At the beginning of October, I made a quick, 4-day trip to the provinces of Misiones and Corrientes in the north of Argentina – the region where yerba mate is grown – while John stayed home with the boys. The purpose of the trip was two-fold: scout the region so that I can better plan our 6-week trip in January/February and visit the national Festival of Yerba Mate. I had put off scheduling the trip until about 2 weeks beforehand because I felt guilty about leaving the boys but I took the plunge. John has been traveling a lot and he is about to leave for 2.5 weeks (3 weekends) in the United States. I decided that I should do what I need to do.
Before getting started on a description of my trip, I want to share my enthusiasm for tourism in Misiones, and especially the Ruta de la Yerba Mate. I have yet to travel the entire yerba mate route but based on what I’ve seen, I highly recommend it. I’ve visited a lot of Argentina for tourism (including Bariloche (Río Negro), Salta, Jujuy, Mendoza, Cordoba) and my impression is that Misiones and the Ruta de la Yerba Mate is a hidden gem. Along the Ruta de la Yerba mate, there are estancias, beautiful landscape, and outdoor activities at a reasonable price and without the crowds. Of course, the Iguazu falls are the exception – there are lots of people.
Before getting started on a description of my trip, I want to share my enthusiasm for tourism in Misiones, and especially the Ruta de la Yerba Mate. I have yet to travel the entire yerba mate route but based on what I’ve seen, I highly recommend it. I’ve visited a lot of Argentina for tourism (including Bariloche (Río Negro), Salta, Jujuy, Mendoza, Cordoba) and my impression is that Misiones and the Ruta de la Yerba Mate is a hidden gem. Along the Ruta de la Yerba mate, there are estancias, beautiful landscape, and outdoor activities at a reasonable price and without the crowds. Of course, the Iguazu falls are the exception – there are lots of people.