Argentina

Basic information;

 

Security number:

• Police – 101

• Ambulance – 107

• Fire department – 100

• 911 & 112 will also be connected

Land code Phone: +54

Money: Argetina Pesos (ARS$)

Bank: in the banks and atms you can only get pesos. most of the time 2000 max. but sometime less but never more. With every transaction youll have to pay 106 pesos to the bank, and you also have to pay your own bank because you used your credit or debit card, sometimes they accept meastro. this means that with every 100 euro you have to pay 10 euros to the bank. A good alternative is using dollars. So if you can get some you can change them in a Exchange office. most of the time they also accept dollars in stores or tourist places.

Embassy: its never stupid to look for the embassys from your coutry in other countrys. look for the adres, Phone number of email. its easy if something happend or if you go to a place where in no connection. Then everyone know where you are.

Busses: the country is better with busses then trains or airplanes. every city has 1 or more bus terminals with a great offer at bus tours to the whole country and even capital citys from the countrys around. Its better to just go there in the morning and look for the bus youll need, and look if you can get a better price at a other company and buy the tickets there. we payed between 15/60 euros for long tours to other citys.

City busses: you can only pay with sube ( this is a card with money on it ). its a fast and cheapway to cross around citys. in Buenos aires youll pay 6,5 pesos each person 1 ride. except for the longer tours like the airport.

Ferry Uruguay: from Buenos aires its easy to go with the ferry to colonia, Monte video or punta del este. a ferry is most of the time cheaper then the bus from Buenos aires to colonia or monte video. its also faster, and more fun. so this is a great alternative.

Trains: there are not a lot of trains. youll find in some places touristic trains, most of the time really expencive. but around Buenos aires youll got some lines. from here you pay 6 pesos to enter and 6 to leave. possible to buy tickets or pay with sube

Metro: can only pay with sube. sube card you can buy and recharge here. its 7,5 pesos to enter the metro station and can go around the city till you leave the stations

Sube; this is a pay methode in Argentina. you can buy it in kiosk, metro station or some shops. You can charge it also on this places. the price is 25 pesos with no money on it, but its possible to get to -20 pesos. this card you need to pay a citybus or metro. you can also use it for the train or pay the toll to cross roads, with the last one its also a good tip to use it because it gives you 30% discount if you pay with this.

Hostels/campsites and lodges:

We used hostelworld, booking.com and icamping.

• Hostels: the prices are really diverent. it depants on the season, in house by people, room and city you would like to stay. it can be from 7 to 21 euros a night, and maby even more. but what would you expect from a hostel and what can you expect?! first that it is clean, keep this as your most important because you dont like to have uninvided animals. if you dont trust it or wont like it, just reservate 1 night or first ask to get a look around. all the rest you have to take as a gift. most hostels have hot showers, sometimes with a time table. if you want a cheap room you know you are with a lot of people on a room and a saturday is a party day, if you like to have a private or less big room you have to make an reservation in front, especialy in the big citys. almost every hostel has a free breakfast this also can have a big variation, keep your idea of it low, the better it will be, expect some bread, dolce de leche, jam and coffee. sometimes cornflackes and milk or yoghurt and if you have luck some cake are ham and cheese.

• Campsites: this is the most cheap thing to do in south america. there are a lot of campsites, free campsites and private campsites and even special stops at gasstations. from our experiance its save but cold. you have to be prepared for this especialy in the south and patagonia. what can you expec?! a free campsite has no or a cold shower, no cooking area ( fire is not allowed in the wild) and no protection. a private or paid campsite ( between 2,50 to 7 euro.) has most of the time a hot shower with a time table, they have cooking areas and sometimes even a laundy area, a lot of them have wifi and protection and parking lots. on this camsites they sometimes also rent tents or lodges.

