Argentina’s Andes & Puna Expedition – 15 days

Upon arrival in Salta, you are 25 minutes from downtown and a great evening…with a comfy hotel and nice restaurants to choose from.  We will pick you up at the airport in a private shuttle providing a quick transfer to the hotel.  Dinner together at an appointed time to get to know each other.  We will make it an early night as tomorrow we depart in the morning. Overnight in Salta.

Hotel: House of Jasmines (5*)   Meals included:  D

We leave Jujuy after a casual breakfast.  Our morning drive north leaves the temperate valleys and climbs into the Quebrada de Humahuaca, one of Argentina’s most important cultural and geographic corridors, connecting northern Argentina to southern Bolivia. To the west, the land opens toward the western Andes chain, with peaks from 4,000 to 6,000 meters and the high-altitude world of the Altiplano and Puna beyond.  Chile shares these mountains with Argentina. The road follows the north–south line of the quebrada, with the Zenta Mountains rising sharply to the east, forming a natural barrier between this high Andean valley and the semi-tropical Yungas cloud forest to the east. This UNESCO world heritage site is dotted with adobe villages, roadside hamlets, old churches, dry riverbeds, cactus-covered slopes, and brilliantly colored mountains in chevron patterns. For photographers, this day is about geographical orientation: reading the light, understanding the distances, and beginning to identify the places we will return to when the conditions are best. Our goal is the town of Humahuaca, where a steep climb takes us to the viewpoint of the Hornocal Mountains which face west.  We begin the hour-long climb (26 kms) to 4,350 m / 14,270 ft to the perfect sunset shot location, so we have all day to get there. After sunset, we rhead down to Humahuaca and then south to the quaint town of Tilcara where we will spend the night.  Dinner and overnight in Tilcara.

Hotel: Canto del Viento (3*)                                          Meals Included: B, L, D       

After an early breakfast, we depart Tilcara and climb west over the Cuesta de Lipán, gaining nearly 2,000 meters in about 35 km. The road rises quickly into open Andean country, crossing the high pass at 4,170 meters before dropping toward Salinas Grandes, one of the great white salt flats of northern Argentina. Located between Jujuy and Salta, this stark landscape sits at roughly 3,450 meters and covers about 212 km². This is a long travel day, but the photography is excellent: switchback roads, high desert light, salt textures, distant mountains, and small Puna settlements. We continue south on Route 40, passing Susques, Huancar, Puesto Sey, thermal springs, and La Juguetería, where wind-shaped volcanic rocks sit scattered across the desert like natural sculpture. Later in the day, we drive beneath the Polvorilla Viaduct, the highest bridge of the famous Tren a las Nubes, once linking Salta with Antofagasta, Chile. By late afternoon, we arrive in San Antonio de los Cobres, a small mining town deep in the Puna.

Hotel: El Portal de los Andes (3*)                                  Meals Included: B, L, D

After breakfast, we depart San Antonio de los Cobres and begin our journey toward Tolar Grande, crossing one of the most remote and striking sections of the Argentine Puna. The exact route will be chosen based on road conditions and weather while looking the best photographic opportunities of the day. This is a day of open horizons, volcanic geology, salt flats, and desert silence. We plan to photograph locations such as the Desierto del Diablo, Desierto Rojo, Salar de Tolar, Cerro Macón, and the wind-sculpted rock formations that rise from the high-altitude desert. Our timing today is deliberate. We will make progress early so we can be in position for late afternoon light in the Red Desert, with special attention to Los Colorados at sunset. This is when the landscape begins to glow: red earth, mineral-stained ridges, deep shadows, and the soft final light of the day spreading across the desert floor. After sunset, we continue toward Tolar Grande, arriving in the evening at this small mining town surrounded by some of the most dramatic Puna landscapes in northern Argentina.

Hotel: Casa de Monica (2*)                               Meals Included: B, L, D

We begin before dawn and return to the Red Desert for sunrise, when the first light cuts across the ridges and brings out the deep mineral colors of this extraordinary landscape. This is one of the best times to photograph the desert: low-angle light, long shadows, and a quiet atmosphere that gives the place its full sense of scale. After breakfast in the field, we continue west to Tolar Grande for a brief rest, then depart south toward the Salar de Arizaro and the iconic Cono de Arita, one of the most distinctive geological formations in the Argentine Puna. The middle part of the day will be used for scouting, studying access, reading the light, and identifying the strongest angles for our sunset shoot…with emphasis on the shadow lines. Our goal is to be fully prepared before the late afternoon light begins. We will position ourselves carefully for sunset at Cono de Arita, working with the shape of the cone, the surrounding salt flat, the distant mountains, and the changing color of the desert floor. After sunset, we return to Tolar Grande for dinner and overnight.

