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With its innumerable acres of grasslands that are perfect for raising cattle, Argentina is not surprisingly known for top-quality leather goods. Murillo Street, in the Villa Crespo neighborhood, is lined with outlets where you can purchase bags, shoes, jackets, and belts at discount prices. For higher-end leather, however, Palermo boutiques are your best bet. Near Plaza Armenia in Palermo Soho, Humawaca showcases stunningly unique handmade purses and accessories. For men’s shoes, belts, and wallets—all of spectacular quality and sure to make any guy a touch more dapper—stop by Apuesto Hombre in Palermo Hollywood.

Facon presents exquisitely handcrafted goods from all around Argentina. Look for baskets by the Matriarca women’s collective; Siwan’i natural, handwoven textiles produced by Wichí-nation women; and Warmi scarves and blankets the women of that Andean ethnicity also create. All items are fair-trade products that constitute an important source of income for the indigenous communities. Additionally, the store showcases contemporary design with an ecological spin, alongside leather goods, objets d’art, and a selection of local boutique wines. Facon is also headquarters to Salú, a club that hosts cooking classes, wine- and cheese-tastings, and talks by local chefs on topics like the origins of the Argentine mixed-grill known as asado.

No woman—or man—has come to symbolize Argentina more than Eva Perón, the country’s first lady from 1946 until her death at age 33, in 1952. Learn about this iconic figure at the Evita Museum, where photos, videos, and numerous personal effects (including dresses and even shoes) provide an intimate, in-depth chronological view of Evita’s life. The museum site was once the headquarters of the Eva Perón Foundation, which helped women who came to Buenos Aires from the provinces; the ornate structure, originally built in the early 1900s, is a marvelous backdrop to the small museum. Perhaps even more popular than the exhibits is the on-site restaurant, which serves delicious food on a gorgeous plant-filled patio.

Inaugurated in 1912 by its namesake, the Spanish regent Maria Cristina, this belle epoque landmark has welcomed international elite to its gilded halls from day one. Designed by the same architect behind the Ritz in Paris, the hotel has long been a favorite of celebrities during the San Sebastián Film Festival (Bette Davis was, notably, a fan). A $25 million renovation in 2012 only cemented its status as the city’s most luxurious hotel. With three of the city’s most elegant eateries (including a favorite see-and-be-seen bar), panoramic views of iconic belle epoque buildings and the Urumea River from the many terraces, and signature Luxury Collection concierge service, the Maria Cristina still feels fit for the aristocracy who frequented it in the city’s beach-destination heyday. Spacious and decadent rooms with an updated belle epoque style, as well as a central location within walking distance of many of San Sebastián’s Michelin-starred restaurants, only sweeten the deal.

The province of Buenos Aires is dotted with lovely old estancias (ranches) that are open to visitors - but some are irritatingly touristy. For a more down-to-earth dia del campo (day in the country), try Estancia Los Dos Hermanos. A typical day trip to the estancia starts with a leisurely breakfast of coffee and pastries at a picnic table near the stables. When the horses are ready to go, you’re off on your morning ride with the guide, exploring grassy green fields and dusty country roads. A full asado (barbecue) is waiting for you back at the ranch - there’s so much steak and wine served at midday that you might need to recline in one of the hammocks afterward - followed by a longer afternoon ride. Though it’s not impossible to arrive here on your own, the unmarked rural roads can be confusing - let the ranch arranges your transportation to and from Buenos Aires.

Salar de Uyuni, located in the Daniel Campos province of Bolivia, looks like it belongs on another planet. Stretching for more than 4,050 square miles—a little smaller than the state of Connecticut—it is the world’s largest salt flat, formed when several prehistoric lakes dried up 25,000 to 10,000 years ago, leaving behind hexagonal patterns of salt on the otherwise featureless surface. When nearby lakes overflow, or the area gets rain, a thin layer of water covers the expanse, transforming it into a massive reflective mirror that makes for jaw-dropping, dreamlike photos.


The natural wonder has served as a valuable source of salt and lithium for Bolivia, and it has long been a hot spot for tourism in South America. There’s even a hotel built out of salt bricks: the Palacio de Sal. If you’re planning a trip to witness the surreal beauty of the Salar de Uyuni salt flat, here’s what you need to know.



