Cindy_S

Hi, I posted about my Argentina trip before, as I was just beginning to think about it, but I'm beginning to firm up plans.

I'm 53 and will be traveling alone. I speak Spanish and want to speak only Spanish while in Argentina (get far too little chance to use my Spanish).

I'm working with Cintia at WOW! Argentina, and I like her suggestions for the trip but the total cost is more than I can really afford. (The destinations are ones I wanted to see, with the addition of her suggestion of Yacutinga. Yacutinga sounds so wonderful I'm thinking maybe I should stay there 3 nights instead of 2--but that would increase cost when I'm trying to decrease it...)

First I should say that I decided to work with her, rather than making all the arrangements myself, because I'm feeling the need to be coddled. An accident last year caused me to cancel this trip (originally planned for Nov 2007), and various other matters have made me not as "resilient" as I've been in the past.

I leave Boston Sept 10 (arrive Argentina Sept 11) and leave Buenos Aires Oct 5.
I'm spending the first night in BA, then it's
Sept 12-13: Yacutinga
Sept 14-15: Iguazu (Sheraton)
Sept 16: Puerto Madryn
Sept 17-18: Punta Delgada
Sept 19-20: Puerto Madryn
Sept 21-23: Ushuaia
Sept 24-26: El Calafate
Sept 27-Oct 4: BA
Depart Oct 5

I asked Cintia what the cost would be for just the internal flights and lodging outside of BA (so 15 nights; of course Yacutinga is all inclusive). That cost is $4600 (U.S.), and that seems reasonable, given all the flights and the level of accomodations.

My thought was that I could probably get cheaper accomodations in BA on my own, and that could shave a decent amount off the total. Cintia has me at the LoiSuites Recoleta, which sounds wonderful, but is not cheap (and her price is cheaper than what I'm finding quoted online).

My needs for BA accomodation are clean, tobacco free (sorry, strong allergy and asthma), decent bed, hot water in the shower, light strong enough to read by. I'd like to have cooking facilities (or at least a microwave) so I can play at being a resident and go to market; and have my tea and light meals (soup, grilled cheese sandwich, salad,..). Not that I'm against eating out, but eating out alone can get tiring, and having the option to eat "at home" would be nice. I'd like to be in a neighborhood with some stores, not totally residential, but not hopping with action all the time either.

I've been reading the threads on renting an apartment and am considering that. But I probably can't get an apt for my first night. Should I go with Cintia for the first night? Or can you recommend a cheaper hotel?
And does an apt for my final 8 nights sound like a good idea?

I do want to add back in the transfers (airport-hotel), I think, just for the convenience. Or maybe not?

I had asked Cintia to arrange private excursions for me because I wanted to avoid being with busloads of tourists and hoped to be able to arrange the schedule. For example, I really want to see wildlife on peninsula Valdes and take photos; I'd like to be able to stay at a spot for hours if that's what I feel like doing or leave in 10 minutes if that feels right.

But I don't think I can afford all the excursions she has (even with many of them being "regular," that is, group excursions). In which locations--Valdes, Ushuaia, El Calafate--would you think a private excursion would be most beneficial?

I can post all the excursions Cintia has on her itinerary if that would help with advice.

This is quite long, so I'll stop here and perhaps post more specific questions separately later, as my plans firm up enough for me to formulate more specific questions.

Many thanks for any advice to get me started on a luxury, affordable time in Argentina!

Cindy

eurotraveller

Holy Cannolli! I spent almost a month in Argentina and didn't spend that much for my entire trip! You could easily do it on your own for much less.

I figured airfare may cost you $1600 so that leaves 3k for hotels for 15 nights so that is $200 per night. Quite high for Argentina for a single.

We rented a beautiful 1 bedroom, 1 1/2 bath, beautifully decorated apartment in Palermo for $325 total for 7 nights. That alone would save you a chunk of change. It would cost you much less for a nice studio apartment. We wanted room because we were having a dinner party at our place when we were there.

I didn't go to many of your destinations so I can't help with specifics for much of it but here is is some info:

You could stay at the secret Garden in Iguazu. We were going to stay there but ended up saving the falls for another trip. It is $80 USD per night, saving you a total of $240 right there.

