Gaucho Experience: A Day Trip to Don Silvano Ranch
Buenos Aires, Argentina
- 8 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Group discounts
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Escape the bustle of Buenos Aires and experience a traditional "fiesta gaucho" (gaucho party) on this day trip to the Argentine countryside. Visit the Argentinian cowboys, or gauchos, who live on the open plains at Estancia Don Silvano, a traditional ranch that hosts you for a day of activities. Enjoy a barbecue lunch with wine and mate tea, horseback riding, trick horse demonstrations, and dancing for a glimpse of culture outside of the capital.
- See a side to Argentina that most travelers miss
- Go horseback riding and learn about life on a ranch
- Hotel pickup and drop-off mean you don't need to find a meeting point
- Skip the hassle of booking separate activities: Everything is taken care of
Sample Menu
Starter
Asado
You will have sausage and black pudding.
Main
Asado
Differnt types of meat, chicken and salads. Drinks: Red and wite wine, beer, soda and water. Veggie option if asked at the time of the reservation.
What's Included
- Authentic Argentine Lunch with Beverages
- Afternoon Snacks
- Professional English- and Spanish-speaking guide
- Horseback riding
- Hotel pickup and drop-off (Downtown hotels only)
- Gratuities
Meeting and Pickup
You can head directly to the meeting point, or request pickup
Operating hours.9:30 am
Itinerary
Board a comfortable coach at your downtown Buenos Aires hotel and head out into the Argentine pampas (plains). Attend a friendly welcome reception upon arrival at Estancia Don Silvano that includes juice, wine, and traditional empanadas.
Visit the ranch's bakery and its museum before attending a milking demonstration. Help the gauchos milk the cows yourself if you like, then watch as they saddle up the horses. Climb on a tame horse and enjoy a relaxed ride through the surrounding countryside.
After the ride, eat a barbecue lunch including chicken, ribs, sausages, potato salad and ice cream for dessert. Watch a traditional Argentinian folkloric show including singing and dancing while you enjoy your beverages, including wine, soft drinks, coffee, and water. Get on your feet and try out some of the dances yourself before opting for a carriage or tractor ride to view other parts of ranch. Watch the gauchos participate in ring racing and other demonstrations of their incredible horsemanship.
Have a snack of quince jelly on sweet cakes before boarding your bus back to the city. Try mate, a traditional Argentine drink made of yerba mate leaves steeped in hot water that has its own rituals and history. Your full-day estancia (ranch) excursion on the pampas ends with drop-off in downtown Buenos Aires.
Visit the ranch's bakery and its museum before attending a milking demonstration. Help the gauchos milk the cows yourself if you like, then watch as they saddle up the horses. Climb on a tame horse and enjoy a relaxed ride through the surrounding countryside.
After the ride, eat a barbecue lunch including chicken, ribs, sausages, potato salad and ice cream for dessert. Watch a traditional Argentinian folkloric show including singing and dancing while you enjoy your beverages, including wine, soft drinks, coffee, and water. Get on your feet and try out some of the dances yourself before opting for a carriage or tractor ride to view other parts of ranch. Watch the gauchos participate in ring racing and other demonstrations of their incredible horsemanship.
Have a snack of quince jelly on sweet cakes before boarding your bus back to the city. Try mate, a traditional Argentine drink made of yerba mate leaves steeped in hot water that has its own rituals and history. Your full-day estancia (ranch) excursion on the pampas ends with drop-off in downtown Buenos Aires.
1
Buenos Aires
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
2
Touristic Argentinian Ranch Don Silvano
5 hours • Admission Ticket Free
3
Buenos Aires
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Passport name, number, date of birth, expiry and country is required at time of booking for ALL participants
- IMPORTANT: You must bring your passport at the time of the tour as there may be checks during the trip
- Wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Infant seats available
- Most travelers can participate
- Cruise Passengers are not allowed to take this tour
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.2
based on 148 reviews
Erik_L, Mar 2020
I paid more than $300 for this excursion. Unfortunately, I had to travel to an alternate location to be picked up (they wouldn't pick me up where I was staying, unlike other more quality excursions). I also had no idea traffic would be as bad as it was at that hour. Obviously we were running late. Even though we had them on the phone, telling them we were 5 minutes away, they wouldn't wait. We missed the shuttle, and missed the excursion. Not only that, but it was clear that there wouldn't even be a partial refund. Lost my $300, even though we arrived within the 9:30 to 10:00 window that they had stipulated. While obviously we should have arrived at 9:30, they could've told us traffic was as bad as it was at that hour. How was I to know? I would also think that, having paid more than $300, they could have waited another 5 min. Clearly out to make money and not to serve the needs of their client.
