Howdy friends and family,
Did we land in Buenos Aires, Argentina… or the middle of Europe? With Buenos Aires’s unique mixture of architecture and culture, we’ll let you be the judge.
(Pssst… this is the last newsletter before we share our adventure to Antarctica! However, we’re going to take next week off in order to make some website improvements before then. We’ll be back with Antarctica on February 28th. This week’s edition is extra long in order to tide you over.)
Perry’s Travel Diary
How to Get Pesos in Argentina
Of the eleven countries we’ve visited on this trip, Argentina is the only one where you do NOT get paper currency out of ATMs and avoid using your credit card at all costs.
The cheapest and easiest way to get local currency is usually by withdrawing cash at an ATM with our Charles Schwab Checking Account, which refunds all ATM fees. ATMs work well because they convert at the official exchange rate, usually with little to none of the markup that you find at currency exchange houses.
So what’s the deal in Argentina?
TL;DR – No one uses the “official” exchange rate
Argentina actually has two exchange rates.
I know that’s weird. Bear with me.
The “official” exchange rate, which you’ll find when Googling the currency conversion, is a fixed rate set by the Argentine government. It’s around 157 Argentine pesos per dollar. If you’re shopping online for anything priced in Argentine pesos, including local airfare, hotels, and tours, all ecommerce websites will use the official rate to convert the price in Argentine pesos to US Dollars. Your bank and credit card companies will also use the official rate to convert any Argentine transactions made with your account.
The exchange rate everyone actually usesis the black market exchange rate. Because of their incredible inflation, Argentines love the US Dollar. They will pay handsomely to convert their savings to greenbacks on the black market since access to US dollars is restricted by the Argentine government. Delicately referred to as the “blue dollar” rate, it was over 300 pesos per dollar at the time of our visit. Today, February 2023, the blue dollar rate has increased to around 370 pesos per dollar according to Western Union.
See how that’s an incredible difference? If you use an ATM or credit card in Argentina, you are paying twice as much compared to exchanging and using cash.
Crazy.
A Brief History of the Argentine Peso and Inflation
Argentina has had a volatile government and poorly managed economy since the Great Depression, and as a result, the Argentine Peso has an infamous history of chronic inflation. During the 1980s, annual inflation regularly exceeded 100%, hitting a peak of 3,079% in 1989.
No, that’s not a typo – inflation was over 3,000%.
You know how we’re all upset about a dozen eggs being $7 right now? Imagine adding a few zeros to the end of that number.
During the late 1980s and early 1990s, inflation was so bad that grocery stores stopped marking the prices on items. Instead, they would announce price changes over the store’s loudspeaker while customers were shopping. Our Buenos Aires walking tour guide described shopping with his mother and putting anything they could afford in their cart as quickly as possible because they might not be able to afford it next week (or at the time of checkout). This kind of inflation erodes personal wealth and stops regular Argentinian people from ever getting ahead in their personal finances.
Inflation calmed down in the mid-1990s, and Argentina even experienced deflation from 1999-2001. Inflation returned and bounced around through the aughts.
Since 2010, there has been a steady increase in the double-digit annual inflation rate. In 2022, inflation in Argentina was estimated to be 72.37%. To put this in context, if the menu posted online for a restaurant Pete and I were interested in was over 12 months old, I needed to double the prices. If the menu was 4-5 years old, I needed to multiply the numbers by ten – or more.
Argentina’s wacky economic situation – including its nine defaults on its debt, lack of productivity, and complete reversal of its economic development in the early 1900s – has prompted many economists to study the so-called “Argentine Paradox.” According to Wikipedia’s overview of Argentina’s economy, “The Nobel prize-winning economist Simon Kuznets is said to have remarked that there were four types of countries: the developed, the underdeveloped, Japan, and Argentina.” Econ nerds can read more here.
How to get the Blue Dollar Rate: Western Union or a Local Cambio
So back to the point: how do you get the black market rate…somewhat legally?
The answer is simple: Use Western Union. (That’s an affiliate link that gets you a bonus on your first transfer!)
Western Union has both a website and an app you can use to send money to yourself. I was able to sign up for Western Union, transfer money to myself, and pick it up at the nearest location within about an hour.
