Buenos Aires, Argentina 🇦🇷 Gringo's Guide
Buenos Aires, Argentina 🇦🇷 Gringo's Guide
The most popular city in South America...
As most of you will know by now, Buenos Aires has become one of the most popular destinations in Latin America.
It’s the city that has climbed to the #1 spot on Nomad List.
The extreme low cost of living while still being able to have a high-quality lifestyle with good infrastructure is one of the most appealing factors of La Ciudad de la Furia.
Of course, ideally you want to blend in and not hear gringo chatter on every block you walk on, which can be quite the feat in some popular digital nomad neighborhoods.
In this guide you will learn what to avoid, where to party like a local, and how to do things most gringos usually do not get to experience.
Disclaimer: depending on the popularity of this guide, this last statement is subject to change ;)
Buenos Aires, Argentina 🇦🇷
Population:
Core: 3,120,612
Metro area: 15 million+
Weather:
For most of the year, the weather in Buenos Aires is agreeable. Expect a temperature range of about 45°F to 86°F.
Good news is that the temperature is rarely below 38°F or above 100°F — 2023 being an exception, as it was a real scorcher.
The summer months of December-March, as in most of the Southern Hemisphere, do tend to get quite hot and humid. 86°F and up is standard during the afternoons in the summer months, especially in December and January.
January and February are also the months that most porteños leave the city, and go to the coast to cool off.
This is a positive in the sense that there’s a lot less traffic etc, but the gringo to local ratio will be relatively higher in the city during those months. If you’re staying in BA during the summer, having air conditioning in your rental unit or hotel is an ABSOLUTE must. It’s simply impossible to sleep otherwise, since it doesn’t cool off that much at night.
In terms of weather, the best months to not complete sweat your ass off and still have very nice weather are in spring — September to November, and Autumn — March to May.
The winter months of late June to September are not particularly cold, but not that “South American” — if you’re thinking of warm weather and poolside drinks.
Why Visit Buenos Aires, Argentina?
Buenos Aires, also called the Paris of South America because of the historic buildings from right after the country’s independence, is one of the most beautiful cities to visit in South America.
The city has a very European vibe in terms of architecture — not so strange if you consider that many of these French-style buildings were completely imported from France and later assembled again in BA in the 1870-1910 era.
Besides this, there is simply too much to see and do, and you can roam the city like a true “passport bro” without getting bored. Buenos Aires is also the most cosmopolitan city in Argentina, where besides the classic Argentine steak, you can find restaurants with food from all over the world. This is a lot harder in the rest of Argentina, where options usually boil down to:
Asado/meat dishes
Pizza
Empanadas
Sushi
And of course, the steak prices in Argentina can’t be defeated. Most restaurants will serve you a 400gr bife de chorizo for about $15 USD.
Places that are “haute cuisine” like Don Julio are more expensive, where a bife can set you back $45 USD, but these prices are the exception.
In general, you will notice that life in Buenos Aires is very cheap compared to other metropolitan areas in South America, aside from temporary rentals which have gone up significantly with the increased inflow of gringos.
A base taxi 20-minute taxi ride is about $3 USD.
Costs for groceries, gyms, and nightlife are also on par or cheaper than in other capital cities in the region.
Recommended budget for living well in Buenos Aires is $2500/month — and a lot here really depends on what kind of rental you get, more about that later.
How to Get to Buenos Aires 🇦🇷
Buenos Aires is one of the most used airports in the region after São Paulo.
Argentina is the 2nd country, after Mexico, with most international tourism in latin America.
Most of those gringos enter the country through Buenos Aires. This is because there are many cities with direct flights to Buenos Aires:
Most flights from Europe, except for Amsterdam, London, Paris, Barcelona, Madrid, Rome, Frankfurt will have a connecting flight to get to Buenos Aires.
For US-based readers, there are 5 direct flights:
Atlanta
New York
Dallas
Houston
Miami
So if you are on the west coast you will have to get at least one layover, either through Mexico or Dallas/Houston.
There are many direct flights from neighboring countries, and the additional plus is that if you’re flying in with Aerolíneas Argentinas from Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay or Chile, many flights arrive at the local BA Jorge Newbery airport, which is literally 10 minutes from Palermo — vs. the Ezeiza airport, which is about 45 minutes outside of the city.
Best Neighborhoods in Buenos Aires 🇦🇷
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