Argentina Guide
Things not to miss
1 Ruta de los Siete Lagos • Seven Patagonian lakes – their sparkling waters emerald, ultramarine, cobalt, turquoise, cerulean, sapphire and indigo – linked by a rugged mountain road: a magical route best explored in a 4WD.
2 Winter sports • Las Leñas for the jet-set après-ski, Cerro Catedral for traditional pistes and Tierra del Fuego for the world's most southerly resorts – winter sports in Argentina combine great snow with a lot of showing off.
3 Dinosaur fossils in Neuquén • The world's biggest dinosaurs once roamed Neuquén Province – nothing will convey their immensity more than standing underneath their skeletons or seeing their giant footprints in the rock.
4 Ushuaia • Once Argentina's most feared penal colony, now vaunted as the world's southernmost city, Ushuaia sits proudly on the Beagle Channel, backed by serrated peaks and a bijou glacier.
5 Chaqueño flora and fauna • Brave the scorching heat, hammam-like humidity and persistent mosquitoes of the Gran Chaco in the hope of spotting jaguars, armadillos and monkeys – or, an easier bet, a giant waterlily.
6 The Pampas • Rugged gauchos, nodding pampas grass and herds of contented cattle are the famous inhabitants of Argentina's most archetypal landscape – fertile plains stretching for as far as the eye can see.
7 Climbing Aconcagua • Despite frigid temperatures and extreme altitude – 6959m – the highest peak outside the Himalayas can be climbed with the right preparation and a knowledgeable guide, making for a world-class mountaineering experience.
8 Wines of Mendoza • What better to accompany a juicy grilled bife de chorizo than one of the province's award-winning malbecs or syrahs? See also "Bodegas in and around Mendoza".
9 Cueva de las Manos Pintadas •A prehistoric mural, an early finger-printing exercise or ancient graffiti? Whatever it is, this delicate tableau of many hands is one of the continent's most enchanting archeological sites.
10 Tigre and the Paraná Delta • Take a boat or paddle a kayak around the swampy islets and muddy creeks of Tigre – a subtropical Venice right on the capital's doorstep.
11 Iguazú Falls • Known simply as the Cataratas, the world's biggest, most awe-inspiring set of waterfalls is set among dense jungle, home to brightly coloured birds and butterflies.
12 Glaciar Perito Moreno • Standing before, or even trekking on, one of the world's last advancing glaciers is a treat for the eyes, and for the ears; compare impossible shades of blue as you listen to a chorus of cracks, thuds and whines.
13 Birdlife at the Esteros del Iberá • Hundreds of varieties to excite ornithologists, delight photographers and entertain every visitor – the shimmering lagoons of these vital wetlands mirror myriad birds, from tiny hummingbirds to majestic herons.
14 Quebrada de Humahuaca • Polychrome mountains and whiter-than-white salt-flats, bottle-green valleys and spiky cactus forests, expanses of windswept steppe and deep gorges – some of the planet's most incredible scenery.