Interview with Daniela Bartel (CEO, Latventure Argentina & Chile)

Dear Dany, how is your agency currently structured for Argentina & Chile?

In Argentina, our head office is in Buenos Aires, and in Chile in Santiago. Altogether, we have 14 team members across Argentina and Chile. Enquiries from new clients for Argentina and Chile, as well as cross-border requests, should be sent to Maruja Seithe (maruja.seithe@latventure.com ). Our existing clients have a dedicated contact person to whom they can send new enquiries and bookings directly.

What types of trips are most in demand with you?

Argentina is a very large country (around eight times the size of Germany), offering enormous landscape and cultural diversity. This diversity is also reflected in the requests we receive: from “classic” group tours to Patagonia, to special small-group tours focusing on specific themes (such as trekking and active travel, or trips centred on Argentina’s wine regions), as well as tailor-made individual journeys, where travellers increasingly ask for remote places best explored by rental car.

Are you particularly strong in any specific region?

Most people first associate Argentina with Patagonia, which remains the most requested region for us. Even within Patagonia, there are countless ways to discover its breathtaking landscapes. Adventure travellers look for active experiences and self-drive tours, while others prefer the comfort of special accommodations (often including meals, transfers and local excursions) or expedition cruises such as those operated by Australis.

Beyond Patagonia, Argentina has much more to offer, which is why we always encourage our clients to explore other parts of the country as well. We are very happy to see that Northern Argentina is becoming increasingly popular. The best-known destination in the north is without doubt Puerto Iguazú with its famous waterfalls, but the wine region Mendoza and the provinces Salta and Jujuy (with their strikingly colourful landscapes and traditional Andean culture) are also gaining in popularity.  

What are your strengths?

Our greatest strength is that we know all our destinations personally and can respond individually to every request. Our intercultural team also understands the German-speaking market very well, meaning we can implement the wishes of German-speaking clients particularly effectively.

Another key strength is our cross-border itineraries between Argentina and Chile. Many guests are interested in combining both countries, and this works wonderfully in several regions. A very popular option is exploring Patagonia by rental car – following the Carretera Austral on the Chilean side and Ruta 40 on the Argentine side – experiencing Patagonia’s diversity, from rainforests, volcanoes and fjords to endless steppe and gigantic glaciers.

What characterises the seat-in trip already available on Latinconnect?

Due to the huge distances in Argentina and Chile, we decided to focus our seat-in trips on specific regions in order to avoid domestic flights during the tour.

Our German-speaking, 13-day Patagonia seat-in trip “Magical Southern Patagonia” stands out because it covers Patagonia’s most impressive highlights: on the Argentine side El Calafate with the famous Perito Moreno Glacier, the trekking paradise El Chaltén, as well as Ushuaia at the end of the world; and on the Chilean side the spectacular Torres del Paine National Park. All these destinations are connected by overland transport, meaning no domestic flights are required (only the inbound flight to El Calafate, where the tour begins, and the outbound flight from Ushuaia, where it ends) – making this tour particularly easy to offer.

Our next seat-in trip is planned to be especially attractive, connecting Argentina, Bolivia and Chile: from Salta in Northern Argentina via the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia to the Atacama Desert in Chile. We also plan to offer thematic seat-in trips, for example a trekking tour or a journey focused specifically on wine.   

To what extent do Argentina’s political and economic conditions affect your work?

Due to high inflation, prices have been rising continuously, which also affects the services we provide and makes Argentina a relatively expensive destination compared to other Latin American countries. In recent months, however, a clear positive trend has emerged and inflation has decreased. We are hopeful that this trend will continue.

Since President Milei took office, political tensions have increased. This can mainly be noticed in Buenos Aires, where demonstrations occasionally take place in the city centre. These are usually very localised and peaceful. Travellers typically notice very little of this, as they generally do not spend time in the areas where demonstrations occur.

For further questions, please contact daniela.bartel@latventure.com  or maruja.seithe@latventure.com .