Trip Reports Buenos Aires Trip Report - Summer 2023 (2 month trip)

[TravelAddict]

No worries. You can try and call. They might have someone that speaks English. Or yes you can go right when it opens. Usually around 7:30 PM they just start serving. There were several foreign tourists there right around then. Locals don't eat that early. But I think the main thing is they would need you to be done around 9 PM to 9:30 PM for when it's the busiest with the locals.

It's a pretty spacious place. Also, I thought it was very nice that they had the added touch of having a security guard or police there at the front of the door. I didn't think BA felt dangerous but all the times we went there was a police officer that they obviously paid that was at the front entrance.

When purchasing with a CC in restaurant/bar etc do you have to produce ID?

 

[BuySellBA]

When purchasing with a CC in restaurant/bar etc do you have to produce ID?

Hi TravelAddict. No, no restaurants have EVER asked me for ID. Never. The only time they have asked for my ID was the supermarket or grocery store. Some of them like COTO I think they have a corporate policy where they need to write an ID. But no stores ever asked me for ID>

Do NOT carry your passport around. I just carry my California driver's license and that will do the trip. You don't have to show your passport.

 

[TravelAddict]

Hi TravelAddict. No, no restaurants have EVER asked me for ID. Never. The only time they have asked for my ID was the supermarket or grocery store. Some of them like COTO I think they have a corporate policy where they need to write an ID. But no stores ever asked me for ID>

Do NOT carry your passport around. I just carry my California driver's license and that will do the trip. You don't have to show your passport.

Thanks for confirming!

 

[sunntaned1]

I found your information very helpful. A quick question on hotels in Recoleta

I’m confused with 2 that I have booked can you tell me a bit of info as to which one to stay at

We are 2 active seniors, they are both 4.5*. The Club Hotel Francis or the Blank Hotel, but a big difference in price, not sure if the Francis is worth the extra money or the Blank in a bad part of the city, any info would be great, and another question, the Argentina Experience dinner versus Fogon experience

Do you have any input for me, and one last question, the best tango show to see.


Thank you

I finally got a chance to come up for air and wanted to post a Trip Report on my 2-month trip to Buenos Aires this summer. (June and July 2023). Please keep in mind the exchange rate at the time of this posting was only 500 pesos to $1 US. Now it's over 1,000 pesos to $1 US as of November 21, 2023.


I will preface this by saying that I formally lived in Buenos Aires for 9 years. A city I love with all my heart. Things are very cheap there at the “Blue” dollar rate. I feel so horrible about the economic turmoil that my friends are going through that live there. I almost felt guilty seeing how horrible the economy is there now.


Things seem worse than ever after I arrived after their devasting financial collapse in 2002. And in fact, I witnessed more crime than at any point since 2002.


In a 24-hour period, I saw 4 different people getting arrested by the police. 3 in Palermo Soho and 1 in Recoleta right at Las Heras and Junin. In the one in Recoleta, the police were very quick to act. It appeared some thieves had stolen something from someone on the street but the police were all quickly there with a police car blocking off the street.


I never felt any danger at all so in that respect I still feel like Buenos Aires is a very safe place to visit for tourists. You just have to be careful and always watch your surroundings. I never felt like I couldn’t take out my iPhone while walking on the street but be careful as most of my local friends have had their cellphones stolen at one point or another. In fact, the day I left my best friend (a local) had his iPhone stolen at a bar.


Restaurants are very cheap compared to the USA. I brought several thousands of dollars. Make sure to bring brand new $100 US dollar bills. You will get a lower exchange rate if you have old bills and some places might not want to exchange worn or older bills. You will also get a lower exchange rate for $20 or $50 bills.


There are several exchange places. Some have signs but some you have to already know about them. In Palermo Soho, you can go near Plaza Serrano at Serrano 1563. In Recoleta, you can go to Pueyrredon 1687. There is an office but tell them you want to exchange money and he will buzz a door where you exchange behind a glass window. Exchange rates were always very good there.


You can go to this website to see the rates: https://www.ambito.com/contenidos/dolar.html Most exchange places will give you near the Blue Dollar rate “compra” rate.


I was there almost 2 months so I eventually went through all my cash. For restaurants most times I just used my USA credit card. As long as your credit card is from outside of Argentina you will get an exchange rate of about 7% less than the “MEP” on the website I listed above. It was great not having to carry large amounts of money around.



Keep in mind the largest bill is the 2,000 peso bill but almost no one has those bills as they are fairly new. So, most use the 1,000 peso bill which is only worth about $1.50 US dollars at the current exchange rate. So if you go out to eat with a lot of people it can add up the stack of bills you have to carry around.


We ate out breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day. I have a family of 5 people and my mother-in-law also was with us. So with 6 people daily, it added up. Although cheaper than the USA, food can still add up depending on where you are going.


Some places stopped listing the prices on the menu board. My favorite medialuna place called La Mantequeria (they have a few locations) stopped putting prices on their board so I’d have to ask and it was different throughout the trip. That’s how fast the peso is depreciating.


Great if you have Dollars but horrible for the locals. When I started the trip the exchange rate was about 460 pesos to $1 US. Then throughout the trip, it went up to about 600 pesos to $ 1 US and now it’s already almost 675 pesos to $1 US. With inflation, prices go up but they can’t go up that quickly and there is a limit to how much restaurants can raise prices as locals won’t go.

Make sure if you are there for an extended time or even if you’re there for a week. Don’t exchange all your money on the first day. Just exchange as needed as these places are open every day except Sunday. And even on Sunday the one in Palermo Soho was open from 11:30 AM to 5 PM.

Dining out you can get the Menu of the Day at many places which is a fabulous value. At some places, it was only 3,000 pesos each for the menu of the day which included a drink, main course and some even included dessert. In many places, it was more than this.


We skipped Don Julio this trip as I think it’s crazy the lines now. The steak is good but it’s not that much better than any of the other good steak places. We went to La Cabrera which is another great steakhouse. Keep in mind at La Cabrera starting at 6 PM it’s 40% off the entire menu! You just have to show up around 5:30 to get your name on a list. By 6 PM there is a long line already and your odds of getting a table aren’t good. One day we went at 6 PM and we still got a table but the last one and only because someone didn’t show up.


The only catch is you must be completely done and pay the bill by 8 PM. If not, you won’t get the discount. But the ENTIRE menu is 40% off the bill. It’s relatively expensive for local standards. But the 6 of us ate like pigs and it was less than $125 US dollar with the 10% tip included. In the USA the equivalent meal probably would be around $600 US dollars


I also almost selfishly want to “gatekeep” this restaurant as it’s mostly locals and not too many tourists, but it’s called “La Choza de Gascon”. It’s a great local restaurant that has amazing prices on steak! It’s probably half the price of Don Julio or maybe less. We went here several times during the trip and we had 7 people dining out and I don’t think the bill was ever over $150 US for all of us. And that was appetizers, drinks, desserts, and tips. Plus many times we couldn’t even eat everything and brought leftovers home. Portions are huge here.



Make sure to have reservations at most places as places are all very packed. With the worthless peso, the locals are in a rush to spend their money. Everywhere is packed. You’d never know there was a devasting financial situation based on how packed the restaurants are. It’s always the same in BA.


We got tired of eating steak and my kids wanted some Asian food so we went to an all-you-can-eat Korean place called KBBQ. It’s nothing compared to the quality of the Korean places in the USA but it’s truly all you can eat. We were so stuffed and it was only 6,100 pesos each. That was about $11 US dollars each and it was a ton of food! The same thing in the USA is about $50 US dollars each.


China town over in Belgrano has also really changed and grown since I lived here. It was always packed! It used to only be 2 blocks but it has grown quite a bit and they built a subway station near there. Lots of restaurants and stores if you have young kids it’s worth going to. My kids wanted to go several times so we went often during our 2-month trip.


You will notice this crazy situation where the price of restaurants isn’t too different from a totally mediocre place vs. a nicer place. There is a limit to how cheap places can charge so even medicore meals (other than the menu of the day) were just a little different than a nice places. On average for 5 people in most of the places we went was from $70 US dollars to $100 US dollars each meal. And that included appetizers, drinks, a main course, and sometimes dessert, and always a 10% tip. So while much cheaper than the USA, still not crazy cheap if you are going for a while and eating out often.


