The old cathedral, an 18th-century Jesuit style building, was destroyed in the 1944 earthquake, but has been replaced by a modern-Tuscan-romanesque building with a campanile. San Juan is the seat of a Roman Catholic metropolitan Archbishop and a Catholic University. San Juan possesses the Juan Victoria Auditorium, one of the most modern and active concert halls in Argentina, as well as many leafy parks and squares, including Parque de Mayo with its vast artificial lake.

• Casa Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, located at the intersection of Libertador General San Martín Avenue and Sarmiento street. Made a National Historic Monument in 1910, this was the first site so designated in Argentina. The local educator and President of the Republic from 1868 to 1874, Domingo Sarmiento, was born here in 1811 and raised here, as well.
• San Martin's Monastic Cell, in the Santo DOmingo Convent, where Jose de San Martin, a military leader who led independence campaigns in Argentina, Chile and Peru, stayed during a 1815 visit to the city to raise support for the revolutionary wars. It maintains its simple furniture from the time of his visit.
• Franklin Rawson Museum of Fine Arts/Agustín Gnecco Historical Provincial Museum, named after the local painter Benjamin Franklin Rawson (1819–1871). It houses a patrimony of paintings and sculptures, engravings and drawings from national artists. The Gnecco Museum features elements related to fashion in the 18th and 19th centuries, Creole silverwork, as well as historic numismatics and philately collections.
• Amid Read Museum/Carlos Gardel House of Tango provides displays and videos outlining the development of Argentine Tango, and its evolution in the 20th century. Conferences, discussions, and violin and bandoneón classes are among the activities hosted here.
• Natural Sciences Museum. This facility, housed in a former railway station is known for its dinosaur fossil collections, found mainly in the nearby Ischigualasto Valley.

The city of San Juan is located in a fertile valley within a rocky mountainous area. Winter temperatures are generally mild, averaging between 1 °C (33.8 °F) and 16 °C (60.8 °F), but can drop below −9 °C (15.8 °F). Summers are hot, with average temperatures between 19 °C (66.2 °F) and 35 °C (95.0 °F), and a record maximum of 46.7 °C (116.1 °F) on December 20, 1995. The range of the mean monthly temperatures is 19.4°C, possibly the highest in all South America. Sunny weather is common in all months and San Juan averages about 3,361.3 hours of bright sunshine, or about 76% of possible sunshine, ranging from a low of 68% in June to a high of 81% possible sunshine in May. Under the Köppen climate classification, San Juan has a desert climate (BWh/BWk).

When someday comes you'll need to get in.

When someday comes you'll need to be able to get around.