We rented from www.bytargentina.com in Buenos Aires for our apartment. They were a dream to work with and the apartment was nicer even than the photos!

I hope someone else can help with the other locations.

Enjoy your trip!

tengohambre

I've previously used Cintia and she is terrific. I would be surprised if she wasn't getting you very good hotel rates, she has some discount rates at most all the hotels she uses, I believe. While the total cost may seem expensive, you are being coddled, as you say. When you are in Argentina, she is a great resource if, along your trip, you need to reach out to her.

As for renting an apartment, that too is an idea but, if you wish the conveniences of the hotel, nothing beats a hotel.

Have fun.

Argentina es barbaro.

avrooster

Frugality or Luxury? LOL!!!

My suggestions:

1) Ask Isabel for a quote. I believe her costs could be more affordable.

As I said in a recent thread, "Write Isabel in the search feature, specify Argentina and you'll find several threads, such as 'Don't Cry for Me Argentina' in which happy customers sing the praises of the independent local travel agent whose services I usually suggest using."

2) About your "And does an apt for my final 8 nights sound like a good idea?", the answer is yes, particularly since you know Spanish and feel that "having the option to eat 'at home' would be nice."

eurotraveller's http://www.bytargentina.com/ suggestion for an apartment rental agency is a good one.

Should I try to arrange a forum members' dinner for you?

You'll have a great time in our country.

Scarlett

That is more than my husband and I spent for the two of us on our visit here for 2 weeks..
I don't know about the locations, I am still pretty ignorant of everything in Argentina but I do know you can do what many people/friends of mine have done, they have booked their own trips and managed to do a great job for much less money.
I also have to say that although I don't know how close everything is, the schedule looks like one of those If it is Tuesday, it must be Belgium trips..a new place each day??

The Loi Suites is wonderful.
So is the ArtSuits in Recoleta
www.artsuites.com.ar
So is an apartment.

A friend of mine was here for 4 months, alone. She also found eating dinner out to be a strain so she ate her lunches out and often brought in take out or cooked. An apartment is ideal for this situation.

Palermo and Recoleta are great for finding apts that are decent, in residential areas, where you can feel safe and have everything you need outside your door.

Why can you not get the apt for the first night?

I have to say this and it is not aimed at Cintia but just this segment of the Travel Industry...
It seems that they just figure that people from certain other countries can afford very expensive trips, they plan an extravagant holiday and then either are happy when it is accepted or they find out that they have to whittle it down to a more reasonable price.
This is happening an awful lot in Argentina in all aspects of life..

I think you can do it yourself..
We can definitely help you and I promise, I charge no commission and won't even accept a tip

tully

It couldn't hurt to contact Isabel for a quote as well as mentioned. She has been a great planning & booking parts of my trip in Oct. and actually tried to talk me out of the Loi Suites for being too expensive (actually just today I booked it, I decided it couldn't hurt to just email them and ask for a discount which they did give, so that was nice). Two others that I looked at pretty seriously (noth have small kitchens) were, as Scarlett mentioned, Art Suites, which is $133 USD cash per their email to me, including tax and also Ayres de Recoleta which I think is around $160. Also agree with Scarlett - you have a lot on your trip, maybe too much, but that's JMO and I admit I'm not a fan of moving around a lot.

Cindy_S

Thank you all for the replies!

I think what I'm going to do is
get an apt for my last 8 nights in BA and probably get a (much) cheaper hotel for the first night, and go with the cheaper option for tours on Valdes (I'll post a separate query on that).

If I can manage those parts on my own for a significantly lower price, then I can afford the rest. There don't seem to be lots of options for hotels near what I want to see outside of BA, and Cintia said she was checking into cheaper ones, but the savings was only about $200. Seems better to me to stay with what she has arranged, which sound very nice.

I doubt I can get an apt for my first night because usually apts have to be rented for a week minimum. I rather doubt anyone would want to rent an apt for a single weeknight; it would prevent them from renting it for that week. The 8 nights I'd be renting are a couple of weeks later on, not consecutive with that first night.

