Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
231
for a handful of adventurous Europeans. The drive there is fascinating; from the flat plains
of sugar-cane countr y in Tucuman pr ovince, y ou go up a twisting r oad thr ough cloud
forests and lemon gr oves, an ar ea kno wn as
Selva Tucumana.
You pass the fascinating
Reserva Arqueológica los Menhires,
where you'll find a collection of 50 mysterious stand-
ing stones from prehistoric times. If you come from the Salta side, the dr y desert changes
dramatically and you twist through the misty mountain pass of
La Garganta del Diablo,
at 3,000m (9,480 ft.) above sea level. What was red and dry becomes green and temperate.
Tafi del Valle itself is a popular mountain to wn set b y a lake, fr equented by Tucumanos,
who come to escape the heat of their sw eltering capital and take advantage of the excellent
opportunities to fish, hike, and sail. Here you can enjoy laid-back country life by staying in
some beautiful
estancias
set within the to wn limits and at half the price y
ou will spend
elsewhere.
GETTING THERE
Tafi del Valle lies 107km (66 miles) w est of pr ovincial capital San
Miguel de Tucumán on RP 307.
Empresa Aconquija
(
&
0381/422-7620
in Tucuman,
or 3867/421025 in Tafi del Valle; www.transporteaconquija.com.ar) offers daily buses;
the trip takes 2
1
/
2
hours and costs $4.50 (£3.05). The same company also r uns a daily
route between Tafi and Cafayate 120km (75 miles) away . The small, modern terminal
(
&
3867/421025
) is on Avenida Gobernador Critto, close to Estancia Los Cuartos.
VISITOR INFORMATION
The
Oficina de Turismo,
Av. Miguel Critto 311 (
&
3867/
421880;
www.tucumanturismo.gov.ar), has no English-speaking staff and is a little short
on flyers and maps. H owever, you can get a compr ehensive list of lodgings in the ar ea.
One recommended adventure-tourism agency is
La Cumbre,
Avenida Presidente Perón
120 (
&
3867/421768
).
WHAT TO SEE & DO
Jesuitica La Banda Museo,
La Banda s/n, Tafi del Valle (
&
3867/421685
), is a quaint
white chapel and colonial house displaying J esuit furnitur e, C uzco ar t, and I ndepen-
dence-era memorabilia. It is located close to the tourism office and is open M onday to
Saturday 10am to 4pm, Sunday from 9am to noon. A dmission is 70¢ (45p).
Los Men-
hires Archaeological Reserve
, at Avenida Las Menhires and Calle Nuñorca, El Mol-
lar (no phone), is a fascinating collection of 150 standing stones gather ed in a field. The
military dictatorship had ripped these stones up fr om their original locations acr oss the
valley and used them to decorate a motor way. With some measuring 4m (13 ft.) in
length, much has been lost of their meaning, but it makes for a fascinating 30-minute
visit. The reserve is located 10km (6
1
/
4
miles) fr om Tafi del Valle, in the village of E l
Mollar. It is open daily from 7am to 6pm. Admission is free.
8
OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES & TOUR OPERATORS
There is a wealth of locations across the valley to explore, and Tafi is a hiker's paradise.
HORSEBACK RIDING
La Morocha Cabalgatas,
Galeria Los Ar cos, Avenida Presi-
dente Perón (
&
3867/154-123135 [
cell];
www.lamorochacabalgatas.com), will hook
you up with some horses to explor e the area.
TREKKING
La C umbre,
Av. P residente Perón 120 (
&
3867/421768
), hosts tr eks
around the lake and climbs to the nearb y mountain kno wn as Cerr o Pelao.
Aucache
Expediciones,
Felix Sosa s/n (
&
3867/421378
), is another agency that conducts tr ek-
king excursions.
