Aregua

Aregua sits on a ridge above Lake Ypacarai with a cobbled main street climbing from the lake shore to a church at the top, and it has two identities. One is craft: the street is lined with pottery workshops and stalls selling ceramics, from everyday water jars to decorative pieces, made in the town and in the surrounding area for generations. The other is fruit: strawberries are grown on the slopes and the Strawberry Festival runs from July to September with fields open and produce sold. Artists and writers have settled here and galleries and cafes have followed. Cerro Koi with its hexagonal sandstone lies on the edge of the town.

History

Domingo Martínez de Irala founded Areguá in 1538, and its early settlers, about 200 of them, lived near the church. Francisco Solano López raised it to a district on 12 November 1862, by the end of the 19th century writers and artists were spending their summers here, and in 2019 UNESCO named it a city of crafts and folk arts in its Creative Cities Network (Wikipedia, Areguá).

What you'll find

• The pottery street - the workshops and stalls up the cobbled main road.
• The strawberry season - the fields and the July to September festival.
• The lake view - Ypacarai from the ridge and the church at the top.
• Galleries and cafes - the arts scene that has grown in the town.

When to go

July to September for the strawberry season, which is the town's busiest and most characteristic period; April to October generally for the weather. Weekends bring visitors from Asuncion.

Practical notes

Lake Ypacarai has suffered severe algal contamination and swimming has been prohibited for extended periods. The pottery street is commercial with much repetition between stalls. The town is small and half a day covers it.

Nearby

Cerro Koi is on the town edge; San Bernardino is across the lake.

Key facts