Visiting Buenos Aires in August, thoughts?

[tangobob]

I keep a constantly updated list of places to see, as I am often asked when I am home. You are welcome to browse and use a you want. Seems you will have to email me if you want it. This site will not allow.

 

[elhombresinnombre]

Last two weeks in July & the first two in August tend to be the coldest of the year.
Bring cold weather clothes..

Cold is a relative issue. I remember being in the crowd at the Obelisco watching Daniel Barenboim and his orchestra at a free concert a few years ago. It was mid August and the temperature hit 30 degrees. Most winter days you will see people in their scarves and ski jackets because that's what they are used to but it seldom gets cold enough here for this north-European to put on a coat.

 

[Rich One]

Hi all, I have a few questions about whether this plan is even feasible.

We are tentatively planning a trip to Buenos Aires (and area) from July 30 to August 14. We'll be a male/female white couple (~40) from the US, with twin 21 year old girls (asian) - all Americans from the San Francisco Bay Area. We don't want to visit to celebrate the girls' graduation from university, and that's the only time we can all get away, and we don't want to be anywhere hot (like Europe or Asia) during that time. So South America looks good. Only I will speak some Spanish, and not great Spanish at that. The wife and I are pretty seasoned travelers (Cuba, China, etc) but the girls are not very savvy. The plan is to visit BA for a few days (possibly with trips out of town), then to take the boat on a Monday to Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay, and do Montevideo and a wine country tour in Uruguay before heading back on Thursday morning.

The big questions:

(1) How much of a problem will the Spanish deficiency be?
(2) What is the safest part of town to stay in an airbnb?
(3) What are some interesting trips out of town? La Plata?
(4) How safe is the Subte at night?
(5) Is it true that Argentines rarely eat vegetables? One of the girls is a vegetarian and all of the women will be very unhappy if they can't eat vegetables for a day or more.
(6) Which BA neighborhoods should be avoided absolutely?
(7) Are the money troubles over? I read that I can now simply use a bank card and don't need to use the black market to get pesos.
(8) Are bedbugs a problem?
(9) Safe areas for the girls to go alone?
(10) Safe areas to walk as a family at night?
(11) Are parks safe? At night?
(12) The weather should be reliably cool in early August, correct?

The small questions:

(1) Your favorite classic BA cafe? Brasserie? Bistro?
(2) Best shops to get ameri and wine? Like classics and also local/artisanal ameri.
(3) Lesser known regional Argentine restaurants?
(4) Can't miss places to visit that most tourists miss?
(5) Are credit cards more common now than during the crisis?
(6) Can we use our phones? Need sim card? Is internet worth a damn (many say not)?
(7) Is it uncomfortable to walk down the street as a woman (leering, whistling, propositions, staring, tongue gestures/gyrating hips/hip thrusts/asking for sex/other getting in your face)? The girls were in Paris last year and a lot of the guys were relentless, like following them for 100m+ begging them for whatever (granted, these were blacks and Arabs, not Latin Americans, but I've heard it can be bad in Latin America too).
(8) What's fun stuff to do? They'd love to take cooking classes, ride horses, eat and drink, and just generally take it all in. Any suggestions??

Thanks so much for any answers to any of these! It's very much appreciated!

Can refer you to a travel guide, to cover your 20 plus questions about BA? Her rates ar every reasonable! She will spend a few hours answering your queries .

 

[toongeorges]

The tango festival

https://turismo.buenosaires.gob.ar/en/article/international-tango-festival-and-world-cup

 

[Diplomat]

Traveling is all about common sense, reasonable precautions and being aware of your surroundings. BA is not much different then the best neighborhood in Miami Beach, if you carry a Versace designer purse, flashy jewelry and have an Apple X in your hand and are carrying 10 shopping bags your just as likely to run into a problem. BA is relatively safe because it has so many people. I hung out in the park at 2:00 am in Recoletta waiting for my fiance. I would suggest Palermo Soho area, great food, shops and character. A lot of young people close to everything, museums, etc. Have fun.

