Alta Gracia

Alta Gracia grew around a Jesuit estancia founded in the seventeenth century, whose church, residence, workshops and great mill reservoir still stand at the centre of town and form part of the UNESCO listing that covers the Jesuit block of Córdoba and its estancias. The estancia's residence is now the Museo del Virrey Liniers, its rooms furnished as they would have been when the property passed to the viceroy after the Jesuits were expelled. Two other houses draw visitors for different reasons: the composer Manuel de Falla spent his last years here in a modest villa now open as a museum, and a house on Avellaneda street where Ernesto Guevara lived as an asthmatic child is preserved as a museum of his early life. The Tajamar reservoir and clock tower complete the colonial core.

What you actually see

• The Jesuit estancia - church, residence and workshops from the seventeenth century.
• El Tajamar - the colonial mill reservoir and clock tower in the centre.
• Museo Manuel de Falla - the Spanish composer's last home, kept as he left it.
• The Guevara childhood house - a museum in the family's former home.

When to go

Year-round; spring and autumn are mildest, summer brings heat and holiday crowds from Córdoba, and winter is cool and clear. Museums close on some Mondays. The town is an easy half-day trip from the city.

Honest expectations

The sights are small museums close together, so the visit is compact and can feel thin if you are not interested in the colonial or biographical stories. Weekends bring heavy traffic from Córdoba. Signage between the sites is patchy.

Nearby

Córdoba city lies northeast; Villa General Belgrano and the Calamuchita valley are south.