The Pampas is the economic heartland Argentina. It is a flat grassland with a mild, humid climate that is particularly suitable for agriculture. It is located in the central east of the country and is bounded by the Atlantic, the Río de la Plata and Río Paraná as well as the Sierras Pampeanas and the Rio Colorado as a limit to Patagonia framed.
Travelers mainly come to the pampas to get to know the cities and rural life in the vast expanses, where the Argentine cowboy, the gaucho, is or was at home. The capital of Argentina, Buenos Aires, as well as several other large cities are in this area.
Regions
By and large, the pampas can be divided into a wet part in the east (Pampa Húmeda) and a dry part in the west (Pampa Seca):
- Pampa Húmeda:
- Gran Buenos Aires, the densely populated metropolitan area around the state capital Buenos Aires
- Pampas (Buenos Aires), the part in the province Buenos Aires
- Pampas (Santa Fe), the part in the province Santa Fe
- the Atlantic coast of the province of Buenos Aires, the most important tourist center in the region. It is characterized by wide, dune-lined beaches and a flat coastline.
- the Sierras Bonaerenses Australes, three low mountain ranges in the south of the province of Buenos Aires
- Pampas (Cordoba), the southeast of the province Cordoba
- Pampa Seca:
- the entire province La Pampa, even if the east is usually counted as part of the Pampa Húmeda
- Pampas (San Luis), the southern part of the province San Luis
places
Many of the most important cities in Argentina are located in the pampas. Proximity to the Río de la Plata, where the capital and most important port city Buenos Aires plays a major role in this.
The most important cities in the pampas are as follows:
- Buenos Aires (13 million inhabitants), the state capital and the economic, political and cultural center of the country. The main attraction is the extensive, diverse cultural scene with many museums and theaters, but there are also some architectural sights, especially from the period around 1900.
- Cordoba (1.5 million inhabitants) on the border with the Chaco and the Sierras Pampeanas. The inland metropolis is known for its university and its colonial buildings and also has a lot to offer culturally.
- Rosario (1.2 million inhabitants), the largest city in the province of Santa Fe, is a modern port and industrial city with a lot of culture and a beautiful location on the river.
- La Plata (600,000 inhabitants), the capital of the province of Buenos Aires, was built as a planned city at the end of the 19th century. It is known for its museums and university.
- Mar del Plata (550,000 inhabitants) is the largest seaside resort in Argentina, but is now also a port and university city, with some interesting buildings. The main attraction remains the beach, which is populated by millions of guests in the summer, and the nightlife with one of the largest casinos in South America.
- Bahía Blanca (300,000 inhabitants) is an important port and industrial city on the Atlantic with some interesting buildings in the center and a rather modern cityscape. It is a good starting point for the mountain landscape Sierra de la Ventana and some seaside resorts.
- Tandile (110,000 inhabitants) is the most important city in the hilly landscape Sierra de Tandil, and a popular travel destination because of its beautiful location.
The town Santa Fe (500,000 inhabitants) lies on the border between the pampas and the countryside of the Argentine Chaco, it is described in the Chaco article.
Other goals
- Sierras Bonaerenses Australes, a low mountain range in the south of the province of Buenos Aires. The largest mountain range is Sierra de la Ventana with the curious Cerro Ventana, which resembles a window.
- Delta del Paraná in the north of the province of Buenos Aires, a wooded delta with a variety of water sports.
background
The pampas are considered to be the core economic region of Argentina. It is the most densely populated of all areas (with the exception of the small province of Tucumán) and concentrates industry, agriculture and livestock in the country.
Until the Conquista, the region was made up of nomads like the Het and Ranqueles inhabited, only in the north were with the Comechingones and Sanavirones sedentary peasant people. The north of the pampas was settled and urbanized up to about latitude La Platas by the Spaniards from the late 16th century. Initially sparsely populated for centuries, an economic boom began with the establishment of the viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata in 1776. From around 1850, the first larger groups of immigrants came to the country from Europe, who initially settled in rural areas and there Colonies who were often ethnically very homogeneous. After Nicolás Avellaneda had liberalized the immigration laws in 1875, there was a real flow of immigration into the cities. Buenos Aires in particular quickly grew into a city of over a million people. The cities of the south, on the other hand, were founded relatively late, as this region was ruled by indigenous peoples until the end of the 19th century, who were cruelly exterminated in the so-called "desert campaign" between 1850 and 1880. This meant that the way there was also open to immigrants from Europe.
