HOTELS DIRECTORY IN ARGENTINA (BUENOS AIRES)

5 STARS

Alvear Palace Hotel
1891 Avenida Alvear,
Recoleta,
Buenos Aires C1129AAA,
Argentina
Phone: 54 11 4808 2100
Fax: 54 11 4804 0034
Email: info@alvearpalace.com
Website: www.alvearpalace.com

Aspen Tower Hotel
857 Paraguay,
Buenos Aires C1057AAK,
Argentina
Phone: 54 11 4313 1919
Fax: 54 11 4313 2662
Email: sales@aspentowers.com.ar
Website: www.aspentowers.com.ar

Caesar Park Buenos Aires Hotel
1232 Posadas Street,
Capital Federal,
Buenos Aires 1011,
Argentina
Phone: 54 11 4819 1296
Fax: 54 11 4819 1121
Email: aaairoldi@ceasar.com.ar
Website: www.caesar-park.com

Claridge Hotel
535 Tucuman,
Buenos Aires C1049AAK,
Argentina
Phone: 54 11 4314-7700
Fax: 54 11 4314-8022
Email: inforeservas@claridge.com.ar
Website: www.claridge.com.ar

Emperador Hotel
420 Avenida Del Libertador,
Recoleta,
Buenos Aires C1001ABR,
Argentina
Phone: 54 11 4131 4000
Fax: 54 11 41313900
Email: info@hotel-emperador.com.ar
Website: www.hotel-emperador.com.ar

Faena Hotel Plus Universe
445 Martha Salotti Street,
San Telmo Quarter,
Buenos Aires C1107CMB,
Argentina
Phone: 30 6290 1111
Email: res@designhotels.com
Website: www.designhotels.com

Feirs Park Hotel
1366 Esmeralda,
Barrio Norte,
Buenos Aires C1007ABT,
Argentina
Phone: 54 11 4131 1900
Fax: 54 11 4131 1950
Website: www.feirspark.com.ar

Four Seasons Hotel
1086 Posadas,
La Recoleta,
Buenos Aires 1011,
Argentina
Phone: 54 11 4321-1200
Fax: 54 11 4321-1201
Website: www.fourseasons.com

Hilton Buenos Aires Hotel
351 Macacha Guemes,
Puerto Madero
Buenos Aires C1106,
Argentina
Phone: 54 11 48910000
Fax: 54 11 48910001
Website: www.hilton.com

Nh Florida Hotel
839 San Martin Florida Street,
Buenos Aires C1004AAQ,
Argentina
Phone: 54 11 4321.9850
Fax: 54 11 4328 4855
Email: nhflorida@nh-hotels.com
Website: www.nh-hotels.com

Park Tower Hotel
1193 Avenida Leandro N. Alem,
Buenos Aires 1001,
Argentina
Phone: 54 11 4318 9100
Website: www.starwoodhotels.com

Read more on Allo' Expat Argentina.

Estancia Tour - Gaucho Party

Our trip steers outside the city.
As we are going, the landscape stars changing.
The plain and plateau gain an important place. We are in the PAMPEAN region.
During the trip, our tourist guides will give you the most important details about the Gaucho life until we arrive to the Ranch.
The gauchos will receive us with a warm and polite welcome to their RANCH.
Following the arrival they will give us empanadas (a typical Argentine meal) juices and local wines.
You can ride horses and enjoy a ride in a colonial carriage.
At midday we will have a delicious lunch based on “RANCH TRADITIONAL BARBECUE” with a wide variety of salads.
The lunch includes sodas, water, beer and wine for free. During the meal, a folkloric show with the most attractive dances of the region will take place.
During the afternoon, you will see spectacular demonstrations: ring races and troop rides.
To conclude this trip they will invite us with a typical afternoon meal based on pies and mate.
AN UNFORGETTABLE DAY TO ENJOY THE GAUCHO LIFE !!!

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Gaucho Tipical dance

Read more on Buenos Aires Times.

GeoCulture - Argentina video

See more videos on Youtube.

Nightlife Etiquette in Buenos Aires

A night on the town in Buenos Aires is reliably fun-filled. But before heading out for your first night, here are a few guidelines to ensure that you enjoy the night as thoroughly as possible:

Don’t plan on arriving to a club before 2am. Although this is typically when bars and clubs close for the night in other countries, dance clubs typically don’t begin to get busy before this time in Buenos Aires.

Don’t balk at having to pay a cover charge (entrada) at major bars and clubs here in Buenos Aires. Often these charges will come with a free drink or two (consumisión).

Don’t hesitate to immediately hop onto the dance floor and start shakin’ that thang! Most visitors to dance clubs are there to dance (not just to drink). So get out there and enjoy yourself!

