The travel day from Humahuaca to Cafayate was definitely long considering we had to change buses in both Jujuy and Salta but it was definitely worth it! We started with the 9am bus from Humahuaca to Jujuy on Panamericana and then caught the 12pm bus from Jujuy to Salta arriving in the mid-afternoon. We then checked our bags at storage and spend a couple of hours grabbing lunch and walking around Salta. After that, we took the 5pm bus to Cafayate arriving around 9pm. Out first night in town, Stefanie, Laura (a friend from Belgium), and I went to dinner on the main plaza at a place called El Rancho. The next day, we spent the day hiking to the 7 waterfalls near town. We decided to take a taxi from town to the trailhead costing $80 pesos total and we then negotiated a guide at the trailhead. While I was reluctant to hire a guide, I don’t think we would’ve been able to find all of the waterfalls without one. The guide wasn’t great, even though he was an official guide, and I would definitely research other options if I were to go back. However, hiking to the waterfalls is definitely a must while in Cafayate!
After hiking at the falls, we went to Finca Las Nubes for a wine tasting. The tasting cost $70 pesos and the pours were not very generous nor was the wine my favorite I’ve had while in Argentina. The view though was amazing. We then walked back into town and went to La Case de las Empanadas (the one between Colon and Vicario Toscano streets) for dinner. The had live music and dancing which was amazing and we spent several hours eating empanadas, drinking wine, and enjoying the entertainment.
On the second day, we went did a tour to Quebrada de las Conchas in the afternoon which cost $350 pesos per person. The tour started at 2:30pm and ended at 8pm. The tour was a nice mix of a short hike as well as doing a hop on hop off portion to see all the sites. I loved the tour and the scenery was gorgeous! I would definitely spend more time there if given the opportunity.
While on the tour we met a girl named Robyn from New Zealand and we became fast friends due to our limited Spanish skills haha. For dinner that night we decided to splurge a little since it was our last night together and Stefanie and I were parting ways the next day. We decided to go to Dona Argentina for dinner and the food was AMAZING! Two of us got the vegetable and goat cheese stuffed chicken and the others got the steak. We also spilt a couple of bottles of wine (as is tradition in Argentina). There was also live music here that started at 10:30pm and we spent the evening enjoying the music and the dinner guest who did some impromptu traditional dancing.
Cafayate was an amazing city and I would definitely encourage anyone visiting Argentina to make a stop here! It is the perfect combination of wine, great food, hiking, and beautiful scenery!
Jordan's Journeys 