Buenos Aires tourist safety
 

Is there a big threat to tourists( my husband and I are seniors) wandering the streets by ourselves? We are New Yorkers so I know there are boundaries not to cross....however, just want to know how dangerous it might be.

Hello Nakra:

My husband and I (seniors) spent a month in Buenos Aires each of the last two years, and we will return this year again. We obvioiusly loved it and would not return if we felt discomfitted by fear or worry about safety.

We were, of course, careful to follow the good advice on this and other fora - the usual travel to a big city cautions where you are an obvious target of petty theft as you are a tourist - but we took buses, metro, walked a tremendous amount and, well, we were cautious but not vigilent.

Staying in La Recoleta could be a good choice for you as it is the safest seeming barrio - although the others are fine, too - and it is convenient to many sites, restaurants, parks, etc. You will want to visit Palermo, San Temo, Centro etc., but, from your leading question, I think you would feel most comfortable staying in Recoleta.

Have a wonderful trip,

~MarnieWDC

I'm kind of wary when I go around NY, particularly in the subway, but I feel quite at home in BA. Of course, it's MY town!

In other words, being New Yorkers, you should be absolutely OK in BA.

I suggest you read my "More suggested reading" thread, where you will find many trip reports.

I assume you already know that you should bring just a cheap watch and that kind of thing.

As you are seniors and first-timers, I absolutely agree with Marnie's opinion that you should choose the Recoleta as your headquarters.

Have a great time in our town.

Hi Nakra,

We moved to Buenos Aires from the US ( former NYers) and you will find that this city is really no different from your city,regardless of age... when it comes to how to manage not getting your pocket picked or your money stolen. Leave the fancy jewelry at home, and don't leave bags or cameras out where they can be grabbed. Don't carry your passport with you, leave it in the hotel safe and carry a color copy. Don't carry all your money and credit cards on you when you go out ..

You should be more careful with drivers though.. they are insane here and do not even slow down if you are still in the street when the light changes.. you can hear them revving the engines, ready to head straight at you ! lol.

At night take taxis.

I agree with Marnie.. Recoleta is a lovely neighborhood and a good base to see the city from.

Also are native New Yorkers and we had a bad expericne with a taxi cab who took us down a dreary one way street and we ran, scarey.. anyway no harm done, but only use radio cabs that have been called for you. And stay away from Florida Street and area near Marriott Plaza! Recoleta and Palermo are wonderful areas.
Enjoy Buenos Aires. Fantastic dining...

Taxis should not be flogged in the street. Get the phone numbers of a few reputable taxi radios and call them wherever you are. The restaurant can call them for you. When you call you have to give an address a name, your first name, something simple, and a phone number.
IT is much better because the driver no.1 has been veted and also the call is registered.
ASome good companies are Pidalo, Premium, Taxi Paris, Alo Taxi.

sorry I meant flagged in the street and drivers are vetted.... do not overlook this simple advice, it is a good one. Locals are more confident and often flag taxis of the radio taxi companies they are familiar with but in my opinion tourists should follow this advice as much as they can.

Thanks for the reassurances....I'm sure I'll be back with many more questions after I do a little more research. We thought of seeing Iguazu Falls and perhaps, Patagonia on this same trip.

Actually, as long as you flag down a RADIO TAXI and not one with no light box on the roof, you will be fine.
Do not take a taxi from the line at the airport, take a REMISS. VIP, World Car or TaxiEZEIZA ..
You can get them at arrival..in the airport.
Radio Taxis are good .. they will be the taxi with the Light Box on the roof of the car.
We take taxis all the time here, we flag them in the street or at stores etc and have only had a problem once.
That was a taxi in a taxi line at a mall last year, he was drunk lol... he was funny and thankfully, it was a short drive and he really didn't drive that much differently from the sober ones LOL
You can get any restaurant to call you a taxi at night but there are thousands of taxis here and we have waved down at taxi at 3 in the am with other people still out on the streets, so this is not a worry, really.
We never pay attention to the taxi company, there are many, we usually in summer, look for any car that says they have Air Conditioning !
Remember that !