Tipping the bartender more than a peso or two is not standard practice in Buenos Aires. An exception to this rule, however, is a request for a stiff drink (bien fuerte or bien cargado). In these cases, be sure to be a bit more generous with your tipping.

Be aware of the fact that it is considered poor form to drink too much, especially in fancy night clubs. Sloppy drunkenness and scrappy bar fights are frowned upon entirely, and almost never occur.

Single women should be prepared to meet a myriad of interested suitors who seemingly won’t take no for an answer. Women should never hesitate to frankly tell an unwelcome on-comer to buzz off. Don’t worry, it won’t be perceived as rude.

Finish reading about it on LandingPad BA.

Disabled Travellers

Argentina is developing an industry of accesible tourism industry. There has been disabled rights legislation here since 1982, in 2002, began to implement and to improve tourist facilities for travelers with disabilities, this facilities are concentrated in big cities. Public buildings and main tourist centres access ramps or lifts, but in damage of this, some sidewalks in the city are crumbling. Only four - and five - stars hotels, offers rooms designed for disabled travelers. Hotels are renovating their structures, this is a sign that tourism for travellers with special needs is becoming a priority.

Disables travellers should visit the elegant neighbourhood of Recoleta, the fine Arts Museum, the Centro of Buenos Aires, in certain hours, some streets become crowded, and is a little difficult to pass. Fortunately, several people are ready to help.

The Famous Iguazu waterfalls are one of the national parks of maximum accessibility for disabled visitors, has access ramps in all the buildings in the complex, accessible footbridges. Tourist could take the Green Train to the Jungle which has recently been made weelchair-accessible.

In adventure, there are also adapted skiing programs for people with disabilities, with specialized instructors and equipment hire available, at Bariloche and in the mountain village of San Martín de los Andes; a city that always is optimizing its accessibility conditions and with people very hospitable. Destinations as Arrayanes, Los Glaciares, Peninsula Valdes, Tierra del Fuego and other national parks are improving their accessibility.


ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Miusa Mobility International USA
Telephone: (541) 343-1284 (Tel/TTY)
Fax: (541) 343-6812

MossRehab Hospital
Provides assistance of accessible-travel resources online
Telephone: (215) 456-9603
Email: staff1@mossresourcenet.org

SATH (Society for Accessible Travel & Hospitality
Offers travel resources (destinations, travel agents, tour operators, vehicle rentals, access guides, and more) for people with disabilities.
Telephone: (212) 447-7284
Fax: (212) 725-8253
Email: info@sath.org

AFB American Foundation for the Blind
Offers resources for the blind or visually impaired, includes information on traveling with Seeing Eye dogs.
Telephone: (800) AFB-LINE or (800) 232-5463
Email: afbinfo@afb.net


SPECIALIST TRAVEL COMPANIES

Decthird
Telephone: (54) 911 4182 - 5469
Email: marcelo@decthird.com

Amapi Expeditions
Telephone: +56 9 9179365;
Email: organisation@amapiexpeditions.com

Transpdisc "Transporting People with Disabilities since 1996"
Telephone: (15) 4446-9883 (Local calls)
Telephone: (54 - 9 - 11) 4446-9883 (International calls)
E-Mail info@transpdisc.com.ar

Book Review: ‘Che Boludo: A Gringo’s Guide to Understanding the Argentines’

By James Bracken, Ediciones Continente, 30 pesos, 61 pages Reviewed by Stephen Page

On a recent sunny spring day, while wandering the streets of Buenos Aires, searching for a café where I could sit outside at a table and sip an espresso while looking at the passers-by (a popular Argentine custom), I detoured into a bookstore.

On the very first shelf I came to, I found a pocket-sized book titled Che Boludo, with the subtitle: A Gringo’s Guide to Understanding the Argentines.

I opened the book and discovered it was a dictionary of sorts, filled with words I had never read before. The words were contemporary Argentine slang, and the definitions were in English. “What a great find,” I thought.

After a decade of living in Argentina, I have been missing some of the slang while talking with friends, or at Sunday family get-togethers (they don’t teach Argentine slang at US universities, or in most of the Castellano classes offered in Buenos Aires). I was growing tired of repeatedly asking, “What? What does that mean?”

