SP0

Arranging our first visit to Argentina and would welcome comments. Thank you!

Background: We are independent travellers. not keen on tour groups etc. We are not fit enough for mountain hikes... Travelling in late November into EZE, out of MVD (because that's where we could get Avios miles to). Generally this will be a taster and we hopefully will return.

PROPOSED ITINERARY

Monday land EZE 2100, overnight hotel near AEP

Tuesday
0955 flight AEP-FTE
pm collect rental car, drive to El Chaltén (3h) with sightseeing along the way
overnight El Chaltén

Wednesday
am: possible gentle hike near El Chaltén
pm: drive to El Calafate (3h)
overnight El Calafate

Thursday
0630 drive to Perito Moreno for opening time (0800) to beat crowds
Take walkways around glacier
1200 drive to FTE (1h30), return car
1700 FTE-AEP lands 2015
late evening: something tango-related
AirBnB/hotel BA 4 nights

Friday
rent car -- day trip to an estancia and San Antonio de Areco
evening: something tango-related

Saturday
explore Buenos Aires
evening: concert in Teatro Colön

Sunday
explore Buenos Aires. Visit Feria Mataderos

Monday
0830 ferry to Colonia del Sacramento
explore Colonia
hotel Colonia 1 night

Tuesday
am explore Colonia
pm collect car (one-way rental), drive to Montevideo, drop car
AirBnB/hotel Montevideo 2 nights

Wednesday
explore Montevideo

Thursday
1420 depart MVD

malagajohn

If you are not used to renting cars ib South America be prepared to pay a minimum of USD 120 for the one way hire from Colonia to MVD - That would be for a small car - cloer to 200 for something bigger.

SP0

Yes I've been a bit astonished by the prices quoted online by the major brands. But I think it's worth it for the freedom to stop and explore in transit.

malagajohn

The road from Colonia to Montevideo is fairly straight and follows the River most of the way. Not too much to see, to be honest.

mernman

Hi,

​​Great to hear you're going to Argentina! Your itinerary looks well thought out.
Just a couple of comments

- 4 hours seems like plenty of time at the glacier. If you have the time or interest, there is a mini trek tour available from an off-site company that will take you on a leisurely walk on the glacier. They also offer a much more expensive Big Trek tour which we did last year, which is not worth the time or money IMO.

- when going back to Bs.As, rather than renting a car on the Friday, have you considered a day trip to Tigre? The train will take you there and it can be a nice day to stroll around, have lunch and visit a few sites and shops before taking the train back. Very low cost to get there and something unique just outside the city

- Sundays are very busy in San Telmo. Leaving Plaza de Mayo there are vendors lined up along Defensa, which you can walk down to an outdoor antiques fair and the Mercado San Telmo. This can be quite busy and understandably would not be for everyone but is usually a stop.

I am sure that whatever you end up doing you will love Argentina. We have been fortunate enough to visit many places but none has captured us as much as Argentina. The beauty of the country is matched only by the warmth of the people, which is why we continue to go back.

SP0

That’s is super helpful thank you.

I did consider Tigre and will take a closer look. I guess we wanted something a bit “gaucho” oriented which is why we had thought of the estancia but I assume there is a risk that it is all very touristy?

stan1162

1. Tigre is interesting, train ride up, walkabout, lunch along the Promenade.

2. El Chalten, there is a "hike" to a waterfall in-town. El Chorillo del Salto. It's really a walk, not a hike. About 2 miles. Along the road, then in thru the woods.

3. In El Chalten, we stayed at the most fabulous Estancia, Estancia Bonanza. You can do a lunch and trail ride there ( day visitors). We were there for 5 days, and people came in from the town to do this. We did an all day ride up high into the hills, lunch, with 4 others from town excursion.

Two photos below. Estancia View of FitzRoy and the Waterfall

SP0

thanks, useful info.

it does indeed look lovely. But we are getting rather worried about prices of up-market places in Argentina. That one is showing as USD1750 per night — and even simpler places seem to be USD350-500/night. Is this normal for Argentina or is it just an aberration due to the current currency flux?

