Mrs. & I spent 3 days and nights last year in Salta. We just picked a spot on the map and decided to go. We could not have made a better choice. We took the train to the clouds on one day and just wandered the town on the other two. Food is very good and cheaper than in BsAs. We didn't drive and don't really think I want to. My Spanish is also limited but we had no problem in Salta. English is not spoken nearly as often as in BsAs. I plan to go back and spend more time in the area. I would really like to hire a private driver and car. Maybe someone on the forum could suggest an independent guide in the area

Dede-- I would suggest forgetting the driving. Its a lot of ground to cover, and Spanish skills will be pretty much critical. Traveling by land is an outstanding choice, however, but I would strongly suggest you think about hiring a car with a driver in the main locations you will visit. Off the top of my head, 7 days for all the places you mention may be a little to rich, I suggest you either add a couple of more days to the itin or think about taking out one location.

For Salta, I suggest you consider staying one or two nights at Colome Estate. Its the winery owned by Donald Hess, he has a beautiful place there.

I know an excellent guide based out of Salta, my only problem is that Im not sure how proficient he is in English. Let me call him (I havent spoken to him in over 1 year now) and get back to you on this issue.

That would be great. Thanks a million.

Would hiring a very good translator and combining them with an excellent guide be a workable solution for those who prefer/need the communication in a language other than Spanish?

Absolutely. The only issue to consider in this case are the additional person in the group (may be an issue of space in the vehicle), but as long as there are no big budget issues that would work very nicely. Im afraid I dont know if a good translator in Salta, but I assume a good hotel concierge should be able to solve that.

We spent 5 days in the Salta area in late November and loved it. I wouldn't hesitate to rent a car. Driving was really quite easy. Signage was very good. And I love the freedom of having a car and stopping when you want to take pictures, stop at the roadside pottery stands, etc.

We flew into Salta, rented a car and headed south to Cafayete. The drive south, which took most of the day, was spectacular. Cafayete was a charming town with a cute town square. Great wine and wineries in the region.

The next day we drove northwest to Cachi. Unfortunately, we didn't realize that more than 100 miles of the trip was on unpaved roads. Again, the scenery was amazing, very desert like with great sandstone formations, but the drive was long, hot and dusty. We traveled about 25 miles per hour for most of the day. Cachi was purported to be an artist town, but we were disappointed. We did enjoy dinner at a nice local restaurant, but not much else going on.

Day 3 we drove over the mountains back toward Salta. That drive was truly amazing, even though much of it was also on unpaved roads; however, the driving was much, much better and the views were unbelievable. We drove back towards Salta and then north. We stayed in Jujoy that evening. The drive to Jujoy was through the mountains on a 1 lane road. We saw goats, gauchos, cattle, darling little Argentine children, etc. It was great fun!

Day 4 we went to Purmamarca and Tilcara�again, beautiful scenery and wonderful little towns. That night we drove back to Salta and then spent the following day in Salta enjoying great shopping, restaurants, and the churches.

If I were to do the trip again, I would drive to Cafayete and then back to Salta on the same road. I would then drive to Cachi traveling west and than back again on the same route. I would not take the circular route and drive the road from Cafayete to Cachi. However, I would go back to the area in a heartbeat!

Since I've "failed" 3 tries at Beginner Spanish put on by the local Community Education, I would have to say that my Spanish is very, very limited; however, I approach conversing in South America to be an adventure. I keep trying and mix a bit of German with the little Spanish I remember, and somehow we manage to communicate. I remember locking my keys in the trunk when we rented a car in Chile. 4 policeman came to rescue us (business was very slow that day . They couldn't speak a word of English, yet we managed to let them know what our problem was, and they tried hard to help us. When driving in South America, I believe that knowing the language is helpful, but it's certainly not necessary.

I would like to dine at La Bourgogne.
any input? quality? how's the fois gras? price?

Foie Gras may be an issue, simply because of the current import restrictions on duck/geese & general bird products due to the bird flue. Most all the Chefs I have spoken to say that the few local producers do not make the grade, hence they dont offer it. I havent been to La Bourgogne in a little over a year, so I dont know if they have this item on the menu.

In terms of price, for an establishment of this caliber (comparing to something similar in any other large city), prices will be attractive.

They offer a very good business lunch menu - not expensive.
They also have a tiny shop .... the baguettes are as good as Paul's and Poilane's in Paris.
http://www.alvearpalace.com/1024/ingles/r_boutique.htm

The Alvear hotel has another fine restaurant ... it was mentioned in the TAM (airline) magazine.

BTW, Buenos Aires is a great town ....Gaucho100K is a happy man

Correct on both counts..... ^

We recently came back from a 5 days vacation in Buenos Aires, what a splendid time!

We were at the Four Seasons and got upgraded to the Mozart Suite 101. Absolutely outstanding accommodations and service. My better half was enthusiastic.

These are the venues where we had meals:

Le Mistral - (Hotel restaurant) good appetizer bar, superb Lomo and ok Lamb.

Pappa Deus - (new location, still in San Telmo) casual lunch, very nice atmosphere, ask for the tables on the top indoor floor. Good food, low prices.

La Brigada - Local joint recommended by the Concierge desk. Exceptional meat, great wine, poor service.

Cabana Las Lilas - After reading about it on this thread I was not going to try it but it came with a strong endorsement from the Concierge desk. Maybe because we were there a little earlier (2030) than the local norm but we had a great dinner. Food was very good and service professional and courteous. We had a well organized team of 4/5 people waiting our table. Very expensive for the local standards, but still well below an US comparable dinner.

Cluny � The best dinner we had in BA. Very cool atmosphere, outstanding food and beverage.

FREUD & FAHLER � Highly recommended for casual lunches, artsy feeling, very good food and gentle service. Inexpensive.

Remember that for American standards, food and beverage in BA is inexpensive and it is easier to find genuine and non standardized chain restaurant food. There are lots of very nice restaurants and bars. I found people much different than Americans, as for the overall propensity towards other people, almost all people I dealt with have been very available for questions and willing to share a word or two.

Very nice experience, we�ll certainly go back. Good luck Portenos!

Glad you had a good trip. Cabania Las Lilas does give you the best chance at a good meal if you go early - good call on your part.

Just FYI for those traveling to EZE in the next 24 hours. There has been a strike by the ramp workers today and they are not offloading any luggage off any flights. I arrived at 9am today and they had us waiting for 2 hours until they "heard further" - but no developments have been made. If anyone is traveling into EZE tonight into tomorrow, I highly recommend carrying luggage on.

My bad for the one time I have actually checked stuff in

Here's a little article in the New York Times on La Rural, the granddaddy of all stock shows held annually in BsAs.

There are a couple of restaurant recos, La Raya and Oviedo, at the end of the article as well.