Typically main roads are covered as well as cities and towns. The easiest way to identify Argentina is via the black Street View car. Many Argentine cars have some black marking on their license plates. Other cars have a blue horizontal stripe on the top of the plate. Argentina has a landscape that most closely resembles Uruguay although in general it is slightly more affluent than Uruguay. The central region of Argentina is flat with grass fields and as you progress south, the country gets drier and rockier. The very south part resembles a desert that has a cold climate. Argentina lacks the hills of much of South America and tends to have little vegetation occupying what are often, empty fields. Spanish is the language spoken in Argentina. Look for ‘de’ in Spanish as this word means ‘of’. Also look for the letter ‘y’ as its own word which means ‘and’. Finally, look for the letter ‘ñ’ in Spanish. The central part of Argentina has many grass fields with a moderate covering of flora. Argentina is incredibly flat apart from the far western part that borders Chile. Most of the northern half of Argentina consists of green fields with low to moderate amounts of trees. Argentina most commonly has white continuous edge lines. This is in tandem with double yellow, continuous centre lines or white dashed, centre lines. The southern part of Argentina lacks any real vegetation. There are many unpaved roads in southern Argentina. Argentinian road lines often feature white dashes in the centre next to a yellow, continuous line. Uruguay also has this combination. The major gas/petrol stations in Argentina have this logo. Many Argentine cars have a black blob on their license plates. Some Argentine cars have a blue horizontal stripe on the top of their plates. These plates are elongated and much longer than other Latin American plates (other than Brazil which has long plates). Argentinian cities have these street signs that run perpendicular to one another. The street signs vary in colour depending on what city you are placed in. I have seen blue, black and green street signs in Argentina. Argentinian cities tend to have trees between the footpath and the road, similar to Uruguay. The edges of Argentinian roads have three types of these small black and white signs on tiny wooden posts. The first type of these signs just displays the kilometre of the road you are on. The second type of these black and white signs displays the letters ‘RN’ followed by a number. These letters denote Argentinian National Roads. These are the major type of Argentinian roads. In the example above we are on National Road number 8. The number beneath the road number denotes how many km along the road you have travelled. The third type of these black and white signs displays the letters ‘RP’ denoting Provincial Road. These are minor roads. National Roads (RN) in Argentina are denoted on the map by these white shapes. Provincial Roads (RP) are denoted on the map by these green squares. Other than the written language sounding Spanish, there are some specific things to look for to identify Spanish and distinguish it from Portuguese and other languages. Look for is the letter ‘y’ as its own word. This means ‘and’ in Spanish. Also, Spanish often uses the letter ‘ñ’ which is the letter ‘n’ with a squiggly line over the top. 

Argentina uses two types of licence plates: a black one, which will be visible on street view with a black dot in the middle, and a white one with a blue bar at the top.

The black dot can only be found on Argentinian licence plates, while the blue bar can be found in Brazil as well.

Round concrete poles sustaining three electricity lines in an alternating pattern are very common in Argentina.

Doubled up poles like in the second image is also a good clue for Argentina.

Similar doubled concrete poles can occasionally be found throughout Bolivia.

Wooden poles are somewhat common in Argentina, they can be found either with a crossbar or without.

Wooden A-frame poles in South America are only found in Argentina.

Argentina typically uses white-and-red chevrons.

Argentina is the only Latin American country with these chevrons.

Road lines in Argentina are mainly dashed white, double yellow or a mix in between.

These highway markers are unique to Argentina and indicate the highway number on top.

The markers on national highways are indicated with RN, while RP indicates a provincial highway. National highways will be labelled white on the map, while provincial highways will be labelled green.

Yellow and red rectangular reflectors can often be seen on Argentinian guardrails.

Within South America, they can also be found in Uruguay. However, Uruguayan guardrails can be differentiated from Argentinian guardrails by the shape of their support.

