Argentina

Buenos Aires:

Note: I was only in Buenos Aires for 2.5 days. In my suggestions below, I have included some places I didn’t have the chance to visit, but that were highly suggested by my friends who studied abroad in Buenos Aires. These suggestions are in italics.

Things To Do:

Biking Food Tour: I did a food bike tour around Buenos Aires with BA Bikes. It was a great way to learn about the city, the food and the history. If you can ride with Danny Boy, I would definitely recommend! He was a great guide.
Casa Rosada: Office of President Macri, located in beautiful Plaza de Mayo, very historical site, and if you book early enough you can tour the inside.
Mercado de San Telmo: Famous antique market, stretching down all of Calle Defensa, you can find great handcrafted goods and amazing food. There’s usually live tango dancing in the street near Plaza Dorrego during the market. Watch out for pick pockets!
Visit La Boca neighborhood: Colorful houses with live Tango in the streets. Ask the cab to take you to “El Caminito,” but don’t stray outside tourist part, it’s not safe.
Cementerio de Recoleta: One of the most famous cemeteries in the world, where politicians, aristocrats and famous Argentinians have been buried for centuries — Evita Peron’s grave is definitely worth visiting. There’s a fair outside in Plaza Francia on Saturdays and Sundays with local artisan crafts.
El Ateneo Grand Splendid: A grand theatre converted into a bookstore with a
café on stage.
Dance Tango at a Milonga (place where locals come to dance)
Teatro Colón: One of most famous Opera houses in the world, you can tour inside.

Food / Drinks:

La Cabrera: Fantastic steakhouse and an absolute must-go. I would recommend getting the ribeye and the mashed potatoes. The mashed potatoes are the best potatoes I have ever had. You need to make a reservation at least a week in advance.
Rebelion: Good Mediterranean food.
Victoria Brown Bar: Great speakeasy bar.
Guerrín: Best pizza in Buenos Aires. Get the pizza with a piece of faene on the side. Faene is a topping made of corn, similar to polenta.
Chori: One of the famous choripan restaurants. Choripan is a type of sausage.
Parque: Cool vibe, good place to get drinks.
Boticario: Fun place to get drinks, the bar is themed like an old pharmacy.
MOOI: Very trendy, great food, outdoor seating and multiple locations.
Oui Oui: They don’t take reservations and since the food is so good there is always a line out the door but it goes by pretty quickly. The restaurant has a very sweet and comforting ambiance on the inside. There is also outdoor seating, which I would definitely recommend. Try the lemonade.
Olsen: Great food and the restaurant is very chic and modern. The outside is hard to miss because it is all made of wood and once you pass the front door, you enter a beautiful garden leading into the restaurant.
Sottovoce: Amazing Italian restaurant with nice atmosphere on the water in Puerto Madero.
Fabrica Del Taco: Great Mexican place, amazing guac, open late night.
Museo Evita Restaurant: A very sophisticated and beautiful spot. You can either sit inside or in the big garden outside. The food is good but pricey. You can make reservations.
General:
- The wine is so good and so cheap. For red, have Malbec from Mendoza region. For white, have Torrentes from Salta
- Try Argentine chimichurri
- Try Dulce de Leche – very sweet creamy caramel sauce
- Eat empanadas whenever you have a chance! Most empanadas are made with beef, but there are varieties with chicken, corn, etc. I found that many empanadas have hard boiled eggs in them.

Accommodation:

I would recommend staying in Palermo Soho. My family and I stayed at Shoshana Apart Boutique hotel. It was a nice hotel that was centrally located.

Notes:

Be VERY careful with taxi drivers. They will try to rip you off. Do your best to speak Spanish with them. Buenos Aires was the 45th country I visited and the first place that I got ripped off. A taxi driver charged me $116 instead of $16.
Tipping: It’s customary to tip 10% at restaurants in Argentina.
Currency: Argentinian Peso
If you have time, I would also suggest taking a day trip to Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay.

El Calafate:

Things To Do:

Note: I only stayed in El Calafate for one day, just to visit the southern portion of Parque Nacional Los Glaciares. Parque Nacional Los Glaciares extends north to El Chalten, where I hiked Fitz Roy.

