Patagonia

This region is ideal for you to do the following activities and take advantage of your holiday to its fullest:

• sport fishing,
• kayaking,
• water skiing,
• skiing
• scuba diving,
• nautical excursions,
• trekking,
• mountain biking,
• horseback riding,
• photographic safari,
• ice hiking,
• visit the local ranches
• Ruta 40:
  The longest and most spectacular road in Argentina, running along over 4,900 km along the Andes, from Cabo Vírgenes (Santa Cruz) to Quica (Jujuy).
  Ruta 40:
  - crosses 236 bridges
  - touches 13 big lakes and salt flats
  - gives access to 20 National Parks and Reserves
  - crosses 18 main rivers
  - connects 27 Andean passes
  - goes up from the sea level to almost 5,000 metres.
  This route, created in 1935, runs from south to north along 11 provinces of 3 different regions in Argentina: Patagonia (Santa Cruz, Chubut, Río Negro and Neuquén), Cuyo (Mendoza, San Juan, La Rioja) and the Northwestern region (Catamarca, Tucumán, Salta and Jujuy)
  Some of the available options to travel along Ruta 40 are:
  - go with a 4x4 expedition
  - go by car
  In both cases, you can also do rural tourism, sleeping in typical ranches on each province.
  
• Travel from the glaciers to the 'End of the World' in seven days: this excursion begins in El Calafate, where you will navigate along the glaciers, including the Perito Moreno, later arrive in Chile (travelling with 4x4 vehicles). You would be crossing the Magellan Strait to get to Ushuaia (Tierra del Fuego's capital city), where you will spend the last days doing excursions such as visiting the National Park and crossing Isla Redonda by boat.
  This excursion can also be done from Ushuaia to the glaciers.

The provinces within this region are:
Tierra del Fuego, Santa Cruz, Chubut, Río Negro, Neuquén and La Pampa

The province of Chubut is located in the southern part of Argentina, between the 42^nd Parallel South (forming the border with Río Negro) and 46^th Parallel South (bordering Santa Cruz), the Andes range separating Argentina from Chile, and the Atlantic ocean.

The largest city, with 125,000 inhabitants, is Comodoro Rivadavia in the south of the province, but the administrative capital is Rawson (25,000).

Comodoro Rivadavia is well-known for the settlement of South Africans in the beginning of the 20^th century.

Other important cities are Puerto Madryn, Trelew, Esquel, and Sarmiento. Gaiman is a cultural and demographic centre of the region known as "Y Wladfa" in which Welsh-Argentinians are concentrated. There are around 25,000 Welsh speakers in the province, predominantly concentrated in the original Welsh settlements of Trelew and Trevelin.

Area: 224,686 km²

Population: 413,237 (2001)

Density: 1.84/km²

Petroleum exploitation and the industries cented around it are the main economic activity of the province, with 13% of Argentine oil production (mostly off-shore). The Atlantic Ocean provides in other ways, as well; 21% of the nation's fish catch is produced by Chubut.

Sheep ranching, though less than half as productive than as recently as 1990, remains important at the local level.

This brief overview explains why you should consider visiting this province on an agricultural tour.

For more information, please visit our agritours page.

The Falkland Islands (Spanish: Islas Malvinas) are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located 483 kilometres from the coast of Argentina, 1,080 kilometres west of the Shag Rocks (South Georgia), and 940 kilometres north of the British Antarctic Territory (which overlaps with the Argentine and Chilean claims to Antarctica in that region).

They consist of two main islands, East Falkland and West Falkland, together with 776 smaller islands. Stanley, on East Falkland, is the capital. The islands are a self-governing Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom, but have been the subject of a claim to sovereignty by Argentina since the re-establishment of British rule in 1833.

Since the war there has been strong economic growth in both fisheries and tourism.

Area: 12,173 km²

Population: 3,060 (July 2005 estimate)

Density: 0.25/km²

For more information, please visit our agritours page.

Neuquén is a province of Argentina, located in the west of the country, at the northern end of Patagonia. It borders Mendoza to the north, Río Negro to the southeast, Chile to the west. and La Pampa at its northeast corner.

Area: 94,078 km²

Population: 474,155 (2001)

Density: 5.0 /km²

Neuquén is one of Argentina's most prosperous provinces. No province in Argentina, however, is as dependent on any one sector as Neuquén. Almost half of its output is accounted for by its mining and extractive sector, mainly on account of its massive gas and petroleum production, the most important in Argentina.

The province generates a significant part of Patagonia's electric power through the hydroelectric plants of Piedra del Águila, El Chocón, Pichi Picún Leufú, Planicie Banderita (in the Cerros Colorados Complex), and Alicurá. The town of Arroyito hosts the only heavy water plant in the country.