When I transferred money to myself, it was approved within a matter of minutes. However, if you want to send money to someone else (like your spouse), you may need to complete a verification check with Western Union. When I transferred money for Pete to pick up along with me, I received a phone call from Western Union about 30 minutes later and had to answer various identity questions. It was relatively painless, but I wish I had waited for the call in the privacy of our AirBnB.
The maximum transfer with Western Union is AR$50,000. All transfers are subject to local currency availability. Because Western Union is so popular, it is possible for branches to run out of cash, especially on payday, Fridays, weekends, and holidays. Try to plan your arrival early in the week and visit the largest Western Union locations. Have a backup plan for your first day or two in Argentina in case you have trouble finding cash. (We did not encounter issues getting cash during our trip.)
All three Western Unions that we visited had long lines. We waited anywhere from 30-60 minutes. Give yourself plenty of time.
If you don’t want to or can’t use Western Union, you can also exchange money at the blue dollar rate at a local exchange house or cambio. In Buenos Aires, the cambios are all located on Florida Street. Ask your tour guide or hotel for a recommendation.
Many hotels, restaurants, and other businesses will accept payment in US Dollars using the blue dollar rate. Make sure to ask for their exchange rate first though, as some (especially in the airports and touristy areas) will exchange at the lower official rate. As long as they’re using something close to the blue dollar rate, it is a much better deal to pay in US cash than with your credit card.
Will you ever be able to use a credit card in Argentina?
We will note that there was a rumor during our tour in Buenos Aires that the government had just passed a law that day allowing for credit card companies to use the blue dollar rate when converting their transactions. The law was too new for us to believe that anyone had put it into practice yet, but you may want to check your bank’s exchange rate if you’re headed to Argentina in the future.
Despite the poor exchange rate, most businesses do accept credit cards if you don’t have cash.
An Inflation Disclaimer
Expect that any costs quoted in this newsletter are already out of date. Please conduct current price research and add a healthy margin if you’re planning a trip to Argentina.
Pete’s Travel Diary
Our 4 Recommendations for Things to do in Buenos Aires
1. Take a Free Walking Tour
Drums, Drums in the Deep… (A Funny Story about a Walking Tour)
This is one of those tales that if you are reading with children, you might skip to the next heading.
It was one of those long travel weeks. We were mighty brain-drained, and Perry had to jump through a lot of hoops in addition to our taking a long walk to and from our AirBnB for cash (what’s chump-change for us is often “mug-you money” for bad apples in South America, and so one needs to use caution, especially if you are walking out of a bank). After locking down our cash, Perry was pretty well wiped. A person can only withstand so much customer service “on-hold” music.
She turned to me and asked that I plan Friday’s adventures. We’d take Thursday to rest up, and venture out the next day.
“It’s all on me,” I said to myself.
I figure a walking tour is a nice start to introduce oneself to a new city or culture. After all, the tour guides typically sing for their supper (and know the best places where you can get yours, so we always ask for restaurant recommendations). I arranged a walking tour that starts at the capitol building in Buenos Aires. Simple, straightforward, and in a group where you have the numbers so little could go wrong.
We walked about seven city blocks from our AirBnB to the city capitol. Along the way, we started to see hipsters like we hadn’t seen before. Some of them carried flags with gentle pastel colors and others had funky hairdos. As we neared the epicenter of activity, we began to see much more than an odd hairdo – we started to see some skin.
Upon reaching the capitol building, it was apparent that this was going to be one heck of a walking tour as there was also a tremendous Pride parade and rally going on at the same time, with all the bells and whistles a Pride parade ought to want for.
We found our tour guide, who was a good sport given that the booming noise, marching drum bands, and naked people running around wearing flags like capes were about to make his job difficult.
I recall getting strange looks, as I often get for wearing my cowboy hat and boots. They had never seen a cowboy, and I had never seen a grown man wearing only a thong, black tutu, nipple tape, and devil horns. We all saw something unexpected that day.
(Regarding Cowboys: Argentina has its own cowboys called Gauchos, who are skilled horsemen. There was also a fellow dressed as Woody from Toy Story, but I have a feeling there was some innuendo at play there… Somehow, I still managed to turn a lot of heads.)
