60 Best Sights in Wine Regions, Argentina

A steep, bumpy ascent off of Ruta 7 leads to a stunning view of the Andes and a large statue of Christ that was erected to mark the end of the war between Chile and Argentina. Made from melted weaponry when peace was declared in 1902, it’s poised right on the border at an altitude of 4,206 meters (13,800 feet). At the top there's a food truck serving coffee and local sweet bites. The gravel path is not for the faint-hearted, but can just about be done in a hired car; the drive up from the road takes half an hour.  Bring a jacket!

Brothers Hector and Pablo Durigutti worked for various bodegas for many years before finally setting roots in Las Compuertas. Take a guided visit, with a strong focus on terroir, at this new complex located on Finca Victoria, which includes a winery, visitors’ center, and 5 Suelos restaurant, led by renowned chef Patricia Courtois. There are two vineyard cottages available to rent on the estate.

Grapes from this spotless winery are grown organically, and the wine and espumosos are stabilized without preservatives or additives. They are made in small quantities, and a great deal of care and control go into the production. Take a short 40-minute guided tour before sampling some of their wares (350 pesos) or upgrade to a paired tasting (1,600 pesos).

Built by Eugenio Bustos in 1890, this winery flourished under his daughter Celia's leadership, producing an excellent Malbec. Today it’s owned by a Chilean company that has invested in the latest technology. Tastings, traditional lunches, and tours of the winery and experimental garden are available with advance booking. In season, pruning and harvesting programs are offered in the vineyard as well. There is a rustic posada on-site for anyone interested in spending the night.

Federico Gimenez-Riili or his father are often available to show you around this family-owned boutique operation and offer you a taste of their wines straight from the barrel. If you want to stay for lunch, enjoy the paired tasting menu accompanied by fantastic Andean vistas.  There's also a seven-room guesthouse for overnight stays.

One of the country's oldest wineries, Goyenechea was founded in 1868 by a Basque immigrant family that had the foresight to build not only a solid brick winery, but also 60 houses for the working families, a school for their children, a repair shop, and a chapel. As you pass through the arched caves where wine ages in bottles, you can see the piletas, huge concrete vats that held 8,976 gallons of wine when the industry was focused on quantity, not quality. Family members often lead tours, which are free in Spanish; ask ahead for prices in English.

Mendoza has no shortage of heladerías (ice cream shops) ranging from artisan producers to national chains. It's a favorite pastime of locals to sit down to a few scoops, at any time of the day or night. Try local flavors, including wine ice creams, at Soppelsa (on Belgrano and Civit), Perin (on Sarmiento and Belgrano), Michel (on Belgrano and Montevideo), and Bianco & Nero (on Aristides and Belgrano).

The Swiss-French brothers who own this winery produce a limited quantity of quality wines from their own grapes. Guided tours of the spotless facility include crushing, fermentation, and tasting areas.

This modest winery is home to one of Argentina's best-known winemakers, Roberto de la Mota, and quality, not quantity, is the mantra. Informal tours of the unassuming 85-year-old adobe building highlight the loving care grapes receive—from handpicking to hand-crushing to storage.

The same family has been cultivating vines at this finca (estate) since 1897, but it wasn't until the 1990s they started producing varietals, including Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, and Syrah. A visit offers three experiences, including a tour of the winery and a taste of its modern portfolio to a picnic in the lovely garden.

This modest house was the birthplace of Domingo Faustino Sarmiento (1811–88), known to Argentines as the Father of Education. Sarmiento was a prolific writer, a skilled diplomat, and a successful politician who served as president from 1869 to 1874. Casa Natal de Sarmiento—Argentina’s first designated National Historic Landmark—pays tribute to his achievements and gives an overview of Argentine history during his era.

On the site of the original cabildo (town hall), the Foundation Museum explains the region's social and historical development. Of note is the display of a mummified child found on Aconcagua, with photos of his burial treasures. Excavations, made visible by a glass-covered viewing area, reveal layers of pre-Hispanic and Spanish remains.

