Catamarca,
located 1,151 kilometers from Buenos Aires and about 500 meters above the sea
level, is part of Northwestern Argentina. Its landscapes are full of mountains
and volcanoes making this place an ideal destination to enjoy sports such as
mountaineering and climbing.
This city
is a perfect place for the entire family. There, you can find summer villas
like El Rodeo, or incredible cities like Belén, Tinogasta, and Londres. In
Catamarca, you can enjoy the indescribable beauty of the waters of Fiambalá and
the famous Poncho National Festival.
Its natural
attractions are many, but the most renowned is the Seismiles Road. This name
makes reference to the snow-capped peaks that surpass the 6,000 meters of
height. In addition to this, you can find the most elevated volcanoes that
expert climbers want to hit their summits every year.
The City of
Catamarca stands out because of its natural beauty and also for its cultural
and archeological richness.
Tourists
enjoy its natural landscapes, which are a combination of mountain ranges and
ravines. The typical vegetation is related to arid zones such as ferns,
cardons, and scrublands.
Everything
is developed in a very relaxed environment; in fact, the city has only 160
thousand inhabitants.
Tourists
may increase their feeling of peace by taking a short walk starting downtown
along El Tala River getting into a five-hectare natural forest. There, they can
observe the native flora and fauna.
The Adobe Route
Beautiful
villages, with mansions, estancias, chapels, and churches, make up a
55-kilometer circuit between Tinogasta and Fiambalá.
Docile and
wise hands knew how to combine wood and adobe - a mixture of straw, mud, and
manure - in beautiful and lasting constructions.
The tour
begins in Cerro Negro, where you can see small villages, houses, and churches
totally made in Adobe. In the Town of Copacabana, you can visit the old
Belgrano railway station.
In La
Puntilla, There is a Tourist Complex, called "LA SALA". It is a
distinguished Historic Casona dating back to 1850, where you can enjoy a Posada
de Campo, a Restaurant, a Warehouse of Handicrafts, landscapes, aromas,
flavors, crafts, history, and culture.
La Casona,
with a neoclassical style, was built with adobe. You can stop and taste the
wines that rest in its cellars. There, flavors
combine with friendship, nature with culture and aromas with color.
Casa Grande
is in Tinogasta, which is a prominent adobe building located two blocks from
the current main square of Tinogasta. It has a boutique hotel.
In the
National Route 60, you can find El Puesto. A place where you can visit the
Oratorio de los Orquera, built at the beginning of the 18th-century with curved
algarrobo beams and a circular bell tower built with mud. It shows the unique plasticity and
architecture of the region.
In La
Falda, the Church of Andacollo, restored in 2004, retains its neoclassical
lines. It has moldings carved in cement and lime.
You can
also visit the Monumento Histórico Provincial Mayorazgo de Anillaco, where you can discover the
influences of the 18th-century Andalusian estancias. In this place, you can visit
the Nuestra Señora del Rosario Church with an earthen floor, adobe walls and a
roof of cane and clay. This church, built in 1712, is the oldest church in the territory of
Catamarca. However, it was restored to preserve the altarpiece, which is the
original.
In
Watungasta, Tourists have to visit the ruins of the Pueblos de los Grandes
Adivinos or "union de pueblos", according to their indigenous name.
In
Fiambalá, the Adobe Route highlights the Church of San Pedro, the headquarters
of Armas, the modern winery Don Diego, and different houses that take visitors
to the different eras of this magical town.
Catamarca
is a very beautiful city combining natural landscapes with a wide variety of
artistic and cultural attractions.