An alternative is Calafate
 

An alternative is to visit the glacier "Perito Moreno" in Calafate (south, bordering Chile) allowing one to take a guided walk on the glacier (with clamps) and learn a bit of the different formations. I took this a few years ago and didn't find it physically challening (though take into account I'm a 27 y.o.). The town is tiny, but for more adventures people there is another town an hour north that allows ice-climibing and rapelling. If you are looking for a great getaway for a short weekend, this is a nice alternative within southern Argentina.

Yes, especially now, since Southern Winds Airlines has flights from BA to Calafate for a little more than $100 roundtrip! You can look at their website for dates and times, but you need to find a BA travel agent to ticket it, since buying it in the US is 3X as expensive (unlike on Aerolineas, you don't need to be Argentine for the cheap fares).

When I was first planning my Argentina trip, I wasn't going to go to El Calafate because it seemed "too expensive" for just a few days. At those prices, though, who could resist seeing a bit of Patagonia?

Accomodations do seem relatively expensive down there -- at least compared to BA. Anyone recently been there? I've heard the town is booming these days.

The last time I was there was about 2 years ago and I arrived on a national long weekend and the town was kind of dead, as most tour groups are out walking on the Perito Moreno. I HIGHLY advice you to take Southern Winds!! It's about a 3 hour flight, but the service is excellent on-board. A local agenyc I've dealt with is www.amazingargentina.com and ask for Federico (owner/operator). He's the one who can tell you all the latest details on hotels, prices and tours (and book everything for you).

In terms of prices, I stayed at a hostel, but you can alwyas call around and fit the best value. Though you can always try the Los Notros hotel for a very rewarding stay. http://www.losnotros.com/

I can strongly support the recommendations to visit El Perito Moreno. And, SW is a good alternative to Aerolineas Argentinas.

El Calafate is indeed quite expensive, there is a lot of North American, Japanese and European tourism that has driven the prices to G8 economy levels. Still, a great place to visit.

Does anyone have any great restaurant suggestions around the Bariloche area? Elegance if possible and divine food for snooty foodies.

Also art galleries?

Gracias!

Pablo Massey used to have a restaurant in Bariloche.... but Im not sure its still open. Im not usually a fine dining customer when I go skiing, but... I will do some research for you and get back once I have something.

Gracias, Gaucho.....as always, I look forward to your helpful information.
dede

Delta Says it will resume EZE service in December
 

Delta says they plan to resume ATL/EZE service in December....of course this may be a dream considering their financial woes....As a DL PM I am keeping my fingers crossed!

Good news for EZE based flyers. We need more flights to the US to keep AA from charging us an arm and a leg. Else, I will have no choice but to go through South Africa and Europa all the time... :eek:

Will a fare war come again?
 

With UA starting & DL possibly starting will another fare war erupt? In 2002 I snatched a base fare of US$275 for the BUE- MIA - BUE (which was also available from MIA on travelocity), so will we see a possible fare ware in November when they begin the new service??

If they do, I'll take a couple MR's from Chicago (considering AA matches the fare with a connection).. And if they do I'll bring my gf and propose down there.. hhmmm... I should start saving for a ring now...

Im not sure about a fare war.... remember that UA will come back ex-ORD but they massively cut back capacity when they killed JFK and then MIA. Also, there are still folks over on the DL board that still seem skeptical about DL making it back to EZE (and with good reason, considering the Atlanta carrier's financial woes).

Good!! Especially about Southern Winds. With Aerolineas insisting on charging us much, much higher "gringo fares," we norteamericanos don't really have any choice but to give our business to SW.

I never had the chance to fly LAPA, but I have flown many of the secondary, modestly-capitalized national airlines in your part of the world, like Sky in Chile. I'm expecting old airplanes, mediocre (old technology) check-in, good in-flight service and reasonable punctuality. Does SW meet that standard?

SW is the best in Argentina
 

In my flight experiences with them (locally) I have had the best service with extremely short check-in, friendly staff, very attentive service upon boarding and decent snack offering on board.

When I was working there for 13 months, I made a habbit to fly them instead of Aerolineas b/c of the great service. They truly are a first-class airline within Argentina (haven't flown them internationally yet).

In my opinion, you can't go wrong AND you earn AAdvantage miles (except in their Miami runs).

I would be interested in having feedback from foreign visitors on SW, but in my view, their overall product should be the same (or even slightly better) than the TED's and other budget carriers you have in many G8 nations. The only exception would probably be the average age of the aircraft, as those operated by SW will be some 7-8 years older (on average) than those you will find on the largest low cost carriers operating in the developed nations.

I don't know whether it was/is SW or some other airline; but I was always woken up by the noise of take offs @ AEP (I normally stay in Recolleta area.

Does SW fly to Mar del Plata inexpensively ? Sould save a 4-5 hr bus ride :)