Argentina Christmas Vacation

Land in Buenos Aires this morning and drop off your bags at your perfectly located and luxurious hotel before setting out to discover this vibrant world capital, one of the greatest on the continent. The city is broken down into barrios, or neighborhoods, each with their own feel, flavor, and identity contributing to the diverse but seemingly constant grandeur of Buenos Aires. Experience the hustle and bustle of Microcentro, relax at a colorful and comfortable parilla in La Boca, or simply stroll through Recoleta, from the verdant expanses to the excellent restaurants, and even including a cemetery that is well worth a visit. Dinner is always a festive fare, and because almost all of the ingredients are local, the prices are surprisingly low at even the most highly regarded Buenos Aires eateries.

After a hearty and delicious Argentinian breakfast, turn to the border and one of the most incredible natural landmarks in the world: the incomparable waterfalls at Iguazu, on the edges of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay. Today, explore the offerings at Puerto Iguazu while gearing up for tomorrow’s visit to the famous falls. Catch a glimpse of all three of the Falls’ countries at the Three Frontiers Landmarks. Also, visit the communities of natives who have lived in the area for centuries. There are excellent exhibits on site that discuss Spain and Portugal’s colonial past in the regions, and the changes in the ways of life for all of these peoples.

Returning to your hotel, you’ll be taken by the fecund and primeval beauty of this place, the powerful white of the water and the whispy sparks of prismatic color, all casting the place in a majesty that is almost indescribable.

Named one of the Seven Wonders of the Natural World, Iguazu Falls is truly one of the most spectacular sights that could ever enter a human’s gaze, a great river seemingly cleft in two by a jealous god or the long decay of time. You’ll experience this unbelievable site as a member of a private excursion with a guide fluent in English and familiar with the layout and highlights of the Falls. Because Iguazu is broken up into so many different segments—unlike, say, Victoria Falls—you can explore a multitude of different waterfalls, more than 200 in all, each with their own symmetry and balance, ceaseless power and timeless grace.

After lunch, you can see these incredible structures from below as part of the Great Adventure Navigation Tour: prepare to get wet, as this tour takes you around the falls and even below one of the seemingly eternal sheets of water descending from the plateaus of South America. After drying off, board the train that will take you to the most famous chasm in the complex, the 700-meter long Devil’s Throat, where nearly half of the Iguazu River’s flow tumbles into the forest below, and where most of the best pictures of Iguazu are captured. Tonight sees you returning to Puerto Iguazu after your amazing discovery of this singular formation.

Today, transfer from the borderlands and the stunning beauty of Iguazu Falls to the elegant charm of Mendoza, a desert delight that has become the epicenter of Argentina’s bourgeoning wine industry. Explore the city and some of its vibrant and gorgeous parks, like Plaza Indepencia, where you can find the Mendoza Museum of Modern Art and a dazzling coat of arms of the city illuminated in the evening, and Plaza Espana, perhaps the prettiest in the city, with stunning artwork and moving statuary that commemorates the relationship between Argentina and Spain.

If you’re looking for relaxation this afternoon, maybe try the spas at Cachueta about an hour outside of the city center, and if you’re looking for adventure you can encounter the tallest peak in the world outside of the Himalayas at nearby Aconcagua. There are also a number of delicious restaurants throughout the city, catering to all tastes, from delicious pizza with an incredible view to the fresh meat and characteristic preparations with an ambiance that is pure Argentina.

Argentina’s recent explosion into the international wine scene is due primarily to one varietal—the Malbec—and one slight geographical tweak—the grapes are grown at high altitude, making them more plush in texture than the French counterparts and more conducive to aging. You’ll learn these and many more epicurean facts at your guided tour in Lujan de Cuyo, a wine region more than 3,000 feet up and regarded as the Cradle of Malbec, where you’ll find yourself surrounded by the breathtaking Andean foothills and the rolling plains of grape fields, not to mention elegant hotels, incomparable restaurants, and some of the best wineries in the hemisphere. Start by trekking The Wine Road, where you’ll get the chance to visit the area’s most famous and successful wineries and get a taste of the products that make them so justifiably renowned. Lunch can even be prepared by an acclaimed chef who has designed the best dishes with the freshest ingredients and meant to complement the incomparable wine offerings of this up-and-coming region.

