Salta and Jujuy 8 Day Itinerary: Cafayate, Purmamarca and Hornocal

Free, 30 minutes, the first stop after check in. The cathedral faces Plaza 9 de Julio, the heart of the city, and all three stops of the day are around it.

Inside are the images of the Lord and the Virgin of the Miracle, which the whole city follows in procession every 15 September. Notice the pink facade against the green hills around Salta.

About 16,000 pesos for foreigners, 90 minutes, closed on Mondays. It is across the square, 100 metres from the cathedral, and it is the most important visit in Salta.

In 1999 archaeologists found three Inca children on the summit of the Llullaillaco volcano, at 6,739 metres, offered in sacrifice more than 500 years ago and preserved by the cold with clothes, hair and offerings intact. The museum shows one of them at a time, in rotation, in a refrigerated chamber. It is striking and respectful; photos are not allowed inside.

About 30 minutes, 120 metres from the MAAM on the south side of the square. It is the best preserved colonial town hall in the country, from 1783, and now houses the Northern History Museum.

Even without going in, walk under the two rows of arches as the sun drops and the square fills up. At night, a peña is the plan: options are in the where to eat section.

Free, 40 minutes, two blocks from the square along Calle Caseros. Start the day here: the facade looks best in the morning light.

It is the postcard of Salta: red, gold and white, with a 53 metre bell tower, one of the tallest in South America. The adjoining convent has a small religious art museum.

Free, 20 minutes, at the end of the same Calle Caseros, 400 metres on. It is a closed convent and cannot be visited inside: what you see is the facade.

It is the oldest building in Salta, and the cedar door was hand carved by Indigenous craftsmen in 1762. From here the cable car is a five minute walk, at the edge of Parque San Martín.

About 20,000 pesos return for foreigners, an 8 minute ride up; allow two and a half hours with lunch at the top. If you prefer walking, climb the stairway of about 1,000 steps in an hour and ride down.

At the top there is a viewpoint, gardens with waterfalls and a café overlooking the city and the Lerma Valley. The afternoon is free to rest before the next day on the road.

Free, 40 minutes, about 2h30 from Salta on Ruta Nacional 68. Leave at 8am: the road to Cafayate is 185 kilometres and all the stops are in the second half.

It is a narrow slot rising between red sandstone walls; you can walk in and scramble a little over the rocks. Park on the signposted shoulder.

Free, 30 minutes, less than 1 kilometre from the Devil's Throat. It is a circular hollow with very high walls, and the acoustics are so good that there is often a musician playing quena or guitar for visitors.

A 15 minute stop on the shoulder, already close to Cafayate. The rocks look like the walls and towers of a castle, and the midday sun makes the red deeper.

After the 2pm check in, a late afternoon walk around the main square, 45 minutes. The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Rosary is one of the few in the country with five naves.

Around the square are the cafés, wine shops and the crafts fair. Cafayate sits at 1,660 metres: the first step of acclimatising for the Puna.

Tour with tasting from about 15,000 pesos, 75 minutes, a 15 minute walk from the square along Ruta 40. No booking needed on most days.

It is one of the oldest wineries in Cafayate, with a small museum of 19th century presses and barrels. Taste the torrontés, the aromatic white grape that only does this well at the altitude of the Calchaquí Valleys.

Guided tour with tasting from about 30,000 pesos, 2 hours with the tour, 350 metres from Vasija Secreta. Book a day ahead on the winery website.

Founded in 1892 by the Michel brothers, it is the former Michel Torino, and the tour covers the high altitude vineyards and the cellar and ends with premium wines. The afternoon is free: if you want to hike, the Río Colorado waterfalls trail is 6 kilometres away, always with a local guide.

This is the longest day on the road: about 6 hours and 390 kilometres back through Salta and up Ruta 9 and Ruta 52. Leave at 7.30am to check in at 2pm.

Then 20 minutes on the square. The adobe church dates from the 17th century, with a cardón cactus wood ceiling, and the textile and poncho market sets up around it. Purmamarca is at 2,324 metres: walk slowly and drink water.

Free, 90 minutes on foot at an easy pace, starting 500 metres from the square. Do it in the late afternoon, when the sun makes the red most intense.

The dirt track loops around hills of red rock, with viewpoints back to the Hill of Seven Colours. It is flat, but the altitude weighs on the first day: take your time.

A 20 minute stop at one of the viewpoints, about an hour from Purmamarca. Ruta 52 climbs in tight bends to the Abra de Potrerillos, at 4,170 metres, the highest point of the trip.

Get out of the car slowly and do not rush up there: this is where altitude sickness usually shows up.

A guided visit with the local community is required, about 8,000 pesos, 90 minutes, booked at the stand by the entrance. Sunglasses and sunscreen are essential.

The salt flat lies at 3,450 metres and covers more than 200 square kilometres of white crust. The guides take you to the piletones, the rectangular pools where salt is extracted, with turquoise water. Head back to Purmamarca for lunch.

A 15 minute stop on Ruta 9, 20 minutes from Purmamarca, on the way to Tilcara. The ochre, pink and green bands really look like a painter's palette, and the colourful hillside cemetery opposite completes the photo.

About 12,000 pesos for foreigners, 2 hours, last entry 5.15pm. It is 1 kilometre from the centre of Tilcara, 8 kilometres past Maimará.

The pre Hispanic fortress of the Omaguaca people commands the Río Grande valley, with rebuilt stone houses, cardón cacti and, at the top, the pyramid honouring the archaeologists who excavated the site. The archaeology museum on Tilcara's square has a separate ticket.

Free, 20 minutes, 45 minutes from Purmamarca on Ruta 9. The 1691 church holds a rare series of Cusco school paintings of angels dressed as Spanish soldiers and armed with harquebuses.

Entry with a mandatory local guide, about 2h30 return, starting behind the church. It is an easy walk, good once you have acclimatised, and far quieter than the roadside viewpoints.

The path follows a dry riverbed between red walls and ends in a rock corridor with the white formations that give the place its name. Bring water and a hat: there is no shade.

Free, 75 minutes, 12 kilometres from Uquía. Arrive before noon: at 12 sharp, the articulated figure of Saint Francis Solano comes out of the Cabildo tower and blesses the square.

Then climb the stone stairway to the Monument to the Heroes of Independence at the top of the town. Humahuaca is at 2,940 metres; have lunch here before Hornocal.

A token community fee, 2 hours with the drive, 25 kilometres from Humahuaca on a dirt road. Go in the afternoon, when the sun lights the colours head on. A regular car makes it carefully when dry; if it has rained, take the 4x4 van from the Humahuaca bus terminal.

From the viewpoint, at 4,350 metres, the range shows bands of 14 colours folded in a zigzag. It is cold and windy: bring a jacket even in summer.

Free, 45 minutes, walking from the square. The hill faces east, and the morning light is what makes the bands glow; in the afternoon it falls into shade, which is why it is saved for the last day.

The best known viewpoint is on Cerro El Porito, a 15 minute walk up along Ruta 52.

Free, 90 minutes, about 3 hours from Purmamarca on Ruta 9. It is on the way back to the airport and the best place to buy ponchos, llama wool textiles, pottery and silver.

It is housed in an arcaded colonial mansion on Avenida San Martín. Flights home often leave late at night, so there may be time for one last peña.