Brining cash to Argentina

[rosstheexpat]

Can anyone please answer my second question? With the high inflation rate, does anyone have problems buying/selling items on a daily basis? Do prices change on a daily basis (i've read that some places prices would go up 20% on the next day)? I've heard of the Exchange network (barter) in Argentina, does anyone here have any experience bartering there?

 

[ghost]

Prices change without warning and barter is not very common.

 

[Ries]

prices go up, but not daily.
people deal.
Its not like Zimbabwe or something, where it takes a wheelbarrow of pesos to buy a chicken.

and as long as you have money, how could there be any problem buying things?

as far as barter, its quite rare, but it does exist. I do some barter, for instance, my picture framers sometimes trade me framing for obscure CD's that I bring down from the USA- a lot of older music is either not available at all in Buenos Aires, or else unbelievably expensive- a local band's CD might cost 30 or 40 pesos, and an older American musician's CD can sometimes be 100.
So yeah, I have bartered old Bruce Cockburn CD's for picture framing, for example.
But usually barter in Buenos Aires requires a degree of friendship, based on experience- I have been having these guys frame artwork since 2008.

 

[Bill.Cochabamba]

you are getting great advice! i agree with all the comments.

 

[TomAtAlki]

With a Schwab bank account, you pay nothing in transaction fees -- no ATM access fee, nor any foreign transaction fees. Everything is market rate, and at the end of the day, it's just like taking cash out from an ATM at home.

And FWIW, the best rate given at casas de cambio right now are at 4.32 ARS per dollar, whereas with your Schwab debit card you'd be getting pesos at 4.33.

My Casa de Cambio gives me 4.65 and no fees and no lines. Changing money at a bank was a nightmare.