We loved Mendoza. We found it such a sharp contrast from Santiago which was a bit rough around the edges and where you wouldn’t to walk alone at night. Instead Mendoza has tree-lined streets, beautiful weather, lovely parks and is filled with cheap restaurants and bars. That was another reason to love it, it’s in the heart of the Malbec wine region and a 250ml glass of good quality wine will cost you £1.50 and an amazing steak £6.

We got the bus from Santiago to Mendoza with AndesMar. Our bus left on time, the boarder was a bit bizarre but easy enough (you don’t get a stamp which we found weird) and we even arrived early. One thing to note is we got stuck at Mendoza bus station with no way to figure out where we were or get an uber to our hotel as there is no Wi-Fi and neither of us had a sim that worked! We managed to buy a Claro sim at the bus station and while we waiting for that to be activated we found a McDonalds that had fast Wi-Fi. I was pretty excited to get here because as we were half way through our trip we decided to treat ourselves to a hotel (!) The Fuente Mayor Hotel Centro is a bog-standard 3 star hotel but it was in a great location next to Independence Plaza and even just having AC after Rapa Nui felt like a luxury.

Once we had checked in and freshened up, we went for a Valentines meal. We went to El Asadito for steak and wine and it did not disappoint! I was so happy to finally have a glass of decent white wine (yes I know Mendoza is famous for red but the heart wants what the heart wants). On the hunt for more wine we went to Aristides Villanuava which is lined with loads of bars. We sat at Aristopia and had 4 larges glass of wine for £5 – as you can see, I’m still not over the prices.

The next day was exciting as Nia and Charlie were arriving! We did some admin during the day, including getting our nails done, Lewis loves a pedicure. The main thing we had to figure out was how to get cash. As the Argentinean economy is in turmoil and the exchange rate changes every day, nearly everything is done in cash and the ATMs don’t really work. The easiest way to do it is to open a Westen Union account (you can do it on the app) and then move money into this account. The first time you move money in they dont charge you so get A LOT, like £400-500. We only got £300 and it wasn’t enough, we had pretty much run out by the time we left Mendoza as the hostel wanted paid in cash. Once you have money in the account, go to the many Western Union places in the city (they can be in small shops, big banks, literally anywhere), queue up (there will be a queue) and then hope the one you chose has enough cash to give you! We got it relatively easy and are very thankful to the girl who told us how to do this when we were in San Pedro! My other tip is to bring a backpack with you, the notes are small in value so you will have ton of cash, it may not fit in a bumbag. We tanned by the pool once we’d done all our chores and in the evening we met Nia and Charlie for dinner at La Rosadita for, you guessed it, steak and wine. It was a really nice evening with more drinks on Aristides Villanuava – great to have someone else to talk to after 6 weeks of it being just us!

In the morning we checked out of our hotel and moved into Gorilla Hostel with the other two. Gorilla is a bit more expensive than your average hostel but was worth it. We chilled most of the day, grabbing a coffee and a salad from Gomet for lunch. In the evening we did the ‘Gaucho Experience’ which consists of horse riding and asado (Argentinean BBQ). When you’re in Mendoza you need to do this, it was so much fun! We booked through the hostel so i’m not sure what operator it was but they were amazing. I’m not really a horse person but they take you out for about an hour and a half into the beautiful countryside in the Andes and then bring you back for a mountain of food and red wine. The food was incredible, I can’t even describe how tasty the meat was and they had bread with Chimichurri which was to die for. They then created a campfire and we all sat around drinking wine and they sang traditional Argentinian songs (in Spanish) as well as a couple of English ones (Hey Jude). We got back to the hostel at 11:30pm, had a nightcap and headed to bed. It was a really fun evening, I would highly recommend.

On our final day in Mendoza we did the famous cycling vineyard tour. This is an absolutely must do when in Mendoza. All you need to go is grab some friends, jump in an uber to Maipu Bikes and they will explain everything. They will give you a map of all the vineyards in the area which details the price of each wine tasting and what it includes. My only advice would be to go to the furthest vineyard away first and make your way back because the first bike ride feels long! The wine tastings only cost about £3-4 on average and the bike hire £6 for the day. Also, they have happy hour at the bike rental from 5-6pm with free wine! Our favourite place was MEVI as the wine tasting felt the most extensive and they have a lovely outdoor terrace looking over the vineyards, the olive oil tasting at Entre Olivos was really tasty and we did the vineyard tour at Domiciano which is only about half an hour and definitely worth doing, just keep an eye on the time as the last tour in English is at 4:30pm. We actually ran out of time and had to skip one of the wineries, so make sure you start early! I would advise getting to the bike shop before 11am.

By the time we got home we were starving, you can buy food at the vineyards but we didn’t have enough time to have more than nibbles. We quickly dropped our bags and went our for a fat steak at Estancia La Pasión. Nia and Charlie shared a 800g one and I’ve never seen anything so large in my life. I even surprised myself for eating a 500g rib eye on my own! Even though we were stuffed we went next door to Famiglia Perin for an ice cream. This place is supposed to be the best ice cream in Mendoza and it did not disappoint, their mint choc chip was delicious. Just as we were ready to head back to the hostel a storm hit and the whole road became flooded in an instant. Somehow, we managed to call in uber and waded through knee deep water and torrential rain into the car! Despite the insane weather, it was a fantastic day, probably one of my favourites so far.

Mendoza Summary

• Length of stay: 4-6 nights
• Where to stay: Gorilla hostel was really good with beds with curtains, lights and plug sockets. But anywhere near Independence Plaza or Aristides Villanuava will be good.
• Itinerary: Day 1 – Explore town, Day 2 – horse riding, Day 3 – Vineyard cycling tour, Day 4/5/6 – chill days (hostel has a pool), there are also loads of other vineyard tours you can do with big lunches, paragliding etc.
• Top tip: Drink and eat as much as you can, its so good and so cheap.