anc305

Thanks Eastbay1K. I don't care about the fare being doubled. I like the convience of the SUBE card. It appears that they will not be availible to visitors any longer ? Is there going to be any type of card availible to visitors in the future ? Just a side note. When I was in BA I added 5000 peso to my SUBE card at Retiro. It took a while and she did it in 7 different transactions. All below 1000 peso. Seemed strange as I gave her 5 x 1000 bills.

PSPandBA

You can register a Sube card with a foreign passport. I registered mine at BA City office on top floor of Recoleta Urban Mall. Less than 10 minutes to do it.

scubadu

This is interesting. Thanks for sharing your personal insights and experience. I feel like it's somewhat of a change in position from when I was earlier questioning the value proposition of Argentina/BA and it seemed that several posters replied that I just didn't understand currency exchange and that it all just came out in the wash relative to the value of the US dollar and so everything is just great.

Though I can't prove it mathematically, I remain somewhat skeptical that a country that is experiencing inflation at the rates Argentina is, can remain a "bargain" over the long haul. There has to be some material, systemic impact to that kind of inflation.

Now that said, I am most definitely not in iahphx's camp in terms of my sensitivity to cost (I wouldn't consider myself a "value traveler" per se), but I will admit, when a country/destination is continually marketed as being "great value," then that does weigh in to my analysis when thinking about traveling there.

I guess for me, and I respect that many in this forum disagree, it still just comes down to this being a destination that requires too many thought cycles. As I've said before, I literally can't think of any other country in the world where I've really even thought much about the currency exchange rate in the process of planning a trip. I mean I frequent all the various country threads on FT and can't even think of another country thread that has ongoing, multi-year threads discussing the exchange rate. That right there says something.

I guess for me, Argentina remains in the "too hard" pile (I say that somewhat jokingly), but continuing to watch hopefully! But there are just so many places to go in the world that don't require worrying about some of these things.

But I really do hope that at some point things begin to stabilize in Argentina and there can be some sort of normalcy, both for their citizens and for visitors.

Regards

Eastbay1K

The "simple fact" if a visitor doesn't want to experience any mental gymnastics with the current state of affairs is to pay with 0% fee plastic. You'll get 90-some percent of the Blue and be done with it. Of course, that is today's current state of affairs

iahphx

Yeah, but the problem for people like scubadu is that the "just use a credit card and you won't get hosed" advice may indeed change. Heck, in the last year, how many times did a traveler have to modify their Argentina credit card strategy because of ever-shifting conversion rates? So Argentina will remain "too much trouble" for many who don't want to deal with the currency hassles.

Right now, I'd say that there are 2 main groups of likely Argentina visitors: 1) the ones who know and love Argentina culture and don't really care what the prices are (as long as they don't become crazy expensive); and 2) travellers looking to take advantage of Argentina's low prices, who are either "adventurous" international travellers or residents of nearby South American countries. Neither camp is particularly large -- but the bargain seekers seem to be the majority.

https://www.riotimesonline.com/argen...0the%20economy.

Eastbay1K

That is exactly why I stated "Of course, that is today's current state of affairs "

Adam London

Spending money in Argentina isn't difficult, just use a credit card which doesn't charge fees for foreign transactions. Nearly everywhere takes card. Plus exchange $100USD bills at a Western Union (if you want to avoid cuevas) for cash for tips and any rare place which doesn't take card.

Argentina certainly isn't as cheap as it was before the devaluation, but having just come back I can confirm its still a fair bit cheaper than North American and Western Europe for most things tourists will encounter, eg meals, bars, taxis etc. Accommodation was generally a little cheaper as well.

scubadu

So, this constant response to "just use a credit card and forget about it" is growing a little wearisome. The title and subject of the thread is "December 2023: Argentina is (was?) the best country to visit RIGHT NOW" (emphasis added). That doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the method of payment. I'm aware that I can use a credit card. That is not the point.

The point is, by what criteria are we defining "best?"