To see Salar de Uyuni’s breathtaking mirror effort, visit during wet season, from December to April—but be aware that when it gets too rainy, it can be hard to get around and you might not be able to access certain areas. May to November is the dry season, which means temperatures are colder, but the ground is harder and you can drive across the land more easily.



The ideal month to visit is May, when the seasons transition from wet to dry and you’ll have a good chance of seeing the salt flats both dusty and reflective.



Salar de Uyuni sits near the point where Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile meet, so tourists tend to come from three different starting places.



The town of Uyuni in Bolivia is the most popular place to embark on tours of the salt flats. The small town is so close to the flats, you can easily take day trips. If you’re traveling from La Paz to Uyuni, you can take a one-hour flight or an eight-hour overnight bus.



San Pedro de Atacama in Chile is another well-known starting point for tours of the salt flats, but because it’s about 200 miles away, most tours are three days long.



If you’re coming from Argentina, look into multi-day tours operating out of Tupiza, Bolivia, a good base less than 60 miles over the Argentinian border.



Tour operators in the region offer shared or private tours. Shared tours are more affordable, but they don’t offer much flexibility when it comes to your schedule. Also, most shared tours are led by Spanish-speaking guides, while private tours can offer English-speaking ones.



Many tours of the salt flats also go to other attractions in the area, such as the Polques hot springs, the Atacama Desert, and high-altitude lakes like Laguna Colorada. Look into tours originating in San Pedro de Atacama and Tupiza for itineraries that include these destinations.



Salar de Uyuni is located nearly 12,000 feet above sea level, so you might experience altitude sickness symptoms such as nausea and headaches and should plan accordingly.



To enter Bolivia, travelers must have a tourist visa, which costs $160 for U.S. citizens, and a yellow fever vaccination certificate if they are traveling from a country with risk of yellow fever.

The towering 60-kilometer-long (37-mile-long) Pío XI Glacier, also called Brüggen, is the granddaddy of all Patagonian glacial ice fields. Located in Bernardo O’Higgins National Park, the glacier takes a 90-degree turn on its way down to the sea and is almost twice as large as Singapore. Glaciologists are not entirely clear on why Pío XI is the rare glacier—along with Argentina’s nearby Perito Moreno at the base of the Torres del Paine cordillera—that is growing rather than receding.

One of the more jarring building styles you’ll find in the city’s architectural mishmash is brutalism, and Argentina’s National Library is an iconic example of the movement. The imposing structure rises like a mammoth tree in the park that surrounds it, and its design seeks to suggest expansion: A root-like system of underground book depositories can be enlarged without changing the building’s intended aspect. When readers request titles, these come up through the building’s central trunk to a fifth-floor reading room, open to the public and featuring an unobstructed view of the Recoleta neighborhood and the river. Check the library’s website for information on talks, concerts, and events.

Built in the 1930s as a private villa, this boutique hotel was renovated in 2012, but still makes guests feel as if they’re staying in someone’s home. Perched on a steep hillside across the bay from the Old Town, it features stone terraces, vine-covered pergolas, and colorful gardens, all of which offer breathtaking vistas of the Adriatic and Dubrovnik’s signature tiled roofs. The 13 rooms—all but one with sea views—have high ceilings and arched windows lined with white shutters to soften the afternoon sun, while modern bathrooms come stocked with plush bathrobes and decadent Bulgari amenities. When not enjoying their daily delivery of fresh fruit or cookies, guests can head to the bathing platform at the bottom of the stone stairs, the outdoor pool at the neighboring Grand Villa Argentina, or the spa at the Hotel Excelsior.

To get from point A to B on the river delta, you’ll need to board a water taxi. These polished wood boats cruise the canals day and night, dropping passengers off and picking them up at rental houses, cabin complexes and restaurants along the way. The ride, of course, is part of the fun. Board one at the harbor - and make sure you know where it’s going before you sit down, or it might be awhile before you find yourself back in civilization.

The work of septuagenarian silversmith Juan Carlos Pallarols has earned him an international following. (Recently, the artist crafted a papal chalice for his friend Francis.) Visit the studio/showroom in the modest San Telmo neighborhood to see and perhaps purchase some of his complex, finely wrought pieces. A set of silver-handled steak knives makes a great souvenir.