Home of former governor and senator Emilio Civit, this 26-bedroom 1873 mansion was the gathering place of the Belle Epoque elite. Today it's the Museum of the Cuyo's Past with paintings, antiques, history books, and artifacts from Argentina's War of Independence on display.

White adobe walls, tile roofs, flower-bed-lined walkways, and huge shade trees welcome you to this historic bodega. Visits typically include a winery tour and either a wine tasting or a chocolate-and-wine pairing. You can also opt for a 2-km (1-mile) horseback ride to a hilltop for a view of the mountains and vineyards. Most activities finish with an asado lunch at the bodega.

Dating back to 1896, this 971-acre park has more than 50,000 trees from all over the world. Fifteen km (9 miles) of paths meander through it. You can stop and smell the roses (a dedicated garden contains hundreds of varieties), observe aquatic competitions from the rowing club's balcony restaurant, or set the kids free on the numerous playgrounds. Scenes of the 1817 Andes crossing by José de San Martín and his army during the campaign to liberate Argentina are depicted on a monument atop Cerro de la Gloria (Glory Hill), a steep 20-minute walk up from the park's center. The stadium here (built for the 1978 World Cup, which Argentina won) hosts popular soccer matches; the amphitheater (capacity 22,500) fills to the brim during Vendimia, the annual wine-harvest festival; and there are markets and open aerobics classes on the weekend.

In Mendoza's main square you can sit on a bench in the shade of a sycamore tree and watch children playing in the fountains, browse the stands at the daily artisan fair, or stroll past the historic Plaza Hotel (now the Park Hyatt) on your way to the shops and outdoor cafés on pedestrian-only Calle Sarmiento, which bisects the square.

Spanning the Río Cuevas, Puente del Inca is a natural rock bridge that was formed over thousands of years. The abandoned hotel below is a more recent addition, built in the 1920s to accommodate guests who came to soak in the therapeutic hot springs here. Both are now covered in bright yellow sulfur deposits, giving the surreal site an eerie appeal. An artisan market sells unusual souvenirs like healing stones and sulfur-coated bottles or shoes.

Two brothers from one of the most iconic wine families in Mendoza—the Pulentas—started their own premium winery in 2002. The attractive, modern facility runs excellent tours and tastings (including a fantastic Cabernet Franc) and also offers a sensory aroma class.

Twenty-two km (14 miles) south of Barreal on Ruta 412 toward Uspallata, a dirt road turns off into Reserva Natural El Leoncito (Little Lion Natural Reserve), a vast, rocky area with little vegetation. You can continue on this road for 17 km (11 miles) to the CASLEO observatory ( www.casleo.conicet.gov.ar), known for its exceptional stargazing.

Near the turnoff, on the western side of Ruta 412 at Pampa Leoncito, the sport of carrovelismo (land-sailing) is practiced during summer months in wheeled sand cars called wind yachts that can travel up to 150 kph (93 mph) across a cracked-clay lake bed.

An all-day drive (160 km/100 miles round-trip) in a 4X4 to Las Hornillas at 3,300 meters (9,500 feet) takes you along the Río Los Patos into a red rock–walled canyon. The road narrows, clinging to the canyon walls, as it winds around closed curves, eventually opening into a small valley where, in 1817, General San Martín's troops gathered before crossing the Andes over Los Patos Pass on one of his historic liberation campaigns.

A brief glimpse of Aconcagua looming in solitary splendor about 160 km (100 miles) south is a preview of coming attractions: four peaks over 6,000 meters (20,000 feet) tall are visible in the Ramada Range to the northwest: Polaco, Alma Negra, La Ramada, and Mercaderio. The last of these—rising to 6,770 meters (22,211 feet)—is the fourth highest peak in the Americas. As the road winds ever higher, herds of guanacos graze on the steep slopes, pumas prowl in the bush, and condors soar above.

