La Quiaca
title: "La Quiaca" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["populated-places-in-jujuy-province", "argentina–bolivia-border-crossings", "cities-in-argentina"] topic_path: "geography" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Quiaca" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| settlement_type | City |
| official_name | La Quiaca |
| image_skyline | Departamento Yavi (Jujuy - Argentina).png |
| imagesize | 180px |
| pushpin_map | Argentina |
| pushpin_label_position | bottom |
| pushpin_map_caption | Location in Jujuy Province |
| pushpin_mapsize | 240 |
| subdivision_type | Country |
| subdivision_name | |
| subdivision_type1 | Province |
| subdivision_name1 | Jujuy |
| subdivision_type2 | Department |
| subdivision_name2 | Yavi |
| population_as_of | |
| population_total | 13761 |
| coordinates | |
| elevation_m | 3442 |
| postal_code_type | CPA Base |
| postal_code | Y 4650 |
| area_code | 03885 |
| :: |
|settlement_type = City |official_name = La Quiaca |image_skyline = Departamento Yavi (Jujuy - Argentina).png |imagesize = 180px |image_caption = |image_shield = |pushpin_map = Argentina |pushpin_label_position = bottom |pushpin_map_caption = Location in Jujuy Province |pushpin_mapsize = 240 |pushpin_map1 = |pushpin_label_position1 = |pushpin_map_caption1 = |pushpin_mapsize1 = |subdivision_type = Country |subdivision_name = |subdivision_type1 = Province |subdivision_name1 = Jujuy |subdivision_type2 = Department |subdivision_name2 = Yavi |established_title = |established_date = |population_as_of = |population_total = 13761 |population_density_km2 = |coordinates = |elevation_m = 3442 |postal_code_type = CPA Base |postal_code = Y 4650 |area_code = 03885 |website =
La Quiaca is a small city in the north of the , on the southern bank of the La Quiaca River, opposite the town of Villazón, Bolivia. It lies at the end of National Route 9, 289 km from San Salvador de Jujuy (the provincial capital), and at an altitude of 3442 m above mean sea level. La Quiaca is an approximate antipode to Hong Kong.
La Quiaca has 13,761 inhabitants as per the . It is the head town of the Yaví Department, which includes also the towns of Barrios, Cangrejillos, El Cóndor, Pumahuasi, and Yaví. The area is serviced by an airport located at .
As one of the principal urban centers in the Puna de Atacama, La Quiaca offers the full range of basic infrastructure, including potable water, electricity, sewage systems, and internet connectivity. It plays a key role in supporting tourism and local commerce, and stands out as one of the few settlements in the Argentine high-altitude plateau region with modern amenities, making it a strategic stop for travelers exploring the Andean northwest.
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/219.La_Quiaca_(9).JPG" caption="La Quiaca, Jujuy."] ::
Domestically, this city is the classic reference to the northern end of the country, though in reality this distinction is held by the town of Salvador Mazza, or Pocitos, in the province of Salta. In 1985, after a three-year national tour, the renowned composer León Gieco released a folk album called De Ushuaia a La Quiaca ("From Ushuaia to La Quiaca").
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/219.La_Quiaca_(6).JPG" caption="Trucks at La Quiaca on the border between Argentina and Bolivia (with the town of Villazón (Bolivia) in the background)."] ::
Geography
Climate
In spite of its location within the tropics, because it is located at over 3400 m above sea level, La Quiaca has a cold semi-arid climate (BSk, according to the Köppen climate classification), with an annual precipitation of 351.6 mm. During winter months, temperatures during the day are mild, averaging 14.7 C in July while the nights can get freezing cold, with temperatures dropping well below 0 C. Precipitation is rare during the winter months although snowfalls are possible. During the summer months, temperatures during the day are mild to warm, averaging 19 to although nighttime temperatures can remain cool. Most of the precipitation that La Quiaca receives falls during the summer months. It is possibly the sunniest place in Argentina, averaging 3410 hours of sunshine or 76.9% of possible sunshine ranging from a low of 62.5% in February to a high of 87.5% in July. The highest temperature recorded was 28.8 C on February 4, 1998, while the lowest temperature was -15.2 C.