• Lodges: this whas for us also a invention. a lot of the paid campsites also rent lodges. this are rooms/smal houses for a cheap price. sometimes even more cheap then a hostel. pluspoints 24/7 hot shower and private, wifi, private room, heater and sometimes even a television and stoof. but other problem you pay for the house/room this c\is for the most times a room for 4 persons if you are alone it could be expansive. campsites are not in the city centers and theres no free breakfast included

Get South: this is a company who works in argentina, chili and uruguay. they offer discounts in hostels and some tourist atractions. you can find the books in your hostels or online. this can save you 10% at your hostel.

Rent a car:

We looked at diverent companys to look for our rental car. this where the most famous and best one from where we dicided to rent the car from.

• Cactus – cheap but kilometers not included after 10.000 km and not insured

• Hertz – middel cheap, unllimited kilometers included but not insured

• Sixt – expancief, unlimited kilometers included and fully insured

When you rent a car here we recommand you a car with already some damage ( make shure its on the paper that you sign, and take a good look at the glas ) or take a 4×4 car if you gonna take a road trip. we had the cheapest one a chevrolet classic. the roads here a really bad and not Always harded. for a lot of citys you have to go offroad. there a also a lot of hols in the road and in the night be carefull for animals on the road.

If you want to cross the border make shure you got a duane paper. you need this to cross the border with the car. otherwise you have to go back to the company youll rented the car from.

City’s:

Buenos Aires:

We’ve been here in tree diverent hostels:

• Art factory beer garden: we stayed here one night. the hostel is in palermo, they party area. a nice place and every room has its own badroom. but the kitchen in really bad and its also not allowedto bring your own drinks. they have breakfast included. They also are free to help around the city or make a call for a uber. we paid €12 euro a night.

• Rock hostel and brewery: here we stayed 3 nights. really fun hostel. In the center with a look at the congress building. also friendly people. a rooftop to chil. but also not allowed to bring drinks from the outsite. also the wifi is not so good. every saturday they give a party.its really noisy on the streets. but a good hostel we paid €10 euro a night.

• Rayuela hostel: this hostel is a fun hostel in an old office building. good wifi connection, free to use the computer, a livingroom with a pool table big kitchen and neerby the center and san telmo. the badrooms are not so good. just 2 badrooms with 1 shower and toilet, thismeans you are always in a waiting line. btw breakfast is with everyday homebakes bread and cake! we paid € 12 euros a night.

What we did, what we recommend:

freewalking tours: in Buenos Aires you have 4 walking tours from this company 2 paid and 2 free. the paid ones are really good, one is on the cemetery for 150 ars and one is in la boca 200 ars. the free tours are in the city centers and tell you a lot about the history and architect building. with this 2 tours they hope to get a tip from you, some of them are asking it rude. keep in mind that you dont have to pay and with 100 pesos you give them already a lot, its not a private tour or in a district area. i know they ask for more and some people give, but thats on yourself.

Palacio Barolo: this is a must see. you cant miss it on the av. 25 de mayo. but also in the free walking tour they tell you about. the visitor hours where from 11 to 18. but the english one is only on 15 pm. they tell you some of the history of the building this is intresting but the most beautiful reason to do this is because of the lighthouse on the top. here you can get a view over the city center and even with some luck to colonia ( uruguay ). this view is wonderfull. the price we dont rember but we gues its around 300 pesos.

Be carefull: always be aware of your surrounding, this city is beautifull and you like to make photos. but try to keep your camara, phone, cash money away. dont in the night outsite tourist areas and make shure la boca you get robt if you get to far out of sight.

Party, club Vox: we went for an party, techno party at club vox at Av. Hipólito Yrigoyen 968. Check there Facebook for actual party’s.

Rosario:

Hostel: La Comunidad. its a big hostel with a small walk to the city center. has a laundry area, 1 mixed bathroom, 1 man and 1 women bathroom. a social room/livingroom and a kitchen. oke breakfast and really friendly people who love to help you around. own drinks not allowed. price €13 euro, but use your get south for your discount of 10%.