Even at a place like McDonalds, you will pay the same price for a meal and drink and dessert then you will at a really nice place. (Other than the Value meal which was a little lower). I really don’t understand why locals would want to eat at McDonald’s when you consider just how expensive it is. For the same price, you can eat a really nice meal.


Things like hair salons and haircuts are very cheap compared to USA prices at similar salons. For example, my husband got a haircut for around $10 U dollars at a nice salon in Palermo Soho called Mala Peluqueria (ask for Brian or Julian). My husband and son went several times. Here in California, we pay about $40 US dollars with the tip for the same thing.

And other things like massages are an even better deal! As mentioned, there is a limit to how high places can charge or locals won’t go. So what I noticed the most is things like massages are an incredible deal! I paid 7,000 pesos including a generous tip for a 1 hour deep tissue massage. That is only about $11 US dollars. For the same thing here in California it’s about $100 US. And they have specials like couples massage for 1 hour where my husband and I went in the same room and had 2 people giving us a massage and it was for 10,000 pesos total plus tip! 10,000 pesos was only around $20 US dollars while we were there. That same thing here in California we pay $300 US dollars.



So services like this are the best value. You won’t get values like this at upscale hotels but you can go to established salons. I AM going to gatekeep this so if you want the name of the place just send me a private message and I’ll send you the details for where this place is. I’ve been going there for years.


Another thing that has changed over the years is there are far fewer taxis on the street. There used to be over 39,000 taxis in Buenos Aires. More than NYC, London, and Paris combined. There is probably 1/3 of that now. Not to worry. They have been replaced by rideshare companies like Uber, DiDi, Cabify and others.



The only thing that was a bummer is the maximum # of people you can have in them is 4 people. You can’t request a larger vehicle. So we always had to take 2 different Ubers. Ubers are all over the place and available everywhere. Most fares from Palermo to Recoleta were about 1,500 to 2,000 pesos each way depending on the time you went. About $3 US each time. Very cheap compared to the USA but it can still add up as we were in Uber about 8 times a day.


Download DiDi and Cabify before you come. Sometimes Uber wouldn’t have any cars available but DiDi always did. Just keep in mind with DiDi and Cabify you can’t use your credit card. You only can pay with Cash. With Uber I used my credit card 95% of the time. But sometimes the driver would text you ahead of time and say if you didn’t have cash he couldn’t take you. I usually asked them to cancel if this was the case as I already paid with a credit card and didn’t know if I’d get the refund. Taxis are cheaper now vs. rideshares for the most part but I still preferred to take Uber as one day I had a taxi with a rigged meter. I went the same route over and over and one day with no traffic the meter was over double and I told him I know he has a rigged meter.


Also, download the Rappi app on your phone. It was super convenient. I’ve used it for years but now we almost never went to the supermarket as everything can be delivered instantly with the App. You can subscribe to a “Rappi Prime” account which is only around $2 US per month (cancel after your trip). And you won’t pay delivery fees.



Whatever you want, you can instantly get. They have something called “Turbo” and they deliver within 10 minutes. I couldn’t believe it. You name it I got it. Ice, bottled water, sodas, ice cream. Just use the Turbo and you will have it within a few minutes. You can use it at an apartment rental or hotel.


On larger orders, they will ask you to give a PIN number to the delivery driver to ensure you get it. This protects you so you don’t pay until the driver enters the PIN. I never had problems and I used them daily. It beats standing in line at the grocery store. Plus, something nice is I could just use my USA credit card so I never had to hassle with cash.


Buenos Aires is a fabulous city. The major downside is only the airfare from most cities is really expensive now. But once you get there, everything else is relatively inexpensive.

I found your information very helpful. A quick question on hotels in Recoleta

I’m confused with 2 that I have booked can you tell me a bit of info as to which one to stay at

We are 2 active seniors, they are both 4.5*. The Club Hotel Francis or the Blank Hotel, but a big difference in price, not sure if the Francis is worth the extra money or the Blank in a bad part of the city, any info would be great, and another question, the Argentina Experience dinner versus Fogon experience

Do you have any input for me, and one last question, the best tango show to see.


Thank you

 

[BuySellBA]

I found your information very helpful. A quick question on hotels in Recoleta

I’m confused with 2 that I have booked can you tell me a bit of info as to which one to stay at

We are 2 active seniors, they are both 4.5*. The Club Hotel Francis or the Blank Hotel, but a big difference in price, not sure if the Francis is worth the extra money or the Blank in a bad part of the city, any info would be great, and another question, the Argentina Experience dinner versus Fogon experience

Do you have any input for me, and one last question, the best tango show to see.


Thank you

I found your information very helpful. A quick question on hotels in Recoleta

I’m confused with 2 that I have booked can you tell me a bit of info as to which one to stay at

We are 2 active seniors, they are both 4.5*. The Club Hotel Francis or the Blank Hotel, but a big difference in price, not sure if the Francis is worth the extra money or the Blank in a bad part of the city, any info would be great, and another question, the Argentina Experience dinner versus Fogon experience

Do you have any input for me, and one last question, the best tango show to see.


Thank you

The Club Hotel Francis is in an amazing part of Buenos Aires. I'd argue the absolute best area. We lived on Avenida Alvear and Rodriguez Pena a few blocks away for many years and some of the best memories of my life. My husband built a hotel around the corner on Montevideo (Algodon Mansion) so I know that area well. You won't find a better area than that hotel.


I've never stayed at that hotel but it gets good reviews. Just read some reviews. Some people are saying they saved money booking ahead by calling them direct vs. a booking platform. I'm not sure what the price difference is. It's an older hotel with that style decor which may or may not be for you. Some people prefer modern.


The cons seem to be the hotel is old, lighting is bad (fluorescent lighting in hallways), , note some reviews on Google that say a smell of mold (however that was 1 year ago),


Pros: Location, stafff all sound really great, rooms are spacious and big.


Blank Hotel I've never stayed at but that area is also very nice. Very residential area. I love Pena street. Walk down 3 blocks and you have a very nice park. (Plaza Republica del Paraguay). My mother lives right near that hotel and she LOVES it. Everything you could possibly want is near that area. Grocery stores, restaurants cafes, fruit stands, you name it!


Reviews are all really good. I've never heard of this hotel or seen it. I walk by this area all the time going to my mom's apartment. But wonderful wonderful area. It's not a posh area like the other hotel. But it's really nice. The reviews all say it's clean, staff friendly. It looks more modern and prices are about half of the other hotel.


It just depends on what kind of experience you want. Just keep in mind there is no correlation to better experience by more you pay.


I'd say value for the money book the Blank Hotel. Save the money on dining out. You are going to be out and about anyway. The Blank is in a GREAT part of town.


I'd go to Fogon. I've been to that 4 times when guests come into town. The Argentina Experience I heard is also very very good. Either you are ok. Don't over stress or think too much. If a place is a Traveler's Best or Best of the Best Award winner on Trip Advisor you're going to get a good meal.

 

[sunntaned1]

The Club Hotel Francis is in an amazing part of Buenos Aires. I'd argue the absolute best area. We lived on Avenida Alvear and Rodriguez Pena a few blocks away for many years and some of the best memories of my life. My husband built a hotel around the corner on Montevideo (Algodon Mansion) so I know that area well. You won't find a better area than that hotel.


I've never stayed at that hotel but it gets good reviews. Just read some reviews. Some people are saying they saved money booking ahead by calling them direct vs. a booking platform. I'm not sure what the price difference is. It's an older hotel with that style decor which may or may not be for you. Some people prefer modern.


The cons seem to be the hotel is old, lighting is bad (fluorescent lighting in hallways), , note some reviews on Google that say a smell of mold (however that was 1 year ago),


Pros: Location, stafff all sound really great, rooms are spacious and big.


Blank Hotel I've never stayed at but that area is also very nice. Very residential area. I love Pena street. Walk down 3 blocks and you have a very nice park. (Plaza Republica del Paraguay). My mother lives right near that hotel and she LOVES it. Everything you could possibly want is near that area. Grocery stores, restaurants cafes, fruit stands, you name it!


Reviews are all really good. I've never heard of this hotel or seen it. I walk by this area all the time going to my mom's apartment. But wonderful wonderful area. It's not a posh area like the other hotel. But it's really nice. The reviews all say it's clean, staff friendly. It looks more modern and prices are about half of the other hotel.


It just depends on what kind of experience you want. Just keep in mind there is no correlation to better experience by more you pay.