Response from Host, Apr 2020
Dear Traveler,
We are really sorry to read your disappointment.
The tour you booked includes pick-ups transfers only from centrally located hotels because, being regular tours and Buenos Aires a very big city, the time that passengers would lose until complete the tour from and to their hotel would be unacceptable. So, in your case we selected the closest meeting point for you. Unfortunately we cannot wait long since we have other people taking the same activity (tour guide waited 20 minutes). We hope you understand that there are also other people participating in the excursion and we must respect the schedules for everyone.
Thank you for your review, it always helps us to improve our services.
Best regards,
Tangol Travel Agency
MeganAmanda_G, Feb 2020
It was a great day! Quick welcome reception with drinks and empanadas, then straight to the horseback riding/carriage ride which are optional. I did both; the horse ride was very leisurely and an adequate length of time (gauchos lead and end the pack), the carriage ride was faster and quite bumpy. Then we got a lesson on making mate, and got to try some (again, optional). Then came the barbecue lunch with fantastic entertainment. The gauchos’ riding games were fun to watch and learn the origins of, and then we had an optional merienda before leaving (I recommend getting the sweet pastry with quince filling; I was told the savoury one didn’t have much flavour). All in all it was an awesome experience. Only small complaint: when the guide on the bus spoke into the microphone, the acoustics were not good and it was extremely loud, making it really difficult to understand what she was saying, even when she spoke English. She was very nice though, and a photographer took pictures of everyone throughout the day that we could choose to purchase at the end.
Response from Host, Sep 2020
Dear Megan
Thank you so much for sharing with us your experience with the gauchos. We really appreciate your comments as it helps us improve our services.
This tour shows closely our gaucho culture, we are glad to have been your host for this excursion.
We are pleased to know that you have enjoyed the beauties of Argentina.
It will be a pleasure to assist you on your next visit!
Best regards
nrudmik, Feb 2020
We were picked up at a hotel which was convenient. The food was very good. The singing entertainment was excellent as was the dancing. They have a great place to take a horseback ride. This includes their setup for getting on & off a horse and the trail ride - not going around a corral. It is a picturesque place with lots of animals & birds. We felt it was good "bang for the buck".
Harry_G, Jan 2020
An excellent day out and well worth the money. Lot’s to see and do and really nice people. I would definitely recommend it
Madip, Dec 2019
Well organized tour with excellent shows, lunch and horse rides. Guide Soledad was very attentive and professional.
Danielle_F, Nov 2019
The singers dancers and food were excellent. The rest of the tour felt extremely unorganized. Guide had fairly weak English for a tour of this price the bus ac was not functioning properly so it was humid and uncomfortable both there and back. You must queue for 30 to 40 mins for the horse ride which lasts 10 mins. Also they had all the horses corralled in a small space when the rides were over didnt look particularly comfortable for them.wouldnt recommend this experience other than the music the singer in particular was amazing.
Response from Host, Sep 2020
Dear Dani!
Thank you for sharing with us your experience at our experience. We are glad to know that you enjoyed the show, which is so characteristic of our country. In this excursion, we provide free time for the passenger to enjoy all the amenities this is the reason you feel the tour was unorganized. However, we really appreciate your time to write this review!
Kind regards, Tangol
Bryan_N, Nov 2019
This may have been the worst tour I've ever been on. Overpriced, lack of activities, and no direction from the tour guides.
Here is what the real itinerary is:
You'll hop onto the bus at either your hotel or a pickup point. From there, the group takes the bus for about 40 or so minutes to the ranch. The ranch itself looks like it was built solely for the purpose of taking in tours.
Immediately after getting off the bus, you're told to go eat an empanada and have wine. No introduction to the ranch or the background (I wonder why...hmm...). After literally five minutes, you're swooped away to the horse riding area and told to get in line to ride the horse. There is no direction on:
1. Where you are riding the horse
2. How to ride a horse (commands, stopping, going, etc.)
3. How long the ride is
Other groups come to the ranch as well, so there will be several different rounds of horse riding.
The actual ride is about fifteen minutes on a pre-defined path, and your horses pretty much just follow each other. Ignore the one horse that got a little out of control and one of the ranch hands had to come and help the tourist stop their horse. Again, no training at all.
From there, you're told it's about two hours (yes, two) until the next activity, lunch. You have two entire hours to walk around the very small ranch. No guided tour or explanation on the animals or history of gaucho life. You're left to yourself for two hours while the tour guides sit around the ranch hands cook.
Half an hour later, we're all just sitting around waiting for lunch. Just waiting.
