Buenos Aires Travel Answers

ATM's work fine. US dollars are not likely to be accepted by taxis and restaurants, more likely at hotels and stores.

Outside of cruise ship ports, you usually want to deal in the currency of the country you are in for the best rate. ATMs or credit cards are the best way to do business rather than exchanging US currency (although I usually bring a small amount just in case). Even if you do find someone willing to take USD, they will not be giving you a good exchange rate. Notify your bank/credit card issuer before traveling otherwise they could put a hold on your account

The above is sound advice - and credit cards are also very widely accepted, and usually provide a slightly better exchange rate.

Use ATM's and a debit card. But first contact your bank about your visit. You may need to sign a waiver or permission slip, depending on the country. A couple of years ago when we visited Italy our bank was not accepting any ATM transactions from Italy due to a surge in attempted fraudulant wire transfers for money. You never know.

If you use ATM remember you will only get Argentinian pesos and if you withdraw several times, you'd have to pay bank charges each time (like my Malaysian bank charges USD4 per withdrawal) - unless, of course, your country's bank doesn't charge. I was in BA midOct for 2 nights enroute to SCL. Taxis will accept USD but the advice I was given by a fellow Argentinian passenger is that it's best to pay in pesos - you can change it at the airport upon arrival, as I did. I brought mostly USD100 bills plus USD200 in smaller denominations - USD50, 20, 10, 5. Try to bring some USD1s for tips when you run out of pesos or don't have the right amount in pesos. I find they are always very useful when travelling abroad, whether in Asia or S America (USD is always welcome) :-)

You can go to the ATMs and pay the international fees (there + here, depending on your bank) If you take bills with you, make sure that they don't have ANY writting on them since they will NOT accept them. Try to go to banks not to exchange places for a security reason. You will need to show your passport in order to do so.

> Try to go to banks not to exchange places for a security reason. The banks were all closed when I went aroung 3pm :( But the money changer gave a good rate. In MY we get better rates at money changers than at banks! ;-)

theclaw: Yes to your question. Always look for a small red "BANELCO" sign on the oustide of a bank, located about 8 feet above the ground. This indicates that the ATM's have optional English language menus. mastercard.com/ar/personal/e... easybuenosairescity.com/curr... Cash Machines or ATM's ---------------------- Cash machines are used by everybody and there are plenty around the city. Every bank has cash machines linked to international networks such as a Cirrus, Plus, MasterCard, Visa, Maestro, Citibank and others. Simply look for the companies’ logos on bank windows and in cash machine booths (aka ATM's).

theclaw: Yes.