Yes, open-air smoking landside, outside the terminal building, is permitted at Governor Francisco Gabrielli International Airport (MDZ) in Mendoza, under Argentina’s national law banning smoking in every enclosed public space. The airport publishes no dedicated smoking area of its own, and it lists no airside facility — treat the open air outside the terminal, before security or after you land, as the option.
Mendoza’s airport, known locally as El Plumerillo, is the gateway to Argentina’s wine country. It sits about 8 kilometres northeast of the city and shares its field with the Argentine Air Force’s 4th Air Brigade, a joint civil-military arrangement common at several Argentine airports.
Where to Smoke
Argentina’s Ley 26.687 bans smoking nationwide in enclosed public spaces, so no airport terminal keeps an indoor smoking room. MDZ’s own site adds nothing beyond that national baseline — it names no dedicated smoking area, marked spot or signage. What remains is the open air outside the terminal building, on the landside, where national law does not restrict smoking.
After Security
MDZ’s own service and facilities listings do not name an airside smoking room anywhere in the terminal. Departing passengers should plan on their last cigarette being landside, before check-in. A connecting passenger hoping to step out airside faces the same gap in the published information — MDZ does not describe a procedure for exiting and re-clearing security for a smoke break, so confirm with your airline and allow extra time before attempting one; our guide to smoking during layovers covers general planning.
Lounges
MDZ’s AMAE Lounge sits airside, in the domestic pre-boarding area near Gate 5, open 06:30 to 22:00. It has no smoking area.
Vaping
MDZ publishes no separate rule for e-cigarettes, so vape only where smoking is permitted: in the open air landside, outside the terminal, and not indoors or airside. Argentina also bans the sale and import of e-cigarettes and heat-not-burn devices under ANMAT Disposición 3226/2011, so do not expect to buy a device or refills once you land in Mendoza.
For onward connections, the outdoor smoking area at Ezeiza International and Aeroparque’s landside smoking area both follow the same landside-only pattern.
Summary
| Area | Smoking | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Indoor terminal | No | Smoke-free under Ley 26.687 |
| After security / airside | No | Operator’s listings name no airside facility |
| AMAE Lounge | No | Airside, domestic pre-boarding near Gate 5; no smoking area |
| Outdoor landside | Yes | Open-air smoking permitted under national law; no marked spot published |
| Vaping | Landside open air only | No separate airport rule; vape only where smoking is permitted; e-cigarette sale/import banned nationally |
For Argentina’s airport smoking rules and vaping law, see our Argentina airport guide.