We spent some time in South America earlier this year so I thought I’d share how much we spent. I am NOT trying to be a travel blogger (actually maybe I am – sounds like a dream job). However, travel is a passion of mine and I’ve always enjoyed reading about other people’s trips and especially how much it cost them so I thought I’d share our experience.
We spent 13 nights total in Argentina and 1 night in Uruguay. We only pre-booked our first accommodation in Buenos Aires. Because it was a last minute trip, we didn’t have much else organized.
Our Itinerary looked like this:
Day 1-4: Buenos Aires – We ate like kings, visited Recoleta Cemetary, walked a TON, visited the El Ateneo Bookstore, San Telmo Market, had a walking tour of La Boca and did a stadium tour of the Boca Juniors Stadium.
Day 5-6: Montevideo, Uruguay – We took the ferry from Buenos Aires to Montevideo. Spent one night in Montevideo and then the next day took a bus from Montevideo to Colonia del Sacramento and then the ferry back in the evening to Buenos Aires. While Uruguay was beautiful, I don’t recommend visiting it for this short of a trip. It’s an expensive ferry. If you have the time, spend more days here.
Day 7-8: Iguazu Falls – We flew from Buenos Aires to Iguazu Falls and spent a day in the park exploring. Iguazu Falls was incredible. I’m so glad we spent the money to make it up there.
Day 9-10 – El Calafate – Aside from all the friendly street dogs this town wasn’t really my scene (felt like we were in Whistler, BC). However, Perito Moreno Glacier was like nothing I’d ever seen before and experiencing Patagonia should be on everyone’s bucket list.
Day 11-14 – El Chalten – This may have been my favorite area we visited. El Chalten is a tiny (seriously, one street) mountain town with nothing to do but hike. We stayed in a small individual cabin. We hiked, we ate, drank wine. It was absolutely perfect.
After El Chalten we crossed into Chile which I’ll save for another post.
So what did we spend?
All of the costs above are for 2 people.
Transportation: $1,501 – You’re probably thinking this includes our flights to Buenos Aires… it doesn’t. I actually didn’t include that cost because the cost would be so different depending on where you are in the world, but I will say, it wasn’t cheap. The bulk of this ($942) is our flight from BA to Iguazu and then from Iguazu to El Calafate. The remaining amount is for buses and taxis and ferries. The ferries to and from Uruguay cost $258 – which is why I say it’s not worth it for a one day trip.
Lodging: $769 – I feel like this is a reasonable amount for 2 people. I also broke this down into mid-range and budget. Budget refers to a hostel, but where we had our own private-room and bathroom. Mid-range includes our cabin in El Chalten and proper hotel in Iguazu.
Budget: $323 (8 nights)
Mid-Range: $446 (6 nights)
Food: $659 – Approx $23 per person per day. And we ate WELL. Many nights there were steak and wine and a few mornings there were waffles and pancakes. It is fairly cheap to eat in Argentina (not so much in Uruguay) and we took advantage of it. Also $597 of this was for restaurants and only $62 was for groceries. We’re lazy.
Activities: $90 – Parks & tours
Other: $12 – Some toiletries and a power adapter we paid all of $1.61 for.
One night (and 2 days) in Uruguay actually cost us $413. The ferries were expensive, and the food isn’t as cheap as Argentina. I’d say this is my biggest, and only financial regret of the trip.
All in, 2 weeks in Argentina cost $1,515 per person.
$108 per day (per person).
The above amount sounds like a lot. It is. If you have more time you can avoid air travel and take buses which would save you a substantial amount. Eating and sleeping can be done cheaply, but if you’re flying (or ferrying) around the country you’ll need to spend some extra $$. You could also find cheaper accommodations, but I have no interest in sharing a bathroom with a stranger.
If you’re interested, here’s some info on where we slept and ate:
Buenos Aires – Circus Hotel & Hostel. We had a private room and bathroom here. The hostel was fine. San Telmo area is nice but I don’t think I’d stay here again as I enjoyed other areas more. That said, we ate at the San Telmo Market almost every day so I’m grateful we discovered that.
Montevideo – See above. Yep, we stayed at the Circus Hostel & Hotel in Montevideo. This was in a good location and again we had a private room and bathroom.
Iguazu Falls – Grand Crucero Hotel. This was probably the nicest hotel we stayed at. It wasn’t fancy but we had a nice big room and the hotel had a rooftop pool with beautiful views and we paid $70 USD per night.
El Calafate – Schilling Hostel . Another hostel where we had a private room and bathroom. The hostel was pretty old but it was clean and cozy and the staff was wonderful. I’d definitely stay here again.
El Chalten – Cabanas Austral. This place was nothing fancy but absolutely perfect. Walking around town you can see there are so many cabins and tiny homes to stay in here.
MUST EATS:
– Steak. It’s hard to avoid steak. The first time we ordered one I was surprised to see that it was completely unseasoned. But the meat is SO good that it doesn’t even need any seasoning. It’s usually served with a chimichurri sauce on the side.
– Provoleta – Grilled cheese. Not the sandwich, just the cheese. Do it.
– Choripan – See below
– Alfajores – Go to Havanna.
Restaurants:
Choripaneria – Located in San Telmo Market. Very casual quick eat. Highly recommend. Best sausage I’ve ever eaten.
Tostada Cafe Club – This is a chain you can find all over Buenos Aires. We just had toast and cappuccinos here but it was perfect.
Gran Parilla Del Plata – We’re not big meat eaters but we consumed a LOT of meat in Argentina. It’s hard not to. Eating at a proper steakhouse is a must and this place did not disappoint. We shared a steak, salad, potatoes, provoleta and a 1/2 bottle of Malbec. We were also given a glass of complimentary champagne while we waited for our table and our bill was only $37 USD.
San Telmo Market – I can’t find a website for this place but I’m referring to the permanent market, not the Sunday outdoor market. Just about anything you find to eat at this market will be delicious.