I'd say value for the money book the Blank Hotel. Save the money on dining out. You are going to be out and about anyway. The Blank is in a GREAT part of town.


I'd go to Fogon. I've been to that 4 times when guests come into town. The Argentina Experience I heard is also very very good. Either you are ok. Don't over stress or think too much. If a place is a Traveler's Best or Best of the Best Award winner on Trip Advisor you're going to get a good meal.

Thank you, you are a great help,

Do you have any advise for a tango dinner show. Are the dinners worth the money, or just do a show.

Do all these restaurants need to be booked 3-4 months in advance I will be arriving December 31- January 4th.

Thanks again,

 

[BuySellBA]

Thank you, you are a great help,

Do you have any advise for a tango dinner show. Are the dinners worth the money, or just do a show.

Do all these restaurants need to be booked 3-4 months in advance I will be arriving December 31- January 4th.

Thanks again,

You're welcome! Happy to help out so don't hesitate to ask. There are a lot of wonderful Local Destination Experts that will take time to answer. Many live on the ground there. I used to live there for 10 years but move out for the past many years but getting ready to move back. But the Destination Experts will know the answers.


I'm not a big tango fan. I went 2 or 3 times over the past 2 decades but for me once you go that's it. But some love it. My advice is just my own but I didn't think the dinner shows were anything special with the food. My advice would be to go to a great dinner then go to a good show. I don't know what the best tango shows are so other people can respond.


You don't have to book 3-4 months in advance but places like Don Julio are about 2 months booked in advance. I'd recommend if you know the dates you will be there go ahead and book it and then if you have to change it, the restaurant is probably more willing to move you around once you already have the reservation. You can call once you're there if you need to move the time/day around a little. I've had good success doing that method. Vs. just trying blind last minute. They give you a priority as you already have the reservation.


Just make sure whatever confirmation they give you, you save it or do a screenshot on your phone so you have confirmation. A few times I made reservations and then we got there and they said they can't see it. But I show the picture from my phone of the reservation. Many of these restaurants sometimes their reservation system goes down or something. That's happened.


Have fun!

 

[miamiicpa]

I finally got a chance to come up for air and wanted to post a Trip Report on my 2-month trip to Buenos Aires this summer. (June and July 2023). Please keep in mind the exchange rate at the time of this posting was only 500 pesos to $1 US. Now it's over 1,000 pesos to $1 US as of November 21, 2023.


I will preface this by saying that I formally lived in Buenos Aires for 9 years. A city I love with all my heart. Things are very cheap there at the “Blue” dollar rate. I feel so horrible about the economic turmoil that my friends are going through that live there. I almost felt guilty seeing how horrible the economy is there now.


Things seem worse than ever after I arrived after their devasting financial collapse in 2002. And in fact, I witnessed more crime than at any point since 2002.


In a 24-hour period, I saw 4 different people getting arrested by the police. 3 in Palermo Soho and 1 in Recoleta right at Las Heras and Junin. In the one in Recoleta, the police were very quick to act. It appeared some thieves had stolen something from someone on the street but the police were all quickly there with a police car blocking off the street.


I never felt any danger at all so in that respect I still feel like Buenos Aires is a very safe place to visit for tourists. You just have to be careful and always watch your surroundings. I never felt like I couldn’t take out my iPhone while walking on the street but be careful as most of my local friends have had their cellphones stolen at one point or another. In fact, the day I left my best friend (a local) had his iPhone stolen at a bar.


Restaurants are very cheap compared to the USA. I brought several thousands of dollars. Make sure to bring brand new $100 US dollar bills. You will get a lower exchange rate if you have old bills and some places might not want to exchange worn or older bills. You will also get a lower exchange rate for $20 or $50 bills.


There are several exchange places. Some have signs but some you have to already know about them. In Palermo Soho, you can go near Plaza Serrano at Serrano 1563. In Recoleta, you can go to Pueyrredon 1687. There is an office but tell them you want to exchange money and he will buzz a door where you exchange behind a glass window. Exchange rates were always very good there.


You can go to this website to see the rates: https://www.ambito.com/contenidos/dolar.html Most exchange places will give you near the Blue Dollar rate “compra” rate.


I was there almost 2 months so I eventually went through all my cash. For restaurants most times I just used my USA credit card. As long as your credit card is from outside of Argentina you will get an exchange rate of about 7% less than the “MEP” on the website I listed above. It was great not having to carry large amounts of money around.



Keep in mind the largest bill is the 2,000 peso bill but almost no one has those bills as they are fairly new. So, most use the 1,000 peso bill which is only worth about $1.50 US dollars at the current exchange rate. So if you go out to eat with a lot of people it can add up the stack of bills you have to carry around.


We ate out breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day. I have a family of 5 people and my mother-in-law also was with us. So with 6 people daily, it added up. Although cheaper than the USA, food can still add up depending on where you are going.


Some places stopped listing the prices on the menu board. My favorite medialuna place called La Mantequeria (they have a few locations) stopped putting prices on their board so I’d have to ask and it was different throughout the trip. That’s how fast the peso is depreciating.


Great if you have Dollars but horrible for the locals. When I started the trip the exchange rate was about 460 pesos to $1 US. Then throughout the trip, it went up to about 600 pesos to $ 1 US and now it’s already almost 675 pesos to $1 US. With inflation, prices go up but they can’t go up that quickly and there is a limit to how much restaurants can raise prices as locals won’t go.

Make sure if you are there for an extended time or even if you’re there for a week. Don’t exchange all your money on the first day. Just exchange as needed as these places are open every day except Sunday. And even on Sunday the one in Palermo Soho was open from 11:30 AM to 5 PM.

Dining out you can get the Menu of the Day at many places which is a fabulous value. At some places, it was only 3,000 pesos each for the menu of the day which included a drink, main course and some even included dessert. In many places, it was more than this.


We skipped Don Julio this trip as I think it’s crazy the lines now. The steak is good but it’s not that much better than any of the other good steak places. We went to La Cabrera which is another great steakhouse. Keep in mind at La Cabrera starting at 6 PM it’s 40% off the entire menu! You just have to show up around 5:30 to get your name on a list. By 6 PM there is a long line already and your odds of getting a table aren’t good. One day we went at 6 PM and we still got a table but the last one and only because someone didn’t show up.


The only catch is you must be completely done and pay the bill by 8 PM. If not, you won’t get the discount. But the ENTIRE menu is 40% off the bill. It’s relatively expensive for local standards. But the 6 of us ate like pigs and it was less than $125 US dollar with the 10% tip included. In the USA the equivalent meal probably would be around $600 US dollars


I also almost selfishly want to “gatekeep” this restaurant as it’s mostly locals and not too many tourists, but it’s called “La Choza de Gascon”. It’s a great local restaurant that has amazing prices on steak! It’s probably half the price of Don Julio or maybe less. We went here several times during the trip and we had 7 people dining out and I don’t think the bill was ever over $150 US for all of us. And that was appetizers, drinks, desserts, and tips. Plus many times we couldn’t even eat everything and brought leftovers home. Portions are huge here.



Make sure to have reservations at most places as places are all very packed. With the worthless peso, the locals are in a rush to spend their money. Everywhere is packed. You’d never know there was a devasting financial situation based on how packed the restaurants are. It’s always the same in BA.


We got tired of eating steak and my kids wanted some Asian food so we went to an all-you-can-eat Korean place called KBBQ. It’s nothing compared to the quality of the Korean places in the USA but it’s truly all you can eat. We were so stuffed and it was only 6,100 pesos each. That was about $11 US dollars each and it was a ton of food! The same thing in the USA is about $50 US dollars each.


China town over in Belgrano has also really changed and grown since I lived here. It was always packed! It used to only be 2 blocks but it has grown quite a bit and they built a subway station near there. Lots of restaurants and stores if you have young kids it’s worth going to. My kids wanted to go several times so we went often during our 2-month trip.


You will notice this crazy situation where the price of restaurants isn’t too different from a totally mediocre place vs. a nicer place. There is a limit to how cheap places can charge so even medicore meals (other than the menu of the day) were just a little different than a nice places. On average for 5 people in most of the places we went was from $70 US dollars to $100 US dollars each meal. And that included appetizers, drinks, a main course, and sometimes dessert, and always a 10% tip. So while much cheaper than the USA, still not crazy cheap if you are going for a while and eating out often.


