Dinner is a 9:30pm sport
A restaurant that fills at 7pm is feeding tourists. Locals sit down after 9 or 10. Have a late afternoon ice cream, a vermouth, and then the steak. You will sleep better and eat better.
ReisgidsLaatst bijgewerkt August 19, 2026
Argentina Travel Guide: Essentials, Tips & Mobile Data
Buenos Aires to Patagonia: money, steaks, distances, when to go, traveler tips, and mobile data via eSIM.
Argentina is a capital that eats dinner at 10pm, a waterfall that out-noises conversation, and a south that looks like the end of the world on purpose. Buenos Aires is tango, steak, wine and neighborhoods you will pick a favorite of. Mendoza is the glass. Iguazú is the roar. Patagonia is the wind and the reason you packed a better jacket.
The money situation changes. Cards and official rates are the calm way; cash still appears in the conversation. Ask a recent traveler or your hotel how people are paying this month, and do not take financial advice from a man at the airport with a backpack full of stories.
Distances are Australian. Fly Buenos Aires–Patagonia or Buenos Aires–Iguazú. A bus is a story; a flight is a morning. Stay long enough in one barrio to have a regular café.
Eat the steak, drink the Malbec, try a medialuna at 5pm, and do not show up to dinner at 7. The city is not ready for you yet.
Essentials
Reisessentials voor Argentina
- Valuta
- Argentine peso (ARS). Cards are widely accepted in cities. Informal cash rates have a history here — use official channels and your hotel's current advice, not a stranger.
- Talen
- Spanish (Rioplatense — the 'sh' in 'yo'). English is okay in tourist BA, thinner elsewhere. A few words change the parrilla.
- Stekkertype
- Type C / I, 220V. Bring a universal adapter.
- Noodnummer
- 911
- Beste reistijd
- March to May and September to November for BA and Mendoza. Patagonia is best December to March. Iguazú is year-round and humid.
- Fooi
- 10% in restaurants is kind. Some bills add a cubierto. Wine is a food group, not a tip category.
- Tijdzone
- ART (UTC-3)
- Kraanwater
- Safe in Buenos Aires and most cities. Bottled if you are cautious or heading north.
- Vervoer
- Subte and buses in BA; flights for Patagonia and Iguazú. Long-distance buses are comfortable if you have the hours. Uber and Cabify in the capital.
- Internet en dekking
- Good 4G in cities; weaker in Patagonia between towns and at the falls' outer trails. Café Wi-Fi is a national sport.
Reizigerstips
Tips van mede-reizigers
Echt advies van mensen die in Argentina zijn geweest, geselecteerd door ons team met links naar de oorspronkelijke bronnen.
Do not change money with a stranger at the airport
The informal rate is a local saga that shifts. Use ATMs, cards, and whatever official or hotel-endorsed method is current. A man saying 'friend, better price' is not your CFO.
Patagonia is a flight, not a scenic drive from BA
El Calafate, Bariloche, Ushuaia — fly. The bus is 20+ hours of a story you will tell once. Spend the days you saved on a glacier or a lake, not a reclining seat.
Iguazú is a full day on the Argentine side, plus Brazil if you can
Walk the walkways, take the boat if the water is up, and start early. The Brazilian side is the wide postcard. Border rules depend on your passport — check before you assume you can hop.
A neighborhood, not a hotel row
Palermo and San Telmo are the usual (and good) bases. Once you have a café, a bookstore and a parrilla you would return to, Buenos Aires starts working. Recoleta is prettier and quieter. Puerto Madero is a waterfront that could be anywhere.
FAQ
Reisvragen over Argentina, beantwoord
Does my phone support eSIM in Argentina?
Unlocked iPhone XS and newer, Pixel 3 and newer, and Galaxy S20 and newer all support eSIM.
How much data do I need for two weeks in Argentina?
City maps and a Patagonia photo habit: 1–2 GB a day, so 15–20 GB for two weeks. Bus movies and hotspotting the hostel push you up.
Is there mobile coverage in Patagonia?
Towns are fine. The steppe, glacier roads and some lake circuits are not. Download offline maps before you leave El Calafate or Bariloche.
Should I buy a SIM in Buenos Aires?
Possible, with ID. An eSIM is simpler for a two-week visit and avoids a shopping trip on day one when you would rather be eating.
Will my eSIM work on a day trip to Uruguay or Brazil?
Only on a regional plan that lists those countries. A Colonia hop or the Brazilian side of Iguazú can drop a country-only plan. Check the list.
eSIM-bundels
Blijf verbonden in Argentina
Uber, a Subte map and a message to the asado that is 'around 10': Argentina is a phone country. An eSIM is online at EZE before you hit the taxi chaos, without a SIM shop that wants to explain the peso to you.
Get enough data for maps and translations. The steak will not require a signal. Finding the second parrilla will.
