The Free Salta Walking Tour
Free Walking tours are a great way to explore a city, local guides offer extensive tours of an area and they work on the basis of tips. Free tours are also a door to new friendships and another way of discovering a new place instead of relying on a guide book.
The Salta walking tour guides from Salta Walks are able to offer empirical knowledge of their area and provide much emphasis on culture and history. Salta Free Walks is a company that offers free tours of the city of Salta, which is located in the Argentine northwest, on the border with Chile, Bolivia and Paraguay.
Salta is located in the extreme north of the country and by having a triple border, Salta is the entrance to Argentina for many travelers in South America. Salta is the sixth largest city in Argentina and free walking tours are the best way to explore the area.
Salta Walks started around three years ago. The idea of a free walking tour in Salta came through the consultation of travelers who already knew the system. Free walking tours are a worldwide trend that originated in Germany and have expanded across the world.
As with most traditional free walking tours, the group member who joins Salta Walks does not pay a fixed cost in advance but leaves an optional contribution at the end of the tour. The tip depends on the level of satisfaction acquired, that is why the guides usually give the best of themselves to obtain a good gain.
The free walking tour of Salta is provided in two languages, English and Spanish, and the tours are held from Monday to Saturday in the morning from 10am in front of the city’s cathedral. These tours provide very good opportunities to meet other people, exchange experiences and interact, taking new found friendships beyond the tour.
The Salta walking tour guides are Homero and Piru, both are very good at what they do because they do it with love, passion and knowledge.
In the two hour walk, you will see some of the historical buildings of the city of Salta, you’ll get to know the in depth the history, both pre-Hispanic as well as the history of the Inca culture, the Spanish colony and the war for independence in Argentina. Salta Walks will talk about the customs and traditions of Argentina, and the heroes of the country and how they led Argentina to independence from Spain in 1816.
Top 5 sights to see in Salta, Argentina
The free Salta Walking Tour allows you to see the highlights of the city. The tour guide will take you to the:
Archaeological Museum of High Mountain
One of the most important museums in Argentina with information on Inca ceremonies and the history of the Incas in northwest Argentina.
Historic Town Hall
One of the best preserved colonial buildings in Argentina. The Town Hall was rebuilt for the last time in 1626 and declared as a historical monument in 1943.
Basilic Cathedral
Declared a basilica by the visit of Pope John Paul II and one of the most beautiful in the country.
San Francisco Church
With the highest bell tower in South America and one of the icons of our city.
San Bernardo Convent
One of the few cloistered convents that still exist in Argentina with colonial architectural style and a spectacular door that tells its history.
During the free walking tour, visitors will receive recommendations of places to visit, museums, excursions and of course about the local gastronomy. Salta Walks have their own blog that provides information on the recommended restaurants of the city.
If you are vegetarian or vegan, they even have this covered in the following post:
http://saltafreewalks.com/vegetarian-cuisine-in-salta/
The Salta walking tour is done at the speed of the people, without any hurry to finish, and the goal is to make the tours enjoyable and to cover all necessary knowledge of the culture of Salta.
Salta Walks receive people from all over the world and this makes the tour a multicultural encounter, it is also a good opportunity to practice other languages including Spanish. If you already have knowledge of Spanish and want to improve it, try and attend the Spanish tour.
If you are visiting Argentina for the first time and have queries, our friends at Salta Walks are able to answer, for example.
Join their free Salta tour or contact them for answers.
In Argentina there are currently 5 cities where you can take a free walking tour.
Check the list of all Argentine Walking Tour partners around the world here.
The majority of people who attend the Salta Tour are millennials, therefore their experiences and anecdotes are very interesting that can be of great help for the rest of your trip. Find out where your group have been and what they have seen.
Another tour Salta Walks offer is a Tapas Tour and a Beer Tour. In which, aside from the historical and cultural tour, you can enjoy exquisite empanadas with a glass of local Argentinian wine.
Last but not least, the way of recognizing Salta Walks at the meeting point is their favorite color, orange. You will see the Salta Walking Tour guides wearing an orange jacket or shirt, depending on the weather.
Bio: Homero Kosiner, I am a professional tourism guide in the province of Salta, with 13 years of experience in northwest Argentina. Founder of Salta Free Walks.
Website: www.saltafreewalks.com
Instagram: saltafreewalks
Twitter: @saltafreewalks
All image credits: Salta Walks.