HELP-- Argentina in March
 

My husband and I are planning our first trip to Argentina in March. We have 12 days.
I am thinking 3-4 days in Buenos Aires, 2 days/1 night in Iguazu Falls (I love waterfalls), but I am unsure as to our last destination.
I am deciding between El Calafate and the Salta area. I know they are very different.
We have been to Alaska-- are the glaciers near El Calafate more of the same or different? We do love the outdoors. Thanks so much!

There are now direct flights between Salta and Iguazu so that would seem to make more sense in the time you have available. For El Calfate, I think you would have to transit via BA). 6-7 days in Salta would enable you to rent a car and drive a circuit of the North west - Salta, cafayate, huamahaca, purmamarca, cachi etc. Stunning scenery, great food and some wonderful vineyards. Do check the weather at that time of year though.

Some photos and more info of our trip from 2008 @ http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog...ai/1/tpod.html we loved it so much we went back in 2013.

Haven't been to El Calafate bit it is high on my list we just never seem to be in South America at the "right " time - I believe March is an ideal time of year.

Something to consider vis-à-vis the falls: Most of the iconic photos you may have seen were taken from the Brazilian side of the park from which you can see across the river to the vista of falls on the Argentine side. It is IMO an integral part of the whole experience. The interesting Bird Park is also on the Brazilian side. To get there, you have to enter Brazil, for which US and some other passport holders need a visa. Right now, appointments to apply for a visa are undoubtedly backed up because of Carnaval in February 2016, but it wouldn't hurt to try to make an appointment online (check when the form expires,, how many days) or at least keep an eye on the lead times. Depending on which Brazilian Consulate has jurisdiction over where you live, the process may differ slightly and have a slightly different time frame.

I agree with crellston to go to the NW -- it's very interesting and scenically lovely. Logisticaly its easier as he pointed out. Fly directly from IF to Salta. I preferred it to El Calafate which is also nice.

I didn't go to the Brazilian side of IF for several reasons, one being we didn't want to pay the visa for a few hours looking at the falls. they are pretty spectacular from the ARG side.
Our TRs describes our time in the NW.
http://www.fodors.com/community/sout...of-arg-pt1.cfm
http://www.fodors.com/community/sout...g-cafayate.cfm

Somewhere in this TR we report on another trip including El calafate. Havent been to Alaska so can't compare for you, but they were pretty spactacular in el califate. We were there in March and had nice weather.
http://www.fodors.com/community/sout...-chile-arg.cfm

Hello! I am from Argentina and I've been to all the places. I tell you some words of each place:

BA: Most of the people stay between 3-4 days. It is fine if you are visiting other places in the country. Nowadays there are local walking tours that you can take, so in 1 day you get to know the most important parts of the city. Then you have 2 days more to go to museums and learn about porteños life. The website of the free tours is: www.buenosairesfreewalks.com

IGUAZU: amazing. it's impressive. Brazilian and Argentinian sides are wonderful. The national park is beautiful and there are a lot of activities you can take.

CALAFATE: I always recommend to stay just 1 day in the city to see Perito Moreno Glaciar. It's lovely. You also can do a trekking in the glaciar and a navigation to see others glaciar that are further. If you like hiking, there is a town, 4-hour drive from Calafate, that is called Chalten. This is the trekking capital of argentina beacause you have plenty of trails to do and it's a must in Patagonia.

SALTA: here you have a different landscape and you are going to experience another type of trip. From the city you can reach different towns (Cafayate). Also if you have time you can go to Jujuy, not the capital but the towns that are in the province (humahuaca, purmamarca,tilcara,iruya). If you go to the north part of the country make sure that you visit a Peña (places to eat argentinian meals and listen to argentinian folk music).

Have a nice trip!! Let me know if you want more details!

bookmarking. Gracias a todos.