Even at a place like McDonalds, you will pay the same price for a meal and drink and dessert then you will at a really nice place. (Other than the Value meal which was a little lower). I really don’t understand why locals would want to eat at McDonald’s when you consider just how expensive it is. For the same price, you can eat a really nice meal.


Things like hair salons and haircuts are very cheap compared to USA prices at similar salons. For example, my husband got a haircut for around $10 U dollars at a nice salon in Palermo Soho called Mala Peluqueria (ask for Brian or Julian). My husband and son went several times. Here in California, we pay about $40 US dollars with the tip for the same thing.

And other things like massages are an even better deal! As mentioned, there is a limit to how high places can charge or locals won’t go. So what I noticed the most is things like massages are an incredible deal! I paid 7,000 pesos including a generous tip for a 1 hour deep tissue massage. That is only about $11 US dollars. For the same thing here in California it’s about $100 US. And they have specials like couples massage for 1 hour where my husband and I went in the same room and had 2 people giving us a massage and it was for 10,000 pesos total plus tip! 10,000 pesos was only around $20 US dollars while we were there. That same thing here in California we pay $300 US dollars.



So services like this are the best value. You won’t get values like this at upscale hotels but you can go to established salons. I AM going to gatekeep this so if you want the name of the place just send me a private message and I’ll send you the details for where this place is. I’ve been going there for years.


Another thing that has changed over the years is there are far fewer taxis on the street. There used to be over 39,000 taxis in Buenos Aires. More than NYC, London, and Paris combined. There is probably 1/3 of that now. Not to worry. They have been replaced by rideshare companies like Uber, DiDi, Cabify and others.



The only thing that was a bummer is the maximum # of people you can have in them is 4 people. You can’t request a larger vehicle. So we always had to take 2 different Ubers. Ubers are all over the place and available everywhere. Most fares from Palermo to Recoleta were about 1,500 to 2,000 pesos each way depending on the time you went. About $3 US each time. Very cheap compared to the USA but it can still add up as we were in Uber about 8 times a day.


Download DiDi and Cabify before you come. Sometimes Uber wouldn’t have any cars available but DiDi always did. Just keep in mind with DiDi and Cabify you can’t use your credit card. You only can pay with Cash. With Uber I used my credit card 95% of the time. But sometimes the driver would text you ahead of time and say if you didn’t have cash he couldn’t take you. I usually asked them to cancel if this was the case as I already paid with a credit card and didn’t know if I’d get the refund. Taxis are cheaper now vs. rideshares for the most part but I still preferred to take Uber as one day I had a taxi with a rigged meter. I went the same route over and over and one day with no traffic the meter was over double and I told him I know he has a rigged meter.


Also, download the Rappi app on your phone. It was super convenient. I’ve used it for years but now we almost never went to the supermarket as everything can be delivered instantly with the App. You can subscribe to a “Rappi Prime” account which is only around $2 US per month (cancel after your trip). And you won’t pay delivery fees.



Whatever you want, you can instantly get. They have something called “Turbo” and they deliver within 10 minutes. I couldn’t believe it. You name it I got it. Ice, bottled water, sodas, ice cream. Just use the Turbo and you will have it within a few minutes. You can use it at an apartment rental or hotel.


On larger orders, they will ask you to give a PIN number to the delivery driver to ensure you get it. This protects you so you don’t pay until the driver enters the PIN. I never had problems and I used them daily. It beats standing in line at the grocery store. Plus, something nice is I could just use my USA credit card so I never had to hassle with cash.


Buenos Aires is a fabulous city. The major downside is only the airfare from most cities is really expensive now. But once you get there, everything else is relatively inexpensive.

Hi great trip report

Would you choose La Cabrera or La Choza de Gascon (assuming no 40% off)

 

[BuySellBA]

Hi great trip report

Would you choose La Cabrera or La Choza de Gascon (assuming no 40% off)

Hmm. That's a tough one. I think La Cabrera the quality is better than La Choza de Gascon but the prices are higher. Without the 40% off at La Cabrera, I'd just go to La Choza. The beef was really good and juicy and tender and flavorful. The chorizo was much better at La Cabrera but all in all both were good. It's very easy to get a table at La Choza when it opens. Not so much at La Cabrera.

 

[Bendico]

I finally got a chance to come up for air and wanted to post a Trip Report on my 2-month trip to Buenos Aires this summer. (June and July 2023). Please keep in mind the exchange rate at the time of this posting was only 500 pesos to $1 US. Now it's over 1,000 pesos to $1 US as of November 21, 2023.


I will preface this by saying that I formally lived in Buenos Aires for 9 years. A city I love with all my heart. Things are very cheap there at the “Blue” dollar rate. I feel so horrible about the economic turmoil that my friends are going through that live there. I almost felt guilty seeing how horrible the economy is there now.


Things seem worse than ever after I arrived after their devasting financial collapse in 2002. And in fact, I witnessed more crime than at any point since 2002.


In a 24-hour period, I saw 4 different people getting arrested by the police. 3 in Palermo Soho and 1 in Recoleta right at Las Heras and Junin. In the one in Recoleta, the police were very quick to act. It appeared some thieves had stolen something from someone on the street but the police were all quickly there with a police car blocking off the street.


I never felt any danger at all so in that respect I still feel like Buenos Aires is a very safe place to visit for tourists. You just have to be careful and always watch your surroundings. I never felt like I couldn’t take out my iPhone while walking on the street but be careful as most of my local friends have had their cellphones stolen at one point or another. In fact, the day I left my best friend (a local) had his iPhone stolen at a bar.


Restaurants are very cheap compared to the USA. I brought several thousands of dollars. Make sure to bring brand new $100 US dollar bills. You will get a lower exchange rate if you have old bills and some places might not want to exchange worn or older bills. You will also get a lower exchange rate for $20 or $50 bills.


There are several exchange places. Some have signs but some you have to already know about them. In Palermo Soho, you can go near Plaza Serrano at Serrano 1563. In Recoleta, you can go to Pueyrredon 1687. There is an office but tell them you want to exchange money and he will buzz a door where you exchange behind a glass window. Exchange rates were always very good there.


You can go to this website to see the rates: https://www.ambito.com/contenidos/dolar.html Most exchange places will give you near the Blue Dollar rate “compra” rate.


I was there almost 2 months so I eventually went through all my cash. For restaurants most times I just used my USA credit card. As long as your credit card is from outside of Argentina you will get an exchange rate of about 7% less than the “MEP” on the website I listed above. It was great not having to carry large amounts of money around.



Keep in mind the largest bill is the 2,000 peso bill but almost no one has those bills as they are fairly new. So, most use the 1,000 peso bill which is only worth about $1.50 US dollars at the current exchange rate. So if you go out to eat with a lot of people it can add up the stack of bills you have to carry around.


We ate out breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day. I have a family of 5 people and my mother-in-law also was with us. So with 6 people daily, it added up. Although cheaper than the USA, food can still add up depending on where you are going.


Some places stopped listing the prices on the menu board. My favorite medialuna place called La Mantequeria (they have a few locations) stopped putting prices on their board so I’d have to ask and it was different throughout the trip. That’s how fast the peso is depreciating.


Great if you have Dollars but horrible for the locals. When I started the trip the exchange rate was about 460 pesos to $1 US. Then throughout the trip, it went up to about 600 pesos to $ 1 US and now it’s already almost 675 pesos to $1 US. With inflation, prices go up but they can’t go up that quickly and there is a limit to how much restaurants can raise prices as locals won’t go.

Make sure if you are there for an extended time or even if you’re there for a week. Don’t exchange all your money on the first day. Just exchange as needed as these places are open every day except Sunday. And even on Sunday the one in Palermo Soho was open from 11:30 AM to 5 PM.

Dining out you can get the Menu of the Day at many places which is a fabulous value. At some places, it was only 3,000 pesos each for the menu of the day which included a drink, main course and some even included dessert. In many places, it was more than this.


We skipped Don Julio this trip as I think it’s crazy the lines now. The steak is good but it’s not that much better than any of the other good steak places. We went to La Cabrera which is another great steakhouse. Keep in mind at La Cabrera starting at 6 PM it’s 40% off the entire menu! You just have to show up around 5:30 to get your name on a list. By 6 PM there is a long line already and your odds of getting a table aren’t good. One day we went at 6 PM and we still got a table but the last one and only because someone didn’t show up.