While Argentina features a plethora of different landscapes, most of the country is relatively flat, mostly treeless, and sparsely populated. In the absence of better clues, you should consider Argentina when you see landscapes like this with a very “wide open”, desolate feel.


There are no specific bollards in Argentina, but national highways have identifiable kilometer markers:

Or you might see this one on Provincial Roads (RP = Ruta Provincial):

On the map RN = White symbol | RP = Green symbol

Road Lines:

Double yellow solid lines are used where neither side can overtake.

One single yellow solid line together with white dashed lines are used when one side can overtake, while the other side is not allowed.

White dashes only are used when both sides can overtake.

Road Signs:

Specific to Argentina are the street signs that you find in different cities. Those can be black, blue and green:

National routes will be in the five pointed pentagon, the provincial routes in the squares / rectangles. RN numbers generally increase the further south you go after you hit #51.


Electricity poles:

The typical Argentinian pole is made of concrete and split into two, forming an ‘A’ shape with horizontal segments connecting the two sides.

License plates:

Since 1995+ Argentina has white on black license plates with 3 letters followed by 3 digits:

Vegetation/Landscape:

Argentina has a lot of variation in landscape and vegetation due to its size. Here are some of the regions and their general looks.

Beginning in the far northwest, specifically in Jujuy and Salta provinces, the landscape is very similar to that of Bolivia and Peru. Vegetation consists mostly of small shrubs and grasses, and the region is very rocky and mountainous.

Argentina has a very drastic rain shadow effect. While the western halves of Jujuy and Salta provinces are very dry, the eastern halves, along with Tucuman province, are very green and lush. Depending on the altitude, the vegetation can range from tropical to temperate. This area is still very hilly and with lots of green valleys.

As you head south into Catamarca, La Rioja, and San Juan provinces, the climate becomes extremely arid. This area is characterized by massive mountain ridges that have no vegetation at all. The flat areas between ridges are very sandy and only have small shrubs.

To the south in Mendoza province, the climate ranges from arid to Mediterranean. The area around the city of Mendoza is particularly pleasant – it is an area with lots of vineyards and farms. Poplar trees line the farm roads and big mountains can sometimes be seen in the far distance to the west.

Finally, in the far west of Neuquén and Rio Negro provinces are the temperate forests and rising peaks of the Andes. This area has a lot of lakes and some alpine resort towns such as San Carlos de Bariloche and San Martin de los Andes.

The provinces of San Luis and Cordoba contain another chain of mountains called the Sierras de Córdoba. This chain can be very closely compared to the Appalachians in North America – they are a much older range that has eroded over time, leaving less prominent and rugged mountains. Vegetation ranges from temperate forests in the foothills of the mountains, to sparse vegetation at higher altitudes.

Santiago del Estero province marks the start of the “Grand Chaco,” a landscape region spanning eastern Bolivia, Paraguay, and northern Argentina, which is comprised of extremely flat scrub. The climate is both dry and tropical, but generally, the west is drier, similar to a Savanna, while the east (in Chaco and Formosa provinces) is very wet.

Here is the Grand Chaco of the Formosa and Chaco provinces, mentioned before. Here, a lot of the landscape is marshy, while the vegetation is tropical, including many natural palm trees.

Corrientes province in the northeast is also extremely flat, sometimes marshy and sometimes grassland. The only clue to watch out for in this region is the large amount of planted pine or eucalyptus forests.

In the far northeast panhandle lies Misiones Province, a very unique and distinguishable region of Argentina. The landscape is mostly rolling hills, and the soil is a very recognizable dark red color. Pine trees are prevalent here, including the noteworthy Parana Pine (See: Specific Plants).

As the name implies, Entre Rios is a province between the Parana and Uruguay Rivers. As a result, this area is extremely flat and serves as a floodplain, since here is where the rivers’ deltas are. There is some grassland in this area and quite a bit of agriculture.

