Parque Nacional Talampaya — Attraction in La Rioja

Wow, just wow! This experience was so much fun for us.

I have to be honest, it didn’t start off amazing. The host was a bit cold to me (an English speaker) and the bus was a bit stinky but once we got over that, we had a phenomenal trip. Our host warmed up, the places we were shown were beautiful (and so was the knowledge!) we enjoyed the snacks they provided during our excursion, which even included alcohol to our surprise! The only negative thing? As a tourist (AMERICAN) I paid 3 x’s the amount to enter the park than locals but they only have some of the plaques with English. In order to understand everything, my partner had to translate for me. But overall, super impressed.

We paid $8000 pesos each for the excursion plus the park entrance fees ($20,000 total).

You CANNOT fly a drone here without obtaining a permit from the government. (This can be easily done with you permit from the USA but needs to be done before hand).

They do not offer sunrise or sunset tours because of the predators in the area.

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Note to avid hikers: Don't come here expecting to be able to explore. Everyone is kept on a tight leash and literally not allowed to touch a single thing in the park. Only 5% of the park is available to be seen with a tour on a bus or large truck, or if you plan correctly, the one 4 hour guided hike through and then along a canyon-- the remaining 95% of the park is off limits except for research. As an avid hiker, I was pretty frustrated by seeing some of the most amazing geological formations and stunning views and only getting a glimpse of things from afar. The price tag is also shocking for what you actually get to do... almost $75 for my visit which included entry for a foreigner and then the bus tour with a short 45 minute walk up to a lookout point (the one highlight). Don't get me wrong, this park has amazing rock formations, but for adventurers and hikers, set your expectations and leave your hiking gear at home (or...

Beautiful park with of course the canyon, various pretty stone formations and animals. A must visit when in the area.

There are three guided tours provided by the national park. You can not go into the park by yourself! There is a simple big bus tour, a 4x4 tour and a smaller bus tour with a 2.5 km hike. All tours do almost the same with one additional feature. Some dried fruits, nuts and drinks are provided, which is nice. Tours are in Spanish. They all have the same thing in common: get you to 4 or 5 places within the time frame. This means that on- route they do not stop. We saw a group of Mara's, which I was not able to photograph, never saw one again in my life, bummer.

Prices for the tours are 7000, 8500 and 10000 (around, March 2023) pesos for the simple, 4x4 and smaller bus tour respectively. I would opt to go for the 4x4 because you can sit on the roof. They do not...