I have traveled to many countries around the world. Some accept credit cards. Some only deal in cash. Some accept US Dollars. Some only accept local currency. Nowhere, however, I have dealt with a system as weird as Argentina. There are myriad exchange rates.
El Calafate is the gateway to Argentina鈥檚 Patagonia region. However, there isn鈥檛 much to do in this city as such beyond the Perito Moreno Glacier. If you are flying into El Calafate, then I would recommend first going to El Chalt茅n. And then spend your last day in El Calafate before flying out from the airport that鈥檚 less than 20 minutes away by taxi. I took an 11500 AEP guided bus tour to Perito Moreno Glacier that included a pick-up and drop-off back to my hotel. Alternatively, one can take a bus from the bus terminal for 8500 AEP. Apart from that one has to pay 5500 AEP for glacier entry. There is an option to do a 1-hour boat tour of the glacier for 8000 AEP. And for 70,000 AEP, one can hike on the glacier. However, I had done that earlier in Alaska, so, I decided to skip that. ...
El Chalt茅n, a small town in Patagonia, Argentina is a hiking heaven. There are three major hiking paths in El Chalt茅n, and all of them are easily accessible from the town. One is located in the south, the other two are in the north-west and north-east side of the town, respectively. Here鈥檚 my recommendation on how to do all those hikes in three days. Day 1 - Tower Lake (Laguna Torre) Start the day with a 20-km round-trip hike to Laguna Torre. If you plan it well, you can even take a walk on the Glacier at the end. The hike is pretty well-marked, and it is hard to miss the trail. It took me about 2-1/2 hours to reach the lake. And a further 30 more mins to reach the final viewpoint, Mirador Maestri. It takes about 6 hours to finish the hike. ...
Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world, is located in the remote Tierra Del Fuego region of Argentina. Despite its remoteness, unlike Alaska, the city is gorgeous and prosperous. The whole city is mostly oriented around one single street (Ave. San Mart铆n). And I would recommend staying close to it. Day 1 - Penguins Ushuaia is a natural home to Penguins. What else could be a better way to start this trip? There are three varieties of penguins - Gentoo, King, and Magellanic. There are only a few King penguins in Ushuaia. Magellanic penguins migrate to Brazil during winter (April onward). While Gentoo stays in Isla Martillo in Ushuaia year-round. ...
There isn鈥檛 a single city in Latin America that鈥檚 as gorgeous as Buenos Aires. The city is aptly termed Paris of Latin America. The city has relatively good public transport. There is a single SUBE card that one needs to use in the expansive bus and metro system of the city. There are two major airports EZE and AEP. EZE is used primarily for flights in the South American region and AEP for international flights outside this region. ...