Argentina

Argentina is a land of vast distances, from subtropical rainforest in the north to the glaciers of Patagonia. Buenos Aires is its passionate capital: the belle-époque palaces and broad avenues of Recoleta, tango, unhurried cafés and the parrilla, where asado, the country’s celebrated beef, meets a glass of red wine.

Beneath the snow-capped Andes, Mendoza is the heart of wine country: the vineyards of the Uco Valley and Luján de Cuyo, intimate wineries and the Malbec that made Argentina famous. On the border with Brazil, the Iguazú Falls thunder through subtropical forest. Bariloche, on Lake Nahuel Huapi, is the gateway to the lakes, forests and mountains of northern Patagonia, while El Calafate on Lago Argentino leads to the glaciers of Los Glaciares National Park, Perito Moreno among them. Out on the estancias, gaucho tradition lives on.

The seasons are the reverse of Europe’s. Patagonian lodges are at their best, and often only open, in the southern spring and summer, roughly October to April. Mendoza’s harvest falls in late summer and autumn, roughly February to April, and Buenos Aires is loveliest in spring and autumn. Argentina suits food and wine lovers, hikers, photographers, honeymooners and anyone planning a multi-stop journey.