Hotel: Casa de Monica (2*)                               Meals Included: B, L, D

We begin well before dawn and drive south from Tolar Grande to reach the Cono de Arita for sunrise. Our goal is to be in position as the first light reaches the cone and the surrounding surface of the Salar de Arizaro, giving us clean shadows, strong geometry, and one of the most iconic Puna landscape compositions in northwestern Argentina. After our sunrise shoot, we continue deeper into the high desert, following a remote route across the Puna toward the Salar de Antofalla. This is a day of vast distances and constantly changing geology: volcanic ridges, mineral-colored earth, salt flats, green lagoons, lava flows, and isolated high-altitude wildlife moving through an enormous open landscape. Our afternoon is filled with the Salar de Antofalla, where we will photograph the salt flats, colored pools, volcanic backdrops, and the strange meeting of water, salt, and desert light. As the sun drops lower, we will work the best available angles for late-day photography before continuing onward to have sunset at Los Volcanes. By evening, we arrive in Antofagasta de la Sierra, one of the most remote and atmospheric settlements in the Puna, surrounded by volcanic lava fields, and desert silence.

Hotel: Pueblo del Sol (3*)                                 Meals Included: B, L, D

We begin before dawn from Antofagasta de la Sierra, heading out to photograph the nearby volcanic landscape at sunrise. This is a strong morning shoot, with the first light revealing the shapes of the cones, lava fields, salt flats, and wide desert plains that surround this remote mining town. After breakfast, we continue toward Laguna Grande, a high-altitude lagoon set among volcanoes and open Puna terrain. Depending on wind, water levels, and bird activity, this can be an excellent place for flamingos, reflections, mineral colors, and wide landscape compositions. In the afternoon, we continue toward Campo de Piedra Pómez, one of the most extraordinary landscapes in northern Argentina. We plan our timing carefully so we can photograph the pumice field at sunset, when the low light cuts across the wind-carved formations and gives the pale volcanic stone depth, texture, and long shadows. After sunset, we continue to the small settlement of El Peñón, our base for the night.

Hotel: Casa de Reina (3*)                                  Meals Included: B, L, D

We depart El Peñón well before dawn and return to Campo de Piedra Pómez for sunrise. This early start is essential. The pumice fields are at their best in the first light of day, when the low sun gives shape to the wind-carved formations and the pale volcanic stone begins to glow with soft color and long shadows. We will photograph until the light becomes too harsh, then return to El Peñón for a proper breakfast and a short rest. After several long days in the Puna, this midday break is important for recovery, editing, and preparing for the afternoon shoot. Later in the day, we continue toward Laguna Carachi Pampa, a striking high-desert basin framed by volcanic terrain. Depending on conditions, this area can offer strong landscape opportunities, with open flats, distant cones, water, mineral color, and the austere beauty of the Puna. For sunset, our plan is to work the Dunas Blancas, the White Sand Dunes near El Peñón. If the light and conditions favor the dunes, we will photograph there until sunset, using the clean lines, wind patterns, and soft evening shadows. If conditions change, we can adapt quickly and return to nearby locations, since both the pumice fields and dunes are close enough to adjust our plan in the field. After sunset, we return to El Peñón for dinner and overnight.

Hotel: Casa de Reina (3*)                                  Meals Included: B, L, D

We begin before dawn from El Peñón and drive to the Dunas Blancas for sunrise. The White Dunes are best photographed in the first light, when the wind-carved ridges, clean sand patterns, and soft shadows give the landscape its strongest shape and texture. This is a quiet, minimalist morning shoot, with the pale dunes set against the darker volcanic country around them. After the morning session, we return to El Peñón for breakfast, rest, and lunch. The middle of the day will be kept flexible so we can recover, review images, and prepare for the afternoon. Later, we explore the black volcanic formations north of the hotel, a stark contrast to the white pumice and sand landscapes we have been photographing. This area offers darker tones, rough lava textures, volcanic cones, and strong foreground possibilities, especially as the afternoon light begins to soften. For sunset, we return once more to Campo de Piedra Pómez, giving us another opportunity to work this extraordinary landscape in late afternoon light. With more familiarity from the previous sessions, we can refine compositions, choose stronger angles, and photograph the wind-carved pumice formations as the shadows lengthen across the desert floor. After sunset, we return to El Peñón for dinner and overnight.

Hotel: Casa de Reina (3*)                                  Meals Included: B, L, D

We leave El Peñón early and begin descending out of the high Puna, watching the landscape change as we drop from volcanic desert into the lower valleys of Catamarca. This is a long travel day, but a beautiful transition: open highland plains give way to warmer light, softer valleys, adobe villages, dry hillsides, and the first signs of a more settled green agricultural landscape. Our route takes us south through Belén, an important valley town with deep regional character and a strong connection to weaving, local traditions, and the historic routes that crossed this part of northwestern Argentina. We continue onward through changing desert country toward Fiambalá, one of the great base towns for exploring the southern Puna, the Seismiles region, and the high mountain landscapes near the Chilean border. By late afternoon or evening, we arrive in Fiambalá and settle into the hotel. Tonight is well-earned: we visit the Aguas Termales de Fiambalá, the natural hot springs set in the desert hills above town. After days of early starts, wind, altitude, and long dirt-road travel, this is the perfect place to recover, soak, and let the body reset before the next stage of the journey.