Finally, lunch begins. The first 45 minutes is the starter (salad and bread). Then, endless meat begins coming out. We're talking several rounds of sausage, chicken, pork, and steak. Like everything else, no explanation or introduction to the lunch. None of us had any idea how much to eat or what was coming out. The food was good, but not a good experience at all.
Throughout this meat fest, a singer and dancers go on stage to perform traditional dances. This was interesting (still no spoken background on what gaucho life is like). However, after that ends, they begin singing songs that represent each country represented in the group and they ask you to sing along. It was absolutely terrible.
Following that, you have about an hour until they begin horse racing for about a half hour. That part was interesting.
You then head back, but they drop you off in three areas instead of your hotel.
Response from Host, Jun 2020
Dear Bryan Nagy, we are sorry to hear that the Don Silvano Ranch did not meet all your expectations. This excursion is mostly about discovering a typical Estancia of Argentina. The tour tries to mediate between the preferences of all the passengers, since most of them prefer to have free time to enjoy the facilities, the horseback riding and the farm animals. In relation to the music, the whole show is folkloric, only the last minutes we try to represent all the nationalities that visit us through a song. We are sorry you did not like it. We are glad to know that you enjoyed the folkloric show, the demonstrations of the gauchos in the field and the asado. Thank you for your review, as it help us to improve our services. Kind regards, Tangol
Patricia C, Nov 2019
The food , dancing and horsemanship were excellent, A plesant day in the country. I feel it was overpriced.
sarcher56, Oct 2019
It was a good day out, something different away from the city. People very friendly. Food was good plenty of it.
eileen374, Sep 2018
I guess i booked this trip not knowing what to expect. It was an overall great experience. We ranch was gorgeous and had tons of animals (i.e. sheep, pigs, horses, peacocks, chickens, etc). They had a mini rope obstacle course which ended with a zip line. The food and entertainment was amazing. I would highly recommend this trip for anyone.
Rachel W, Apr 2018
A soul destroying experience!!! This was not a trip to anything resembling a gaucho ranch. It was a hotel with grounds, some chickens, peacocks and 20 or so horses. And the experience was commercial garbage for the most part. You arrive at the ranch and are given a ticket if you want to 'ride' the horses. For the next 2 1/2 hours there is nothing organised except for some mediocre empanadas and drinks and a 15 minute walk on horses that are so sedate we wondered if they might be drugged. The signs said trotting was forbidden, but they needn't have bothered as the poor creatures barely wanted to walk. The 'ride' is also just a ploy to take you around a route they have set up with cameras so they can try to flog you photos during lunch. The alternative to riding is a so called carriage ride, but I've never heard of a tractor pulling a cart around a field called that before. We did enjoy walking around and seeing the old farm equipment, which was clearly brought in purely for decor, and the chickens, but that is the sort of thing you might drive somewhere to spend 30 minutes walking around. There was a zip wire oh how gaucho! which I ended up going on from sheer boredom. Then it was time for lunch, which is in a barn and reminded us of school dinners. Forget choosing where you want to sit or getting a look at the grills. I'd like to think whoever runs the kitchen was on holiday, as we were served the most awful food and cheap cooking wine. Come on! We are in Argentina, how hard is it to rustle up a chorizo sausage that actually tastes of something and a bottle of wine that costs more than 50 pesos at end retail cost? For the first time in my life I actually had a piece of meat that was medium rare and yet somehow dry as old boots. Some evil genius going on there. The fact that the only smell coming from the kitchen was petrol should have been sufficiently warning though. We thought the entertainment might save the day and it started out well. The singer and dancers were fantastic and we enjoyed the local dances, but it then descended into a sing along for all the nationalities of tourists in attendance. If we want to sing along to Let It Be we'll go to a cheesy Beetles show at home. The best part of the lunch was us sneaking away an hour early on our own to go see the paddock with some of the younger horses they don't use for riding. Lovely natured animals and that part was peaceful and more one with nature. The one part of the day we genuinely enjoyed was the 30 minutes of the gaucho show right at the end. Very skilful riders and horses that actually responded. Not as good as a proper rodeo show, but good fun. In short, if you love nature, horses, good food and anything even remotely approaching an authentic experience, stay well clear.
Response from Host, Jun 2020
Dear Rachel Wilkinson-Duffy,
We are very sorry to read about your disappointment.