What we did, what we recommend:

• Go around in the city, walk allong the water and parks.

• Visit the flagmonument, and the museum, who is not free.

• Take the night train to Buenos Aires who leave every night at 1am.

Puerto iquazu:

Here we stayed in hostel 10. this whas not our best experiance of an hostel. and under every idea of our expections. we paid here €7 euros a night. the have a pool what is nic and not to far away from the bus terminal. but! its really dirty and a lot of partys and noice, breakfast is also realy bad.

What we did, what we recommend:

• Its easy to go from here to the waterfalls on the Argentina side, and also possible to find a tour to the brasilian side.

• Visit the triple frontier. this statue is a conection between Paraguay, Brasil and Argentina

Bariloche:

We stayed here 2 days in hostel Marcopolo inn. € 12 euros a night. with a good breakfast, private and shared rooms and close by the center. good wifi and computer you can use. its not allowed to take your own drinks from the outside, but they have a big bar with a pool table and cooking area ( without an oven, but they sell pizza from the profecional kitchen ).

What we did, what we recommend:

There are a lot of thing to do here and the places around and its easy to go from here to your next destination. in the winter there are a lot of sport activities. in the summer a lot of nice hikes and bring a visit at the lake district or nature park, and try some chocolate. also easy to go to Chili from here, a nice option is to take a tour to puerto varas the organisation name is turista. they bring give you 3 trips on 3 diverent lakes with 2 catamarans and 1 boot, a bus tour, lunch and takes about 12 hours. the price 260 usd. but its worth it.

Place to eat:

We get it from the lonely planet, rockchicken. its a fastfood restaurant with a cheap price and oke food. if you are a backpacker and want to eat finely something diverent and dont pay to mutch for it, it worth to visit. also try the icecreams from the recomandations in the lonely planet, argetin makes good icecream.

El Calafate:

Here we stayed in hostel I Keu Ken. this is also a big hostel, has agood wifi and big kitchen, an oke breakfast and good shower. hidden just 7 blocks from the center and if youll ask them tips for around the city of even Torres Del Paine they can help u, and if you have luck they have some gas for cooking left. payed € 11 euros a night.

What we did, what we recommend:

Ofcourse the must inportant vist the natural park with the best part the Perito Moreno!! this is a must see, it is gonna make you speachless! Price to enter the park €25 euro, 500 ars. if you want to go ice hiking beaware you also have to pay the enterance of the park €85+ €25 euros if your are not yet inside. also nice to do is visit the museum the glaciarium. price is €18 euro and if your are a student youll get discount. there is also a icebar €12 euro enterance but also discount if you are a student, there is also a icebar inside the city center. also is it nice to walk around the center its really beautiful. and go from here to Puerto Natuales ( Chili, Torres Del Paine ) or El Chalten.

El chalten:

We did not sleep here we had some badluck with the weather.

What we did, what we recommend:

Here you can make a free hike for 2 days to the Fritz Roy mountain, or make a nice walk in the city and dont forget to eat here the famous Belgium waffels on a South American style. Or do some small hikes around the city.its also possible todo some icehiking here on Glacier viedma. but be aware this city is only nice by good weather otherwise the close a lot of hikes.

Puerto Madryn:

We stayed on a campsite. ACA-resort Punta Cuevas. This big campsite help you with some information around the city. they have hot showers and no time table. laundry area and cooking area and some houses to rent. car is alowed in the campsite. €4,5 euro a night.

What we did, what we recommend:

From here there go a lot of tours to the natural park Pensuela Valdes, here you can see wales, sealions, elevant seals, pinquins, with some luck orcas and on the land a lot of birds, armadillo, nandus and guancas and a lotmore. theres also a museum in the park. but also in the city the do a lot of boat tours, diving and wale watching paid and un paid.