This winery is known not just for its stylish wines, but its plentiful lunch—six courses of a delectable seasonal tasting menu created by chef Lucas Bustos are paired with predominantly red wines. Vertical tastings of different vintages and wine blending sessions are also on offer in the modern winery.

Spanish wine group Codorniú constructed their Argentine winery in the pirca style of the Huarpe natives, by piling stones one atop the other. The end result is both practical (it helps keep the winery naturally cool) and visually arresting. A highlight is the panoramic view from the terrace over the vineyards and mountains, where you can have lunch at their restaurant. In summer, enjoy sunsets over the mountains with a glass of something special.

This organic and biodynamic vineyard and winery is a new and hip addition to this elevated corner of Tupungato, given that the winemaker in charge is one of Argentina's best, Matías Michelini of Passionate Wine. The family leads the bodega's exclusive, twice-monthly, full-moon and new-moon communal dinners that focus on local ingredients paired with his wines.

Off-beat and contemporary describes not only the wine style of the Michelini brothers, but also SuperUco, their boutique winery in The Vines' renowned Winemakers Village. In between the biodynamic vines, the winery rises up like a cement crown. Enjoy a pour of the family's different wine labels that range from steely Sauvignon Blanc and juicy Bonarda to skin-contact wines and hand-riddled sparkling wine; alternatively book in for a paired lunch. Reserve ahead for a BBQ lunch.

In 1897, the Suter family journeyed to Argentina from Switzerland and planted the first Pinot Blanco variety in the country. Today, the fourth generation of the family continues to produce good value white wines, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, and sparkling wine. A winery tour leads you through a labyrinth of underground caves filled with huge oak casks—used more to evoke atmosphere than to store wine.

Bare brick walls, high ceilings, and a labyrinth of soaring arches shelter premium wines in stainless-steel tanks and oak barrels in this restored 1898 winery. Everything in the tasting room—from the bar to the tables to the leather chairs—is made with recycled barrels. The restaurant serves a well-paired tasting menu. You can also take a cooking class with the chef, and, if you're too full to drive anywhere, stay at Terrazas' guest house.

Making hundreds of small labels for different private estate owners, The Vines of Mendoza offers an educative tasting in Tunuyán where you'll learn about the art of blending and working in microlots.

Fifteen km (9 miles) west of San Juan, this huge hydroelectric complex—also known as the Ullum Valley Dam Reservoir—offers grand views of the Río San Juan. Windsurfing, sailing, swimming, rowing, fishing, and diving keep San Juaninos cool on hot summer days. You can rent boating equipment just beyond the dam, where you'll also find a café and change cabins. There's a public beach at the Embarcadero turnoff. You can go white-water rafting and kayaking on the San Juan, Los Patos, and Jachal rivers. Fly fishing, mostly for trout, in Las Hornillas River can be arranged through local tour companies.

This route heads west on R13 and then RN7 (also known as the Panamerican Highway) and takes you straight into the mountains. You'll go from vineyards to barren hills until you reach the Potrerillos Valley, then head farther west on R7 into the heart of the Andes. This was a major Inca route, so keep your eyes peeled for Inca tambos. You'll pass the Puente del Inca ancient thermal springs and the ruins of a spa from the 1920s. This is the only route between Chile and Argentina for miles and miles, so if you're self-driving, be ready to share the road with cargo trucks.

Bianchi is the largest of San Rafael's wineries, receiving more than 100,000 visitors per year to its lush, garden setting, which is just a little over 5 km (3 miles) from the center of San Rafael. Book in for horseback riding or cycling through the vineyards to work up thirst for a tasting in the family cellar, which includes their renowned sparkling wine.

Segisa claims to be the first boutique winery in San Juan after Don Vicente Perez Ganga settled here in 1925. Several earthquakes have left nothing of the original building, but it's still worth a visit to taste new wines on their daily tours.