It was a good tour and likely the most eventful I had ever been on. Our tour guide held it together well despite regular harassment from street vendors and people having a good (loud) time, not to mention the band of marching drums that were on the same collision course we were. You’d hear drums catching up and we’d have to get moving again or you wouldn’t hear anything on the tour. If this was how I made a living, I’d have been a lot less patient with all of the shenanigans going on.
As I noted to my brother that evening on the phone, “I saw a lot more bare @$$ than I was prepared to see on afree walking tour.”
The Tour: Buenos Aires’ European Architecture
Buenos Aires is a melting pot of architecture. One area looks like Florence, Italy, complete with a unique building that I was naturally a fan of due to its fun (though likely false) conspiracy.
The Palacio Barolo was designed to represent Dante’s divine comedy. The bottom 9 or so floors represented the Inferno (Hell), the next few above represented Pergatorio (Purgatory), and the top floors were Paradisio (Heaven). You can fork over some cash for a tour of the building but there wasn’t time in the day for us to make it happen.
The conspiracy comes with a statue made by an artist who is suspected of grave robbery, smuggling, and not doing either totally successfully. Further, you can’t simply google this conspiracy (trust me, I tried, so you know it’s good). I couldn’t find the name of the artist nor could I hear the tour guide thanks to the approaching parade of drums. However, it’s said that an Italian artist snatched Dante’s corpse, burned it, and poured the ashes into a bronze statue representing the Divine Comedy.
The statue was then smuggled into Buenos Aires by ship and was promptly stolen before it could make it to Palacio Barolo. (There is still a reward for any leads that result in the return of said statue and a hunk of cash for the real McCoy itself.)
The Italian government naturally and vehemently denies such a weird rumor. Is it a conspiracy generated to draw tourists to Palacio Barolo? Probably, but it’s still a lot of fun to think about. Life’s too short to disregard the fun conspiracy theories.
Other areas of Buenos Aires’s patchwork collection of architecture resemble French, German, and Irish influences. (Ireland’s contributions to culture and architecture are always welcome.) There’s just about anything else you can think of if it’s made of stone.
Our tour guide noted that a lot of these beautiful buildings are being torn down and replaced by ugly standard glass buildings, the sort you’d find depressed people in cubicles working in. “It’s expensive to maintain,” he said. With that in mind, it’s probably better to go and see Buenos Aires’ beautiful buildings while you can.
Perry’s Travel Diary
2. Recoleta Cemetery
We were shocked by the extreme opulence of the mausoleums when we walked into Recoleta Cemetery. We expected a normal cemetery; instead, we found a gorgeous collection of above-ground vaults. These tiny homes mansions for the deceased were built out of the finest stone, decorated with custom hand-carved sculptures and the finest metalwork.
The wealth displayed in the cemetery stands in stark contrast to the present-day economic situation in Argentina.
If you could afford marble statues on your tomb, what did your house look like?!
I guess you can’t take it with you, but you sure can die trying.
The cemetery was established in 1822, about one hundred years before Argentina’s economic decline, which may explain how families were able to afford one of the 4,961 vaults. Most are still in use today; you can see the caskets and photographs of the deceased (some recent) by looking through the doors.
Others have fallen into beautiful disrepair.
Recoleta cemetery is the final resting ground of many famous people, including past Argentine presidents and the much-revered former first lady, Eva Perón.
Pete and I were fascinated by Recoleta and would highly recommend a visit. Admission was AR$1,400 per person at the time of our visit, but they only accepted credit cards, making it about $9 per person. For the same price, you can take this guided tour in English, and we think a guide would be worthwhile.
3. Watch Tango
Our walking tour guide, Martin, recommended Cafe Tortoni, a famous gathering spot for revolutionaries and other famous people in Buenos Aires, as the cheapest tango show in town.
We love to dance but weren’t in the mood to check out a milonga that night. (If you want to dance yourself, Martin recommends the website Hoy-Milonga to find one open every night. Some offer lessons.) Cafe Tortoni it was.
The show is entirely in Spanish, so we didn’t catch the details, but we didn’t need to. The four dancers, singer, and drummer were dripping with emotion and captivating to watch.
The show was about an hour long and cost AR$6,000 (US$20) per person. We walked in and bought our tickets for a show the same night since they didn’t appear to sell them online. Dinner isn’t included, but you can order whatever you want off of their regular menu.