Our activity to Estancia Don Silvano intends to transmit the Argentine culture to the tourists who visit us through the countryside and its history. Of course, nowadays, the estancias are adapted to changes in order to offer tourist services. As the itinerary describes, the tour begins with free time to walk around the estancia, the museum, and go on horseback rides. You have included the entrance with empanadas and wine. Then, the lunch: asado. Thus ending with folklore and gaucho skills. It should be clarified that all the animals are in perfect condition, the horses are trained to be with tourists, keep in mind that not all people who visit the ranch have experience in riding.
We regret that the activities did not meet all your expectations. However, we are glad to know that you enjoyed the gaucho skills. Kind regards.
Tangol
Alfred K, Mar 2018
This is a long day trip about 8 hours but enjoyed every minute. Saw most of the, nearby ranch, did horse riding plus horse and cart trip had a BBQ where they supply enormous amounts of meat and some wine. Whilst eating they put on a show, singing, dancing etc. including the Argentina Tango a must see. Tried some of the local eating dishes and drinking. You won't go hungry here...:- Excellent varied day, lovely host, with the Gaucho's showing their horse skills as well. Brilliant...
Dillon R, Mar 2018
The ranch is a commercially run affair for tourists. It is well run and lots of activities to enjoy. About an hour from the city. Pick up and return to hotel. Very smart mini coach. Great driver and the tour guide was excellent. When you arrive the gauch/ranch guide greeted us and was very friendly. Empanadas and a welcome drink. Horse trek, ride in a cart. Some time to wander and view machinery, animals and small shop. Demonstration on the history of Meta herbal hot drink of Argentina, customs and preparation. The making of empanadas. A great lunch of BBQ meats and salads with beer, wine or sodas. A folk singer plus tango and traditional folk dances. There followed a horsemanship demo by a couple of gauchos. All in all the tour was great. However, I was slightly disappointed that the riding experience consisted of a 10 minute ride around the perimeter of a field and not the riding experience I had expected from reading the advert.
Patrick S, Feb 2018
This is an enjoyable day with much more meat than we could possibly eat. The horseback riding was relaxing a a nice way to get an idea of the size of the farm and it prompts your imagination of the elements that a gaucho must work in. A real surprise were the beautiful chickens. Our guide was very helpful and made sure we had a good time and the van driver was excellent. The only thing that we would change would be to make the drop-off points the same as the pick-up points. If you are considering this tour make sure you know the drop-off location and are comfortable returning to your hotel or apartment from that location. Thanks to the great entertainment from the dancers, singer, gauchos, and restaurant team.
Victoria_Y, Feb 2018
We are very disappointed as there is no cow milking as advertised on the tour description. In fact the tour guide said there were no cows on the farm whatsoever. I dont understand why they false advertise. I brought my two kids along because they wanted to milk a cow. There was no discount for the tour for kids aged 8, 10, we paid for the full price. Without the milking experience, I would have done something else for our precious time in BA on our last day for this kind of money for 3 people.
In addition, the tour guide showed up 30 mins late. Knowing there is always traffic in a big city, they should have budgeted extra time for the pickup. It is not very professional not to call me or inform me about their tardiness in a timely manner. I was also surprised to be shuttled to a souvenir shop on the drive to the farm for them to peddle extra business.
There was horse riding and carriage riding around the farm for about 15-20 mins each, not particularly interesting or scenic. There are a bunch of farm animals to see.
The lunch w singing and dancing show was very touristic, the food was solid. But that shouldnt be your focus since for the money you could see better dance shows and eat much better steaks in the city. The last bit of horse riding demo by 2 gauchos is probably what you came to see. Honestly it is not that impressive. I have seen better ones in Hungary.
For the money and time you would spend here, I know I know it is the word gaucho that catches your imagination, if you travel a lot, you would be wiser not to fall for the exotic words. If you want to do everything in one day and claim that you have done it like most Chinese tourists on a rush schedule, book the tour.
AlettaMaria_G, Jan 2018
Awesome Trip. Great food! Good wine! Loved the guide. Gave us so much information on Argentina, the nation and the area!
Carol A J, Nov 2017
Such a charming place. Beautiful grounds. Interesting antiques and authentic buildings. The people and activities were super. Santiago, our host and expert on many topics was completely enchanting. Worth every penny!!!
Mark F, Nov 2017
I really enjoyed this day out in the country. The asado was fantastic, coupled with a tango and other Argentine dances. We also rode horses, although they basically go around in a circle. Not that you can just ride out into the country on your own, or would want to. The final show was a horse show that was actually quite enjoyable. The grounds are well maintained and beautiful, with many animals and beautiful peacocks wandering around.
Aline M, Sep 2017
Our guida I cant remember her name was delightful and so was our host at the ranch. The place is great and the food was good. I was traveling with my mom and brother and they both appreciated doing something different, and getting to the country side for a chenge of pace.
