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Mendoza

Argentina · South America · southern hemisphere

Wine/VineyardsHikingCity & CultureFestivals & Events

Mendoza is at its best for wine/vineyards in March to April and November to December. Good but not prime in January and February.

JFMAMJJASOND
Wine/Vineyards
63
71
93
92
37
5
4
15
25
47
92
87
Hiking
2
10
66
92
63
10
10
27
71
90
88
42
City & Culture
8
60
90
91
62
9
8
21
75
90
91
42
Festivals & Events
9
87
93
67
18
13
16
18
42
20
18
13

No reliable monthly crowd data for this destination — the proxy used elsewhere did not pass its checks here, so nothing is shown rather than a guess.

Swipe the table sideways for the rest of the year.

primegoodpossibleoff-seasoncrowds, on this place’s own scale

The short version

Harvest runs from February into April; the Vendimia festival lands late February into early March — the two are not the same week

What the walking is like

Half-day walks from the city and the wine roads. Nothing demanding unless you go looking for it.

When not to come

Coming in January expecting harvest. Picking runs from February into April; the festival is in early March, not the work.

Busiest

Late February into early March for the Vendimia, and the harvest weeks that follow

With children

Wineries are the point, and tastings are adult-oriented — though the larger estates have gardens and long lunches. Everything is a drive from everything else.

Where to stay

City hotels fill quickly once the Vendimia programme is announced. Chacras de Coria and Luján de Cuyo put you among the vineyards instead, usually for less.

Dates that matter

  • Fiesta Nacional de la Vendimia — late February into early March, main events in the first week of March
  • Harvest at the wineries (Mar–Apr) — hand-picked Malbec, early mornings
  • Música Clásica por los Caminos del Vino — concerts in vineyards and churches, around Easter

Walks

  • Cerro Arco — the ridge directly above the city, half a day
  • Confluencia, Aconcagua Provincial Park — a day walk to the first camp at 3,400m, through the park rather than up the mountain
  • Cañón del Atuel near San Rafael — river canyon, a long day trip south

Aconcagua province is full of high-altitude walking, but almost everyone here is doing wine first and one hike second.

See everything else at its best in Mar

Elsewhere in South America

Torres del PaineRio de JaneiroBarilocheCusco & the Sacred ValleyGalápagos IslandsPortilloPantanalValle Nevado & the Chilean Andes