Today there is hardly anything left of the original landscape, but the wide cattle pastures still exude the endless, spacious character that characterizes this plain, which has been sung about by many folklore songs. The pampas are the land of the gaucho, a mixture of cowboy, cattle thief and musician who made the pampas unsafe in the 18th and early 19th centuries. The gaucho traditions can be found today in many festivals and sports, in gastronomy, especially in the asado, as well as in the folklore music of the region.
Since 1950 the Atlantic coast of the province of Buenos Aires the most popular holiday center in the area and now the region with the fastest growing population.
language
The Spanish of the Pampas is considered to be the Argentine "standard Spanish". There are only a few speakers of indigenous languages in the region, the region is considered particularly European. Basic knowledge of English is widespread, even in rural areas, even if, because of the relatively poor level of instruction in schools, it rarely allows for more than superficial conversations. Some of the older residents also speak Italian or, less often, German.
getting there
The starting point for all tours, the capital Buenos Aires, is through the Buenos Aires Ezeiza Airport directly connected to a large part of the world and also Germany. Many other cities in the Pampas can be reached from all regions of Argentina by both bus and plane. The frequencies especially to Buenos Aires are very dense. Buenos Aires, Rosario and Córdoba as well as numerous small towns in the pampas can also be reached by train.
The road network in Argentina is oriented towards Buenos Aires and thus towards the Pampas region.
mobility
The bus network is very good and extends to all towns, the road network is passable, even if some of the main highways are very busy and only have two lanes. The three largest cities Buenos Aires, Córdoba and Rosario as well as Santa Fe and Mar del Plata are connected by highways and four-lane expressways. Almost all places can be reached by bus, the tourist towns on the Atlantic also by train (currently only Mar del Plata) and plane (Mar del Plata, Bahía Blanca and Villa Gesell).
It should be noted that the Atlantic coast is very busy in summer and therefore many buses and flights have to be booked in advance. The same applies to trips and flights to and from Buenos Aires at Christmas, New Years and on long weekends.
Tourist Attractions
- cathedral, in Buenos Aires.
- Cabildo, in Buenos Aires.
- Palace of Justice, in Buenos Aires.
- Government Palace (Casa Rosada), in Buenos Aires.
- Cathedral and Jesuit Block. With churches, an old university building and monasteries in Cordoba.
- Rambla Casino, in Mar del Plata. Monumental brick building right on the beach.
- Monumento a la Bandera, in Rosario. The largest monument in Argentina, dedicated to the Argentine flag, right on the Rio Paraná.
activities
Due to the humid climate, there are many rivers and lakes in the pampas that are great for swimming.
The same of course also applies to the Atlantic coast. The seaside resorts often offer a variety of sporting activities, e.g. water skiing, boat tours, motor boating, diving, horse riding and quad biking.
Active holidays are offered on many tourist estancias, including riding tours.
kitchen
The cuisine of the pampas is based on the beef. The "Asado" is the most typical food of the region: Here all kinds of cuts and offal are grilled. Especially popular in the country asado con cuero (Asado with skin) the cattle are cut into large pieces and then roasted diagonally over the embers on a skewer about 1 m high.
nightlife
Especially in Buenos Aires there is a rich nightlife, Rosario and Córdoba are also interesting in this regard. The Atlantic coast becomes the scene of nightlife in summer, especially next to Mar del Plata Pinamar and Villa Gesell. See the respective city articles.
security
There are no particular natural hazards, but there is a warning against swimming in the Río de la Plata, the water of which is heavily polluted. On the subject of crime, see the respective city articles, but this is (almost) not an issue in rural areas.
climate
The pampas have a temperate climate with rain in all seasons. Especially in the north, the summer is very warm and often uncomfortably humid, especially in Rosario and the Paraná Delta, but also in Buenos Aires. The further you get inland, the more the sultriness decreases. In the west (pampa seca) the temperatures are much higher, but the heat is dry and therefore more pleasant. Winter is cool and often windy in the entire area, but with a good chance of pleasant periods of sunshine.
In summer you can expect daytime temperatures of 25 ° C-35 ° C, in winter between 10 ° C and 20 ° C.
The best travel times are spring and autumn for the north and summer (December to the end of March) for the Atlantic coast. The city of Buenos Aires is easy to visit all year round, even if the summer can be oppressive and humid and the winter is fresh.
trips
All regions of Argentina can be easily reached from the pampas. The same goes for the neighboring one Uruguay; a popular trip is taking the ferry from Buenos Aires to Colonia del Sacramento or Montevideo.
