Travel Agents
 

Has anyone used Argentina Escapes Travel Agency? Also, several Buenos Aires agencies I have contacted want cash up front rather than credit cards. Is this the usual practice? <BR>Thanks for any help

It is the usual practice. In case you haven't heard, the economy of Argentina is in horrific shape, and their currency is not worth anything. I would cauthion you about doing business directly with a company in Argentina. My advice is to use a U.S. agencyor tour company to make the arrangements for you. And be sure to buy travel insurance.

Athena, your post does not help to present a positive image of tourism in Argentina. I´ve never used or heard about that travel agency but I have used Cinthia´s services which are outstanding. I did have to send money from Germany for a trip to Iguassu falls but the only thing I know is that when I arrived in BA my tickets were waiting for me at the hotel. No need to buy travel insurance my friend. I´m sorry if your experience in that beautiful country hasn´t been as fruitful as mine.

I share Ottohans perspective. Yes, the economy is terrible....but the people are honest for the most part.....two agents listed here time and again are Cintia and Mayra.....both have well-deserved reputations for dependability and honesty.

I was fortunate enough to use Cintia from the travel agency WOW Argentina. She was extremely helpful as you can already see from the messages above, if you want to use a honest reliable local, contact Cintia !!!!<BR>Craig.

I agree with all the gentlemen above. That is a horrible untrusting outlook to have when you're about ready to take a vacation. You have to have some trust when dealing with people. Use someone reputable and you'll have no problems. As drdawggy pointed out, the people of Buenos Aires are very friendly, ethical and honest.<BR><BR>I've never used Cintia but she sounds very ethical and honest. My travel agent Mayri from www.argentinago.com is also very honest. I personally know several people that have done business with her and none have been cheated.<BR><BR>Cash continues to be king in many parts of the world. Not only Argentina. Good luck.

I am very sorry if I gave the impression that people in Buenos Aires are not to be trusted. That is NOT what I meant at all. It is the economy and monetary system that is unreliable, NOT the people. The people are WONDERFUL. They are the victims of a bad economy , that's all. To all of you who are from Argentina, please accept my sincerest apologies.

does someone have the web address for the Argentina travel agent Cintia?<BR>Thanks

here ya go...<BR><BR>http://www.wowargentina.com.ar/who.html

Hi,<BR>Hope this is still in time, but we used a travel agent for out trip in November whos agency accepted credit cards no problem and she was great - here's the info: <BR><BR>[email protected] <BR><BR>Lic. Ethel Lopez <BR>TTS Viajes <BR><BR>Juncal 838 <BR>Buenos Aires, Argentina <BR>Directo: (54-11) 6333-3318 <BR>Conmutador: (54-11) 6333-3333 <BR>Fax: (54-11) 6333-3334 <BR>Website: www.ttsviajes.com

The problem with payment by credit card in Argentina is that companies charge you more to make up for the commission charged by credit card companies and the fact that they will be paid by such companies maybe 60 days after the transaction has been made.<BR>Most travel agents give you a price which already includes the additional fee for credit card payment, but they won´t tell you that. The bad news is that if you pay cash, they won´t give you back that amount they overcharged.<BR>As Saint says, cash continues to be king.

we were charged 10 pesos (about $2.50), that's total for charging 3 tickets at around $175 each ... IMHO, these are extra charges I can live with in exchange for the security using a credit card provides :)

I recommend Cintia and her husband. She is tremendously talented and resourceful in developing services specific to your likes and interest. She not only fulfilled all my desires splendidly but she also arranged a tour to Iguassu in no time. She came to my hotel, I paid her cash and she returned a couple of hours later with my ticket. This is what I call a first class service.

After a lot of shopping for myself , I would agree with Lilipad and deffinitely go with travel agents who take credit cards -NOT because that I don't trust those who ask for cash upfront ,(with all these references - I know they do great jobs ) -BUT with their service fee adding and the cost of sending money through Western Union +cash transfering...you're end up saving nothing !You might have been better off just booking with agents from your own city and have everything in your hand .Thank you Lilipad for telling us of your agent Ethel Lopez. Now that's a big saving.

After all this discussion you´ve convinced me to go with Cintia. With<BR>her glowing referral review from the people using this forum I´m sure there´s no underlying advertisement as there seems to be with mr.lopez. I don´t care if I have to pay an extra fee to get a high quality service.

Re:smith111<BR>First of all it's ms.Lopez , not mr.lopez , (read our posts )-She's never try to advertise through me,(I can only speak for myself), I have no relations with the company , just a happy client. CLEAR?<BR>You're entitled to your opinion. HALLELUIIA!

Well Well<BR>This corner of the website appears to becoming heated. Who really cares about a few little extra costs here or there. What really matters is honest &amp; reliable service. I received this without having to pay $1. I by chance came across this website &amp; thought i'd try to track down a school friend from Sydney Australia 11yrs ago. The next day and everyday after that the only person to contact me was Cintia. Because of Cintia i now have been in constant contact with my friend and will be staying with him free of charge. Cintia made no money from this gesture. In six weeks time i will be relaxing in cosmopolitan BA sinking a few beers with my friend and hopefully Cintia too!! Signing off Craig.

I agree with Santiago's post--What matters is honest, reliable service.<BR><BR>I am certain that others provide this type of service, but I can attest to Cintia's honesty and reliablity. <BR><BR>My wife and I took an excursion to Iguazu Falls booked by Cintia. When we encountered problems with the local tour group Cintia phoned us at the hotel and volunteered to contract with a private guide to show us around..at her expense. <BR><BR>Based upon our experience, Cintia is honest, reliable and will go way out of her way to be certain you have a great experience in Argentina. <BR><BR>An experience with Cintia. Priceless. For everything else, there's Master Card. (I hope I haven't just violated a copyright law)

Trust me, we just recently used Cintia's services.<BR><BR>We had never met Cintia before reading references on Fodors. We corresponded via emails and we sent her cash via Western Union from US. [email protected] together with her husband Matias are both very reliable, honest people. Within a couple of weeks, they had all our plans finalized i.e., a guide to meet us at the Santiago airport, a city tour of Santiago, Valpairaiso, and Vina del Mar. Our roundtrip flights to Iguazu and an excellent tour guide meet and greet in Inguazu. Our plans are to go again to Argentina and include a trip to Patagonia mountains which Cintia has agreed to put together when we are ready. She does her utmost best to make your vacation a memorable one.