Elizabeth B, Aug 2017
This is a tourist ranch popular with the locals and overall a really fun experience. The star was the BBQ and the show during it with 2 excellent singers and 2 dancers. The staff really went out of the way to make us feel welcome and ensure we had a great time. Everyone there was fantastic and the best tour of our trip.
John D, Jul 2017
OK trip. 140 ?? Horses did not look well cared for - docile and a bit scruffy.
Response from Host, Jun 2020
Dear John, we are sorry to hear that Don Silvano Ranch did not meet all your expectations. All the animals on the farm are well cared for. In particular, the horses were trained to be with tourists, taking into account that many people do not have experience riding horses. We hope you enjoyed the tradicional folkloric show, the demonstrations of the gauchos in the field and the asado. Thank you for your feedback as it helps us to improve our services. Kind regards.
Linda J, Jul 2017
Despite a wet and cloudy day, we had a terrific time exploring the ranch, and participating in the activities on offer. The guide was very informative not only on what to expect but pointing out various interesting sights on the way. The van was very clean and comfortable. The staff were all welcoming and made sure we did not miss anything. We especially thanked Santiago who helped us only English speakers who had way too many questions for him about the ranch. The food was scrumptious and the entertainment was perfect. Very worthwhile.
Tessa F, Jun 2017
Really awesome day! All the people were super friendly. The shows were really good and the empanadas they served on arrival were the best we tried in Argentina :
Robert M, Jun 2017
PROs: the guides, the Mate, the Peacocks and Llamas, the Rodeo, the dancing show and the gorgeous weather! CONs: a very long bus ride from Buenos Aires and the fact that the meat was very dry though there was lots of it.
Jane_D, May 2017
This was a really poorly organised tour! Boring! Food was burnt and was given great lumps of it! Couldn't get a horse ride or a buggy ride as ppl pushed in anc had more then one! Gaucho show was ok but nothing special Tour guide was not much and didn't drop us at the hotel although it states on the description they do I was not feeling well but still had to walk 2 blocks to get back to the hotel! Be wary of this tour!
Response from Host, Jun 2020
Dear David,
We are sorry to hear that the Santa Susana Ranch did not meet all your expectations. We regret that you did not enjoy the lunch and the buggy ride. The tour you booked includes pick up transfers only from centrally located hotels. The drop off is at city center. We apologize if it wasn't clear enough. Thank you for taking the time to write a review, it helps us to improve our services. Kind regards, Tangol
ANNEL_P, Apr 2017
This day was absolutely perfect!!!! We were given wine and empanadas upon arrival. Everything was as advertised plus more. Loved the horseback riding and the gaucho show. The very best part was lunch and the show. Wonderful professional singers and tango dancers and we were given tango lessons. The day ended with Mate tea and sweet empanadas. Highly reccomend this.
Veronica_G, Mar 2017
Loved this tour! The Gaucho tour is not to be missed when in BA. Tour guide was very nice and accommodating. Everything from the show, to the food was amazing!
Karen V, Mar 2017
We enjoyed the day because of the people we met. From the description I was not anticipating such a commercial/tourist ranch. There were many more people than I anticipated cars full of families, lines waiting for everything. I was looking forward to something more rustic. However, we did enjoy the people on our bus. We all laughed a lot and visited in our various languages. The guide was great! She easily maneuvered between Spanish, English and Portuguese. We were delayed getting out of B.A. as there was difficulty finding some of the pick-up sites and guests were not ready. The matte was served in plastic cups and was pre-filtered and sugared. Just not the authentic experience I was hoping for but still an enjoyable day.
MARILYN G, Mar 2017
This was the best. The pleasant ride by motor coach from the City to the ranch gave us the opportunity to discover the countryside. The ranch was very interesting including the demonstration on how to prepare and share a mug of traditional Mate. The meal provided was very very good. 5 different BBQ meats, salad, veggies and the wine flowed freely. The gaucho display was awesome. I would encourage folks to take this tour. Well worth the cost.
Karen M, Feb 2017
Great to get out of the city for the day and good entertainment during the meal. Plenty of food but salad was old. Toilets in disrepair (not flushing, no soap and not clean).
Response from Host, Sep 2020
Dear Karen,
Thank you so much for sharing with us your experience with the gauchos.
This tour shows closely our gaucho culture, we are glad to have been your host for this excursion. Thank you for your feedback, we will send your comments to the ranch in order to improve their services.
We are pleased to know that you have enjoyed the beauties of Argentina.
It will be a pleasure to assist you on your next visit!
From $239.09
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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