|width = 900px |location = La Quiaca, Argentina (1991–2020, extremes 1961–present) |single line = yes |metric first = yes |Jan record high C = 27.7 |Feb record high C = 28.8 |Mar record high C = 28.0 |Apr record high C = 25.5 |May record high C = 25.2 |Jun record high C = 22.7 |Jul record high C = 21.7 |Aug record high C = 24.5 |Sep record high C = 27.2 |Oct record high C = 27.4 |Nov record high C = 28.5 |Dec record high C = 28.6 |year record high C = 28.8 |Jan high C = 20.6 |Feb high C = 20.4 |Mar high C = 20.6 |Apr high C = 20.3 |May high C = 17.8 |Jun high C = 16.3 |Jul high C = 16.1 |Aug high C = 18.0 |Sep high C = 20.0 |Oct high C = 21.7 |Nov high C = 22.5 |Dec high C = 22.2 |year high C = 19.7 |Jan mean C = 13.2 |Feb mean C = 13.0 |Mar mean C = 12.8 |Apr mean C = 11.3 |May mean C = 7.3 |Jun mean C = 4.8 |Jul mean C = 4.5 |Aug mean C = 7.0 |Sep mean C = 10.0 |Oct mean C = 12.4 |Nov mean C = 13.4 |Dec mean C = 13.9 |year mean C = 10.3 |Jan low C = 7.7 |Feb low C = 7.6 |Mar low C = 6.6 |Apr low C = 3.1 |May low C = -2.5 |Jun low C = -5.7 |Jul low C = -6.2 |Aug low C = -4.0 |Sep low C = -0.4 |Oct low C = 3.3 |Nov low C = 5.5 |Dec low C = 7.3 |year low C = 1.9 |Jan record low C = 1.7 |Feb record low C = -0.1 |Mar record low C = -1.0 |Apr record low C = -7.9 |May record low C = -12.6 |Jun record low C = -14.6 |Jul record low C = -15.2 |Aug record low C = -14.8 |Sep record low C = -11.2 |Oct record low C = -6.3 |Nov record low C = -3.5 |Dec record low C = 0.4 |year record low C = -15.2 |precipitation colour = green |Jan precipitation mm = 102.2 |Feb precipitation mm = 67.9 |Mar precipitation mm = 48.1 |Apr precipitation mm = 6.8 |May precipitation mm = 1.1 |Jun precipitation mm = 0.0 |Jul precipitation mm = 0.0 |Aug precipitation mm = 1.2 |Sep precipitation mm = 3.9 |Oct precipitation mm = 14.4 |Nov precipitation mm = 22.2 |Dec precipitation mm = 63.2 |year precipitation mm = 331.0 |Jan humidity = 62.6 |Feb humidity = 63.2 |Mar humidity = 60.3 |Apr humidity = 46.0 |May humidity = 32.6 |Jun humidity = 27.4 |Jul humidity = 25.7 |Aug humidity = 26.7 |Sep humidity = 32.1 |Oct humidity = 42.4 |Nov humidity = 48.6 |Dec humidity = 55.8 |year humidity = 43.6 |unit precipitation days = 0.1 mm |Jan precipitation days = 15.1 |Feb precipitation days = 12.1 |Mar precipitation days = 9.3 |Apr precipitation days = 2.2 |May precipitation days = 0.4 |Jun precipitation days = 0.1 |Jul precipitation days = 0.1 |Aug precipitation days = 0.2 |Sep precipitation days = 1.0 |Oct precipitation days = 3.3 |Nov precipitation days = 6.3 |Dec precipitation days = 11.4 |year precipitation days = 61.5 |Jan snow days = 0.0 |Feb snow days = 0.0 |Mar snow days = 0.0 |Apr snow days = 0.0 |May snow days = 0.1 |Jun snow days = 0.0 |Jul snow days = 0.1 |Aug snow days = 0.1 |Sep snow days = 0.1 |Oct snow days = 0.1 |Nov snow days = 0.0 |Dec snow days = 0.0 |year snow days = 0.2 |Jan sun = 263.5 |Feb sun = 228.8 |Mar sun = 269.7 |Apr sun = 288.0 |May sun = 297.6 |Jun sun = 285.0 |Jul sun = 297.6 |Aug sun = 303.8 |Sep sun = 291.0 |Oct sun = 306.9 |Nov sun = 303.0 |Dec sun = 275.9 |year sun = 3410.8 |Jan percentsun = 63.5 |Feb percentsun = 62.5 |Mar percentsun = 70.5 |Apr percentsun = 82.0 |May percentsun = 85.5 |Jun percentsun = 86.5 |Jul percentsun = 87.5 |Aug percentsun = 85.5 |Sep percentsun = 80.0 |Oct percentsun = 78.0 |Nov percentsun = 76.0 |Dec percentsun = 65.5 |year percentsun = 76.9 |source 1 = Servicio Meteorológico Nacional (normals and extremes){{cite web | url = https://ssl.smn.gob.ar/dpd/observaciones/estadisticas_normales_9120.zip | title = Estadísticas Climatológicas Normales - período 1991-2020 | publisher = Servicio Meteorológico Nacional | language = Spanish | accessdate = 2 Mar 2023 | archive-date = 3 March 2023 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230303032103/https://ssl.smn.gob.ar/dpd/observaciones/estadisticas_normales_9120.zip | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230708235600/http://repositorio.smn.gob.ar/bitstream/handle/20.500.12160/2506/estad%C3%ADsticas_climatol%C3%B3gicas_normales_1991-2020.pdf?sequence=4&isAllowed=y | archive-date = 8 July 2023 | url = http://repositorio.smn.gob.ar/handle/20.500.12160/2506 | title = Estadísticas Climatológicas Normales – período 1991–2020 | publisher = Servicio Meteorológico Nacional | language = es | access-date = 4 August 2023 | year = 2023}}{{cite web | url = https://www.smn.gob.ar/estadisticas | title = Clima en la Argentina: Guia Climática por La Quiaca Obs | work = Caracterización: Estadísticas de largo plazo | publisher = Servicio Meteorológico Nacional | language = Spanish | accessdate = 2 Mar 2023 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170904022616/https://www2.smn.gob.ar/caracterizaci%C3%B3n-estad%C3%ADsticas-de-largo-plazo | archive-date = 4 September 2017 | url-status = dead |source 2 = Secretaria de Mineria (sun 1961–1990) | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20150630192307/http://www.mineria.gob.ar/estudios/irn/jujuy/tabla_meteo.asp?donde=t2 | archivedate = June 30, 2015 | url = http://www.mineria.gob.ar/estudios/irn/jujuy/tabla_meteo.asp?donde=t2 | language = Spanish | title = Datos Meteorológicos Registrados en las Distintas Estación de la Provincia de Jujuy | publisher = Secretaria de Mineria de la Nacion (Argentina) | accessdate = March 16, 2015}} |date = August 2012}}
References
Notes
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