Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I am an American citizen. I would like to visit Buenos Aires and La Plata. I hear that crime is a problem there. Should I avoid traveling there or is it possible one can survive visiting Buenos Aires and La Plata without getting mugged or murdered?
Mexico City is slightly more dangerous than Buenos Aires and most visitors return home safe and in one piece. Other than Buenos Aires being further away from the USA and at sea level (and lets face it, a more beatiful city), there shouldn't be much of a difference with Mexico City regarding the crime level during your visit.
I was in Argentina (although not BA) last year. Lovely country.
The general advisory is just common smarts as a tourist in a big ciity - avoid bad areas, listen to your gut feeling. Use ATMs inside banks, don't flash valuables. Don't get too drunk.
Pickpocketing is the most-mentioned crime, pickpockets may even hang out in hotel lobbies, so think of zippered bags inside your clothes for money and passport.
One thing that was called out by my travel agency was using the "Blue Market" for foreign currency. The official rate is rather unrealistic and you can get much more for your USD if you exchange in unofficial places. Some of which are less reputable than others. Ask at the hotel/hostel, they're likely to not steer you wrong. Or avoid them altogether, the country is not expensive. (If you wish to try, bring US cash - non-crumpled $20 bills are preferred.)
Just got back from Buenos Aires. It's the safest large city in South America. Watch out a bit for pickpockets and purse snatches. Other than that it is as safe as a city in the USA. Violent crime is rare.
Just got back from Buenos Aires. It's the safest large city in South America. Watch out a bit for pickpockets and purse snatches. Other than that it is as safe as a city in the USA. Violent crime is rare.
I think Santiago might be a bit safer than BA but I agree, BA is relatively safe on the world scale and much safer than many cities in Mexico and Central America. The Argentina economy is in shambles now so there is a desperation factor that is driving pickpockets and purse snatchers.
Just got back from Buenos Aires. It's the safest large city in South America. Watch out a bit for pickpockets and purse snatches. Other than that it is as safe as a city in the USA. Violent crime is rare.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tall Traveler
I think Santiago might be a bit safer than BA but I agree, BA is relatively safe on the world scale and much safer than many cities in Mexico and Central America. The Argentina economy is in shambles now so there is a desperation factor that is driving pickpockets and purse snatchers.
I was looking mostly at the murder rate and Chile has the lowest murder rate in South America and Argentina second lowest. I spent time in Santiago and it's a pretty safe city (certainly safer than many US cities), you just need to take typical precautions that you would in any large city.
I think Santiago might be a bit safer than BA but I agree, BA is relatively safe on the world scale and much safer than many cities in Mexico and Central America. The Argentina economy is in shambles now so there is a desperation factor that is driving pickpockets and purse snatchers.
The Argentina economy was also in shambles when we were there in 2016. BA centre quite reminded me of Melbourne and it is sad that at the turn of the 20th century Australia and Argentina were two of the wealthiest countries in the world, benefiting from the newly refrigerated ships for exports and having quite a lot of other similarities. Turn of the 21st century, Australia is the same and Argentina is an economic mess. So yes, care needs to be taken. There were a lot of demonstrations in the country when we were there. We naively asked whether they were legal demonstrations and our guides were very amused at the very idea. We had to have our itineraries changed a few times as certain areas were not safe on the day.
The Argentina economy was also in shambles when we were there in 2016. BA centre quite reminded me of Melbourne and it is sad that at the turn of the 20th century Australia and Argentina were two of the wealthiest countries in the world, benefiting from the newly refrigerated ships for exports and having quite a lot of other similarities. Turn of the 21st century, Australia is the same and Argentina is an economic mess. So yes, care needs to be taken. There were a lot of demonstrations in the country when we were there. We naively asked whether they were legal demonstrations and our guides were very amused at the very idea. We had to have our itineraries changed a few times as certain areas were not safe on the day.
I got back from Argentina on March 28th. Everyday we were in Buenos Aires there was at least one demonstration. One day, the cab driver couldn't drop us off in front of our hotel because the streets were clogged with protesters. They were all very nice though. I walked right through them without a single person saying something to me or confronting me.
Argentina was run by a military dictatorship forty years ago. I think there is a certain notion that people there protest simply because they can protest.
Their economy is in shambles. Inflation is over 100% this year. The Argentine peso is now worth about 1/4 of a penny. In other words, a US dollar will get you over 400 pesos. The people there seem to appreciate tourists spending money in their country and are very polite. My wife and I are talking about going back before too much longer.
Santiago, Chile might be another place we would consider. Not sure what there is to see there.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