Eastbay1K

I have been to Tigre exactly one time. It was enough ... more than enough. For limited time, I'd suggest something else, including exploring more of the Big City. If I ever return to Tigre, it will be to purchase some nice furniture. I don't disparage anyone who enjoys Tigre, but the odds of Dengue v Enjoyment of Tigre ratio weighs heavily in favo(u)r of doing something else (and that was long before Dengue was even an issue there!).

For Colonia -> Montevideo, I suggest the bus. Easier, don't have to navigate returning the car, etc., and you can relax.

stan1162

It is pricey, but there is a kiosk in town where you can book a day excursion of riding and lunch. That would be in lieu of the walk/hike to the waterfall. Prices are much higher than they used to be. We tried to book as much as we could "pay at property", and pay with AR Pesos that we obtained at the Blue Dollar rate last year. IN Jan 2024, when we are going back, we will A. Book whatever we can Book now, Pay at Property B Get Just enough Pesos that we dont have any leftover, and pay with Blue rate Pesos. C. Carry small USD, Places WILL take USD, in EL Chalten they would post the exchange rate on the outside of the door if it were a resturant.

We are staying at Estancia Bonanza again in 2024, saving my pennies for the splurge that it is!!!

SP0

Just to close the loop for anyone who finds this thread in the future.

We had a fantastic trip and would recommend this part of the world strongly. Everyone was superbly hospitable (with the possible exception of Argentinian taxi drivers :-) ) and the sights are amazing.

Particular highlights:

• the glacier at Perito Moreno seen from the excellent walkway - an early morning visit ensured we were seeing it in tranquility before the bus hoardes showed up, although note that the gate to the park doesn't open until 0800 and then there is another 30-45 minutes drive to get to the glacier. Seeing a 40m glacier as it travels infinitesimally slowly towards you is quite something.
• the drive out to El Chaltén and the view of the Patagonian mountains behind
• Tango show at Michelangelo in BsAs (very professional, both dancing and musicians). (But definitely NOT at El Milongon in Montevideo which was amateurish and oriented towards cruise ship packages.)
• Steak at Parilla La Brigada in BsAs, and at the much more famous Don Julio
• Beautiful and peaceful little Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay - there is a Thrifty car hire place where you can rent a golf buggy for a couple of hours to potter around the town and go to the beach
• extraordinary architecture of Casapueblo - what would happen if Portmeirion and La Sagra Familia had a baby
• José Ignacio off season, with a super hotel (La Posada del Faro) and a lovely long lunch by the beach at La Huella.

Our only logistical issue was getting taxis in Buenos Aires. Most won't take credit cards; the local cash is devaluing so fast we didn't get any. Most locals recommended Cabify, which is a complete basket case of poor design and poor customer service -- you can't sign up without a local mobile number because it doesn't deliver the confirmation SMS to international numbers; after you spend an hour getting a local phone number, everything looks ok until the moment of booking then it blocks your account with a 48-hour turnaround to examine your documents; then it lets you book a journey out into the deep suburbs but you can't get back because it then blocks your account a second time etc etc. Other locals recommend Tienda Leon which was good once; on the second journey they refused the booking because they didn't have capacity. We ended up taking local buses which was much better, and remarkably only about US$0.05 per journey. Oh, and at AEP airport there was a nightmare queue of 200+ people for taxis ... our successful trick was to walk 200m to the international terminal where there was zero queue and plenty of taxis.

Our favourite place of all was José Ignacio, a sort of Hamptons-of-South-America. We were there a few weeks before the MASSIVE influx of wealthy tourists (mostly from Brazil) in Dec/Jan so we had stunning weather and wonderful peace all around. The locals tell us the time to be there is either November or April; in between it is chaos. In the sweet spot it is a truly lovely place, with excellent food, and belongs right up on our lifetime list of lovely places to unwind.




Many thanks to those who gave us help with the planning.