Thoughts:

• As mentioned (multiple times), the Argentina country forum on FT is just about, to my knowledge, the ONLY country forum that has a thread exclusively dedicated to endlessly discussing the exchange rate (USD/ARS Exchange hits new record high!) and which is consistently on the front page of most active threads in the forum for literally, years on end. Again, there is no other country forum on FT where that is the case. I may not be smart enough to articulate the causes for that or the underlying economics of what makes it so, but I am smart enough to identify that "this one is not like the others."
• One has to almost suspend belief to buy into the idea that the USD/ARS exchange rate alone can somehow fully and completely wipe away the impacts of a country experiencing absolutely rampant, almost runaway inflation without any consequences to the perceived value of traveling to said country.
• Frankly, I just don't buy that Argentina is that great of value. There are countless countries in the world (particularly in SE Asia) that are certainly better "bargains" (if that is what one is looking for) in terms of food, luxury hotels, etc. Even places like Portugal and several Central European (e.g. Poland, Albania, Romania, etc.) countries likely stack up pretty well against Argentina and again, most importantly, without all the hassle.

Look let me be very clear, I'm not at all "anti-Argentina." We've been there a few times and we enjoyed each and every trip and it's certainly likely that we'll return at some point. But this thread was asserting that Argentina might be the "best" country in the world to travel to and on that count, I'm afraid I simply cannot agree (but I respect those that see it that way). If the world is your oyster (from a travel perspective), then my comparison point isn't cost relative to North America (or course Argentia is more affordable that North America), my comparison is all the other places in the world I can go without the hassle.

I hope that I'm not coming across as argumentative, that is not my intention, but rather respectfully debating differing points of view. I appreciate that others may see it through a different prism than I do, that is what makes a market.

Regards

iahphx

I agree with most everything you say, but when I wrote this in December, Argentina WAS an unbelievable value for travellers. I've honestly never seen anything like it elsewhere in the world, including Southeast Asia. The quality vs. cost was incredible. But, as I noted, I didn't think it would last (especially since Argentina's new President was determined to tackle the currency situation).. And, apparently, it hasn't lasted.. My guess is that Argentina value is now on par with some other historically cheap destinations, but it's a moving target -- with the friction of a still unstable currency -- and since I'm not planning on returning for many months, it's pointless for me to try to get a precise bead on it.

fedechat

I will say, before the devaluation from the current Government, Argentina was a very cheap option in many aspects if you knew how to take advantage (specially on hotels stays), but now the difference between official rate vs blue/CC is just 10%, so is not longer a hassle, which means you can use a CC most of the time.

There are many other countries that are cheap, but you can't compare Argentina with SE Asia, the culture is very different.

In Argentina you can still get very tasty piece of meat at a restaurant, not many places you will this at a good price. You can visit a Glacier and walk over it, now how many places in the world you will be able to do it with a minimum effort? (without taking a helicopter),then you have other places like Iguazu Falls, Bariloche/Puerto Madryn, Mendoza, Salta, Jujuy etc, is actually a country with many natural wonders without going to different countries, and that's one of the main advantage and I will say it was a real bargain until end of December 2023, still cheap but not as cheap as before.

Gaucho100K

For those looking to penny pinch the bottom of cookie jar, Argentina is not the place for you to visit. The world is big and there will always be cheap(er) options out there.... as a native (even though Im now not a full-time resident of my country) I celebrate the fact that we are not out to be an inexpensive tourism destination. I trust that the country and the business owners (and hopefully government) will work together in creating a long lasting tradition of high quality service at competitive (but certainly not inexpensive) levels - as this is the only was that the local economy and its residents will be able to grow/prosper long term. With all due respect, I dont care for Argentina becoming another Vietnam, Romania or whichever "cheap" destination comes to mind.

anc305

As I have siad before on this forum , Argentina has always been a good value over the 20+ years of visits. Not dirt cheap but a good value. With the new rates for credit cards it is much easier than before. I always went home with too many peso that were worth less when I returned.

fliesdelta

Excellent explanation! I too hope that Argentina remains a great value as a destination, rather than cheap.