The history of Tucumán has always been linked to cane sugar production, which generates important contributions to its economy. Therefore, a must-see that will make you travel directly to the province's past is the route that brings together attractions linked to the evolution of this product from its artisanal beginnings to its current industrialization.

This is a tour of the main mills in the province, with the possibility of visiting those in operation (always during the harvest season) such as the La Florida mill, and other historical sites such as the former San Pablo Mill and the former Lastenia Mill. In addition, it includes different points of interest related to this production such as the Casa del Obispo Colombres Sugar Industry Museum, located in the middle of the 9 de Julio Park and the Jesuit Ruins of San José de Lules, where the first sugar mill pulled by mules operated in the province.

Likewise, during the 2024 winter season, you can visit the "Paseo del Azúcar", an activity organized by the Municipality of Banda del Río Salí with departures during the day to visit different points of interest on the Route.

The former San Pablo Sugar Mill: a sugar complex converted into a University

With the seeds given to him by its founder, the famous Bishop Colombres, the Frenchman Jean Nougués planted the first rows of sugar cane in 1832. In 1880, his children modernized the factory, which became one of the most relevant in the province.

Within the walls of the former sugar mill, visitors will discover the mystique of an old sugar town and anecdotes that date back to an ethereal time in the history of Tucumán. The complex has an English-style Botanical Garden, with imposing beauty and vitality, added to a rich history, since it was designed by the famous French landscape designer Carlos Thays. Inside it is possible to find a chapel, an old greenhouse and a grotto that housed the Virgin of Lourdes, in addition to the large rubber tree, a gift from Queen Victoria of England to President Julio Argentino Roca, who was from Tucumán.

Also notable in the complex is the main chalet, the former residence of the founding family, where numerous personalities who visited the province such as Theodore Roosevelt, Prince Humberto of Savoy and Domingo Faustino Sarmiento were received.

Since 2007, this symbolic mill has been the headquarters of the San Pablo - Tucumán University, the first private secular university in northwest Argentina and the first created in the 21st century.

La Florida Sugar Mill: the strength of the current industry

Founded in 1894 by the García Family, this mill was one of the pioneers of industrialization and today stands out as an emblem of Tucumán. Its English-style building is a relic and its chalet was for a long time the reception room for the most important visitors who came to the city. The importance of this site was such that the town and Commune of La Florida and Louisiana emerged around it.

During the military dictatorship of Juan Carlos Onganía in 1966, La Florida, along with the Bella Vista and La Trinidad sugar mills, closed temporarily but returned to production the following year.

Currently, the factory is owned by Compañía Azucarera Los Balcanes, a company founded in 1994 by Jorge Rocchia Ferro and Catalina Lonac, which manages more than 23 thousand hectares of sugarcane fields and is dedicated to the sustainable production of sugar, bioethanol and electrical energy from sugar cane. Among its impressive figures are more than 3.300.000 tons of ground sugar cane per year, more than 230.000 tons of sugar equivalent produced, and more than 100 cubic meters of industrial alcohol produced per year.

It offers guided tours from June to September on Tuesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. For reservations, you must call 4922177 or 4922272 or contact via WhatsApp at 3815431488.

The Museum of the Sugar Industry - Casa del Obispo Colombres: The Birth of Sugar Industry

This museum is located in 9 de Julio Park and was built in a country house from the beginning of the 19th century. That functioned as the home of Bishop José Eusebio Colombres, an illustrious religious and politician from Tucumán. He was a congressman in 1816 and founder of the sugar industry. Through its rooms, you can learn about the beginnings of this industry in the province and its evolution, while observing the furniture and belongings of the bishop. In its attractive patio, meanwhile, the first wooden mill in the province, a vacuum pump, and old machinery are exhibited. The site was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1941.

The museum offers free visits from Tuesday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 3 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. On Saturdays and Sundays you can visit it from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and from 2:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. School establishments must schedule appointments to make visits.

The Ex Lastenia Mill, vestiges of a centuries-old history

This Tucuman mill operated for more than a hundred years and, currently, throughout its 11 hectares you can see more than 30 structures, many of which are ruins, standing chimneys and tunnels, all of them from different periods of this factory. In recent times, many investigations have been carried out that have resulted in the recreation of the past of this former mill and the town that bears the same name. These two centuries of history are reflected through interpretive panels, distributed throughout the property.

The Ruins of San José de Lules: the Jesuits, precursors of the introduction of sugar cane

Until its expulsion in 1767, the Jesuit order carried out a vast evangelizing work in the region. Its inventory in Los Lules ranch is known, where there was even a sugar cane field, testimony to the primitive sugar activity they carried out at that site. Likewise, the first mule-drawn mill in the province operated here, which was later transferred by Bishop Colombres to the Museum of the Sugar Industry.

With the departure of the Jesuit order from Tucumán, the industry would be lost until it was reborn again thanks to the bishop.

The Jesuit Ruins offer visits from Monday to Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, you can also visit from 3 to 6 p.m. For reservations, call 4816130 or 3814011547.