The only catch is you must be completely done and pay the bill by 8 PM. If not, you won’t get the discount. But the ENTIRE menu is 40% off the bill. It’s relatively expensive for local standards. But the 6 of us ate like pigs and it was less than $125 US dollar with the 10% tip included. In the USA the equivalent meal probably would be around $600 US dollars


I also almost selfishly want to “gatekeep” this restaurant as it’s mostly locals and not too many tourists, but it’s called “La Choza de Gascon”. It’s a great local restaurant that has amazing prices on steak! It’s probably half the price of Don Julio or maybe less. We went here several times during the trip and we had 7 people dining out and I don’t think the bill was ever over $150 US for all of us. And that was appetizers, drinks, desserts, and tips. Plus many times we couldn’t even eat everything and brought leftovers home. Portions are huge here.



Make sure to have reservations at most places as places are all very packed. With the worthless peso, the locals are in a rush to spend their money. Everywhere is packed. You’d never know there was a devasting financial situation based on how packed the restaurants are. It’s always the same in BA.


We got tired of eating steak and my kids wanted some Asian food so we went to an all-you-can-eat Korean place called KBBQ. It’s nothing compared to the quality of the Korean places in the USA but it’s truly all you can eat. We were so stuffed and it was only 6,100 pesos each. That was about $11 US dollars each and it was a ton of food! The same thing in the USA is about $50 US dollars each.


China town over in Belgrano has also really changed and grown since I lived here. It was always packed! It used to only be 2 blocks but it has grown quite a bit and they built a subway station near there. Lots of restaurants and stores if you have young kids it’s worth going to. My kids wanted to go several times so we went often during our 2-month trip.


You will notice this crazy situation where the price of restaurants isn’t too different from a totally mediocre place vs. a nicer place. There is a limit to how cheap places can charge so even medicore meals (other than the menu of the day) were just a little different than a nice places. On average for 5 people in most of the places we went was from $70 US dollars to $100 US dollars each meal. And that included appetizers, drinks, a main course, and sometimes dessert, and always a 10% tip. So while much cheaper than the USA, still not crazy cheap if you are going for a while and eating out often.


Even at a place like McDonalds, you will pay the same price for a meal and drink and dessert then you will at a really nice place. (Other than the Value meal which was a little lower). I really don’t understand why locals would want to eat at McDonald’s when you consider just how expensive it is. For the same price, you can eat a really nice meal.


Things like hair salons and haircuts are very cheap compared to USA prices at similar salons. For example, my husband got a haircut for around $10 U dollars at a nice salon in Palermo Soho called Mala Peluqueria (ask for Brian or Julian). My husband and son went several times. Here in California, we pay about $40 US dollars with the tip for the same thing.

And other things like massages are an even better deal! As mentioned, there is a limit to how high places can charge or locals won’t go. So what I noticed the most is things like massages are an incredible deal! I paid 7,000 pesos including a generous tip for a 1 hour deep tissue massage. That is only about $11 US dollars. For the same thing here in California it’s about $100 US. And they have specials like couples massage for 1 hour where my husband and I went in the same room and had 2 people giving us a massage and it was for 10,000 pesos total plus tip! 10,000 pesos was only around $20 US dollars while we were there. That same thing here in California we pay $300 US dollars.



So services like this are the best value. You won’t get values like this at upscale hotels but you can go to established salons. I AM going to gatekeep this so if you want the name of the place just send me a private message and I’ll send you the details for where this place is. I’ve been going there for years.


Another thing that has changed over the years is there are far fewer taxis on the street. There used to be over 39,000 taxis in Buenos Aires. More than NYC, London, and Paris combined. There is probably 1/3 of that now. Not to worry. They have been replaced by rideshare companies like Uber, DiDi, Cabify and others.



The only thing that was a bummer is the maximum # of people you can have in them is 4 people. You can’t request a larger vehicle. So we always had to take 2 different Ubers. Ubers are all over the place and available everywhere. Most fares from Palermo to Recoleta were about 1,500 to 2,000 pesos each way depending on the time you went. About $3 US each time. Very cheap compared to the USA but it can still add up as we were in Uber about 8 times a day.


Download DiDi and Cabify before you come. Sometimes Uber wouldn’t have any cars available but DiDi always did. Just keep in mind with DiDi and Cabify you can’t use your credit card. You only can pay with Cash. With Uber I used my credit card 95% of the time. But sometimes the driver would text you ahead of time and say if you didn’t have cash he couldn’t take you. I usually asked them to cancel if this was the case as I already paid with a credit card and didn’t know if I’d get the refund. Taxis are cheaper now vs. rideshares for the most part but I still preferred to take Uber as one day I had a taxi with a rigged meter. I went the same route over and over and one day with no traffic the meter was over double and I told him I know he has a rigged meter.


Also, download the Rappi app on your phone. It was super convenient. I’ve used it for years but now we almost never went to the supermarket as everything can be delivered instantly with the App. You can subscribe to a “Rappi Prime” account which is only around $2 US per month (cancel after your trip). And you won’t pay delivery fees.



Whatever you want, you can instantly get. They have something called “Turbo” and they deliver within 10 minutes. I couldn’t believe it. You name it I got it. Ice, bottled water, sodas, ice cream. Just use the Turbo and you will have it within a few minutes. You can use it at an apartment rental or hotel.


On larger orders, they will ask you to give a PIN number to the delivery driver to ensure you get it. This protects you so you don’t pay until the driver enters the PIN. I never had problems and I used them daily. It beats standing in line at the grocery store. Plus, something nice is I could just use my USA credit card so I never had to hassle with cash.


Buenos Aires is a fabulous city. The major downside is only the airfare from most cities is really expensive now. But once you get there, everything else is relatively inexpensive.

Great post BuySellBA! We are planning a 4/5 week trip to BA for January/February and this is so helpful! Lots of boots on the ground info that just can't be had by regular internet surfing.

I wanted to ask your thoughts on the Almagro neighborhood as a place to stay. Long stay prices are cheaper than Palermo and it seems nice on google streets. We are from NYC, in our 40's and this is a working holiday (we both work remotely), so nightlife is not a huge thing for us. My wife is fluent in Spanish.

 

[sylvie2]

Great post BuySellBA! We are planning a 4/5 week trip to BA for January/February and this is so helpful! Lots of boots on the ground info that just can't be had by regular internet surfing.

I wanted to ask your thoughts on the Almagro neighborhood as a place to stay. Long stay prices are cheaper than Palermo and it seems nice on google streets. We are from NYC, in our 40's and this is a working holiday (we both work remotely), so nightlife is not a huge thing for us. My wife is fluent in Spanish.

It depends on where (post the exact locations), but I love Almagro. It's out of the tourist bubble, but still full of cool places. Also look at places in Villa Crespo.

 

[BuySellBA]

Great post BuySellBA! We are planning a 4/5 week trip to BA for January/February and this is so helpful! Lots of boots on the ground info that just can't be had by regular internet surfing.

I wanted to ask your thoughts on the Almagro neighborhood as a place to stay. Long stay prices are cheaper than Palermo and it seems nice on google streets. We are from NYC, in our 40's and this is a working holiday (we both work remotely), so nightlife is not a huge thing for us. My wife is fluent in Spanish.

You're welcome Bendico!

That's the purpose of our post. "Boots on the ground" type posts are the most helpful. If tourists that come do that after each trip, this forum will go back to it's former glory. My husband used to be a Destination Expert for Buenos Aires and when he stopped posting it seems like the forum died. Covid didn't help either.

But let's make TripAdvisor Buenos Aires Forum Great Again. LOL.


If nightlight are very important to you, then I think Palermo Hollywood or Soho might be better for you. We personally LOVE Almagro. If you're coming for 5 weeks, what I'd suggest you do is break up your trip and spend a few nights there. It's a very authentic neighborhood.


On my website we post about ALL of the neighborhoods of Buenos Aires. Here is what we wrote for Almagro.


A vibrant and eclectic neighborhood that embodies the city's rich cultural diversity and urban energy. Situated to the west of the city center, Almagro offers a captivating mix of historical charm, artistic flair, and bustling commercial activity.


One of Almagro's defining features is its well-preserved architecture, showcasing a blend of styles from different eras. Tree-lined streets are adorned with elegant mansions, quaint buildings, and modern apartments, creating a unique visual tapestry that reflects the neighborhood's evolution over time.


Almagro's heart beats to the rhythm of its lively streets, which are lined with local markets, specialty shops, and a wide array of cafes and restaurants. Avenida Corrientes, one of Buenos Aires' most iconic avenues, runs through Almagro, offering an abundance of entertainment options, from theaters to bookstores.