The same people who brought you the parrilla at La Carnicería are bringing you Chori. This restaurant, named after the term for choripán, which is essentially an Argentinean hot dog, is located in Palermo Soho in Buenos Aires. There’s no table service at this casual order-at-the-bar spot, instead, the attention is on the choripán, with five different chorizo sandwiches, one morcipán (blood sausage), and a vegetarian sandwich with eggplant.

Guests at this 13-room retreat in Costa Rica’s central highlands can tour the estate’s 36 acres of coffee fields. After the walk, try a “cupping,” or tasting, of the shade-grown organic blends. End with a soak in your suite’s jungle-view tub. From $250. (305) 395-3042


After a couple days resting up at The Retreat Costa Rica, I was off on my next adventure. Finca Rosa Blanca, which doubles as a boutique hotel and coffee plantation, proved the perfect setting for exploration both near and far. I stayed in the La Guaria junior suite—each has it’s own name—this one named after a local flower. Having come from New York where apartments are cramped, I was pleasantly surprised by the spacious layout of the villa. The entrance leads into a circular area, with sky lights above that form a sort of dome. There’s a separate kitchen and dining area, a bathroom complete with a whirlpool, and a separate bedroom featuring a kingsize bed. My favorite part of La Guaria were the two balconies. There’s a small one right off of the bedroom, where I’d usually listen to the rain falling hard against the roof in the afternoon. In the mornings and again in the evenings, I’d make myself a cup of coffee and catch up on my emails outside on the larger terrace. It overlooks a large grass farm, as well as the flowers that grow on the property.


Speaking of coffee, Finca Rosa Blanca, is also a coffee plantation. On my first full day at the hotel, I signed up for their guided coffee tour, where I learned the ins and outs of coffee-making in Costa Rica—things like how Arabic coffee is the only type of coffee grown here and how the blonder the roast, the more caffeine it has; I always assumed the opposite. Our tour group was small but we had a guest appearance by the finca’s two adopted dogs—aptly named Finca and Rosa. It’s a mother and daughter, and I loved watching them run around the plantation and play in the little waterfall separating one bank from the other. The second part of the tour was an actual coffee tasting, where we sampled a “good” cup of coffee and an “over roasted” cup. I was surprised how many flavors and aromas I could pick up despite always claiming that I have a poor sense of smell...and silently resolved to skip the milk and sugar next time.


As for the food and lounge areas, there are some really creative spots. The El Tigre Vestido restaurant has both outdoor and indoor seating; I mostly ate in their open-air sections but definitely took advantage of the fire crackling in the evenings. It can get a little chilly there at night. On my last full day at Finca Rosa Blanca, I went all out. First up was a scenic (and very uncrowded) hike to Barva volcano. I learned that, while a national park, it’s one of Costa Rica’s hidden secrets. There were few tourists along our path, allowing us to feel like we had wandered into an enchanted forest out of a story book. Back at the finca, I indulged at their spa, with their Pura Vida Coffee Detox Package: a Swedish full-body massage, a coffee and chocolate body scrub and a refreshing facial. After a challenging hike that morning, it was just what the doctor ordered. Fun fact: There’s some great art here and I’m not just talking about the murals on the walls (there are some super colorful ones at the pool); One of the owners, Glenn, is an artist by trade and he designed all the metal work seek throughout the property, right here on-site.

At three times the size of the Big Island of Hawaii, this is South America’s largest island. Split almost equally between Argentina and Chile, Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego is divided from the mainland by the legendary Strait of Magellan that saved sailors the long, treacherous route around Cape Horn. The Argentine town of Ushuaia, on the island’s southern coast, is a launching point for journeys that take travelers through the Strait of Magellan and past the glacier-covered 2,438-meter-high (7,999-foot-high) Mount Darwin off of the Beagle Channel.

The traditional life of the gaucho (cowboy) still thrives on estancias (cattle ranches) in modern Argentina. To see for yourself, pay a visit to Estancia Santa Susana, which sprawls over 1,200 hectares (3,000 acres) just outside Buenos Aires. The best part is getting to watch the gauchos show off their horsemanship in events such as the sortija, a high-speed ring-grab. You can also view dancers performing the tango, tour the manor house with its period furnishings and lunch on grilled steak. If you have time to spare, you can even go horseback riding yourself—or, if you prefer taking it easy, hop a ride in a horse-drawn carriage.