I spent this last February in Argentina with a side trip to Torrs del Paine in CHile & I loved it. It is a very easy country to travel in and I found it to be relatively stable and encountered no difficulities. In Buenos Aires there are certainly areas that you avoid at night as in any big city and I think it has its share of big city pickpocketers and such. However, on the whole I felt very safe.

It is pretty cheap to travel in although distances are great adn you may need to utilize planes to get to/from places far away simply to save time. I spent the majority of my time in Patagonia and loved it. If you are into landscapes and mtns, glaciers, hiking, etc, then Patagonia is your place.

Food is cheap and highlights include beef, wine, ice cream and lamb. THere is the problem of lack of variety as there is very little seafood, despite the large seacoast. Beef is definately the meat of choice adn they cook it to perfection. Fine dining in Buenos Aires is comparable to New York at 1/3 the cost.

Hope this info is helpful. I have been to other parts of South American and on a whole, Argentina felt more like Europe than the remainder of the continent.

Thanks for the reply. Sounds good.. So what would you recommend then to do in four weeks? I don’t really fancy flying around, so given the distances involved would it be better to only visit one of the countries, and if so which? Sort of seems like staying in Argentina might be good, given the variety of what’s to see, do, eat, and drink.. What would your two cents worth be for a rough itinerary, BTW?..

If you don’t want to fly around then probably sticking to one country or the other is suggested. I really didn’t explore the upper third of the country at all except buenos aires and there is a lot to see there. If you concentrated on that, travel with buses is possible and easy to arrange. There is a huge waterfall area near the border of Brazil which is famous (most fly there from BA but you could bus it over the course of a few days). There is a wine-country region on the western edge in/around Mendoza to explore. The upper east coast south of BA also has a lot to offer as well and is easily accessible via public transit. Bariloche on the western border is a famous resort area in the lakes region and is a popular Argentinan vacation area. Lots of hiking and teh like.

Yeah, Chile is really safe. It’s pretty much just like America or US, although not quite as well-off. You can do the backpacking thing for about $20/day + money for tours, etc. or you can spoil yourself for less than you would at home. If you are wandering around Patagonia, you will probably need to fly. Most people do, so the road maintenance is not great. Flying within Patagonia can generally be accomplished in the $100/flight range.

I really enjoyed Pucon (not quite Patagonia, more in the middle of Chile) and Puerto Natales (for Torres del Paine National Park). I only got to see Ushuaia in Argentina, but I really enjoyed it. There are tons of cheapish daytrips to pretty places.

Chile is the most beautiful place I’ve ever been.

What about Montevideo in Uruguay? Anybody been there? And if so, what’s it like, and how far is it from BA?

I didn’t go there, but you can do it in a daytrip from BA if you want.

Montevideo is about 3 hours away by Ferry ( Buquebus )

About safety, Buenos Aires is like every big city out there, u will find pick pocketers etc.. but if u take the precausions u will have no problem.
Prices here will be really cheap for any North American / European.
The exchange is 1 dollar = 3 pesos / 1 euro = 4 pesos…

so.. money will be no problem.