I don't think I'm trying to do too much. It's only 4 main locations outside of BA, although agreed that the distances are long.
But I'm looking forward to having a "nature" part of my trip and then the "city" part in BA at the end.

Thank you Eurotraveller for the Iguazu suggestion, but I do want to stay at the Sheraton. I know it's expensive but it certainly seems to provide the best location for seeing the falls.

avrooster, a forum members' dinner? Do tell me more!

Cindy

avrooster

Cindy_S: take a look at the lower part of the "10 Days in Buenos Aires: Magellan's 40th Birthday Solo Trip Report" thread and you'll see what I am talking about.

A little research here and in http://tinyurl.com/nw9f4 would unearth many comments about previous forum members' dinners.

eurotraveller

Cindy_S, avrooster can vouch for how nice my apartment was. I had him and a few others over for dinner when I was in town in November. He is a gentleman and a scholar so I recommend you take him up on organizing a dinner.

Cheers!

avrooster

"He is a gentleman and a scholar". LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you, eurotraveller or dear Tamara for your kind words!!!!!

When you come next, I'll introduce you to a few people who would strongly disagree with you. LOL!!!

avrooster

BTW, yes, eurotraveller's apartment in Palermo was great!

SusanSDG

Cindy,
Sounds like you deserved to be coddled! A comparison with what a couple spent isn't really helpful, as single travellers end up spending as much for accomodations as two-that's the dreaded single supplement for you! And I'd be sure to let Argentinian Fodorites help you-how fun would a GTG be during your long solo sojourn?!

eurotraveller

Susan, although the info on my post was from a couple perspective, it also indicated that renting an apartment for a week for 2 was $325 for the week. A solo traveller could easily get by with an apartment in the $200-275 a week range. On average, her itinerary indicates an average of about $200 per night for a hotel.

Hopefully Cindy found the info helpful and can see the cost savings of renting an apartment.

Yikes, as I was typing this I decided to reread Cindy's post. The quote of $4600 does not even INCLUDE the nights she is staying in BA so it only covers the flights and 10 nights accomodations!? That would mean she is spending about $300 per night on accomodations!

That is even high for North American standards in most major cities!

I think you can do much better pricewise.

eurotraveller

Oops! My mistake. It is 15 nights instead of 10.

avrooster

eurotraveller: Maybe you don't realize that the high cost of this package could be due to the fact that it seems to include "private excursions".

I'm researching Yacutinga (I had never heard about it until now), but there is one thing I'm sure of: it must be pretty expensive.

tully

I'd looked at Yacutinga when planning my trip but since I'm short on time the drive there & back put me off, plus it seemed a little spendy to me. I also looked at a nice little lodge - http://www.donenriquelodge.com.ar/ which is much cheaper but again the travel time worked against me. I still suggest contacing Isabel for her take on all this.

mjs

I did not use Cintia for our trip to Argentina last year in part because she does not do apartments. She seems to do a very good job with standard tourist arrangements
but I tend to be very open to lots of different options when I travel. I used Isabel to arrange my trip because she struck me as someone who arranges your travel
in the way that makes you happy. It could be cheap or expensive, apartment or hotel, private car or bus etc.
In my opinion Isabel is like the Four Seasons hotel. She will do her best to find arrangements for travel that will make you content and works harder at it than any travel agent I have ever used. I also appreciated her efforts to cost contain my trip.

avrooster

Well, I completed my research on Yacutinga. Basically by reading http://tinyurl.com/5wloc6
and a few other forum sources.

The impression I got was that, for some reason or other, people either love it or hate it.

So, it's probably a matter of taste.

My hunch, I repeat just a hunch: it's a tourist rip-off.

avrooster

After writing the above post, I wrote yacutinga in this forum's search feature and found a recent report by forum member jcasale, which sounds favorable.

Jen Casale gives her e-mail, which means it's OK to write to her directly. Why don't you ask her about it, Cindy_S?

travelme

I have read time and time again that Cintia only deals with certain clientele; those who will spend a lot of money. People do swear by her however she seems very rigid and is not interested in offering moderate types of accomodations.
It is easier enough to find accomodations so why people rely on a travel agent who does not offer a variety of price options is beyond me.