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Red sandstone towers above green scrub in the Calchaquí valley near Cafayate, Salta province

Sample journey · 9–11 days

Coloured hills of the Andes: Argentina's north-west

Salta, the Quebrada de las Conchas, Cafayate, Cachi, Purmamarca, the Quebrada de Humahuaca & the Salinas Grandes

Photo: Hector Ramon Perez / Unsplash

Illustrative journey ideas — not bookable packages. No prices, dates or accommodation are implied.

Argentina's north-west bears little resemblance to the Argentina of tango and the pampas. This is where the Andes begin: the road from colonial Salta climbs through red-rock canyons to the Cafayate valley, where vineyards grow higher than most of us are used to, and on to mountain villages where houses are built of adobe, markets sell a dozen kinds of potato, and festivals still carry a blend of Indigenous and colonial traditions.

This sample route is a road trip with short walks, long lunches and a few days' pause between transfers. It suits couples and friends who are curious about what's on the plate and in the glass, and who don't mind gravel roads or high mountain passes. The highest ground comes on only one or two days, and the nights are placed so that your body has time to adjust.

The route

The journey

  1. Salta
  2. Quebrada de las Conchas
  3. Cafayate
  4. Ruta 40 & Cachi
  5. Salta
  6. Purmamarca & the Quebrada de Humahuaca
  7. Salinas Grandes
  8. Jujuy or Salta
  1. The cable car above Salta at dusk, with the Andean foothills beyond, Argentina

    01Days 1–2 · Salta

    White arcades and empanadas

    Salta is the right place to begin: the city isn't high, so it's easy to recover here after the long journey. A morning walk around Plaza 9 de Julio with its pink cathedral and arcades, an afternoon at the museum of high-altitude archaeology and the cable car up Cerro San Bernardo for sunset, and an evening at a peña, where folk musicians play over wine and empanadas. For those who want to start with flavours, the local cooking: locro stew, humitas and tamales.

  2. A vineyard at the foot of green mountains, Cafayate, Salta province

    02Days 3–4 · Quebrada de las Conchas & Cafayate

    A red canyon and high vineyards

    The road south slowly turns red: in the Quebrada de las Conchas, wind and water have carved the rock into arches, an amphitheatre and strange shapes worth stopping for more than once. In Cafayate, two nights among the vineyards. This is home to the aromatic white Torrontés, and tastings at small wineries often turn into long lunches. In the morning you could walk to the nearby waterfalls or cycle around the valley.

  3. The gravel Ruta 40 winding between jagged rock in the Quebrada de las Flechas, Salta province

    03Days 5–7 · Ruta 40 & Cachi

    On gravel through the Calchaquí valleys

    One of the finest days on the road: the famous Ruta 40 winds north past the rock blades of the Quebrada de las Flechas and small adobe villages such as Molinos. Cachi is a white colonial village with a cobbled square and a view of the snow-capped Nevado de Cachi. After two nights, the road returns to Salta through Los Cardones National Park, home to columnar cacti, and over the Cuesta del Obispo.

  4. Red and green-streaked hills above houses and gardens in Purmamarca, Jujuy province

    04Days 8–9 · Purmamarca & the Quebrada de Humahuaca

    The hill of seven colours

    To the north, in Jujuy province, begins the Quebrada de Humahuaca, a UNESCO-listed valley that traders have travelled for thousands of years. Purmamarca sits below the Cerro de los Siete Colores, best seen early in the morning. From here you could drive to Tilcara and its pucará, a reconstructed fortified settlement, to Humahuaca and, if you're comfortable at altitude, up to the Hornocal viewpoint.

  5. A green-tinged water channel cut into the white Salinas Grandes salt flat, with small figures in the distance, Jujuy

    05Days 10–11 · Salinas Grandes

    White above the clouds

    The last big day: the road zigzags over the Cuesta de Lipán onto the Altiplano, where the Salinas Grandes salt flat stretches out. The pass rises above four thousand metres, so the drive is taken slowly with stops, and you spend only as long on the salt as feels comfortable. In the evening you return to Purmamarca, and the next day fly out from Jujuy or Salta.

Experience highlights

  1. 01

    An evening at a peña

    Folk music, empanadas and local wine: the way Salta spends its evenings.

  2. 02

    Torrontés in Cafayate

    An aromatic white wine from one of the world's highest wine regions, tasted where it grows.

  3. 03

    Ruta 40 to Cachi

    A gravel day among rock blades, adobe villages and cacti that stays with you longer than most paved ones.

  4. 04

    The seven-coloured hill at dawn

    Morning light in Purmamarca, while the colours of the hill are still soft and the village is just waking.

First, we listen. Then, we explore what's possible.

Make it your own

  • With a driver

    If you'd rather not drive the mountain roads yourselves, the whole route works with a local driver-guide, which makes wine tastings all the more relaxed.

  • More wine and rest

    A third night in Cafayate, or a stay on a wine estate, for a slower rhythm centred on food and wine.

  • Further onto the Altiplano

    From Purmamarca you could cross the Andes to San Pedro de Atacama in Chile, and on towards the salt flats of Bolivia.

  • With Buenos Aires or Iguazú

    A few days in Buenos Aires at the start, or the Iguazú Falls at the end, turn this into a broader first look at Argentina.

Practical considerations

  • The road to the Salinas Grandes climbs above 4,000 m, and the villages of the Quebrada de Humahuaca lie at around 2,300–3,000 m. The nights are arranged so that altitude builds gradually, but it's worth talking to your doctor or a travel clinic before you go.
  • Some roads, especially Ruta 40 between Cafayate and Cachi, are gravel; they're best driven unhurriedly, and stretches are sometimes closed for a while after heavy rain.
  • Summer (roughly December to March) is the rainy season here: the hills turn green, but roads are occasionally washed out. Spring and autumn are usually drier and more comfortable.
  • In the highlands, days are warm and nights cold at any time of year, so layers are useful every day.

General guidance only. Seasons, weather and wildlife are never guaranteed, and travel requirements are always worth checking before you go.

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