Buying A Plane Ticket In Cash (Blue Pesos) To Save Money?

[ajl1239]

Hi all,

I'm new to the forum -- thank you for the great resources! Would it be possible to purchase a plane ticket (either direct from an airline office or through a travel agent) in pesos (purchased with blue dollars) in order to save significant money on a flight? What problems might one encounter who attempts to reduce the excessive cost of a one-way ticket to the USA by purchasing a flight in this manner?

(Also, any other ideas for purchasing a one-way ticket to the USA from Argentina or Chile without breaking the bank.)

Thanks so much!
Anthony

 

[glasgowjohn]

we purchased air tickets from aerolineas argentinas in pesos at their office in the city center , last month.

quite a few people doing the same thing.

 

[Bajo_cero2]

Travel agencies normally doesn t accept pesos cash (despegar, asatej), you need an AR credit card and you pay at the official dollar rate.
I suggest you go to aerolineas as was adviced.

 

[Ikaros]

A month ago I purchased a plane ticket in cash at the travel agent on Santa Fe (right next to Plaza San Martin, walking towards San Martin square on your right side).
I dont know the name of the agent but it is a chain, there are several branches across town.

 

[GS_Dirtboy]

Most of the time - at least for US airlines - the round trip ticket was the same price as the one-way.

 

[pablosailor]

If your schedule is FLEXIBLE, I think a good way to purchase one-way flights from South America to North America is to use frequent flier miles on American Airlines. Maybe it would work as well, or even better, with other frequent flier programs but I am only familiar with American Airlines Advantage program.

On American Airlines Advantage they have low season periods and high season periods, for award travel. There are two low-season periods during each year. The first low season period runs from March 1-May 31, and the second low-season period runs from Aug 15-November 30. During the low-season periods a person can fly one-way from Buenos Aires to anywhere in the U.S.A. or Canada for as little as 20,000 miles. If you are interested PM me and I will send you the details.

 

[Joe]

If your schedule is FLEXIBLE, I think a good way to purchase one-way flights from South America to North America is to use frequent flier miles on American Airlines. Maybe it would work as well, or even better, with other frequent flier programs but I am only familiar with American Airlines Advantage program.

On American Airlines Advantage they have low season periods and high season periods, for award travel. There are two low-season periods during each year. The first low season period runs from March 1-May 31, and the second low-season period runs from Aug 15-November 30. During the low-season periods a person can fly one-way from Buenos Aires to anywhere in the U.S.A. or Canada for as little as 20,000 miles.

I've done this many times and considering the high prices of LatAm tickets it's a great deal. You can fly non-stop to Dallas, Miami, and New York last time I checked.

 

[recoleta]

Not sure about a cheap one way ticket to the States but you can go into practically any travel agency and pay in pesos cash. I have done that many times. Even the online agencies, like Despegar, allow you to pay cash - they hold the reservation for 24 hours in which time you go to the bank and deposit the cash into their account. I have done that, too

 

[ajl1239]

Cheers for all the advice, friends! Buttttt, is there some sort of foreigner-tax that Argentina charges for airline tickets? Will I get docked with this at the airport? Can someone please explain this tax to me and how I can make sure that I am not going to be surprised?

 

[joemama]

So we just went to the Aerolinas office on Corrientes and were told we had to pay with a credit card...

Anybody know if it is possible at all to pay for flights in cash in ba?