As a "senior" myself, I've visited Buenos Aires three times during the past four years and have felt safe both day and night. Use the same wisdom as you have when in your home city in knowing where to go as well as when, and you will not have any problemos.

But again, the locals can chime in and give much more of a definitive position to your query and concern, and in doing this-- cite specific areas to avoid day and night. Not only will this help you, it will help others-- I included.

<The advice that has already been given is quite worthwhile!>

Our bad taxi experience was with a car that had "Radio taxi" written on it but we hadn't called for him to pick us up. We got in the cab near MALBA, a nice area.We were told that no matter where we were in the city, to go into any hotel or restaurant and ask them to call for us.

As I have said here over and over, what makes a radiotaxi safer is having it called, instead of hailing it.

The percentage of bad cabbies is very low, but there are a few bad apples and they target tourists.

Therefore, I agree with Graziella5b's advice.

I'm at the tail end of a 2.5 week vacation here in Buenos Aires, and I don't think safety concerns are too much different here than they are in NYC. The same rules apply, though perhaps with a extra smidge of vigilance: don't wear your digital SLR hanging off your neck, don't leave your wallet in your back pocket (though, oddly enough, I've a friend who had his wallet snatched from his front pocket a few months ago on crowded Subte train), and minimize the things that call you out as a tourist -- especially as an American tourist. Stuff like wearing shorts, baseball caps, anything emblazoned with "USA," etc. I'd even avoid wearing sandals -- not just because it gives off a definite "tourist" vibe, but because of all the dog poop on the streets, esp. in the Palermo! It's inevitable that you'll step on a "land mine" at least once, and you definitely don't want that near your naked foot! :)

This is my first time in BsAs, and the first half of our trip we rented an apartment through VRBO in Palermo Soho, which was nice. However, for the second half of our trip we've rented an apartment in Recoleta, and I like it much better. It's cleaner, we have an amazing view of the cemetery (a phrase I would never have thought I'd write), it's a little cheaper of a cab ride to get to places like Puerto Madero, San Telmo, and the train station for day trips to Colonia and the Tigre. I'd recommend staying in the Recoleta over Palermo, too.

LOL, technoluxe, welcome to my neighborhood, the one with the cemetery :D

How did you manage in the big big rain we just had? I was thinking of all the tourists who are sitting somewhere, waiting for that downpour to end.. what did you do?

I guess we are just lucky. We visited here and live here and use Radio Taxis off the street every day and we have not had any problems .. the worst taxi problem we have had here in BA was when going to visit family in another neighborhood, the taxi driver could not find the street and had to stop and ask someone .. we were 5 minutes late ! lol ...

If you have not been, please go over to the Recoleta Cultural Center and see the Butterflies !!
It is wonderful, magical .. really .. go !

I never felt unsafe there but I followed the good advice given here: phone for taxis and not look obvious. Must have worked cause other tourists tended to ask me for directions etc. Ha!

You will love it there. And while others will tell you about the wine and beef, I say don't miss the ice cream!

Yes, don't miss the ice cream. We flagged taxis, however I speak some spanish so it was easier. Also if you can give street intersections like we do in NYC you will have less of a problem. Yes, there are bad drivers who will literally take you for a "ride." We travelled last month with another couple who did not speak any spanish. Our trip from AEP to Palermo was AR$20 and our friends was AR$35. I had drawn a map for them.

NEVER take cabs from the line outside our local airport. I suggest taking a "remise" from the booths inside the terminal.

The scam of pouring some offensive substance on someone and then offering to "help" and then picking his/her pockets seemed to be common around the time I was visiting Buenos Aires earlier this year.

That is correct. I wrote about it in my "Buenos Aires: our downtown area during weekends" thread.

Have a great time in our country.