Chanarmuyo, Argentina

A comparatively short journey from Tafi to Chanarmuyo. Though I had the instructions on finding it a dozen or so kilometres off the RN40, it took a bit of finding. Nothing in this part of the word exists on Google maps, so the local town was not marked, and nothing in the town, once we found it, was signposted. Anyway a few questionings of local and we got there.

Click on any of the thumbnails below to get a larger photo

Grandly named Chanarmuyo Wine Estate and Lodge, once upon a time someone spent good money to set this place up, but today it is a shadow of its former self.

The swimming pool lapses one third full of green slimy water, only 45% of the light bulbs are working in the hotel, the various up-market things that are in their brochure no longer exist - to wit, no internet available, no English Spoken, no Wine Tastings, no Horse Riding, no Touristic Information (I think you get the picture)

The local staff are mainly very nice and friendly, but work without any management supervision. Nobody has trained them in running a hotel, or the needs of guests

The bedrooms are fairly basic. But the separate Dining Room, Lounge block was well done, with many interesting books scattered around. There is a large fireplace to sit around (lauded in their sales literature) , but nobody had bothered to light the fire for years - the staff were a little bemused when we insisted on the lights being turned on in the lounge and the fire lit.

The food was very good for the setting. And dinner includes a bottle of their own wine. We did have a contretemps on checkout as they said that only a white wine was included (but had not told us that). My feeling was that it was a scam, but I really have no idea.

The setting for the hotel is magical, with the mountains rising straight up from the vineyard. Indeed it would be hard to imagine a more perfect setting.

The problem is that they have oversold their product with promises of things that they do not and cannot deliver. It has been abandoned by the owners, and left in the hands of the well meaning local women who have to run the place.

I was not happy here, but Chris was ! Staying here probably hinges on your route through this remote part of Argentina, how many miles a day you are wanting to drive, and what alternatives you are considering

 

With nobody to give us any advice as to what we should see in our day here, we just wandered. First to the local dam, then on to find an Inca site marked on our map - but after and hours driving the road deteriorated into a cart track, and we were still miles away from our intended destination. I decided to call it quits and we returned to the hotel

Next day it was only a short hop of a couple of hours to Chilecito

Holiday in Bolivia, Chile and Argentina