The title of the book translates to, “Hey Idiot!” or “Hey Buddy!” or “Hey Friend!”—depending on to whom you’re talking and your tone of voice. “Boludo” literally means “one with big testicles,’which does not mean “ballsy” or “brave,” but instead denotes a lack of cerebral functions. In Argentina, the young as well as the old use slang. You might hear an elderly man with a cane standing on the street corner waiting for the green crossing light mutter “¡miercoles!”—which translates to “shit” or “Goddamnit” or “hell”; you might hear a sophisticated woman in a fur coat call her husband’s new secretary a “puta” (whore) or a “babosa” (horny woman) even if she knows bystanders are listening to her; you might hear a teenager say to his brother, “No me hinchés las pelotas,” which means, connotatively, “don’t be a pain”—but denotatively means, well . . . you’ll have to read the book to know that one.

The book also contains drawings of the more popular hand gestures Porteños use—gestures that have risqué yet non-offensive meanings.

To read more go to The Argentine Post

Andes Air - Cheap Flights

I flew Andes Air during the July vacation period when I had family in town. We flew from Buenos Aires to Salta during the high-season and paid around 800 pesos round trip which was a significant savings from other airlines. (FYI: Taking the 22 hour bus was about 650 pesos round trip.)

Andes serves the Northwest Region, Iguazú and Puerto Madryn. I was initially pretty nervous to fly an airline that I had never heard of before, but after talking to a travel agent friend they assured me that it is a legit company.

Although their website is pretty terrible and they sometimes don´t answer their phone (oh Argentina!) I am satisfied with the service. The plane was much bigger than expected -- 3 seats on each side of plane!

Even better is that they did not charge a different price for foreigners, it was all the same fare! If you travel in low season they had some excellent promotions as well.

Here´s the link: http://www.andesonline.com/

I would recommend going to the agency in person to book the tickets. It is located on Córdoba 755.

To read more go to budgetba.blogspot

From the North of Argentina to the World!

Check out more pics on Flickr.

Buenos Aires Custom Itinerary, from $5

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Check out this new way of travelling around Buenos Aires on LandingPad BA.

Valles Calchaquíes. Go visit the North of the country!!!

This immense extension of land including the provinces of Catamarca, Tucumán, and Salta offers a marvelous landscape, winding roads, and coloured hillsides. In each of the small villages lying in the valleys, our ancestors seem to have left their traces engraved on the rocks.

Santa María, “Capital of the Calchaquíes Valleys”, was one of the main settlements of the millenary Yocavile Indian tribe, and many remains of this culture can be found today in this picturesque town.

Tucumán’s strikingly beautiful jungle is part of the valleys’ amazing landscape. Rivers, waterfalls, and rapids run through Tafi del Valle, located at 1,976 meters above sea level. This region was inhabited thousands of years ago, and its valleys are rich in archaeological remains. El Mollar, a summertime villa, is lined with lush, green valleys. Amaicha del Valle, surrounded by bright reddish hills, is typically known for its religious ceremonies.

In Cafayate, San Carlos, Angastaco, Molinos y Cachi, Spanish traditions and customs are still kept, specially in relation to art, architecture, as well as religious imagery.

Visit the Secretariat of Tourism.

Mate-Argentina's National Drink video

How to prepare an Argentine mate!



Check put more videos on Youtube.

Introducing Reserva Provincial Esteros del Iberá

This stunning wetland reserve is home to an abundance of bird and animal life, and is one of the finest places to see wildlife in South America. Although tourism has been increasing substantially in recent years, Esteros del Iberá remains comparatively unspoiled. The main base for visiting the park is the sleepy village of Colonia Pellegrini, 120km northeast of Mercedes; it offers a variety of excellent accommodations and trips to the reserve. Another, less-visited place to base yourself is Galarza, 80km further north.

The lakes and esteros are shallow, fed only by rainwater, and thick with vegetation. Water plants and other vegetation accumulate to form embalsados (dense floating islands), and this fertile habitat is home to a stunning array of life. Sinister black caimans bask in the sun while busy capybaras feed around them. Other mammals include the beautiful orange-colored marsh deer, howler monkeys (officially the world’s noisiest animal), the rare maned wolf, coypu, otters and several species of bat.

There are some 350 species of bird present in the reserve, including colorful kingfishers, delicate hummingbirds, parrots, spoonbills, kites, vultures, several species of egret and heron (including the magnificent rufescent tiger-heron), cormorants, ducks, cardinals and the enormous southern screamer, which would really light up Big Uncle Bob’s eyes at a Christmas roast. Ibera: Vida y Color (AR$18), on sale at La Cabaña, among other places, has beautiful photos of most of the birds, plants and animals you may see.

It’s a delicate ecosystem, and environmentalists are understandably anxious that it not be harmed. To this end, US entrepreneur and environmentalist Doug Tompkins has been buying up large tracts of land around the reserve and proposes to donate them to the Argentine government if it guarantees national park status for the area.

Learn more on Lonely Planet.