Where to stay: ARGENTINA

- design by Philippe Starck. Think chipped antiques, clawfoot furnishings and white leather exploded onto a canvas that’s a fierce shade of red. But there is more to this hotel than its stomping interiors — not least its on-site tango theatre and rather regal swimming pool.

Set on a small hill overlooking Argentino Lake is the stylish boutique design hotel Esplendor by Wyndham El Calafate. It features lavish, yet uncluttered interiors. Flowing canvas drapes, 15-foot leather sofas, and tables of weathered quebracho hardwood section off the ground-floor public areas. Furniture and décor combine natural materials such as stone, native-sand plaster, and incense timber with resin, wood veneer, and colorful fiber.

The #1 rated hotel on TripAdvisor in San Carlos de Bariloche, Chaming Luxury Lodge & Private Spa with its gabled wooden roofs is located on a bluff overlooking the picturesque Nahuel Huapi Lake. Downtown Bariloche is 7km, while the famous ski area of Cerro Catedral is a mere 12km. Facilities include an outdoor heated pool, jacuzzi and sauna overlooking the lake.

While still a working estancia (ranch) – rearing merino sheep – and scientific base for wildlife researchers, Rincón Chico has been carefully adapted to host guests who expect a high degree of comfort. The building is modelled on the original late 19th century house that stands nearby, with typical corrugated metal cladding and wooden floors. The interior is warm, thanks to open fires, with antique guns, paintings and potted Patagonian plants adding lots of charm.

Set in a listed red brick century-old townhouse, which acted as a drugstore, residence and school, Azur Real is now an alluring boutique hotel. Exposed brick, wooden floors, dark wood and leather furniture create an inviting atmosphere. The hotel is located in downtown Córdoba, in the Jesuit district just 1 block from the city’s ornate cathedral.

A unique mountain inn, the house from the early 20th -century has been expanded with an avantgarde concrete reception and lounge. The new extension has a metal frame covered by wisteria growing onto the new pool deck. The entire project has the characteristics of an unfinished work, which will keep changing its looks and program.

This fabulously decorated, midcentury Nordic meets Argentina, is set in an old renovated house in the historic district of Alberdi, one of the most traditional of Córdoba. It has four guest rooms, two shared bathrooms, a lounge and kitchen plus a courtyard garden.

Cutting an impressive figure among the dusty Andean landscape and built in the style of the old farms of Los Valles Calchaquies it sparkles white and majestic with its tall look out tower and sweeping paths through the gardens and divine grounds. The interior is a tranquil haven of giant rooms and long corridors; the vast communal areas are all open-plan but with many a secret nook and cranny and a surprisingly modern bar tucked away amidst the Andean fabrics and local art.

The main house dates from 1892, and has courtyards and gardens adorned with wrought-iron gates, ceramic tiles, antique tapestries, adobe walls in some of the grander bedrooms and old-fashioned heavy wooden furniture throughout. Six patios are surrounded by galleries and connected along long, dark passages. A tiny oratory is dedicated to the Virgen de la Rosa, who guards relics originally from Cuzco in Peru.

Set amid the vineyards of the Valle de Uco, Casa de Uco Vineyards and Wine Resort is a stylish, state-of-the-art, sustainably built, imposing concrete and glass structure. The eco-friendly industrial architecture puts a bold spin on the rural hideaway.

Entre Cielos is a working vineyard, producing Malbec a short distance outside the city of Mendoza snowcapped Andes. This luxury boutique hotel is designed in a modernist fashion and decorated with a contemporary mix of wooden floors, concrete walls and designer furniture. The Vineyard Loft is a self-contained "pod" on stilts that elevate it above the vineyard, with far-ranging views in every direction, including up, for an impressive panorama of the night sky. The terrace features a jacuzzi.

A unique space, noble, simple, decorated with timeworn antiques, books and souvenirs from trips.

Hub Porteño is a luxury boutique hotel set in a Belle Epoque mansion in the upscale Recoleta neighbourhood of Buenos Aires. The hotel stands out for its above-and-beyond concierges, who facilitate introductions to artists, designers, polo players, or literary figures and getting you into the top restaurants, showing you around the coolest estancias out in the countryside, or booking your tickets to the Buenos Aires Philharmonic, a private vehicle or a guide -to name just a few possibilities.

Located in the chic and lively Palermo Soho district, Mine Hotel is an award winning boutique hotel featuring a wonderful courtyard garden with swimming pool and sun loungers. It is a short walk from the main attractions and night lights of Buenos Aires, as well as many restaurants and designer boutiques of the area.

Mansion Vitraux is a chic, intimate and contemporary boutique hotel situated on a cobblestoned street in the heart of Buenos Aires' San Telmo district. The hotel stands out among other boutique hotels with its minimalist grey-slate facade and sleek and sexy decor with bright red walls, glass panes, camel-coloured low sofas and music video projections.

Clad in ivy, Home is a hip boutique hotel with designer decor in Buenos Aires' trendy Palermo Hollywood neighbourhood. It boasts an outdoor swimming pool in a chic garden. Stylish rooms are fitted out in vintage floral wallpapers and retro Scandinavian furniture. The restaurant serves classic Latin American dishes while the hotel's cocktail bar offers DJ nights in the garden every Friday during the summer season. The cosy, all-natural spa uses the hotel’s own range of products.