Chile and Argentina are very cold countries but nationwide not just the south, in provices like Cordoba, Salta, La Rioja, Catamarca it snows a lot, where don't snow is in the border with Brazil.
In my personal opinion Argentina is nicer than Chile, so my options for you are:
San Martín de los Andes:
http://www.enlapatagonia.org/wp-content/...
http://www.paquetesviajes.com.ar/wp-cont...
Bariloche:
http://www.ecos-online.de/files/ecos/lea...
http://www.interpatagonia.com/bariloche/...
Ushuaia:
http://fotos0.mundofotos.net/2009/28_02_...
http://s5.splcdn.net/images/hotels/37155...
http://www.exploreargentina.com/multimed...
In those cities snow pretty much, it has less than 5.000 of inhabitants and those cities have one of the best HDI of Latin America.
Southern Chile is not the same as Southern Argentina. Both are cold but the east is very dry compared to the west.
The southern tip of South America can be divided between the following regions:
- Humid Pampa (Buenos Aires, AR) - Cfa
The area around Buenos Aires has a humid subtropical climate, with rain all year round, hot summers and cool winters. Also includes Uruguay and Southern Brazil.
- Cuyo (Mendoza, AR) - BSk or BSh
Dry subtropical area along the Argentine side of the Andes. Irrigation has made it a good place for agriculture. Some areas can get very hot during summer.
- Eastern Patagonia Desert (Trelew, AR) - BWk
- Eastern Patagonia Steppe (Punta Arenas, CL) - BSk
The eastern side of Patagonia is cool and very dry (either steppe or straight desert). The coast gets a little more rain. The southern parts get snow in the winter.
- Western Patagonia (Ushuaia, AR; Puerto Aysén, CL) - Cfc
This is a subpolar oceanic climate with cool, rainy summers and cold, snowy winters.
This is the predominant climate of the sparsely-populated islands of Western Patagonia (on the Chilean side), and the Southern strip of Tierra del Fuego (to which Ushuaia belongs)
Here are the southernmost forests of the world.
- Valdivian Rainforest (Valdivia, CL) - Cfb
Rainy temperate region with warm/temperate summers and cold winters. Winters are more rainy than summers. It's similar but slightly colder than the climate of the Humid Pampa.
This region is renowned by its vast forest, its lakes and rivers. The areas around the Andes get a lot of snow.
- Mediterranean (Santiago, CL to Bariloche, AR) - Csb
It's a climate of Chile between the Aconcagua and Bío-Bío Rivers. Warm, dry summers and cold, wet winters (but only the higher areas get any snow in the winter). It gets wetter as one goes south, and also its southernmost coasts are very rainy.
Bariloche and its surrounding areas in the Andes south of the Cuyo region enjoy a mountain climate with warm summers and cold, rainy/snowy winters.
Note, however, that tress don't grow above a certain altitude, and you won't get snow below a certain altitude, so you have to find somewhere with a mid-range altitude.
These ranges vary according to altitude. Tree line goes from about 600 meters of altitude in the southern tip of South America to about 1600-2000 meters of altitude near Chillán in Central Chile.
Bariloche, Arg
El Calafate, Arg
Puerto Natales, Chile
Ushuaia,Arg
Chacabuco, CH
LQQK up Barlioche, Argentina
Ok so I love mountain areas with lots of big trees and lakes and snow in the winter. When I retire in the far future I want to live in a Hispanic environment. The problem is though that most of central and south america is too hot and humid for my liking.
so that leaves me with south Chile and south Argentina. I know it snows in those places but i am really picky haha. I dont want just snow but like mountain forest area. so are there any towns in south chile or Argentina that meets the criteria of:
at least 10 days of snow a year
lots of trees like in north Canada
small town of less than 5000 people
and maybe a lake or high elevation but those two aren't required