Visit Parque Nacional Los Glaciares and the Perito Moreno Glacier: There are three options when visiting the glacier: Nautical Safari, Mini-Trekking or Big Ice. I would recommend doing Mini-Trekking or Big Ice. On the Nautical Safari trip you don’t get to walk on the glacier, where you do in Mini-Trekking or Big Ice. The difference between Mini-Trekking and Big Ice is that Mini-Trekking includes a boat ride in front of the glacier and a 1.5 hour walk on the glacier, where Big Ice doesn’t include the boat ride but is a 3 hour walk on the glacier.

Food:

Parrilla Don Pichon: Great steakhouse with a variety of non-meat options. I would recommend trying the Patagonian lamb. Make a reservation before going.
Restaurante La Cocina: Good Italian food right on the main strip.
I would NOT recommend going to La Lechuza Pizza y Pastas. It’s a very popular place according to Trip Advisor, but we were very disappointed with the food, especially when we never had a bad meal in Patagonia.
Eat empanadas whenever you have a chance! Most empanadas are made with beef, but there are varieties with chicken, corn, etc. I found that many empanadas have hard boiled eggs in them.
In general, the local diet is very meat heavy.

Accommodation:

Hostería los Hielos: About 5 minutes driving outside of town. Nice view of the lake and mountains.

What to Bring / Wear:

In Patagonia, you can get all 4 seasons in one hour. The weather changes like crazy and for that reason, the forecast is never accurate. Dress in layers, layers, layers.
Smart wool socks that come above the ankle
Waterproof hiking boots
Rain jacket
Rain pants
Hiking poles – these can be especially helpful when going down steep hills
Sunscreen
Sunglasses
Reusable water bottle – there are many places were can you fill up your water bottle from the streams or waterfalls
Protein bars / snacks
Plastic bag to carry trash; there are no garbage cans along the hiking trails
Portable charger

El Chalten:

Things To Do:

Hike along Río Blanco – Mt. Fitz Roy: A long but worth it hike. Breathtaking views at the end, but make sure you go to the second lake! This is the view that the Patagonia logo is based off of.
Cerro Torre Trail to Laguna Torre: I didn’t end up doing this hike because of the weather, but it’s one of the famous hikes in El Chalten. It’s rated a moderate hike.

Food:

Maffia Trattoria: Fantastic Italian food / homemade pasta. They have the best onion soup I have ever had (might be the best soup I have ever had).
LaCerve: Great menu with a variety of food, great atmosphere.
Eat empanadas whenever you have a chance! Most empanadas are made with beef, but there are varieties with chicken, corn, etc. I found that many empanadas have hard boiled eggs in them.
In general, the local diet is very meat heavy.

Notes on El Calafate and El Chalten:

Cell service was good in El Calafate but very spotty in El Chalten.
All the locals drink mate (yerba mate), which is a traditional drink that tastes like strong green tea but gives you energy like coffee. The locals drink it out of a special cup with a special straw. Definitely try it! And don’t be surprised when you see that everyone drinks from the same straw, it’s a drink that meant to be shared by everyone.
Bring layers! I always I had 5 top layers and 2 bottom layers with me. For my top layers, I wore a long-sleeve ski base layer, a Patagonia fleece zip-up, a down vest, my Arcteryx jacket and then my rain coat. For the bottom layer, I wore yoga pants (many people wear thermal leggings) and then my rain pants.
I packed everything I needed for 2 weeks in an Osprey EJA 58 liter backpack. I found it very convenient to have a backpack and not a suitcase.
For a day hiking backpack, I used the Osprey Sirrus 24 liter pack. I thought this was the perfect day pack. I would recommend getting a back that has pole holders and pockets on the hip band.
You will see that a lot of places have windows covered in stickers from around the world. If you have a sticker you like, bring a few to leave!
Tipping: It’s customary to tip 10% at restaurants in Argentina.
Currency: Argentinian Peso

Background photo taken in La Boca, Buenos Aires, Argentina.