The neighborhood's cultural richness extends to its strong ties with tango music and culture. Milongas and tango clubs dot the landscape, providing opportunities to immerse oneself in this passionate dance form that is deeply rooted in Argentine history.


Almagro's accessible transportation connections, including subway and bus lines, make it easy to explore other parts of Buenos Aires. Its combination of historical significance, vibrant local life, and creative spirit makes Almagro a beloved neighborhood that invites residents and visitors to experience the heart and soul of the city.

 

[BuySellBA]

It depends on where (post the exact locations), but I love Almagro. It's out of the tourist bubble, but still full of cool places. Also look at places in Villa Crespo.

I forgot to mention Bendico the prices are cheaper there because it's not as touristy. As I mentioned, it's more authentic and more of a locals area vs. touristy. What many tourists do is they stay over in Palermo and they visit Almagro to go eat/drink.


My husband was one of the first that started buying land over in Soho back after the financial crash of 2002 so he knew it would get all touristy and now he says it's too touristy and he doesn't like it. (He blames himself in a way as he bought up so much land to develop and build rental properties) I still enjoy it quite a bit.


Buenos Aires is full of amazing neighborhoods that are authentic. 5 weeks is a long time to really enjoy all the areas. Definitely go off the beaten path. There are websites where you can see ALL of Buenos Aires's great neighborhoods with boundary lines of the areas.


5 weeks is a luxurious amount of time to explore. That's the way to do Buenos Aires. Please make sure to post a trip report during or after your stay. Let us know what you liked the best.

 

[AmoViaje]

I finally got a chance to come up for air and wanted to post a Trip Report on my 2-month trip to Buenos Aires this summer. (June and July 2023). Please keep in mind the exchange rate at the time of this posting was only 500 pesos to $1 US. Now it's over 1,000 pesos to $1 US as of November 21, 2023.


I will preface this by saying that I formally lived in Buenos Aires for 9 years. A city I love with all my heart. Things are very cheap there at the “Blue” dollar rate. I feel so horrible about the economic turmoil that my friends are going through that live there. I almost felt guilty seeing how horrible the economy is there now.


Things seem worse than ever after I arrived after their devasting financial collapse in 2002. And in fact, I witnessed more crime than at any point since 2002.


In a 24-hour period, I saw 4 different people getting arrested by the police. 3 in Palermo Soho and 1 in Recoleta right at Las Heras and Junin. In the one in Recoleta, the police were very quick to act. It appeared some thieves had stolen something from someone on the street but the police were all quickly there with a police car blocking off the street.


I never felt any danger at all so in that respect I still feel like Buenos Aires is a very safe place to visit for tourists. You just have to be careful and always watch your surroundings. I never felt like I couldn’t take out my iPhone while walking on the street but be careful as most of my local friends have had their cellphones stolen at one point or another. In fact, the day I left my best friend (a local) had his iPhone stolen at a bar.


Restaurants are very cheap compared to the USA. I brought several thousands of dollars. Make sure to bring brand new $100 US dollar bills. You will get a lower exchange rate if you have old bills and some places might not want to exchange worn or older bills. You will also get a lower exchange rate for $20 or $50 bills.


There are several exchange places. Some have signs but some you have to already know about them. In Palermo Soho, you can go near Plaza Serrano at Serrano 1563. In Recoleta, you can go to Pueyrredon 1687. There is an office but tell them you want to exchange money and he will buzz a door where you exchange behind a glass window. Exchange rates were always very good there.


You can go to this website to see the rates: https://www.ambito.com/contenidos/dolar.html Most exchange places will give you near the Blue Dollar rate “compra” rate.


I was there almost 2 months so I eventually went through all my cash. For restaurants most times I just used my USA credit card. As long as your credit card is from outside of Argentina you will get an exchange rate of about 7% less than the “MEP” on the website I listed above. It was great not having to carry large amounts of money around.



Keep in mind the largest bill is the 2,000 peso bill but almost no one has those bills as they are fairly new. So, most use the 1,000 peso bill which is only worth about $1.50 US dollars at the current exchange rate. So if you go out to eat with a lot of people it can add up the stack of bills you have to carry around.


We ate out breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day. I have a family of 5 people and my mother-in-law also was with us. So with 6 people daily, it added up. Although cheaper than the USA, food can still add up depending on where you are going.


Some places stopped listing the prices on the menu board. My favorite medialuna place called La Mantequeria (they have a few locations) stopped putting prices on their board so I’d have to ask and it was different throughout the trip. That’s how fast the peso is depreciating.


Great if you have Dollars but horrible for the locals. When I started the trip the exchange rate was about 460 pesos to $1 US. Then throughout the trip, it went up to about 600 pesos to $ 1 US and now it’s already almost 675 pesos to $1 US. With inflation, prices go up but they can’t go up that quickly and there is a limit to how much restaurants can raise prices as locals won’t go.

Make sure if you are there for an extended time or even if you’re there for a week. Don’t exchange all your money on the first day. Just exchange as needed as these places are open every day except Sunday. And even on Sunday the one in Palermo Soho was open from 11:30 AM to 5 PM.

Dining out you can get the Menu of the Day at many places which is a fabulous value. At some places, it was only 3,000 pesos each for the menu of the day which included a drink, main course and some even included dessert. In many places, it was more than this.


We skipped Don Julio this trip as I think it’s crazy the lines now. The steak is good but it’s not that much better than any of the other good steak places. We went to La Cabrera which is another great steakhouse. Keep in mind at La Cabrera starting at 6 PM it’s 40% off the entire menu! You just have to show up around 5:30 to get your name on a list. By 6 PM there is a long line already and your odds of getting a table aren’t good. One day we went at 6 PM and we still got a table but the last one and only because someone didn’t show up.


The only catch is you must be completely done and pay the bill by 8 PM. If not, you won’t get the discount. But the ENTIRE menu is 40% off the bill. It’s relatively expensive for local standards. But the 6 of us ate like pigs and it was less than $125 US dollar with the 10% tip included. In the USA the equivalent meal probably would be around $600 US dollars


I also almost selfishly want to “gatekeep” this restaurant as it’s mostly locals and not too many tourists, but it’s called “La Choza de Gascon”. It’s a great local restaurant that has amazing prices on steak! It’s probably half the price of Don Julio or maybe less. We went here several times during the trip and we had 7 people dining out and I don’t think the bill was ever over $150 US for all of us. And that was appetizers, drinks, desserts, and tips. Plus many times we couldn’t even eat everything and brought leftovers home. Portions are huge here.



Make sure to have reservations at most places as places are all very packed. With the worthless peso, the locals are in a rush to spend their money. Everywhere is packed. You’d never know there was a devasting financial situation based on how packed the restaurants are. It’s always the same in BA.


We got tired of eating steak and my kids wanted some Asian food so we went to an all-you-can-eat Korean place called KBBQ. It’s nothing compared to the quality of the Korean places in the USA but it’s truly all you can eat. We were so stuffed and it was only 6,100 pesos each. That was about $11 US dollars each and it was a ton of food! The same thing in the USA is about $50 US dollars each.


China town over in Belgrano has also really changed and grown since I lived here. It was always packed! It used to only be 2 blocks but it has grown quite a bit and they built a subway station near there. Lots of restaurants and stores if you have young kids it’s worth going to. My kids wanted to go several times so we went often during our 2-month trip.


You will notice this crazy situation where the price of restaurants isn’t too different from a totally mediocre place vs. a nicer place. There is a limit to how cheap places can charge so even medicore meals (other than the menu of the day) were just a little different than a nice places. On average for 5 people in most of the places we went was from $70 US dollars to $100 US dollars each meal. And that included appetizers, drinks, a main course, and sometimes dessert, and always a 10% tip. So while much cheaper than the USA, still not crazy cheap if you are going for a while and eating out often.


Even at a place like McDonalds, you will pay the same price for a meal and drink and dessert then you will at a really nice place. (Other than the Value meal which was a little lower). I really don’t understand why locals would want to eat at McDonald’s when you consider just how expensive it is. For the same price, you can eat a really nice meal.


Things like hair salons and haircuts are very cheap compared to USA prices at similar salons. For example, my husband got a haircut for around $10 U dollars at a nice salon in Palermo Soho called Mala Peluqueria (ask for Brian or Julian). My husband and son went several times. Here in California, we pay about $40 US dollars with the tip for the same thing.