By the time you return to Mendoza for your evening’s activities, you’ll have a newfound respect and love for the panoply of the wines, the intricacies of the gastronomy and the soaring scenery of this remarkable part of the Americas.

Celebrate Christmas Eve in high style today as you take in the very best of the Mendoza region of Argentina, visiting wineries in one of the area’s most popular and prolific areas and enjoying a delicious and luxurious lunch that will more than make up for the lack of snow on the ground. Visit the major wineries in Agrelo, Lujan de Cuyo or Maipu and be led on an informative and fun tour of the companies by knowledgeable tour guides, all while including in one of Argentina’s most famous exports along the way! Lunch is a gourmet, five-course affair, where the wines match the food, the ambiance matches the service, and the casually elegant atmosphere matches that of the entire Mendoza region.

Finally, stop by a boutique winery that specializes in making only premium Argentina wines at a volume that is dwarfed by some of their larger (and perhaps less dedicated) rivals. The small company exudes an aura of familiarity and ease, and that comes with a piece of property ideally perched in the Perdriel, next to the Mendoza River and affording stunning views of the vineyards beyond. Your evening sees you at an optional Christmas Eve dinner (we have recommendations, should you wish to ask) back in magnificent Mendoza.

Christmas Day gleams bright and expectantly, waiting for you to return to the headlands of the La Plata River and back into the grasp of the exciting and vibrant capital of Buenos Aires. After a delicious lunch and your last bit of morning in Mendoza, you’ll fly back to this sophisticated city and dropped at the doors of your fantastic hotel, right in the middle of the action and filled with the luxuries and comforts that you expect.

Perambulate the promenades of Palermo, filled with green spaces and urban parks and lined with buildings that are more reminiscent of the Northern Hemisphere than the South; traipse the Caminito, the little road, at La Boca, with arts and crafts and glimpses of tango dancers practicing this national art form in the streets; or try a Parilla Tour around the city, where you’ll get to sample the very best of Buenos Aires’s many grills and local restaurants that you often won’t find in guidebooks. Whatever you choose to do, you’ll be sure to enjoy this gorgeous world capital as it celebrates one of the most important holidays in the Western world.

This morning, take a whirlwind tour of Buenos Aires’s most important sites before you try your hand at one of the most famous dances in the world, the passionate, romantic, fiery and unforgettable steps of the tango.

In the morning, set out for the streets of this world capital and gear up for the highlights, as you’ll venture into the far ranges of this one-of-a-kind city. Check out the restaurants and shopping at Retiro before crossing 9 de Julio Avenue, the widest avenue in the world running from Retiro along the waterfront of the Rio de la Plata. Then take a tour of the Teatro Colon, one of the main opera houses in Buenos Aires and one of the best five concert venues in the world due to its unparalleled acoustics. Then, head downtown and into the political heart of the city and country, from the stone façade of the Casa de Gobierno, Argentina’s famous Pink House, to the historic edges of the Plaza de Mayo. The Plaza is where Argentinian mothers protested the disappearance of their sons, husbands, fathers and brothers during Argentina’s dirty war during the late 1970s and early 1980s. Enjoy the street fairs and flea markets at San Telmo before exploring the honored dead at the Recoleta Cemetery, featuring large and gaudy tombs for many of Argentina’s elite, including Eva Peron.

In the evening, take a lesson from one of Buenos Aires’s talented tango dancers before experiencing the dance at its best in the city’s exciting tango clubs.

After a leisurely breakfast after one of Buenos Aires’s nearly endless nights, this afternoon sees you taking in some cultural as you tour the artistic offerings of Argentina in general and Buenos Aires in particular.

Begin at the National Museum of Fine Arts, where the works of some of the most important Argentinian artists from the 1900s can be found, as well as an international collection of works from the Middle Ages into the last century: there are works by Malharro and Schiaffino, Degas and Manet and many more. Then head to the Museum of Latin American Art, dedicated to the works of Latin American artists from the 20th-century to the present, with a continually-expanding collection of some of the region’s best artists and an excellent cultural center, which develops cultural activities and offers new and exciting exhibitions throughout the year. The structure itself is also worth noting, as well as the expansiveness of the collection, featuring artists from Diego Rivera to Rafael Barradas.

Today sees you returning to your home country, ready to ring in the New Year and filled with your Christmas adventures in this enchanting and captivating country.