Argentina budget

Hello all,

My girlfriend and i are going to spend 2 months in Argentina. Bariloche,Piedra Parada and El chalten. We are bringing a tent so we can go trekking and camp near the climbing spots.

How much should we expect to bring in USD knowing that we have to open a Western Union to transfer ourself monney to get the blue rate.

Also any reccomandation on cheap hostel/travel tips in those area would be helpful

Thanks

Others can comment on how much, but when we travel to Argentina (we have family there) we bring cash in US dollars. And we make sure the dollars are in perfect condition—not bent, crunched, or with writing or stains on them. $100 bills seem to be the most desired. Once in country, a family member who lives there helps us find someone to trade for pesos, then we pay cash for everything. If you use your credit card you will get the official exchange rate which is something like half the “dólar blue”. Ideally, you can find someone in-country you trust (a local or another traveler who has been there a while) to help you with finding a trusted trader (there are many) as tourists  and foreign visitors make good marks.
With elections this month it will be interesting to see what the politicians come up with to “fix” the economy. One candidate in particular promises to take some pretty drastic measures.

• Thank you for taking the time to reply.

Those are the 3 locations that we went to. A month in each. We did airbnbs in bariloche and el chaltan (not cheep).  Pedra parada is cheep tent camping in a cow pasture. Bring tons of food when you go out there as there are no stores. We shopped for food in Esquel and then stayed 2 weeks at pedra parada. Don't bathe in or drink the river water. People get sick from it even though the locals say it's fine. I could go on and on...I loved the climbing there! Have fun. 

Bumping this up cause things have changed in the last couple years (and will probably change dramatically very soon with Milei). Especially in Chalten, you can exchange any amount of USD to pesos at the blue market rate at almost any business in town. In 2023, Visa and Mastercard also just started offering an almost blue market rate on any transaction - you are initially billed the government rate, but then they hit you with a refund later.