And other things like massages are an even better deal! As mentioned, there is a limit to how high places can charge or locals won’t go. So what I noticed the most is things like massages are an incredible deal! I paid 7,000 pesos including a generous tip for a 1 hour deep tissue massage. That is only about $11 US dollars. For the same thing here in California it’s about $100 US. And they have specials like couples massage for 1 hour where my husband and I went in the same room and had 2 people giving us a massage and it was for 10,000 pesos total plus tip! 10,000 pesos was only around $20 US dollars while we were there. That same thing here in California we pay $300 US dollars.



So services like this are the best value. You won’t get values like this at upscale hotels but you can go to established salons. I AM going to gatekeep this so if you want the name of the place just send me a private message and I’ll send you the details for where this place is. I’ve been going there for years.


Another thing that has changed over the years is there are far fewer taxis on the street. There used to be over 39,000 taxis in Buenos Aires. More than NYC, London, and Paris combined. There is probably 1/3 of that now. Not to worry. They have been replaced by rideshare companies like Uber, DiDi, Cabify and others.



The only thing that was a bummer is the maximum # of people you can have in them is 4 people. You can’t request a larger vehicle. So we always had to take 2 different Ubers. Ubers are all over the place and available everywhere. Most fares from Palermo to Recoleta were about 1,500 to 2,000 pesos each way depending on the time you went. About $3 US each time. Very cheap compared to the USA but it can still add up as we were in Uber about 8 times a day.


Download DiDi and Cabify before you come. Sometimes Uber wouldn’t have any cars available but DiDi always did. Just keep in mind with DiDi and Cabify you can’t use your credit card. You only can pay with Cash. With Uber I used my credit card 95% of the time. But sometimes the driver would text you ahead of time and say if you didn’t have cash he couldn’t take you. I usually asked them to cancel if this was the case as I already paid with a credit card and didn’t know if I’d get the refund. Taxis are cheaper now vs. rideshares for the most part but I still preferred to take Uber as one day I had a taxi with a rigged meter. I went the same route over and over and one day with no traffic the meter was over double and I told him I know he has a rigged meter.


Also, download the Rappi app on your phone. It was super convenient. I’ve used it for years but now we almost never went to the supermarket as everything can be delivered instantly with the App. You can subscribe to a “Rappi Prime” account which is only around $2 US per month (cancel after your trip). And you won’t pay delivery fees.



Whatever you want, you can instantly get. They have something called “Turbo” and they deliver within 10 minutes. I couldn’t believe it. You name it I got it. Ice, bottled water, sodas, ice cream. Just use the Turbo and you will have it within a few minutes. You can use it at an apartment rental or hotel.


On larger orders, they will ask you to give a PIN number to the delivery driver to ensure you get it. This protects you so you don’t pay until the driver enters the PIN. I never had problems and I used them daily. It beats standing in line at the grocery store. Plus, something nice is I could just use my USA credit card so I never had to hassle with cash.


Buenos Aires is a fabulous city. The major downside is only the airfare from most cities is really expensive now. But once you get there, everything else is relatively inexpensive.

Hello, thanks for your information.

Can you advise how one is to find the Blue Dollar change places in Palermo, do they have signage with Cuevas or Cambios. Are they all over Palermo & Palermo Soho. Any tips on using these? It's my first time to Buenos Aires.

 

[BuySellBA]

Hello, thanks for your information.

Can you advise how one is to find the Blue Dollar change places in Palermo, do they have signage with Cuevas or Cambios. Are they all over Palermo & Palermo Soho. Any tips on using these? It's my first time to Buenos Aires.

I posted a review with the EXACT location in my original review. Can you please take the time and courtesy to read it. It's all there.

Obviously you didn't read my detailed review. It's only from a few months ago.

As mentioned in my review,: In Palermo Soho you can go near Plaza Serrano at

Serrano 1563 - https://maps.app.goo.gl/CePZuZgWrKknKWM2A

You're welcome. instructions are easy.

1) Give them your $100 bills

2) They give you pesos at the blue dollar rate as shown on - https://www.ambito.com/contenidos/dolar.html

 

[DjEmcee]

I posted a review with the EXACT location in my original review. Can you please take the time and courtesy to read it. It's all there.

Obviously you didn't read my detailed review. It's only from a few months ago.

As mentioned in my review,: In Palermo Soho you can go near Plaza Serrano at

Serrano 1563 - https://maps.app.goo.gl/CePZuZgWrKknKWM2A

You're welcome. instructions are easy.

1) Give them your $100 bills

2) They give you pesos at the blue dollar rate as shown on - https://www.ambito.com/contenidos/dolar.html

I just went to 1563 Serrano on 25/9 and got 72,500 pesos per $100. The cashier was very friendly and courteous. Very convenient as it was only 3.5 blocks from the Mine Hotel where we are staying.

 

[BuySellBA]

I just went to 1563 Serrano on 25/9 and got 72,500 pesos per $100. The cashier was very friendly and courteous. Very convenient as it was only 3.5 blocks from the Mine Hotel where we are staying.

Great DjEmcee,

Yes, they were always very friendly there at Serrano 1563 . It was open almost every day. I posted the business hours. The lady was always professional. In Soho that was my favorite place. I'm glad my information could help you.

 

[Florin@NYC]

I finally got a chance to come up for air and wanted to post a Trip Report on my 2-month trip to Buenos Aires this summer. (June and July 2023). Please keep in mind the exchange rate at the time of this posting was only 500 pesos to $1 US. Now it's over 1,000 pesos to $1 US as of November 21, 2023.


I will preface this by saying that I formally lived in Buenos Aires for 9 years. A city I love with all my heart. Things are very cheap there at the “Blue” dollar rate. I feel so horrible about the economic turmoil that my friends are going through that live there. I almost felt guilty seeing how horrible the economy is there now.


Things seem worse than ever after I arrived after their devasting financial collapse in 2002. And in fact, I witnessed more crime than at any point since 2002.


In a 24-hour period, I saw 4 different people getting arrested by the police. 3 in Palermo Soho and 1 in Recoleta right at Las Heras and Junin. In the one in Recoleta, the police were very quick to act. It appeared some thieves had stolen something from someone on the street but the police were all quickly there with a police car blocking off the street.


I never felt any danger at all so in that respect I still feel like Buenos Aires is a very safe place to visit for tourists. You just have to be careful and always watch your surroundings. I never felt like I couldn’t take out my iPhone while walking on the street but be careful as most of my local friends have had their cellphones stolen at one point or another. In fact, the day I left my best friend (a local) had his iPhone stolen at a bar.


Restaurants are very cheap compared to the USA. I brought several thousands of dollars. Make sure to bring brand new $100 US dollar bills. You will get a lower exchange rate if you have old bills and some places might not want to exchange worn or older bills. You will also get a lower exchange rate for $20 or $50 bills.


There are several exchange places. Some have signs but some you have to already know about them. In Palermo Soho, you can go near Plaza Serrano at Serrano 1563. In Recoleta, you can go to Pueyrredon 1687. There is an office but tell them you want to exchange money and he will buzz a door where you exchange behind a glass window. Exchange rates were always very good there.


You can go to this website to see the rates: https://www.ambito.com/contenidos/dolar.html Most exchange places will give you near the Blue Dollar rate “compra” rate.


I was there almost 2 months so I eventually went through all my cash. For restaurants most times I just used my USA credit card. As long as your credit card is from outside of Argentina you will get an exchange rate of about 7% less than the “MEP” on the website I listed above. It was great not having to carry large amounts of money around.



Keep in mind the largest bill is the 2,000 peso bill but almost no one has those bills as they are fairly new. So, most use the 1,000 peso bill which is only worth about $1.50 US dollars at the current exchange rate. So if you go out to eat with a lot of people it can add up the stack of bills you have to carry around.


We ate out breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day. I have a family of 5 people and my mother-in-law also was with us. So with 6 people daily, it added up. Although cheaper than the USA, food can still add up depending on where you are going.


Some places stopped listing the prices on the menu board. My favorite medialuna place called La Mantequeria (they have a few locations) stopped putting prices on their board so I’d have to ask and it was different throughout the trip. That’s how fast the peso is depreciating.


