We have been to BA twice in the last 3 years and bought wonderful custom made leather jackets from SILVIA y MARIO at the end of Florida opposite the Marriott..Wonderful service .Measured on tues ,ready by thur..they even shipped another to the U.S for a relative who admired our purchase..Same size so they got it to us in 2 weeks..VERY REASONABLE ...

Barry, what does very reasonable mean?

I just got in this forum by coincidence. Leather in BA??? Barry, you got the answer: SILVIA and MARIO.Across from the Marriot Marcelo T de Alvear 550 BA. The best leather, i got cashmere and silk sweaters for very reasonable prices and I got a lambskin leather jacket, beautiful and good price. But overall, the service you get there is wonderful. I was helped by several employees and Silvia herself and her son and daugther. I was taken upstairs where they have their factory. Leave your order and you will have it in a few days. Believe me, we spend hours there and later in the afternoon we were served with nice treats. Dont hesitate to email me with questions. I walk all over Florida avenue and we felt the most comfortable at Silvia and Mario...

I second all of that from humphrey and we also got to go upstairs to the "factory" and pick out the leather and buttons and even design our jackets and coats and a vest....We also bought several sweaters.I think we spent on an average of about $150.00/item .I am sure that is about 70%s less than anything I have seen here for a custom fitted anything.

Out of curiosity, I pullout my VISA statements. My wife bought two jackets from Casa Lopez last April for u$376 (a$1090) and u$548.84 (a$1590). These include the VAT tax that we received the refund at a later time.

I do not know what kind she bought. But, I know that they are not made out of gold.

We must do better this time.

I also bought a beautiful red leather jacket at Casa Lopez. It was around $500 US but is not like anything I will see at home. I didn't want an ordinary black leather jacket like the ones I see in US stores.

You see, I can justify anything!

I bought a beautiful reversible zip-up goatskin jacket at Silvia & Mario. It was custom made with all the changes I wanted and mailed to me in the states. It's feather light and fashionista friends say it's worth at least double what I paid in BA.

Apart fr gd leather - what are their other styles like (in clothes)? I'm petite & in some countries I can't shop. I was told by an Argentinian shoe repairer that Argentinian leather is better than Italian, though someone else reckons Turkey has the best leather.

I would think that Argentina would be a cheap destination right now...correct me if I'm wrong.

Argentina was a cheap destination two or three years ago. It is still somewhat inexpensive, but costs have gone up, particularly for tourist related services such as airfare and hotels. Airlines that offer domestic flights in Argentina restrict foreigners to the purchase of full fare tickets, which means the cost of a ticket is often higher than for flights of the same distance within the United States. The same is true with many hotels, with foreigners often paying more in Buenos Aires than in New York....particularly for the international chain hotels such as Sofitel.

Argentina as a bargain travel destination is much more of a challenge these days, but it is still a beautiful country.....

Meals and ground transportation are still very inexpensive.