Luxury Vacations in Argentina

Argentina’s southern tip is the launching point for many an Antarctic adventure, but if Ushuaia, capital of Tierra del Fuego, is the end of the world, it’s also a gateway to Argentina’s breathtaking wild frontiers, including Patagonia’s Los Glaciares National Park and the hikers’ paradise of El Chaltén. The north, meanwhile, is home to its own natural wonders, from the Missoni-striped mountains of Serranía de Hornocal to the infinite high-altitude horizons of the Salinas Grandes salt flat and the epic waterfalls of Iguazú.

In this land of vast open spaces, ice fields and glaciers melt into glassy lakes and wildlife-rich wetlands, home to otter, wolf and caiman. Sommeliers lead wine safaris in Mendoza, while “asadors”, masters of the art of cooking on an open grill, make you see barbecuing in a whole new light. In the barrios of Buenos Aires, midnight milongas – impromptu tango dances – erupt with electric energy, fuelled by strong espresso from a 160-year-old café and even stronger nightcaps from a 1930s bar. Saddle up in the Pampas grasslands of Cordoba: cowboy country. Equestrian prowess is a key part of the culture here, from the horse-whispering gauchos to the world-dominating polo players. Argentina is a country of contradictions – fire and ice, desert and vineyard – its allure intense and irresistible.