After 14 years living in Buenos Aires, my family and I moved to San Antonio de Areco for a change of pace. Throughout my years in Argentina I always loved coming here to get away from it all and now I’m happy to call it home.
At only 80 minutes from Buenos Aires, it’s the perfect day trip to experience the countryside and gaucho life.
The historic center is full of skilled artisans and historic gaucho bars. The surrounding countryside is filled with centuries old working ranches, many now open for tourism.
So, how can you visit San Antonio de Areco estancias and get the most out of your day?
Book an experience with Camino Pampa, a local tour agency founded almost twenty years ago in order to help tourists visit not only San Antonio de Areco estancias but also the gaucho town, its artisans and its historic restaurants.
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Camino Pampa: San Antonio de Areco & Estancia Tours
How to visit estancias in San Antonio de Areco? It’s most common to visit on a “dia de campo” or even stay overnight at the few that also operate as bed and breakfasts.
But what makes Camino Pampa’s tours stand out is that each tour is a complete experience. You don’t only visit the ranch, you’ll visit the town with a local and meet its artisans and experience its history.
They’ve crafted a variety of tours that cater to distinct interests, such as horseback riding, wine tasting, a food focused tour, and even an agro business tour.
If you want help with lodging at an estancia, they can also help with that.
So let’s get into their tours so you can pick the right for you…
Gaucho Experience: Estancia Day Trip
This is the classic San Antonio de Areco day trip from Buenos Aires. You can book a private or a shared tour. Groups on the shared tours are kept small, capped at only 7 guests.
The tour includes your transfer from your hotel in Buenos Aires with an English speaking tour guide.
Once you arrive in San Antonio de Areco you’ll walk the historic cobblestone streets to meet skilled silversmiths, including a visit to the Draghi Silversmith Museum and workshop. Your visit to town ends with a visit to a Pulpería (historic gaucho bar).
The rest of the day will be spent at a historic ranch.
You’ll go on a morning horseback ride with gauchos through the rolling pastures. If you’d prefer not to ride you can go on a carraige ride instead.
Then enjoy a traditional asado lunch with prime cuts like chorizo, ribs, flank steak. Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free alternatives are available on request. Meals are paired with wine and soft drinks and a performance of live music and traditional folk dances.
After lunch you’ll witness a traditional Doma India display. This skill of horse whispering is how gauchos non-violently tamed their horses, based on the trust between the gaucho and his horse.
The day ends with a tea time of coffee, tea, mate and pastries. You should arrive back at your accommodation by around 6 pm, just in time for your evening activities (like a Buenos Aires tango show).
🏇🏻Click here for more information and to book your Gaucho Experience, there is a contact form or you can send them a message via WhatsApp. Let them know Sol Salute sent you.
Other San Antonio de Areco Estancias
The group tour will take you to El Ombu, but there are other estancias in San Antonio de Areco. If you want to experience a smaller ranch (El Ombu can be have larger crowds in the summer peak season) or something different, then consider one of the following estancias.
They will need to be private tours and you can choose to visit the town before or not, depending on your schedule and interests.
- La Florita is a favorite of mine. This dia de campo isn’t on a sprawling estate like El Ombu but is run by a talented local family and the atmosphere is very laid back. The day includes a short horseback ride and a traditional asado. You’ll see gaucho demonstrations on horseback and folkloric music. Click here to book (let them know Sol Salute sent you)
- La Bamba: Estancia La Bamba is a Relais & Chateaux and one of Argentina’s oldest estancias property. They offer a refined, exclusive experience. La Bamba de Areco offers both country day itineraries and luxury lodging. Book with Camino Pampa, let them know we sent you.
San Antonio de Areco: Horseback Riding
If you want to spend more time in the saddle, then I recommend their horseback riding focused experience.
The day includes two rides, a 2.5 hour ride in the morning and a 1.5 hour ride in the afternoon. You can opt for a half-day and do only one ride.
You’ll learn about gaucho saddlery and their Criollo horses. The day also includes a traditional Argentine asado (barbecue) with grilled meats, fresh salads, wine, and soft drinks.
This is a family-friendly tour. Children 6 and up can go on the rides and younger children can stay behind, interacting with farm animals or playing on the ranch.
🏇🏻Click here to book your horseback riding day tour. Let them know Sol Salute sent you. Pick up is at 8:30 and you can expect to be back at your Buenos Aires hotel by around 6 pm.
Estancia Santa Elena: Visit a Working Ranch
A day trip to Santa Elena is to spend the day with a local family on a real working ranch in the Argentina pampas.
This is for the travelers who want an authentic experience away from the crowds.
Your day here begins with a guided tour of the intensive and extensive breeding of their Aberdeen Angus cattle, and their soybean, wheat and corn fields.
After touring the property you’ll return to the main house and be greeted with empanadas before served your traditional asado lunch, along with traditional music and dance.
