Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
71
Area Code
The city area code for Buenos Air es, known locally as a
característica,
is
011.
Drop the 0 when c ombining numbers fr om o verseas with Ar gentina's
country code,
54.
The number
15
in fr ont of a local number indicat es a c ellular
phone. This will need the addition of the
011
if y ou're calling fr om outside Bue -
nos Air es. C ellphones bec ome c omplicated when dialing fr om o verseas. Dial
whatever international code you need fr om your country (011 fr om the U .S. and
Canada), then 54 for Argentina, then 9 to indicate a cellphone, then the area code
of the c ellphone, then the number . Thus, t o call Buenos Air es c ellphones fr om
the U.S., you would dial 011-54-9-11 and then the eight- digit number.
Business Hours
Banks ar e generally open w eekdays 10am t o 3pm, and A TMs
work 24 hours . Shopping hours ar e Monday through Friday from 9am t o 8pm or
10pm, and Satur day fr om 10am t o midnight. Shopping c enters ar e open daily
from 10am t o 10pm. M ost independent st ores are closed on Sunda y, and some
close for lunch. S ome k iosks, selling wat er, candy, and pack aged food are open
24 hours. Most neighborhoods ha ve a 24-hour pharmac y, or
locutorio.
Currency Exchange
Although American dollars are often accepted in major hotels
and businesses cat ering t o t ourists, y ou will need Ar gentine pesos f or or dinary
transactions. Cr edit car ds ar e widely used , although some businesses char ge a
small additional f ee. It's easiest t o exchange money at the airpor t, your hotel, or
an independent ex change house rather than at an Ar gentine bank . Traveler's
checks can be difficult t o cash:
American Expr ess
(see abo ve) off ers the best
rates on its tra veler's checks and char ges no c ommission. I t off ers curr ency
exchange for dollars only. ATMs are plentiful in Buenos Air es, but you should use
those only in secur e, w ell-lit locations . A t some A TMs, y ou can withdra w pesos
or dollars. Even if y our bank allo ws you to make lar ger daily withdra wals, Argen-
tine ATMs generally only give out pesos in the value range $100 to $200 maximum
at a time or on a daily basis , so plan ac cordingly if y ou know you will need lar ge
amounts of cash while in Buenos Air es. It will be har d to break large bills usually
dispensed b y ATMs, so withdra w money in unev en amounts so that a por tion
comes in small bills . You can ha ve money wir ed to
Western Union,
Av. Córdoba
975 (
&
0800/800-3030
).
Embassies & C onsulates
See “Fast Facts: Argentina” in appendix A.
Emergencies
F or an
ambulance,
call
&
107;
in case of
fire,
call
&
100;
f or
police
assistance, call
&
101;
for an English-speaking hospital, call
Clínica Suisso
Argentino
(
&
11/4304-1081
) or
Hospital Britanico
(
&
11/4309-6600
).
Language
Shops, hot els, and r estaurants ar e usually staff ed b y at least one or
two fluent English speakers , and man y people speak at least a f ew w ords of
English. A rule of thumb though is that less- expensive venues will ha ve fewer, if
any, English speakers. However, with the massiv e influx of t ourism since the peso
crisis, English has bec ome ubiquitous on the str eets of the cit y and man y young
people know some of the language .
Post O ffice
You nev er ha ve t o v enture mor e than a f ew blocks t o find a post
office, open weekdays from 10am to 8pm and Satur day until 1pm. The main post
office, or C orreo Central, is at A v. Sarmiento 151 (
&
11/4891-9191;
www.correo
argentino.com.ar). In addition, the post offic e works with some
locutorios,
which
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