Heaven is a place on earth: it’s called Finca la Azul

This post is a long time coming. It says a lot about Finca la Azul that it’s been nearly a year since we’ve stayed here and it’s still on my mind. This could also have something to do with the fact that all our other vacations got canceled due to covid-19 so the memory hasn’t been overwritten with other travels.

But whether or not we traveled to other places in between, the fact of the matter is that not only do we definitely plan to return to Argentina’s Uco Valley, we are certainly staying at Finca la Azul again.

This is coming from perpetual explorers who take every opportunity to discover something new. So when we return to a place already visited, you KNOW it’s special.

I already told you a lot about what makes the Uco Valley so great. But part of what made our stay truly out of this world was the idyllic surroundings that we stayed in. This wasn’t the sort of vacation where you’re out and about all day and just need a place to store your bags and catch a wink of sleep.

This was the kind of vacation where you wake up to the sun, not alarms, and get out of bed just to open the drapes wider and take in the mountain views.

Finca la Azul is a little guesthouse that sits in the middle of vineyards. Bodega la Azul is on the same land, down the gravel drive, closer to the main road. Both the finca, or guesthouse, and the bodega, or winery, are owned by the same family.

The grounds are nothing short of miraculous

Combine wide expanses of vineyards with manicured lawns adorned with clusters of weeping willows, a rose garden, and a sparkling swimming pool and you feel like you are living inside a storybook.

It actually gave me a sort of disconcerted feeling at first because places are never as good as their photos – never! – and this place was BETTER.

Three sweet and friendly guesthouse doggies

One of whom (Canela) followed Brian around trying to play fetch any time we were outside. She would regularly lose sight of the ball that was thrown and return instead with a large rock in her mouth. I foresee some tricky dental work in Canela’s future.

Unlimited wine

The fact that this is number three on the list should tell you all you need to know about how pretty the grounds actually are. The minute you walk into the lobby, you’re being offered a glass of wine from their bodega – red, white, sparkling.

They’ll even bring it to you on the lounge chairs in the lawn and a throw blanket to keep the breeze at bay. (Which I’m guessing they’ve discontinued for now since snuggling up to a covid blanket is probably almost as bad as the cholera ones.)

The food!

Usually I am an avid reader of menus. I strongly dislike order-at-counter restaurants and prefer to sit at a table with a menu that I can meticulously dissect until Brian gets so hangry he slaps it out of my hand. Therefore, I’m surprised at how luxurious it felt to simply tell the staff in advance when we were coming to dinner and then show up to a nicely set table and have food just start coming out, impeccably plated and timed.

Our room was nothing to sneeze at either

For one, the tub was about as big as the swimming pool. And it had a view of the mountains. I mean, everything else about the room was super nice too – not over the top but definitely not spare.

Oh yeah, and a balcony. With a view of the Andes.

Staying in a guesthouse feels very intimate

There are only a handful of rooms (8 I think) so it’s not crowded at all and the staff-to-guest ratio was small enough that there was actual recognition in their eyes when they saw you – and vice versa! We had such a fun time chatting with our hosts.

Finca la Azul is not hard to find if you have google maps on your phone

The signage you’ll see is for the bodega but the road takes you straight to the guesthouse.

It’s well situated to several other wineries including Andeluna Cellars and Salentein

You canNOT miss a tasting and long lunch at Bodega la Azul either.

Book early to secure a second story room as these are the ones with the amazing mountain views

The ones on the first story are still nice and look out directly onto the vineyards but the second story views are where the magic happens.

You won’t see a bill at your guesthouse meals

Everything will be tallied at the end of your stay when you check out. Honestly, it was super cool to not have to bother getting and paying a check each time. Dinners were a set price and the wine was complimentary (!!!!) so it’s not like we were wanting to review a line item bill anyway.

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Writing this post has really made me nostalgic for 2019 when traveling was free and easy and the only thing we had to worry about was avoiding the riots next door in Chile.

You know something is terribly wrong when massive protesting and civil unrest is considered “the good old days.”

Doh!