🐎Click here to book your day at Estancia Santa Elena and learn about life on a working San Antonio de Areco estancia. Let them know Sol Salute sent you.
Wine Tasting & Estancia Day
Combine your estancia day trip with a wine tasting for a gastronomic tour of San Antonio de Areco.
Your day begins with a walking tour of Areco’s historic center before a tasting and charcuterie platter led a sommelier where you’ll taste four wines from across Argentina.
The afternoon continues at one of San Antonio de Areco’s estancias with a horseback or carriage ride, traditional asado lunch, and live music, dance and horse taming demonstrations.
🍷Click here to book your Wine tasting/Estancia day trip and let them know Sol Salute sent you. Talk with them about the option of visiting local wineries.
San Antonio de Areco Food Tour
Experience this gaucho town through its cuisine on a San Antonio de Areco food experience.
Like most of Camino Pampa’s tours the day begins with a walking tour through through the historic center with your guide.
Then the feasting begins:
- Yerba mate: A lesson on its origins and a tasting
- Wine tasting
- Picadas: A regional charcuterie tasting
- Traditional empanadas
- Asado lunch
- Alfajor tasting at the factory
- Free time in town to end the day
🍴Click here to book your San Antonio de Areco Food Tour experience and let them know Sol Salute sent you.
Agro Business Site Tour
If you work in agriculture in your home country, you may be interested in learning about Argentina’s traditional agricultural practices and its cutting-edge technologies and innovations in the field.
You will meet with the manager of a large working ranch (26,000 acres and 9,000 head of cattle) in the San Antonio de Areco surroundings.
Learn about traditional gaucho culture on an extensive working ranch.
🐄Click here for more information on this custom experience and let them know Sol Salute sent you.
San Antonio de Areco Tours
Whichever tour you pick, I hope you love San Antonio de Areco just as much as I do.
All tours can be customized so reach out to Camino Pampa about your group size and interests.
Read my guide to San Antonio de Areco for more about this beautiful town.
Read more
- The Best Day Trips from Buenos Aires
- The Best Estancias Near Buenos Aires
- Argentina Packing List: Everything You Need
- Estancia La Bandada
- Estancia La Tomasa: An Authentic Working Ranch near Buenos Aires
- Estancia Ranquilco: Epic Patagonia Horse pack Trips and Lodge Stays
Health Insurance Requirement
Foreign travelers are currently required to have travel medical insurance. While agents are still figuring out enforcement, they could deny you entry if you do not meet the requirement. Also, requirements aside, medical insurance is always a good idea when you travel.
SafetyWing’s Essential Plan meets all of the requirements Argentina is asking for (think hospital stays or antibiotics). It also covers lost luggage, travel delays and evacuations. Click here for more information to avoid future headaches.
Argentina Travel Resources
- BOOK A CONSULTATION | I offer one-on-one travel consultations to help you plan your trip to Argentina. Pick my brain to get a local’s insight. Click here for more information.
- ☕BUY ME A COFFEE | If you’ve enjoyed my blog and found it useful, you can buy me “virtual” coffee.
- MY MAP | Buy my interactive map with 300+ pins to have access to the city as I see it. It is an invaluable resource. See more here about how it works.
- AIRPORT TRANSFERS | Having a driver waiting for you is ideal for a stress free arrival, Cesar and his team here is the best option for a driver from Ezeiza or Aeroparque, they are my go-to airport ride!
- TRAVEL INSURANCE | Always travel insured. Anything can happen anywhere and it is scarier and costlier in an unfamiliar country. SafetyWing’s Essential Plan covers unexpected travel and medical emergencies and even offers add-ons like electronics theft or adventure sports. It is the best if you’re coming on vacation. If you’re coming as a digital nomad or an extended stay, you need their Complete Nomad Plan which also covers routine check ups, maternity, mental healthcare and more. Read more: Health Insurance in Argentina
- PHONE PLAN | These days, traveling with data is essential. Especially in Argentina where everything is managed on Instagram and WhatsApp. I recommend this E-SIM card. It’s hassle-free and affordable, for more read how to get an Argentina sim card.
- ACCOMMODATION IN ARGENTINA | booking.com is the most common hotel site used in Argentina and it’s where you’ll find the most options.
- RENTAL CARS | I love using Discover Cars, it is a great platform to compare different rates and providers and I find they have responsive customer service.
- BUS TICKETS | Check Busbud for long distance bus routes and tickets.
- VPN | If you’ll be using a public WiFi connection and want to secure your data, I highly recommend using a VPN, I personally use and have had a good experience with ExpressVPN. I also use it to access Hulu and American Netflix from Argentina.
- FLIGHTS | Always check Google Flights and Skyscanner for flights to and within Argentina. Aerolineas Argentina is the local airline with the most routes. FlyBondi and Jetsmart are two budget airlines with dirt-cheap prices (but expect to pay for every add-on like luggage).
