South America Online


Argentina

   

        General information
        When to go  
        Getting there and away
        Getting around

General information

With an area of 2,766,890 km² ( 1,068,296 miles²) and its almost 40 million inhabitants, Argentina is the largest Spanish-speaking country in Latin America. Most Argentines are of Spanish or Italian origin, but there are also German, Russian, French and English influences. The official language of Argentina is Spanish but  also, in addition to some Indian languages, is English, Italian, German and French partly spoken.

When to go


Argentina has its well-marked four seasons. When in the northern hemisphere is winter, is in the south of the continent summer. This makes Argentina an ideal alternative to escape the cold of Europe and North America. Being a diverse country, any generalization is relative, since the same season may be appropriate for one region and not for the other. In the northern provinces, Misiones, Salta and Jujuy , January and February are usually pretty hot, with temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius (104ºF). But at the same time, these are the best months to go to Patagonia. However, this does not mean that you can not visit Patagonia in the winter when it snows, because thousands of people do go there for skiing. In return, in winter some areas of Patagonia become inaccessible by land, and the cold may become very uncomfortable. Finally, fall is particular nice in Patagonia, its forests become colorful red and yellow. But summer is still the best time to visit Buenos Aires and the southern part of Argentina, inclusive Patagonia. The northern part of Argentina can be visited during all seasons, nevertheless it can become very hot between December and February.