It comprises the departments of Santa Rosa, La Paz, San Martin, Junín, Rivadavia, Maipú, and the urban and suburban Luján de Cuyo.
This area can be divided into two sectors. On one hand, the one that occupies the North Mendoza Oasis, which extending itself eastwards (head village La Paz), draws a map of apiaries, vineyards, wineries and agribusiness, among others.
The other sector is mostly a desert called the Plains of the Crossing, where some areas are rich in oil fields.
The typical cuisine with names that persist as cadillo of charqui, locro, potato cake, humita en chala or in the pot, patitas aliñadas, mazamorra dulzona, arrope de uva, sapaipillas, alcayota sweet, tortitas with bacon, the beef in the dough, the Creole barbecue or the veal with leather, of course accompanied by the best wine.
Several festivals compose an interesting agenda:
At the beginning of February, “Rivadavia sings to the country”, folk singing festival of a national level.
In the second half of March, “Festival de la Cueca and el Damasco” in La Dormida, Santa Rosa. Folkloric.
In the second half of April, “The Queens Wine footing” in Junín, which consists in the obtaining of homemade wine by the harvest Queens called patero (stepped) wine or “Cabernet of Queens.”
In November, in Luján de Cuyo, “Feriagro”, an exhibition of agricultural and cattle products and music.
SANTA ROSA
Owner of a head village and countless apiary farms give national recognition to the quality of their honey. Their production also relies on fresh fruit and dried fruit. However, most of its territory is occupied by the desert of The Crossing, where the protected area Ñacuñan, biological reservation that holds countless attractions is.
LA PAZ
Limited on the east by the province of San Luis, whose borderline is formed by the Desaguadero River, in which it is possible to practice adventure sports such as canoeing. Its flat landscape is only altered by a lengthy vineyard and a picturesque adobe church. The great availability of grasses contribute to the craft activities, such as manufacturing of brooms, not yet defeated by the industry. For more information see Circuit No.3: Agro tourism
SAN MARTÍN
Its name evokes the liberator of the Nation, who undoubtedly left deep marks with his passage through the area. This is shown by revered places such the Historical Olive Tree and the Museum Las Bóvedas. The latter holds a careful collection of objects from the past. Its rich and well-worked rural landscape is completed by the head village, where the headquarters of the municipal government is, the main avenue with palm trees, the Oratory, among others. For more information see Circuit No.2: San Martín history
JUNÍN
One of the places of Mendoza, where the dry land is defeated by force of the patiently guided water. Villas of yesteryear are discovered between its thick groves. One of the characteristic celebrations of this Department is the “footing of the Queens,” in which the harvest queens of all departments of the province of Mendoza reproduce the work of the homemade “patero” wine production, an exquisite Cabernet. Following the European tradition brought to the distant colonies.
RIVADAVIA
In this department the desert and the oases share the territory. To the north, agricultural area, to the south plains, to the west, there is the reservoir El Carrizal, which shares its surface with Luján de Cuyo. There are campgrounds, fishing and sailing clubs, and it is possible to of the water sports. There are also places where the Creole skills are still alive, practiced by the locals and where the mastery of the leatherworkers has been put at the service of the riders. For more information see Circuit No.4: Water Reservoir El Carrizal
MAIPÚ
Despite being one of the smallest departments of Mendoza, it compensates its size with its agricultural wealth. Vineyards, olives and fruit orchards, vegetables and fodder provide a varied landscape. It also holds livestock farms. All this, accompanied by magnificent wine establishments, which are part of the so-called circuit Wine Roads. For more information see Circuit No.1: The wine roads
LUJÁN DE CUYO
Its enthusiastic head city is framed with the imposing presence of the Cordón del Plata, eternally snowed. In this department there is the diverter dam Ing. Cipolletti, responsible for the convenient distribution of the water from the Mendoza river, to the ditches and irrigation canals that supply the North Mendoza Oasis. It also irrigates both the crops in the rural areas and the beautiful groves of the capital city of the province.
