There are 4 of us traveling to argentina from december 25th through january 10th. ideally, we'd like to stay in BA for only a few days and would like to head east to mendoza and then south to patagonia, this is not set in stone. we're interested in going to chile as well, but our time is limited. we'd like an action packed/adventurous trip so any help advice you can give will be greatly helpful!
has anyone ever done this before? i have lots of questions:
1. are there buses from BA to mendoza?
2. are there buses from mendoza to bariloche or el tigre? if not, should we fly and how much does that cost?
3. do you recommend a travel agency there?
4. can you recommend budget accomodations in bariloche? in el tigre?
5. where else can we go in patagonia, it's huge
6. i've also read that people rent cars in bariloche.....has anyone done this? is it easy to get around?
7. is it advisable to go to chile while in patagonia?
thanks!!!
hi.
1. there are several busses that travel overnight from BA to mendoza. the ride is approximately 13 hours. you can buy tickets online or just go to the bus station in BA. do a keyword search on this thread, and you will find out how much they cost as i cannot remember.
2. yes for this one, too. but i don't think the busses are direct. flying is obviously quicker, but it depends on your budget!
3. where do you want a travel agency? what do you want the travel agency for? i would add a clarifying question for this one...
5. well, what else would you like to do? wildlife? hiking/climbing? glacial travel? cultural stuff? estancias? partying? you're right--patagonia is huge, and where you go depends on what you want to do! does "action packed" mean ice climbing or does "action packed" mean partying until 5am? both are available in patagonia:).
6. i have not rented a car, but we did look into it. it was way to expensive for our budget!
7. again, it depends on what you want to do. if you want to hike the W circuit in torres del paine national park, then you should go to chile.
Are there buses from mendoza to Bariloche or el Tigre?
Tigre is a locality 50 minutes away from Buenos Aires Capital.
Jorge Daniel Barchi.
Buenos Aires.
Buses from Buenos Aires to Mendoza take 14 hours and cost 50.00 US$.
www.catainternacional.com</a><BR><a href="http://www.andesmar.com/shop/default.asp">www.andesmar.com.ar</a><BR><a href="http://www.busesahumada.cl/V3.0/ahumadainternacional.htm">www.busesahumada.cl</a><BR><a href="http://www.elrapidoint.com.ar/">www.elrapidoint.com.ar</a><BR><BR>Jorge Daniel Barchi.
Buenos Aires.
Andesmar runs from Mendoza to Bariloche. It takes 20 hours and costs 57.00 US$.
Jorge Daniel Barchi.
Buenos Aires.
This train takes you from Buenos Aires Capital to Tigre. The one-way trip takes 50 minutes and costs 0.31 US$.
Jorge Daniel Barchi.
Buenos Aires.
Do you recommend a travel agency there?
Beware of tour company in Buenos Aires.
Jorge Daniel Barchi.
Buenos Aires.
I would go straight to El Calafate, explore the Perito Moreno glaciar, Torres del Paine, El Chalten and Tierra del Fuego with your time frame. The real patagonian adventure is there, not in Bariloche.
East to Mendoza?? I hope this isn't set in stone. The sun does arc across the sky in the northern horizon when in the southern hemiphere. It can be a bit confusing walking around outside and you find yourself walking the opposite direction if your from the northern hemishere,(Thorn Tree World, not sure?) however I believe if you headed east out of BsAs you'd end up in the Atlantic ocean. There you'd sink like a stone for sure if your in a bus. Jokes aside, nahuel is right. With that amount of time I'd be headed out of BsAs ASAP for the south. Mind you this is no small task for four persons looking for adventure as there are many of us that got trapped in Buenos Aires. A Bill Murry groundhogs day adventure and we literally could not get up in time to get out of the city from partying too late every night. Keep this in mind as it is a really great place to party and it will suck up your time and money very easily. Save some time for this before you leave instead of when you arrive. Get out while you can.
I would catch that plane south to El Calafate as above as the Atlantic seaboard has some places to stop, but much of it is a real sleeper. Agian with that time limit and trying desperately to leave the city you might as well fly out for sure. Definitely see both Los Glaciares in Argentina AND Torres del Paine in Chile. These parks are more or less only one bus trip apart though several hrs. and a straight forward border stop between El Calafate and Puerto Natales. Get reservations if you can for at least El Calafate as now days the time your talking is very busy. If you want to hike any of the popular routes in TDP and want the refugios to stay at these too should be booked, though I believe many wait till they are in Puerto Natales for this, however I'm unclear as what is best for these refugios as I'm a camper who likes solitude which I can say you probably won't find there. Stunning scenery though. Plenty of hostel choices and I'm sure with the four of you you'll find plenty to stay amused.
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