Prices in BA

[mjd]

I am considering a two-three week visit to Brazil and Argentina arriving in very late December. I've been to Brazil often and have a good sense of where and what to do but no knowledge about Buenos Aires.

 

Years ago I avoided Argentia because of the high cost, but I guess that has all changed. Could sometime tell me what are the costs for hustlers, agency escorts, and sauna boys in Buenos Aires and how that compares to Rio.

 

What would be the cost of a hotel of similar convenient location and quality of accomodation to the Atlantico Copacabana?

[trilingual]

There's a FAQ section here that's full of the info you're asking for. Also, you need to learn to use the "search" function WITHIN the message center, because this info has been discussed extensively. Just use "Buenos Aires" or "B.A." as keywords.

 

The brief answer to your question (because I'm heading out to dinner in a few minutes) is that prices in B.A. now are comparable to those in Brazil and in some cases even cheaper, like taxi fares. So budget whatever you'd budget for Rio and you'll be fine.

[Big Daddy]

Just read an article stating that BA is currently the most reasonably priced city of 70 major cities surveyed. The most expensive was Olso, Norway, followed by Hong Kong and Tokyo.

[trilingual]

Yes, it was a report on a study done every couple of years by UBS, the big Swiss bank, on cost of living and purchasing power in 70-some major world cities. Buenos Aires came in second to last, just coming in ahead of Bombay, which is the world's cheapest city according to the study. In the case of B.A., it's quite a change, because until a couple of years ago, when the Argentine peso was still on the 1-to-1 exchange rate with the dollar, B.A. was the most expensive Latin American capital and a very pricey place to visit.

 

For tourist expenditures I don't think B.A.'s that much cheaper than Rio. Hotel rates and restaurant costs are about the same (hotels may actually be slightly higher in B.A. than in Rio). Escorts are generally a bit more expensive. Taxicabs are surprisingly cheaper. The real and the Argentine peso are almost at par at the moment, but in Rio it costs you around R$2.40 just to get into a cab, whereas it's only about A$1.40 when the meter starts in B.A., which is a noticeable difference. In B.A. it would be hard to spend more than A$4.00 on a cab in the more central parts of town that a visitor is likely to spend time in. That would be US$1.30 or so. Fares frequently are lower, so you can afford to treat yourself when you've tired of walking the streets of Buenos Aires!

[+ glutes]

And where did Reykjavic Iceland land on the study???? I heard from to Brits that they spent $55/USD for a round of drinks!!

[trilingual]

Well, since Reykjavik isn't South of the U.S.A, I didn't look it up. But you can get to the study (which can be downloaded) at http://www.ubs.com