Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
258
wash it all down. Finish your meal with a trip to the dessert bar, an enticing table of flans,
fruits, creams, and the obligatory
dulce de leche.
Then go hit the gym.
Av. Buenos Air es 111.
&
354/842-3181.
M ain c ourses $9-$13 (£6.10-£8.80). No cr edit car ds. Daily
noon-3pm and 8:30pm-midnight.
4
LA CUMBRE
93km (57 miles) NW of Córdoba
La Cumbre could best be described as Little E ngland, with its cottage-style bungalo ws,
rose gardens, and rolling golf courses. The colony of Anglo-Argentines who settled her e
were intent on creating their own corner of “that green and pleasant land,” and they have
done so with considerable success. I t must be one of the fe w towns in S outh America
where the town plaza is quietly forgotten, and the commer cial center is situated sev eral
blocks away. Famous for its boar ding schools and r etirement homes, this sleepy to wn is
not for thrill seekers, unless, of course, you are into first-class paragliding. Other activities
include great trekking, horseback riding, and golf.
ESSENTIALS
GETTING THERE
The bus station is on General Juan José Valle 50, in the town center.
Frequent buses travel from Córdoba.
TranSierras
(
&
351/424-3810
) operates from the
Córdoba bus station. The trip costs about $6 (£4.05) and takes ar ound 2 hours.
El
Práctico
(
&
011/4312-9551
) and
General U rquiza
(
&
011/4313-2771
) ar e two
companies that come from Buenos Aires, a 12-hour trip.
If you are driving, you have the option of going first to Villa Carlos Paz and then on
to La F alda via the N38. O ther to wns y ou'll pass ar e Huerta G rande and then Villa
Giardino. This is a pleasant trip thr ough the v alley, but be ware of flash floods in the
summer.
VISITOR INFORMATION
The
tourist office
is inside the old train station at A v.
Caraffa 300 (
&
354/845-2966
). Open daily fr om 8am to 10pm, it pr ovides city and
regional maps as w ell as hotel, r estaurant, and tourist information. A r espected agency
specializing in outdoor pursuits in the area is
Sendas Travel,
Calle Dumas 110, La Cum-
bre (
&
354/853-2177;
www.sendastravel.com).
Cuchi Corral
(
&
354/815-570951;
www.cuchicorral.com) specializ es in paragliding fr om the mountain cliff of the same
name.
GETTING AROUND
You can easily walk ar ound the small to wn center but y ou may
soon get bored. Most of La Cumbre's attractions are outside the town, usually up a dir t
track, so it is advisable to r ent a car or sign up with a tour operator . There is no public
transport going east or west.
9
WHAT TO SEE & DO
La Cumbre is becoming increasingly famous for adventure sports, particularly
paraglid-
ing
. A beauty spot called
Cuchi Corral
is a 300m (984-ft.) cliff that overlooks the
Rio Pintos valley. Here you'll find a variety of amateurs and professionals hurling them-
selves into the air and soaring with condors. I n 1999, the to wn hosted the World Para-
gliding Championship . O ther sights wor th seeing include
Estancia E l R osario,
6km
(3
3
/
4
miles) southeast (
&
354/845-1257
), home of the ubiquitous
alfajores
—a
dulce de
leche
biscuit sandwich popular all o ver Argentina, and a must-buy souv enir for visiting
