol), from which you may view the Tunduqueral hill (Cerro Tunduqueral) exhibiting 1000 year old petroglyphes.

On your way from the hotel to Uspallata, make a stop at El Balcón (The Balcony)

LAVALLE: THE MENDOZA´S DESERT
Heading North into Mendoza, you will reach Lavalle desert (32.007 inhabitants) to feel the real dryness of this area, in which water is as precious as it is for the Bedouins in the Sahara.

Even though on you way from Villa Tulumaya (capital city of Lavalle), to Costa de Araujo, the route 34 takes you through a beautiful oasis, route 142 gets into Los Altos Limpios, the amazing driest landscape in Mendoza made up by outstanding 20-metre-high sand dunes.

At Bosque Telteca, a natural reserve, you may enjoy seeing the one-hundred-year old autochthonous trees, specially the mangroves watering from the subterranean drawing cords. Within other tourist attractiopns of this area, we should mention an old chapel in San José town, and twenty kilometres far from it Laguna del Rosario, which is visited by thousands of devout people to celebrate Nuestra Señora del Rosario de las Laguas Feast, in October.

You should taste typical food from the region, such as Chivo Asado (roasted goat), chilondrón and empanada criolla (Argentina meat pie).

MENDOZA: THE CENTRAL AREA
The quiet region known as Valle del Uco is made up by the cities of Tupungato, Tunuyán, and San Carlos. The main characteristics of this area lays on its lack of big urban centres, the beauty of its landscapes on the mountains foot and the feeloing of taking full advantage of the natura and its fresh air.

Heading West on route 40, you will visit its main attractions takeing roads full of wineries, crafts from the region, and fielsds spread with grapes, olives, fruits, and vegetables. Either to accommodate or just to eat hotels, hosteries, cottages, camps, restaurants, and grill houses are available for you to taste reginal flavours.

We suggest you to forget about worrisome every day matterws and enjoy those landscapes full of history whether you choose horse riding (even Los Andes cross), agrotourism, mountain climbing, picture taking safaris, trekking, mountain bike, parapente, alaeltismod or fishing (such as Arco Iris Trout fishing at Laguna del Diamante).

Tupungato, 28.420 inhabitants. Its name comes from a Quechua expression meaning "Stars observation terrace". One of its main attractins is the 70 thousand hectare Provincial Park, which is called Cerro Tupungato (6800 mts), to which you reach riding a mule through Las Tunas ravine. You should also visit Glaciar Sur (South Glacier), a 200 metre glacial wall and the Reserva Natural del Cóndor (Natural Reserve for Condors) and Nuestra Señora del Socorro Church.

Tunuyán, 42.277 inhabitans, a Mapuche expression meaning "Thundering land". Here you may visit El Manzano Histórico, place where San Martín was received back from Perú, and Manantiales, designed as the fourth ski centre in Mendoza.

San Carlos (27.353 inhabitants). If you are travelling from December to February, you should visit Laguna del Diamante (The Diamong Lagoon), 3300 metres above sea level on the foot of Maipo Volcano, 5223 mts, which offers you outstanding landscapes as web as a wide range of sports to practice. Once in the city, you may visit El Fuerte de San Carlos (San Carlos Fort) (1770), near which San Martín received support from Ñacuñán on his heroic deeds. You may also enjoy visiting the city museum.

DAY 1 - Arrival to Mendoza Airport and transfer to hotel. 03 nts of accommodation with breakfast

DAY 2 - Wineries Tour

DAY 3 - Excursion to enjoy the High Andes and the Aconcagua Mount

DAY 4 - Transfer to airport

This is a basic program to visit Salta and the Andes area. Please visit our tour list to see more tours combining this area and others place in Argentina and Chile

See More Tours | Request Price |

RIPIO TURISMO - Incoming Tour Operator Argentina & Chile- Leg. 10.687 Secretaría de Turismo de la Nación Argentina.
info@ripioturismo.com.ar

Ripio Turismo Website: www.ripioturismo.com.ar
Argentina-Guide.com.ar is a website of Ripio Turismo EVT - www.argentina-guide.com.ar

Design & General Idea: Nuevas Ideas© Consultora Turística - 1999-2005