I just got back from Buenos Aires a week ago. Western Union was king, providing the blue rate (it went from 291 pesos to the $ to almost 300/ dollar in one week). Just know that the biggest bill that Argentina mints is 1,000 peso notes, (equivalent to around $3.33) so you're going to be carrying a LOT of cash. I transferred $400 total and lived like a king for a week. The biggest meal my buddy and I went all out on was at Don Julio where we spent about $50 US per person, when something comparable to the US would probably have cost $200-$250 a person.

Simply transfer money to an Argentina western union, get there when they open (they will run out of cash, even with the pallets of cash they cycle in every day) and prepare to carry a backpack or something to carry the sheer bricks of bills you'll have. Have fun! It was a blast and even with their highly unstable economic situation (prices changing daily sometimes), it was a fabulous trip.

Thanks for the info ghsbass0406. I haven't transferred/converted money using WU previously, but it looks relatively simple - and feels like a much more "safe" option than exchanging at a random place on Florida street.

Check for Argentina holidays before you 100% plan on this - there are more than you might think, delaying by up to a couple of days when you think you'll be able to access your money. Note that your hotel concierge may have an excellent recommendation, one s/he probably uses him/herself.

Also, as a side note, and not wanting to go off on too much of a tangent, at night, on foot don't wander right around your hotel on the smaller streets. For N/S, use 9 de Julio, and for E/W use Belgrano or Av. de Mayo. Taxis are fine, and I suggest you install Cabify - there's a cash option but you'll know your fare in advance and can get locations / addresses in so nothing is lost in translation (and make sure you don't rely on the GPS, but actually go in front of a building and type in the address, or type in a business name).

We spent USA's Labor Day weekend in BA and while we had a great time, we had A LOT of trouble getting cash through WU. Every spot we tried (7 locations, two days in a row) was out of cash or closed. The most reliable way we found to exchange cash was taking a hit on the rate at our hotel (Anselmo in San Telmo), which offered us 260 (when WU was offering 290).

WU and weekends can be difficult.
I try and get my XCHANGE business done by Friday midday.

I got 280 on the Friday before labor day, and 260 on Labor Day, at Cambio Posadas near the Park Hyatt. Got lucky on Friday morning as there was no line when we went in, but 5-6 people waiting when I came out. Monday was closer to 1pm and waited 20-25 minutes.

I poked around the WU site to get an idea of fees for future reference -- it seemed like there is no fee if you fund from a debit or credit card? In that case does it post as a charge or a cash advance? Overheard someone in the hotel lobby saying they got 295 from WU.

270 in Mendoza today near the McDonalds.

I probably could have done a little better, but at these rates, who cares about a couple pesos here and there. Having an incredible time here so far.

The best you will get for cash today is 280/281

The CCL closed at 312 but that is hard to get unless you are changing a pile of cash with professionals

WU was paying 299 earlier this pm but someone mentioned to me that their discount codes are not working, so you have to take into account their fees.

For those of us not (yet) in Buenos Aires: You do realize, don't you, that your holiday just got about 20% more expensive since Sergio Massa started to work his magic. El d�lar blue dropped for 330 to 270 pesos. I very much doubt that BA prices dropped at all.
On a side note, the d�lar blue did not move at all after the assassination attempt on CFK. In many other countries, the bottom would have dropped out of both the stock and the currency markets. Perhaps porte�os have seen it all and no longer blink at this sort of thing.

To be honest , the move up to 330 was seen by many as pure speculation .

The general feeling is that the "true" value is around 290/300

That of course is the true value until the next round of speculation......

20% more expensive is still relatively dirt cheap. And the "over 300" days could be measured in a few days, as I recall.

Argentina is indeed a very good value, even if the Blue rate is not near its historic highs. Im somewhat uncomfortable with the term dirt-cheap, but then this may be just me.

The above is the PERFECT attitude.... have a good time, enjoy the great values and dont worry about the last 10 or 20 pesos per Dollar in the exchange rate. Its better to make a trade at a safe location and get paid 10 pesos less per Dollar than risk getting mugged and lose all your money in a few seconds.

We stayed at the Intercontinental on Moreno and there was a WU just a couple blocks down the street. I ended up bringing cash and exchanging it as needed. Absolutely no problems at all. This particular WU always had money and there was never a line. Just a great experience all around. Thanks to everyone here who helped with all of the great advice.

I have been in Buenos Aires a couple of times since July, the WU that is located on Peru street (less than 2 blocks from Av. de Mayo) is great, just arrive before noon and if you have some pesos left, you can exchange it back on the same area/street. It was funny when I got $308 rate from WU and I have to buy back some dollars at $281 .