Fact Sheets & Video - Argentina

South America's glamour city

Once upon a time, Buenos Aires was regarded as Latin America's most expensive city with prices for some hotels and restaurants rivalling those of New York and Paris.

The Argentine peso was pegged to the US dollar but the "peso crisis" of 2001 made it drop dramatically in value, and now sees it worth around 31 Aussie cents! (as at Aug 09)

The glamorous capital of Argentina is a sophisticated and beautiful city with plenty to see and do - and checking out the city sights will hardly burn a hole in your pocket at all! The city centre is best seen on foot. There's the famous Casa Rosada, which is the Presidential Palace and known for its famous balconies where Juan and Eva Peron and other politicians have preached to the public. Madonna sang from here for her movie, Evita. The Plaza de Mayo is one of the centre's popular parks and La Florida is the city's main shopping strip. Nearby you can check out Avenida 9 July - the biggest avenue in the world at 140m from one side to the other!

Taxi's can also be a great way to get around as it rarely costs more than $5 to get from one interesting tourist location to the next. And La Boca is well worth a cheap cab fare to check out the famous and colourful neighbourhood that is best known for its brightly painted houses, and its infamous soccer team, Boca Juniors. The Museo De La Pasion Boquense is a funky futbol museum that also tells the history of the neighbourhood and it's located right under the stadium.

Argentines have the highest consumption in the world of red meat and no trip would be complete without sampling the local specialty, The Steak. The Cabana las Lilas Restaurant is located in trendy new Puerto Madero area and if there's one thing that both locals and visitors agree it's that they have the best parrilla (BBQ) in Buenos Aires.

And with all the beef on plates, it also means that Argentina is a famous for its leather goods. One of the best buys you can make in Argentina is anything made of leather and Murillo 666 in Palermo.

Further Information:

Tucan Travel

Offer a 5 day Buenos Aires package including 4 nights at Promenade Hotel and breakfast.

Contact Tucan Travel on 1300 769 249 or visit www.tucantravel.com

Aerolineas Argentinas

Aerolineas Argentinas fly from Sydney to Buenos Aires 4 times a week.

Contact them on 02 9234 9000 or visit www.aerolineasargentinas.com.au