4. Visit a Bookstore in a Former Theater
Our final visit in Buenos Aires was to El Ateneo, a bookstore located in a former theater.
This is a fun, free way to spend the afternoon…unless you buy all the books! (Foreign language books make great souvenirs for anyone learning a new language.)
Itinerary
Hotel
We stayed at this AirBnB in the upscale Retiro neighborhood ($65/night). The studio apartment was very clean and offered everything we needed, including a small kitchen and nicely-sized living area. The location was fantastic – we walked to the main sights and took the subway to the rest.
If you’re pre-paying for your hotel with a credit card, AirBnB offers great value in Argentina. At the time, I didn’t understand the differences in the exchange rate and couldn’t figure out why hotels were so expensive. Now I know! Check hotel prices in ARS and book a rate that allows you to pay in cash on arrival in order to get the best price.
Food
- Sandwichs Tandileros – Our FAVORITE. I haven’t had a sandwich this good outside of Paris, France. They bake their own bread and then serve the warm baguettes with cheese, arugula, tomato, and the freshest, thinnest prosciutto. They also have empanadas, quiches, and a full deli. We became daily customers. 10/10, you must eat here.
- El Sanjuanino – Recommended by our tour guide. Home-style Argentine restaurant with all the classic dishes.
- La Poesía – Fantastic charcuterie boards and beers. The main entrees were okay.
- Café Tortoni – We’re told the drinks and churros are good, but everything else is meh. We ate before our tango show and did not try the food.
- Figata – Fine but way overpriced. Figata and its neighbors are all targeting the Four Seasons customers since they’re practically next door.
- Rappi works well for food delivery.
You have to try the following Argentine foods:
- Empanadas – Meat, cheese, and other fillings in a pastry pocket.
- Choripan – Chorizo and chimichurri sauce served on a crusty bun. Another classic street food.
- Milanesa Napolitana – Beef schnitzel (like country-fried steak) with ham, melted cheese, and tomato sauce.
- Any kind of Argentine barbecue or grilled steak cannot be missed!
Transportation
Airports
Buenos Aires has two airports: the older Aeroparque Internacional Jorge Newbery (AEP) and newer Ezezia International Airport (EZE). AEP is located next to downtown and tends to serve budget airlines. EZE is 45 minutes outside of the city and services larger international flights.
Subway and Bus: SUBE Card
In order to use the subway and bus system in Buenos Aires, you have to have a SUBE card. Cash is not accepted.
When we asked our AirBnB host where we could get a SUBE card, he got this look on his face and sighed, “Oh, it’s complicated.” He then proceeded to hand us his card to use for the duration of our stay.
Other travelers confirmed that it is time-consuming and difficult to find a place that will issue you a SUBE card. It may not be worth it for short trips. If you can find someone to lend you their card (in exchange for leaving a slightly higher balance on it), that’s the best way to go. If not, our walking tour company published this article on how to get one.
Once you have a SUBE card, it’s easy to reload it at the kiosks in the subway stations and tap it to enter the system. You can use one card for two people – just scan twice. The subways themselves are functional but not the cleanest – worse than Southeast Asia but on-par with French and American subways.
Uber
Uber works well in Argentina as long as you set your payment method to cash! We used Uber to get to EZE Airport for our outbound flight (AR$4610 one-way).
Airport Taxi
At AEP Airport, you stand in a single line and scan a QR code, plastered on signs, to sign up for a taxi ride from the airport to your location. Prices are fixed based on neighborhood and are shown on your screen, which you show to the driver when you reach the front of the line. This system works well and eliminates negotiation. We paid AR$1525 from AEP to Retiro.
Currency
Argentina uses the Argentine Peso. Get cash at Western Union.
Travel Tip of the Week
Plug It In, Plug It In
South America has a maddening variety of electric outlets. Colombia uses American-style plugs, Chile uses European-style plugs, and Argentina is off in its own world with Australian-style angled plugs.
We use this travel converter and adapter set by Conair. I’ve had two Conair sets over the years, and I like them because they have separate, smaller adapter pieces. The all-in-one blocks often don’t fit inside recessed outlets, but these fit every time.
I also prefer the one I have linked because the converter includes two outlets and a USB port, which you always need!
If you enjoyed this newsletter, we’d love it if you would share us with your friends.
All our love,
Pete and Perry