The Pampas is probably the region that most people think of when they think of Argentina. This area stretches the whole of Buenos Aires and Santa Fe provinces, and the eastern half of Cordoba and La Pampa provinces. It is flat and grassy as far as the eye can see, and is where the majority of Argentina’s farming and livestock occur.

The transition zone between the Pampas and Patagonia is found in eastern Rio Negro province, as well as southern and western La Pampa province. Here, the primary vegetation changes from grasses to low shrubs and bushes, although grasses do still exist here.

As in Mendoza province before, Google covered many of the rural roads in the Rio Negro Valley, near the towns of Villa Regina, General Roca, and Neuquén. Here, however, the climate feels a bit colder, comparable to certain parts of southern Russia. Yellow poplar trees line the mostly gravel roads of this fertile valley.

Continuing south into the coastal area of Patagonia, grasses are practically nonexistent, and only small shrubs remain. The coastal area is mostly flat except for near Comodoro Rivadavia, where rocky plateaus reach the ocean.

Inland in Patagonia, the landscape becomes a barren wasteland which looks as if it were an entirely different planet. Here, there are some ridges and plateaus, otherwise it is relatively flat until reaching the Andes near the border.

The furthest south province and its own island is Tierra del Fuego. Here the climate is very cold. Vegetation consists mostly of evergreens and dead-looking trees. The north of the island is flat, while the south is extremely mountainous.

At the southern tip of Tierra del Fuego is Ushuaia, which in itself is recognizable in terms of landscape. Prominent snowcapped peaks with green foothills come straight down to the shores of the Beagle Channel, where the city lies on a slope.

Topography:

A general rule of thumb is as follows: Mountains are to the west, plains are to the east. The further north you go, the higher the mountains get.

Climate:

Generally, the further east you go, the wetter it gets: Cold Desert, Hot Steppe, Cold Steppe, Humid Subtropical

This map shows general land usage. Forests (in shades of green) are mainly found in the north. If you are placed near a pasture/grazing ground, you are probably in the center or south of the country (areas of red and pink). A field of crops is likely in the east (areas in light blue and gray). Black areas are small but important to keep in mind as they show urban areas. Notice how almost all of the black splotches are in the northern half of the country.

Specific Plants:

The Parana Pine is very recognizable for the shape of its branches that only extend at the very top of the tree, resembling an umbrella. This species is only found in the Misiones Province of Argentina, as well as across the border in southern Brazil.

A close relative of the Parana plant is the Monkey Puzzle Tree. However, this species is found in western Neuquen province, at relatively high altitudes in the Andes. These trees are also sometimes planted in town plazas in many countries in South America.

The palm trees found in the Grand Chaco region of northern Argentina are a type of Wax Palm (Copernicia alba).

Poplar trees are recognizable for their slim and tall shape. They are found mostly in the Mendoza, La Pampa and Rio Negro provinces, and serve as planted trees which line the road for decoration and wind erosion protection.

Architecture:

Buildings in Argentina are generally rectangular in shape, made of stone or brick, with simple facades and minimal window decorations (except stonework on older buildings), and flat roofs.

Almost every town in Argentina follows a grid pattern, so buildings at 4-way intersections have a “chipped corner.”

Since the majority of buildings have flat roofs, it is very common for them to have balconies. Other times, the façade is simply extended at the top to make the building seem appear taller (as can be seen on the building on the right).

Poorer buildings such as the ones above follow the same general pattern, with a rectangular shape, simple facades and windows, and an extended façade at the top.

Variations:

In the province of Jujuy, in the far northwest of Argentina, the use of adobe bricks (brown mud bricks) is common for buildings.

In the southern region of Patagonia, metal sheet roofs are used a lot.

This specific type of house is called the Mar del Plata style, and is found mostly in the coastal areas of Buenos Aires province and Buenos Aires itself. It is characterized by tiled gable roofs and stone facades, and often incorporates dormers and chimneys.