Hotel: Cabañas Aires de los Andes (3*)                          Meals Included: B, L, D

We begin before dawn and drive out toward the Dunas de Tatón for sunrise, one of the most beautiful desert landscapes near Fiambalá. The early light is the key here, when the sand ridges, wind patterns, and surrounding mountains begin to take shape and the dunes glow softly before the day heats up. After breakfast, we continue into the high mountain corridor known as the Ruta de los Seismiles, the Road of the Six-Thousanders. This is one of the most dramatic high-altitude routes in the Americas, surrounded by an exceptional concentration of peaks over 6,000 meters, salt lakes, volcanic slopes, and vast open terrain near the Chilean border. Our photography today will focus on scale, atmosphere, and the extreme geography of the southern Puna. We will work with the changing light, roadside viewpoints, distant summits, and the stark beauty of this remote Andean environment. By late afternoon, we arrive at Hotel Cortaderas, an ideal staging point deep in the mountains. This puts us in excellent position for the next day’s adventure, with less driving and better access to the high-elevation landscapes ahead.

Hotel: Cortaderas (3*)                          Meals Included: B, L, D

Today is dedicated to one of the most spectacular high-altitude landscapes in the Argentine Andes. From Hotel Cortaderas, we head deeper into the mountain world of the Seismiles, where the road climbs into a vast terrain of volcanic peaks, mineral lakes, open sky, and silence. Our route takes us toward Lagunas Aparejo and Azul, where the color of the water contrasts sharply with the surrounding desert, lava slopes, and pale highland earth. These are remote, exposed landscapes, and the photography is about scale, color, texture, and the feeling of being deep inside the high Andes. We continue to the Balcón del Pissis, one of the great viewpoints of the region, with sweeping views toward the enormous volcanic mass of Monte Pissis and the surrounding chain of high peaks. From here, the landscape opens in every direction: lakes, ridgelines, summits, and immense distances. The day continues toward Laguna Negra and the spectacular Laguna Verde del Pissis, the combination of turquoise water, volcanic slopes, high peaks, and thin Andean light is unforgettable. We return to our hotel in Cortaderas for dinner and rest.

Hotel: Cortaderas (3*)                          Meals Included: B, L, D

From Hotel Cortaderas, we drive toward Fiambalá, then continue through Tinogasta and Belén, gradually leaving the extreme altitude, salt lakes, and volcanic landscapes behind. This is a major transition day, with the scenery changing from stark mountain desert to dry valleys, adobe villages, cultivated land, roadside chapels, and the warmer colors of the Calchaquí region. Our route continues north toward Santa María, a key valley town before entering one of the most important archaeological landscapes in Argentina: the Ruinas de Quilmes. If timing allows, we will stop here to photograph and walk through the remains of this remarkable pre-Hispanic settlement, set against a dry mountain backdrop and offering a powerful sense of history, resistance, and place. From Quilmes, we continue toward Cafayate, entering the wine country of Salta and the red-rock landscapes of the Quebrada de las Conchas. Our goal is to reach Los Castillos for sunset, when the sculpted canyon walls take on their strongest color in the late light. After the shoot, we head into Cafayate for dinner and overnight.

Hotel: Vieja Posada (3*)                                    Meals Included: B, L, D

Today we begin with the sunrise event of the region, imagine a multi-colored layered cake with contrasting and complimentary colors bathed in the morning sun.  This is La Yesera.  We have lunch in Bodega and for the final sunset of the journey we visit Los Colorados, before returning to Cafayate for dinner and some rest.

Hotel: Vieja Posada (3*)                                    Meals Included: B, L, D

After breakfast, we make a final morning departure from Cafayate, leaving the vineyards and dry valleys of the Calchaquí region behind as we begin the drive north toward Salta Airport. Our route follows the Quebrada de las Conchas, one of the most scenic canyon roads in northern Argentina. Depending on flight times, we will make a few final photographic stops among the red cliffs, layered rock formations, dry riverbeds, and sculpted canyon walls that make this area such a strong closing landscape for the journey. This last day is designed to be flexible. If schedules allow, we may stop for a light lunch or empanadas along the way before continuing toward Salta.

This is the end of a remarkable route through the Argentine north: from the Quebrada de Humahuaca and the high Puna to salt flats, volcanoes, remote desert towns, pumice fields, mountain lakes, vineyards, and the red canyon country of Salta.

By afternoon, we arrive at Martín Miguel de Güemes International Airport, where the tour concludes with flights onward to Buenos Aires or home.  You do have the option of staying tonight in Salta if you like, but this hotel night is not included in the quote.  We can make your reservations, just let us know.

Hotel: none                                                      Meals included:  L, D

*We do not provide dinner or any hotel stay this evening in Salta.