Buenos Aires to Lujan and Carlos Keen: Private day trip

Though over six million people flock to Lujan every year (many coming on foot from nearby Buenos Aires), you certainly don’t need to be a member of the Catholic faith to appreciate the beautiful cathedral around which this Argentine city was built. According to legend, the church began as a chapel in the seventeenth century, when a statue of the Virgin Mary that was being transported became stuck at its current site and was impossible to move, so a church was constructed around it! If you finish early at the basilica, you can visit the Udaondo Museum Complex, which houses many artifacts and exhibitions of colonial life in Argentina. Either way, Lujan is a historical stronghold you won’t want to miss.

Carlos Keen is a tiny tourist town in the Buenos Aires province that comes alive on weekends or holidays. The locals call it “polo gastronómico” or a gastronomic hub, because of a large number of restaurants that offer typical Argentinian food, including the famous carne asada. Once you have a nice big meal, get rid of your food coma by walking around the town and visiting the city’s main square and the Chapel of the San Carlos Borromeo Parrish. The local market offers artisanal goods, chocolate, and fresh eggs and dairy. Children will enjoy riding a horse under supervision of a gaucho. We recommend visiting the town on a Saturday, to avoid traffic on Sunday and to not come to a ghost town on a weekday.