Great if you have Dollars but horrible for the locals. When I started the trip the exchange rate was about 460 pesos to $1 US. Then throughout the trip, it went up to about 600 pesos to $ 1 US and now it’s already almost 675 pesos to $1 US. With inflation, prices go up but they can’t go up that quickly and there is a limit to how much restaurants can raise prices as locals won’t go.

Make sure if you are there for an extended time or even if you’re there for a week. Don’t exchange all your money on the first day. Just exchange as needed as these places are open every day except Sunday. And even on Sunday the one in Palermo Soho was open from 11:30 AM to 5 PM.

Dining out you can get the Menu of the Day at many places which is a fabulous value. At some places, it was only 3,000 pesos each for the menu of the day which included a drink, main course and some even included dessert. In many places, it was more than this.


We skipped Don Julio this trip as I think it’s crazy the lines now. The steak is good but it’s not that much better than any of the other good steak places. We went to La Cabrera which is another great steakhouse. Keep in mind at La Cabrera starting at 6 PM it’s 40% off the entire menu! You just have to show up around 5:30 to get your name on a list. By 6 PM there is a long line already and your odds of getting a table aren’t good. One day we went at 6 PM and we still got a table but the last one and only because someone didn’t show up.


The only catch is you must be completely done and pay the bill by 8 PM. If not, you won’t get the discount. But the ENTIRE menu is 40% off the bill. It’s relatively expensive for local standards. But the 6 of us ate like pigs and it was less than $125 US dollar with the 10% tip included. In the USA the equivalent meal probably would be around $600 US dollars


I also almost selfishly want to “gatekeep” this restaurant as it’s mostly locals and not too many tourists, but it’s called “La Choza de Gascon”. It’s a great local restaurant that has amazing prices on steak! It’s probably half the price of Don Julio or maybe less. We went here several times during the trip and we had 7 people dining out and I don’t think the bill was ever over $150 US for all of us. And that was appetizers, drinks, desserts, and tips. Plus many times we couldn’t even eat everything and brought leftovers home. Portions are huge here.



Make sure to have reservations at most places as places are all very packed. With the worthless peso, the locals are in a rush to spend their money. Everywhere is packed. You’d never know there was a devasting financial situation based on how packed the restaurants are. It’s always the same in BA.


We got tired of eating steak and my kids wanted some Asian food so we went to an all-you-can-eat Korean place called KBBQ. It’s nothing compared to the quality of the Korean places in the USA but it’s truly all you can eat. We were so stuffed and it was only 6,100 pesos each. That was about $11 US dollars each and it was a ton of food! The same thing in the USA is about $50 US dollars each.


China town over in Belgrano has also really changed and grown since I lived here. It was always packed! It used to only be 2 blocks but it has grown quite a bit and they built a subway station near there. Lots of restaurants and stores if you have young kids it’s worth going to. My kids wanted to go several times so we went often during our 2-month trip.


You will notice this crazy situation where the price of restaurants isn’t too different from a totally mediocre place vs. a nicer place. There is a limit to how cheap places can charge so even medicore meals (other than the menu of the day) were just a little different than a nice places. On average for 5 people in most of the places we went was from $70 US dollars to $100 US dollars each meal. And that included appetizers, drinks, a main course, and sometimes dessert, and always a 10% tip. So while much cheaper than the USA, still not crazy cheap if you are going for a while and eating out often.


Even at a place like McDonalds, you will pay the same price for a meal and drink and dessert then you will at a really nice place. (Other than the Value meal which was a little lower). I really don’t understand why locals would want to eat at McDonald’s when you consider just how expensive it is. For the same price, you can eat a really nice meal.


Things like hair salons and haircuts are very cheap compared to USA prices at similar salons. For example, my husband got a haircut for around $10 U dollars at a nice salon in Palermo Soho called Mala Peluqueria (ask for Brian or Julian). My husband and son went several times. Here in California, we pay about $40 US dollars with the tip for the same thing.

And other things like massages are an even better deal! As mentioned, there is a limit to how high places can charge or locals won’t go. So what I noticed the most is things like massages are an incredible deal! I paid 7,000 pesos including a generous tip for a 1 hour deep tissue massage. That is only about $11 US dollars. For the same thing here in California it’s about $100 US. And they have specials like couples massage for 1 hour where my husband and I went in the same room and had 2 people giving us a massage and it was for 10,000 pesos total plus tip! 10,000 pesos was only around $20 US dollars while we were there. That same thing here in California we pay $300 US dollars.



So services like this are the best value. You won’t get values like this at upscale hotels but you can go to established salons. I AM going to gatekeep this so if you want the name of the place just send me a private message and I’ll send you the details for where this place is. I’ve been going there for years.


Another thing that has changed over the years is there are far fewer taxis on the street. There used to be over 39,000 taxis in Buenos Aires. More than NYC, London, and Paris combined. There is probably 1/3 of that now. Not to worry. They have been replaced by rideshare companies like Uber, DiDi, Cabify and others.



The only thing that was a bummer is the maximum # of people you can have in them is 4 people. You can’t request a larger vehicle. So we always had to take 2 different Ubers. Ubers are all over the place and available everywhere. Most fares from Palermo to Recoleta were about 1,500 to 2,000 pesos each way depending on the time you went. About $3 US each time. Very cheap compared to the USA but it can still add up as we were in Uber about 8 times a day.


Download DiDi and Cabify before you come. Sometimes Uber wouldn’t have any cars available but DiDi always did. Just keep in mind with DiDi and Cabify you can’t use your credit card. You only can pay with Cash. With Uber I used my credit card 95% of the time. But sometimes the driver would text you ahead of time and say if you didn’t have cash he couldn’t take you. I usually asked them to cancel if this was the case as I already paid with a credit card and didn’t know if I’d get the refund. Taxis are cheaper now vs. rideshares for the most part but I still preferred to take Uber as one day I had a taxi with a rigged meter. I went the same route over and over and one day with no traffic the meter was over double and I told him I know he has a rigged meter.


Also, download the Rappi app on your phone. It was super convenient. I’ve used it for years but now we almost never went to the supermarket as everything can be delivered instantly with the App. You can subscribe to a “Rappi Prime” account which is only around $2 US per month (cancel after your trip). And you won’t pay delivery fees.



Whatever you want, you can instantly get. They have something called “Turbo” and they deliver within 10 minutes. I couldn’t believe it. You name it I got it. Ice, bottled water, sodas, ice cream. Just use the Turbo and you will have it within a few minutes. You can use it at an apartment rental or hotel.


On larger orders, they will ask you to give a PIN number to the delivery driver to ensure you get it. This protects you so you don’t pay until the driver enters the PIN. I never had problems and I used them daily. It beats standing in line at the grocery store. Plus, something nice is I could just use my USA credit card so I never had to hassle with cash.


Buenos Aires is a fabulous city. The major downside is only the airfare from most cities is really expensive now. But once you get there, everything else is relatively inexpensive.

Great information. I was in BA probably 10yrs ago, when blue dollar was 11-12 pesos. Going in November again, but I find the domestic flights to be expensive and not much of a variety in schedule, considering Ushuaia and El Calafate are very popular for tourists. Yes, BA was lovely back then and I am happy it continues to be a nice place to visit.

 

[BuySellBA]

Great information. I was in BA probably 10yrs ago, when blue dollar was 11-12 pesos. Going in November again, but I find the domestic flights to be expensive and not much of a variety in schedule, considering Ushuaia and El Calafate are very popular for tourists. Yes, BA was lovely back then and I am happy it continues to be a nice place to visit.

Buenos Aires is hands down my FAVORITE city in the world. I'm originally from Colombia so I know South America well. I owned a house in Colombia, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Mexico, and USA.

Buenos Aires is the best! NO place like it in South America or maybe the world. A very special place. Recoleta and Palermo are the best neighborhood in the entire CONTINENT of South America. Everyone enjoy my city.

Two of my children were born in Buenos Aires and I'm very proud they are Argentines.

 

[BuySellBA]

Great information. I was in BA probably 10yrs ago, when blue dollar was 11-12 pesos. Going in November again, but I find the domestic flights to be expensive and not much of a variety in schedule, considering Ushuaia and El Calafate are very popular for tourists. Yes, BA was lovely back then and I am happy it continues to be a nice place to visit.

Florin@NYC,

Just out of curiosity, how expensive were the trips to Ushuaia and El Calafate? In US dollar terms? That's a gorgeous area. Nothing like hiking on a glacier. It's one of the highlights of my entire time living in Buenos Aires going down to see it.