Rodeos, ranch stays and a pair of well-worn boots: cowboy core was one of 2025's biggest travel trends, and it's showing no sign of slowing down. The aesthetic has been fuelled by pop culture — "Yellowstone", the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders docuseries and Beyoncé's country-era Grammy wins — but the deeper pull is a craving for real, hands-on experiences over canned attractions.
The economics back it up. A 2024 study projected the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City will pump $313 million into Oklahoma's economy this decade, while Colorado's 16-day National Western Stock Show generated $171 million in economic activity in 2023. Montana and the Dakotas are also riding the wave.
The more interesting story, though, is what's happening south of the equator. Buenos Aires-based operator Say Hueque reports growing demand for estancia stays in Patagonia, where travellers trade screen-inspired cowboy fantasies for gaucho life. Days there run on the land's schedule — livestock, shearing season, horse care — rather than an itinerary. Travel expert Analía Rupar Przebieda says the appeal is the pace: long asado dinners, unhurried conversations, life measured in daylight and seasons.
She's quick to point out that Patagonia isn't Argentina's answer to Texas. Estancias tend to be smaller, more intimate and far less crowded, and the remoteness adds to the sense of retreat. The flip side: availability is limited, so book early, and getting there takes commitment — which is exactly why she recommends slowing down once you arrive.
One example is Nibepo Aike, a working estanza about 56km from El Calafate inside Los Glaciares National Park. Owner Juliana Jansma says guests don't just watch gaucho demonstrations — they join horseback rides, treks and a traditional Ranch Day, getting a genuine taste of rural work in the process.
And if Patagonia feels like a stretch, cowboy culture has cousins worldwide. Chile has the huaso of the central valleys (rodeo is the national sport, with the big event held in Rancagua) and the baqueano of the far south near Torres del Paine. Bandera, Texas — population under 1,000 — calls itself the Cowboy Capital of the World, and rodeos run January to March in Fort Worth, Houston and Austin. In southern Spain, where the whole cowboy tradition began before crossing the Atlantic, experienced riders can join multi-day cattle drives. Mongolia offers the oldest horse-herding culture on earth, with family stays in yurts and the summer Naadam festival in Ulaanbaatar.
For travellers tired of queueing for viewpoints, a ranch stay — anywhere on this list — offers something rarer: a reason to stay longer, not tick faster.
Story via Adventure Travel News.
