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Old Mar 19, 2017 | 7:05 pm
  #31  
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I would get mostly 100's. Exchanging 300USD means around 4,700ARS - just getting 100's is a lot of bills. You'll end up with small bills as you spend and get change.
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Old Mar 19, 2017 | 7:22 pm
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I picked up 25000 pesos last week at Argenper , one of the exchange places that work with cash forwarders from Europe.

Got the whole lot in 100s

Banks are beginning to give out 200s and 500s but its still not common.
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Old Mar 19, 2017 | 9:47 pm
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Originally Posted by malagajohn
I picked up 25000 pesos last week at Argenper , one of the exchange places that work with cash forwarders from Europe.

Got the whole lot in 100s

Banks are beginning to give out 200s and 500s but its still not common.
One machine (in January) gave me 500s. Otherwise, it is still stacks of 100s.

On the way to my accountant a few days ago to may my taxes, my pants were having an "are you happy to see me, or are you going to your accountant to pay your taxes" moment.
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Old Mar 20, 2017 | 10:03 am
  #34  
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Originally Posted by Eastbay1K
(1) At the airport bank you would get the same rate. If the bank doesn't think your bills are real, they won't take them. At street vendors, you'll be best off (not visiting altogether, but if you do) with crispy bills.

(2) The largest common use bill is the $100. There are $500s, but you won't see or get them too frequently. As the $100 is worth barely over US$6, a portion of that is the worst ripoff you could suffer, so I wouldn't worry about that. Most everyone has change for $100 these days. If they complain they don't, they will probably find some if you suddenly cant make a purchase.
What exactly is the business model of the guys shouting "cambio, cambio" throughout the microcenter? Are they ripping people off, or are some of them legitimate? Is there still a blue market of some sort (aka, a better exchange rate than the official one)?
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Old Mar 20, 2017 | 12:27 pm
  #35  
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Originally Posted by iahphx
What exactly is the business model of the guys shouting "cambio, cambio" throughout the microcenter? Are they ripping people off, or are some of them legitimate? Is there still a blue market of some sort (aka, a better exchange rate than the official one)?
I suspect locals may use them to avoid their activities being traced by the tax man.
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Old Mar 20, 2017 | 9:52 pm
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Originally Posted by HIDDY
I suspect locals may use them to avoid their activities being traced by the tax man.
But they seem to be focused on the tourist market, at least based on where they publicly do business.
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Old Mar 21, 2017 | 7:27 am
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Originally Posted by iahphx
But they seem to be focused on the tourist market, at least based on where they publicly do business.
Although nowhere near like it used to be they will offer a better rate due to the nature of their 'business'.
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Old Mar 21, 2017 | 9:47 am
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Originally Posted by HIDDY
Although nowhere near like it used to be they will offer a better rate due to the nature of their 'business'.
Are there expats -- or other people with access to dollars -- who still do this blue rate thing? How much more are they getting for their money?

For the tourist, unless you had a reliable referral, it would seem to be a very bad idea to use a "cambio guy" you saw on the street.
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Old Mar 21, 2017 | 12:10 pm
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Today the banks are paying 15.54 , you will get between 15.80 and 16 on the blue market. I know a lot of people from here who use the grey-blue market.

People still use it for different reasons . As Hiddy said above , people will have an amount of money that is grey and they dont want the tax people to know about it.

Banks have limited opening hours . The Cuevas are a little better but once you are a regular they will send people to your house with the cash. All done in your own home without the hassle of parking and looking over your shoulder when you change a bit of cash.

The only dodgy banknote I got last year was in a bank . The cuevas are very careful about their reputation
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Old Mar 21, 2017 | 4:27 pm
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Does anyone have a recommendation for a Buenos Aires tour guide? And, how to best leverage their service to make our stay as great as possible?

Many thanks!
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Old Mar 22, 2017 | 7:15 pm
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Feel free to contact me via PM or email and I will put you in contact with Gloria Parera. She is one of the best in the business !!

Originally Posted by 747FC
Does anyone have a recommendation for a Buenos Aires tour guide? And, how to best leverage their service to make our stay as great as possible?

Many thanks!
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Old May 11, 2017 | 12:25 pm
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Hi guys, so this thread is super helpful. I am currently on TK15 2 hours out of GRU & then on to EZE.

I was originally planning on using Uber to get to my Airbnb in Recoleta but after reading about it, it just seems like too much of a hassle with the current problems, so now I see 3 options:
- Taxi Ezeiza: my host quoted me 680 pesos
- Remis: Not sure about the cost
- Bus to Terminal Madero for 230 pesos & then a taxi to my room for probably another 100 pesos or so

Is the bus much longer than the taxi? If I'm not going to save more than 30 mins I think I'll go for the bus since it'll be about 2x cheaper, otherwise I'll just take the taxi for convenience as it'll be late at night.

Thanks for the help!
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Old May 13, 2017 | 3:19 pm
  #43  
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You say you arrive late at night.... so I think that the only options are Tienda Leon (bus), Remis or Taxi Ezeiza. I would not experiment any further with cheaper options, not unless you are 100% Fluent in Spanish, have no luggage, and want to walk on the (very) wild side.....
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Old May 13, 2017 | 5:14 pm
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Thanks I ended up taking Taxi Ezeiza, not cheap but after flying for 18 hours, I couldn't bother looking around for things.

Tomorrow I will fly out of AEP. I will be leaving from Recoleta near Cordoba Subte station, any clean & easy way to get there by public transport or it worth trying Uber?
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Old May 13, 2017 | 5:36 pm
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Sorry Wilko Pali Sedef: I just notciced your question. I typically use MTL Bus/Transfer Service. I think it was $210 to the Terminal and an additional $50 to my location in Palermo Viejo. Once you have your luggage xrayed you go throught a door and there is a desk with transit providers. There is an MTL Desk there. Just ask for a passage via bus con (Translado) transfer. Provide them with your final address and they print out a multi passage receipt for you. You can even use Credit Cards to pay. Then leave the area pass through the airport (lots of folks will be waiting there to pick up others) Pass throught the doors to the outside (a McDonalds will be on the right) Make a right hand turn walk about 50 meters and there will be service lane with a little building/kiosk sort of structure. That's MTL's dispatch (the bus is normally their as well). Take the bus to the terminal (about 30 minutes) then go in to the office and you will see a guy with clip board (give him your ticket with the transfer address) and he will group you with 2 or 3 others to go to your part of town in a nice modern Remis. They will drop you off right to your intended address. Note you must request the Translado when purchasing your ticket at EZE, otherwise they don't offer it once your at the terminal. Extremely efficient and very safe as well. I prefer this over other means and it's the least expensive..

Last edited by Flying Machine; May 13, 2017 at 5:46 pm
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