Caviahue – Copahue (Neuquén), Saldungaray (Buenos Aires), Barrancas (Jujuy), Campo Ramón (Misiones), Villa Tulumba (Córdoba), Los Chacayes (Mendoza), Urdinarrain (Entre Ríos) and Gaiman (Chubut) were selected by the Undersecretary of Tourism of the Nation to represent the country in the 2024 UN Tourism call called Best Tourism Villages, which seeks to promote and recognize tourist towns that are located in rural environments.
Added to these eight towns is Trevelin (Chubut), which after not being selected in 2023, faced an improvement process that positioned it as a direct candidate this year.
The initiative goes beyond finding the best landscapes or recognized tourist destinations and, instead, aims to distinguish those that transmit their values through tourism.?
The call was launched in February, so that provincial tourism organizations and municipalities could apply for those localities that met these requirements: less than 15,000 inhabitants, a natural and/or cultural landscape linked to a rural environment and a lifestyle of their own. of the region put into tourist value.
The evaluation areas were related to cultural and natural resources, their enhancement and conservation; economic, social and environmental sustainability linked to tourism; the integration of the value chain and local participatory management; the activity support support system; and tourism-oriented promotion and communication.
In previous editions, those distinguished by UN Tourism were Caspalá (Jujuy) and La Carolina (San Luis), for valuing their landscapes and for their cultural and natural diversity.
Town by town
Caviahue – Copahue (Neuquén):Mountain village made up of two population settlements sixteen kilometers apart. They are inserted within the protected natural area “Parque Provincial Copahue”, Neuquén, 370 kilometers from the capital. In the surrounding area, there are small rural areas where Mapuche and Creole communities live, practicing transhumance. Surrounded by geodiversity, it has an active volcano, thermal manifestations oriented to medical tourism, a lake and lagoons of acidic waters, and ancient forests of araucarias. From June to October, the town is covered in snow.
Saldungaray (Province of Buenos Aires):Part of a consolidated tourist region in the southwest of the province, its main attraction is linked to the natural environment of the Ventania mountain system, 100 kilometers from Bahía Blanca, in the valley of the Sauce Grande River. Don Pedro Saldungaray, founder of the town, bought the land on which Fortín Pavón is located, a place of importance during the Desert Campaign. Over the years, the disruptive architect Salamone (the most disruptive) carried out emblematic works adding to the historical attractions of the town. A winery, dairy farm and family cheese factory complement the offer.
Barrancas (Jujuy):178 kilometers from the provincial capital, the town has one of the most important rock treasures in the country and the region. The Inca pictographs and petroglyphs, located very close to the town in its imposing rock formations called “Barrancas”, constitute one of the most characteristic postcards of this town. These walls, located 3,619 meters above sea level, are tuffs and ignimbrites of volcanic origin, which give the site its name. Furthermore, historically, it was a place where caravans passed through as one of the branches of the Inca Trail.
Campo Ramón (Misiones):On provincial route 103, in the Oberá Department and 115 kilometers from Posadas, it is considered the “First Ecological Municipality” for its high level of environmental conservation. The first descriptions made of the area date back to the mid-19th century, when the wave of immigrant settlements began. There was a settlement of Jesuit missions called Nuestra Señora de Acaragua. The relevant activities are given by agricultural production of grass, tea, forestry. There is an important tourism offer in rural areas based on agrocamping, with visits to waterfalls and excursions in rural areas with a high value for the conservation of flora and fauna.
Villa Tulumba (Córdoba):The oldest town in Córdoba, 130 kilometers north of the capital. It dates back to 1585 and was elevated to Villa Real in 1803 by Royal Decree of Charles IV of Spain. Living testimony of the colonial era, with its cobblestone streets, old streetlights, old churches and adobe houses from the 18th and 19th centuries, it is currently considered an open-air museum. Its original inhabitants, the Sanavirones, left an important cultural legacy through more than 35,000 cave paintings on the stone walls of Cerro Colorado, and the rest of the area. It was part of the Camino Real.
Los Chacayes (Mendoza):Very close to the Andes Mountains, this town in the Tunuyán department is born, 130 kilometers from the capital, at an altitude of 1000 to 1400 meters above sea level. He witnessed great moments in the history of Argentina and the region and today they are represented in the Manzano Historic Nature Reserve, one of the tourist icons. A sapling of the tree where General Don José de San Martín rested upon his return from the Liberating feat is treasured in the place. The National Monument “Return to the Homeland” is located there, the work of the sculptor Luis Perlotti.
Urdinarrain (Entre Ríos):Located in the Gualeguaychú department, it is surrounded by hills and green landscapes. It was born in 1890, with the passage of the first train and thanks to the cultural contribution of German, Italian, Russian, Polish, Jewish and Spanish immigrants. It currently has four museums that treasure elements that speak of identity, self-guided historical circuits of faith, monuments and rural areas, white sand beaches and virgin nature, agricultural-livestock-industrial and wine production, regional products (dairy, sweets, pickles), crafts (Creole rope, loom, wood).
Gaiman (Chubut):In the Chubut valley, 36 kilometers from Rawson. Welsh traits predominate in their identity. However, its name is Tehuelche, a word that means Sharpening Stone. To visit it today is to live an experience between the past and the present where the rural landscape is mixed with the urban one, highlighting the architectural heritage of those constructions in sandstone rock and exposed brick that combine with the green of its vegetation and the ocher of the fences that form green oases in the Patagonian steppe. Tourists relive the past in their tea houses.
Trevelin (Chubut):With just over 9,000 inhabitants, it has a Welsh imprint that gives the place its name and means “Mill Town.” It is located in an extensive productive valley, surrounded by natural resources that have made it one of the tourist destinations in the Los Alerces region. The most colorful landscape in Patagonia is provided by this town with its imposing Tulip Field. There are also pinot noir vineyards, fine fruit plantations and peony fields. Nearby is also the Los Alerces National Park, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
