Argentina has a spectacularly diverse topography from the plains of the pampas to the mountains in the west, to the sub tropical areas in the north. All areas lend themselves to rural tourism and all areas have a range of interesting real estate possibilities.

The following are favoured locations:

Buenos Aires Province

The area around BA is true Gaucho land. Come here if it’s farming mixed with tourism that you are interested in. The area is gorgeous in its peacefulness and it’s an area where many city dwellers have their farms which they visit at weekends. It’s the best of both worlds. They have stylish apartments in BA and horse ride a la gaucho on their farms at weekends. The area is famous for its huge estancias of which some have opened their doors to the public much the same way as we have with La Margarita.

There are quite a few estancias on the market and many are just crying out to be renovated and put to good use as rural tourism locations. A good web page for finding land and property in Buenos Aires province is www.nordheimer.com

Mendoza
Vineyards in San Rafael

During my time in Argentina I have spent time going to different areas looking at potential opportunities. One area I have found is almost perfect – San Rafael.

It has fantastic potential and it’s a paradise to boot. You can drive 90 minutes to a ski resort. Or go white water rafting, climbing, trout fishing, hang gliding – I could go on. It has lovely clean air, the bluest skies you will ever see, pure mountain water and guaranteed sunshine. The cost of living is low, the quality of life near perfect and the people are lovely. This is an area packed with opportunities for either starting a new business and a new life or simply for investing in. I have now visited it three times and I can safely say that it is truly a remarkable place. You can buy a vineyard here with 140 acres of grape vines with views of the Andes to die for. And all yours for $200,000 negotiable – and you get an income from it! For $80,000 you can buy a fabulous house with 5 hectares of land, a swimming pool, guest house and beautiful parkland – a perfect setting for making a campsite. From USD$ 250000 you can buy a campsite located next to the river and have the time of your life away from the stresses of big city life.

You could also go into the potentially rewarding business of prunes. I visited a prune farm (no jokes please) with 130 hectares in full production for only USD$150,000.

Just ‘ripe’ for that change of life you always dreamed of – and it’s already in operation. Even if you know nothing about wine or prune production, don’t worry; there are experts who will help you all the way. Some companies take a percentage of the profit while others simply take a fee. There are already international investors in the area, from France, Spain, Italy and America, and the community is growing. Once you have visited it you will see why. Remember, if you only want to visit your property once or twice a year there are people who can take care of it at a very low cost.

I have no doubt that buying land in this area will be a fantastic investment. Prices are low at the moment but there are definite signs that prices are rising – get in early and you will have purchased a fantastic investment for which you, your children and your grandchildren will be eternally grateful.

North Territories

In the North of Argentina you will find huge rivers, subtropical forest, mountains, and jungles and what many say is the real Argentina. If it’s fishing tourism or ecological type tourism that’s of interest to you then you will love this area. Whilst the areas in the north are in the main poorer than other parts of Argentina (because it is not so productive farming-wise) it offers those that are interested in rural tourism a spectacular choice of free raw materials just waiting to be developed. The wild life, the fauna and flora the fishing, the climbing, the indigenous population - the list goes on. For many it’s got it all. One very rich and famous American who has recently purchased huge amounts of land here is Douglas Tompkins He now devotes at least six month of his time to his ecological projects and he says that he’s here to stay. Google him, it makes interesting reading.

It’s good to remember that tourism in many parts of Argentina, especially the North, is a new business. Sure, Patagonia in the south has a sophisticated tourist industry, but that is not so in many other parts because tourists visiting in any large numbers is a new phenomenon. Before the crash of 2001 Argentineans just didn’t visit places in their own country and for foreigners it was either too expensive or too difficult. It’s now changing. Argentineans are at last seeing what a wonderful and beautiful country they live in and are starting to explore it in numbers, and foreigners are now coming in droves. Problem is especially in the north they just are not geared to this explosion in tourism. Of course all this means that there awaits those brave enough to take up the challenge a wonderful opportunity in tourism.

Patagonia

Patagonia is almost a country in its own right it is so vast. It is also enjoying huge success in attracting tourism .The currency is almost universally US$ and for most of the year Patagonia is full of foreign tourists. It’s not hard to see why things are going well. It has wonderful scenery, beautiful lakes and river, skiing, fishing, fascinating wild life and of course one of the most spectacular tourist attractions in the world – the Perito Moreno Glacier. It is also the home to the southern most town in the world aka Ushuaia. It really is a paradise for those who love and live the outdoor life. Come here if you want to get involved in the tourism - the opportunities are endless. But remember one thing; it has a short summer and a long winter!

For those of you looking to get away from cold dark nights then maybe this is not the place for you. For those of you who like wearing thermal underwear then it really is the place to set up in tourism. Hotels, trekking clubs, skiing lodges and schools, hostels, fly-fishing, whale watching, mountain climbing - well you name it, it has virtually got it all. Here in Patagonia tourism is big business. Competition is stiff because it has been a tourist location for so long. Don’t let that put you off there are still big opportunities here - you just have to find your niche and you are in business. It’s no doubt a great place to make an investment in land or property. It’s a bit like Spain, which is suffering from a sort of property slump at the moment due to over build. But one thing is for sure and it’s that the slump won’t last forever. People will still want to live in Spain because it has something that many countries don’t have and that’s the long hot summers.

Likewise in Patagonia in the crisis of 2001 prices crashed. My neighbour (Argentine) told me how in 2001 he only had 15000 US$ left to his name and wanted to know where to invest. His friends told him to head south and buy land. He followed their advice and went to San Martin de Los Andes deep in Patagonia. He purchased land for 10US$ per sm2. He now tells me that is worth 85US$ per sm2. Its obvious why - as the money started to get back into people’s pockets they headed back to the places they love to go and hey, they love to go to Patagonia. The number visiting Patagonia in 2006 was up 22% on the previous year and it will be a sure fire hit that tourism will keep increasing.

Of course, you could always try your hand at sheep farming and follow in the footsteps of the Benetton family who own land equalling a small country, some 900,000 hectares here in Patagonia. Obviously with all those sweaters to sell they need wool and so what better than to have your own sheep farm. Away from the major tourist zones land is cheap in Patagonia. It can be purchased for as little as 10US$ per hectare. You have to remember that one sheep needs at least a hectare and really you should allow more, so you will need to buy a lot of hectares to make a living, but its certainly worth thinking about, lording it over your own Patagonian sheep farm. Failing that, if sheep farming isn’t your thing, and you just want to own your own small country house in Patagonia there are properties for sale with say 1000 hectares going for peanuts. Or how about a small ready to go business - have a look on www.viviun.com and you will see some great opportunities for sale.

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