Rada Tilly:

Its a small city hidden between the big city Comodoro Rivadavia and Caletta Olivia. We find this place because we didnt like Comodoro and wanted to look for an cheaper place to stay the night. here we also stayed at a campsite a nice smal campsite caled camping municipal. with really good cooking area, showers and wifi connection. we paid here 3 euro a person a night.

What we did, what we recommend:

From here its easy to visit Comodoro Rivadavia and Caletta Olivia by car, but its also possible to bring a visit at the stoned forest. here you have a small hike in the middle of nowhere but its realy worth it, the view and the information is amazing. but there a no tours to there. its free to visit.

Rio Gallegos:

This city at the border of Chili and the last big city youll find before you get your way to Ushuaia. here we also stayed at a camping ATSA. a nice and friendly camping, the owners love to play soccer and just around the cornet youll find a smal restaurant and some big and small supermarkets. its just outside the city center. in total we stayed here 3 nights. 1 night in a lodge and 2 in our own tent the lodge was amazing and just 500 pesos for the rent. and you can get in with 4 people. the campsites where good but the showers not, there is a cooking area and heaters in the bathroom. price 50 pesos a person a night 60 pesos a tent a night.

What we did, what we recommend:

From here its easy to take tours to El Calafate, or Ushuaia and also to the Torres Del Paine.

Ushuaia:

The Cavern hostel. this is one of the most cheap hostels in town. €14 euro a night a person. it not really close to the center but close by the glacier and the natural park. a friendly owner and included breakfast, a cooking area and a really good shower. unfortunly it looks like a mess and not so clean. but everyday the owner cleans the house. and you can also park here your car on the private parking.

What we did, what we recommend:

• Its free to visit the Glacier Martial. in the winter its also possible to do wintersports here.

• A other really good thing to do here is diving in a dry suit and see underwater animals you never saw before.

• Or do a tour to the pinquins or sea lions.

• And ofcourse dont forget the Terra Del Feugo. this is a famous natural park. the first one of Argentina. hidden in the lowest part of land in the world. go ehre for hiking or send a postcard ( also possible from the city center ). its free from april to october and in the high season its just a small price to enter the park

• This is also one of the only possible ways to visit the really lowest city in the world, Peurto Williams in chili. here are also a lot of hikes possible and visit the last humans who surposted to live there.

• And lost but not least. go to laguna esmaralda. this is not a really famous thing in ushuaia. they dont make a lot of commercial or tourist tour. they like to keep it from themself. its a lagoon hidden between the mountains, with a free campsite ( fire not alllowed) and a beach to chil. its not just 5 km. keep in mind its a really tuff hike and a lot of mud. but it worth it. a fast hiker 3 hours a slow hiker 4 hours.

Bajo Caracoles:

This is a really fun city to stop when you cross the road 40. they have around 10/15 people in this city. 1 hotel + gasstation + restaurant and bar ( where everyone is in the night ). 1 hostel with campsite and 1 hostel where you dont have to pay if the owner is not at home. because in 2 hours each direction there is nothing its fun and usefull to take a stop here.

Tigre:

this is a smal town 35 km in the north from Buenos Aires and at the border of Uruguay. you can take a bus tour to here or buy a train ticket and travel around 30 minutes with the train. its possible here to join in the water with a rental boat or a kajak. or go shopping in the center or go shopping on the Puerto frutas. here you can buy everything and enjoy with a beer, a nice meal or a nice icecrea the only thing they dont have here is fruit. its a city to take a stap out of the city live and to do some other fun activeties. in the summer and weekends its Always busy, dont come for your rest.

San Antonio de Areco:

The most beautiful city of the Pampas. with the old buildings, empty Streets and playing childeren in the river its a realy calm city. just 100 km from beunos aires andd 2 hours by bus. here you can take a horse ridding, relax on the grass while the childeren anre swimming, visit a museum or one of the old bars who sell ther own made icecream. also a good thing to visit and taste a alajornes from la olla de cobre, if you dont like a alfajornes then after this one you like!