 

[MikeB12]

(1) How much of a problem will the Spanish deficiency be? Not too much
(2) What is the safest part of town to stay in an airbnb? Recoleta or Puerto Madero
(3) What are some interesting trips out of town? La Plata? Nothing within a few hours is worth it in my opinion.
(4) How safe is the Subte at night? Safe
(5) Is it true that Argentines rarely eat vegetables? One of the girls is a vegetarian and all of the women will be very unhappy if they can't eat vegetables for a day or more. Not true, but meat is a staple.
(6) Which BA neighborhoods should be avoided absolutely? La Boca, Nueva Pompeya.
(7) Are the money troubles over? I read that I can now simply use a bank card and don't need to use the black market to get pesos. Cash is still king, but you can use a card.
(8) Are bedbugs a problem? Not that I know of
(9) Safe areas for the girls to go alone? Anywhere there are other people out...most neighborhoods.
(10) Safe areas to walk as a family at night? Same as above
(11) Are parks safe? At night? Most are closed at night, wouldn't recommend going after dark anyway.
(12) The weather should be reliably cool in early August, correct? Most of the time

 

[MikeB12]

(1) Your favorite classic BA cafe? Brasserie? Bistro? Read all of Ries's posts.
(2) Best shops to get ameri and wine? Like classics and also local/artisanal ameri. ??
(3) Lesser known regional Argentine restaurants? Read Ries posts
(4) Can't miss places to visit that most tourists miss? Don't know
(5) Are credit cards more common now than during the crisis? Fairly common
(6) Can we use our phones? Need sim card? Is internet worth a damn (many say not)? Internet is ok. Buy a sim if you want to use phone.
(7) Is it uncomfortable to walk down the street as a woman (leering, whistling, propositions, staring, tongue gestures/gyrating hips/hip thrusts/asking for sex/other getting in your face)? The girls were in Paris last year and a lot of the guys were relentless, like following them for 100m+ begging them for whatever (granted, these were blacks and Arabs, not Latin Americans, but I've heard it can be bad in Latin America too). Not as bad.
(8) What's fun stuff to do? They'd love to take cooking classes, ride horses, eat and drink, and just generally take it all in. Any suggestions??

 

[sergio]

First, I am completely perplexed by what "ameri" is. Google it, and all I get is a traditional persian family name.

As Nancy said, get a current guidebook.
You are being told, somewhere, a lot of paranoid scare stories.

There is great food, its a world class city, and its safer than downtown Seattle. Or the Tenderloin.
My wife, who is 65, often walks, alone, after midnight, with no qualms.
We take the bus home from clubs at 4 am, and see more single women, alone, than I could imagine being out in any US city.
There are, certainly, a few dangerous neighborhoods, but the vast majority of the city is safer than the Bay Area.

Lots of vegetables.
Read http://pickupthefork.com/
and your daughter will find many great restaurants and markets to buy vegan and vegetarian food.

your biggest problem with your girls is going to be how many pairs of shoes they buy. extra baggage charges.

there are a lot of threads here you can read about places to go, things to see.

La Plata is probably not worth a day trip unless you have particular interests- for instance, there is a great natural history museum, a Corbusier house, and a pretty decent car museum, and the biggest cathedral in Argentina, but, I think you would have more fun with a day trip to San Antonio de Areco.

The cathedral is by far the best in Argentina and probably all of South America. There is also the Teatro Argentino la Plata where there are some classical music performances. Unfortunately not as many as there used to be due to lack of funding.

 

[John Doe]

watch out for DB Cooper.
Colonia is a boring waste of time.I'd rather spend a week in daly city than a day in Colonia. Montevideo isn't too much better..Noy a place to go in the winter.

 

[Ries]

The cathedral is by far the best in Argentina and probably all of South America. There is also the Teatro Argentino la Plata where there are some classical music performances. Unfortunately not as many as there used to be due to lack of funding.

Sergio- I like La Plata. I find the city is also pretty vibrant due to the large number of students, with interesting art, music, crafts, and DIY scene. I just think its not the first place I would recommend for first time visitors to Argentina who are here for a very brief stay.