Another important activity is the production of apples, pears, peaches and others, specially in the Alto Valle area, shared with Río Negro.

This brief overview explains why you should consider visiting this province on an agricultural tour.

For more information, please visit our agritours page.

Río Negro is located at the northern edge of Patagonia. Neighbouring provinces are from the south clockwise Chubut, Neuquén, Mendoza, La Pampa and Buenos Aires. To the east lies the Atlantic Ocean.

Area: 203,013 km²

Population: 552,822 (2001)

Density: 2.72/km²

Argentina's ninth-largest, Rio Negro's economy is a diversified service-based one with vigorous agricultural and light manufacturing sectors.

The province's agriculture (about 10% of output) is concentrated in the the fertile valleys of the Río Negro River, specially at the Alto Valle but also at the Valle Medio. The province produces almost 70% of the apples and pears of the country, most it for exportation with 38% of it as fresh fruit and 40% as juice concentrate, through the port of San Antonio Oeste.

In the Valle Medio, besides apples and pears, tomatoes, onions and other fresh vegetables are produced for local and national consumption. The crops around the city of El Bolsón are mainly berries.

Outside the most fertile valleys used for agriculture cattle (especially on the North), goats (on the South) and sheep are raised. 13% of the national sheep meat and wool production comes from this province.

There is a relatively small petroleum extraction area around the town of Catriel near General Roca, but it cannot be compared with those in other provinces such as Santa Cruz and Neuquén. Most of what is extracted is taken non-processed to plants in the Buenos Aires Province. There is also some mining activity for diatomite, gypsum, salt and others.

Industrial fishing takes place in the Atlantic Ocean waters of the San Matías Gulf with an annual recollection of 11,000 tons of fishes, and 8,000 of seafood. Hake, squid, and shellfish are the most common capture, most of which are frozen and exported.

This brief overview explains why you should consider visiting this province on an agricultural tour.

For more information, please visit our agritours page.

Santa Cruz borders Chubut province to the north, and Chile to the west and south. To the east is the Atlantic Ocean. It is the second largest province of the country (after Buenos Aires province, and the least densely populated in mainland Argentina.

Area: 243,943 km²

Population: 196,958 (2001)

Density: 0.81/km²

Santa Cruz, with a small population and rich in natural resources, has one of Argentina's most prosperous economies.

The coal production at Río Turbio, Argentina's only active coal mine, is of around one million m3 per year. Mining includes gold (Cerro Vanguardia), clay, gypsum, salt and others.

The second most important productive activity is that associated with sheep. With 7 million head, Santa Cruz is the main producer of wool and meat, most of which is exported. Livestock includes cattle, and in lesser numbers pigs and horses.

Sea fishing, and its later industrialisation at the fishing ports of Puerto Deseado, Puerto San Julián, Puerto Santa Cruz and Río Gallegos produces prawn, squid, hake and dozens of others. Most of the production is frozen and exported.

There is little agriculture due to the arid nature of the soil. There is a small timber industry fed by both forests and planted trees, of which the wood of the lenga is the most exploited.

This brief overview explains why you should consider visiting this province on an agricultural tour.

For more information, please visit our agritours page.

Tierra del Fuego (officially Provincia de Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur) is entirely separated from mainland Argentina by the Strait of Magellan. It includes:

- The eastern part of the Isla Grande of Tierra del Fuego (the western part is the Chilean province of Tierra del Fuego).

- Argentina's claims to the Falkland Islands (under their Spanish-language name, Malvinas) and to South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; these are governed by Great Britain as British overseas territories.

- Argentina's claims to Antarctica. All claims to Antarctica are effectively subject to the Antarctic Treaty and without wide international recognition. Argentina's claim overlaps with both the British claim and the Chilean claim.

Area: 21,263 km²

Claimed area: 1,002,445 km²

Population: 101,079 (2001)

Density: 4.75/km²

Tierra del Fuego has, since the 1970s, benefited from government subsidies to local industry and its natural wealth, alike.

A number of sizable factories have opened on Tierra del Fuego Island to take advantage of the tax benefits legislated in 1972, mainly home appliance and electronics makers. Recently, in the city of Río Grande, many international and Argentine companies, most notably the Korean company Samsung and the Argentine company Teltron, have installed factories that produce high-definition televisions (HDTV), mass production of CD-ROM-related articles, and low-cost GSM cell phones built mainly from Argentine components.

Sheep breeding, the province's leading source of its modest agricultural income (5% of output), still serves as an important source of wool and mutton.

Petroleum and natural gas extraction contributes generously to Tierra del Fuego's economy, lately over 20% to total output. Exploration efforts continue, not only along the island's shores themselves; but, also near the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas).

This brief overview explains why you should consider visiting this province on an agricultural tour.

For more information, please visit our agritours page.