Hotel in Beunos Aires

[Reinalee]

Newbie here. We are looking for a nice and quiet hotel located close to where the ships leave from. Can anyone recommend either a hotel or an area to start a search?

 

Cruise line wants to charge us $250 for a night which includes transfer to the docks. I really don't think we would have to pay that much for a decent hotel and a taxi ride, right?

 

Oh, also, what about getting to the hotel from the airport? Do some of the hotels have a shuttle like they do up here?

 

Thanks!!

[paul929207]

We will be staying at the Claridge for a couple of nights before our cruise the end of March. We are paying $139/night. I believe it is a short taxi ride to the ship.

[ChattTenn]

We will be staying at the Claridge for a couple of nights before our cruise the end of March. We are paying $139/night. I believe it is a short taxi ride to the ship.

 

Did you book direct to Claridge hotel or on some website?. Does the hotel has a pick up service from the airport?.

 

Thanks

[dabear]

we've also booked Claridge for our Feb cruise and you can book on sites such as Expedia or direct. They offer limo pick up service.

[hampshirelad]

Stayed at the Claridge, Tucuman street , three times during our South America holiday in January to cover post and pre cruise arrangements and side trips. Obviously popular with the travel agents who have an eye for a bargain. Not 5 star but perfectly Ok for a few nights.

 

Rooms and Breakfast fine . Staff very helpful and we booked outstanding value tours at the desk to Tango, Ranch and City Tour.

 

Very helpful for confirming flights a must if you are using Areolineas

 

There is free Internet at the Business Centre 1st Floor.

 

Not far from the Port

 

 

http://www.claridge.com.ar

 

Gets good reviews on Trip Advisor

[DougH]

I see that in the new Budget Travel top 100 deals they list both the Claridge Hotel and the Hilton as "best deals" Price sure looks pretty decent and the Claridge sounds OK. Do you recall cost of transfer from the airport to the hotel, then to the ship? I'll be travelling alone and looking for a decent cost.

Will have 2-3 days, which tours did you enjoy or is there anything else you would recommend?

[hampshirelad]

Hire Taxi from Booth when you come through customs 78 Arg Peso to Claridge, about 1/2 hour travel. Fare prepaid at booth no problems with change.

 

To the Port about 25 Arg Peso. Suggest you use Hotel Car as the dock is confusing and the cruise ships do not put up any directions on the dock gates, so there is a worry that you could be dropped at the wrong gate. They know which dock gate is which and the correct gate.

 

Any slip ups here and you could have a long walk with the luggage

 

Bear in mind most taxi drivers do not speak English.

[DougH]

Thanks for the advice, it sounds easy enough :)

[FlyerTalker]

For a hotel close to both the port and to the Florida Street shopping area, you might want to consider the Sheraton Buenos Aires. Standard international Sheraton - everything is sharp and well presented in a large, business/conference oriented hotel.

 

The Hilton in BsAs is in the Puerto Madero area, and is a VERY good place to stay if personal security is one of your "concerns". The Puerto Madero area is patrolled by the Naval Police (Prefectura) who are a no-nonsense bunch that takes security and law-enforcement seriously. Very visible police presence. The hotel is one of the better Hiltons out there with a great staff and well appointed rooms. Try to get a room that faces into the city for a great panorama.

 

Personally, I would not be worried about the "close to port" issue. Taxis in BsAs are cheap and plentiful and I would rather base my hotel choice on what activities I'd be doing in town and what neighborhood fits my style. You can find boutique hotels in Recoleta, the Hilton in Puerto Madero and the Sheraton in Retiro -- all will be no more than a 5 minute difference in taxi time to the port.

 

FWIW, reports are that the Marriott is a bit run-down (old classic hotel) and that there are better choices out there.

[cookiersmom]

We also just stayed at the Claridge. This is a cute boutique hotel, just steps away from Florida street, and walking distance to the restaurants at Puerto Madero and also 9 de Julio (the main boulevard). The room is small (think ship cabin size) but comfortable. The free internet is very handy, and the breakfast is fine. The staff was very friendly and helpful. They have various internet room rates, and mine included pickup from the airport, but even if not, you can arrange with them to have you picked up, for about $32, I think (US). The cab ride to the port is not far, and they will arrange a car for you.

 

Another option is the PanAmericano, where Princess was putting their pre-tour folks. This is a more upscale hotel, right on 9 de Julio, and the rooms are larger. So is the hotel. Princess does their "pre-check in" there, so that is handy.

 

Either is quite good.

[Reinalee]

I was just about going to find my original post and bring it back to life!! Thanks.

 

I have been spending the last couple of days going over the many many many...... different hotels in all kinds of price ranges. I did NOT know that there were so many of those "booking" sites. Some I have never, ever, heard of and I thought I was computer savey. But I still like to find the hotels official web site. 99% of the time, the price is the same, and there are some sites that will have a built in charge.

 

I appreciate the feedback. Basically, after traveling all day and night, I think we will want to crash for awhile and then find a nice restaurant to try out those steaks that everyone seems to rave about.

 

I also appreciate previous travelers reviews.

[Hot2Travel]

I was just about going to find my original post and bring it back to life!! Thanks.

 

I have been spending the last couple of days going over the many many many...... different hotels in all kinds of price ranges. I did NOT know that there were so many of those "booking" sites. Some I have never, ever, heard of and I thought I was computer savey. But I still like to find the hotels official web site. 99% of the time, the price is the same, and there are some sites that will have a built in charge.

 

I appreciate the feedback. Basically, after traveling all day and night, I think we will want to crash for awhile and then find a nice restaurant to try out those steaks that everyone seems to rave about.

 

I also appreciate previous travelers reviews.

 

I found all good reviews on Trip Advisor and booked the Esplendor De Buenos Aires at $195 including 22% tax.:)

[Mapu]

This hotel was great; for location (Recoleta); price ($130.00 per night); and service; also free internet and breakfast included (cappucino as well). The owner Ernesto is around on a regular basis. The hotel staff all speak English very well as well as being knowledgeable about restaurants and directions. They will call a cab for you to go from the hotel to the pier. I think doing that cost us a little more than just flagging down a cab which is always going by the hotel. It was a short cab ride to the pier for about $15.00 (having the hotel call a cab for us). For passengers ending in Buenos Aires you should know that there are always cabs available upon arrival at the port.

Check out the hotel's website. Great choice. Any questions? email me at

silvermangail@hotmail.com

[CruzinNoony]

We stayed at the Marriott on Florida Street. With our AAA rate it was $180.00 a night. Rooms were very large. Breakfast was included in our rate and was a full buffet with omelets made to order. Very nice way to start the day of sightseeing. We used "privatetours" and were very happy with them. They had the pre-registration at the Marriott also, which is really something to consider. By getting the "green card" , it enabled us to save time at embarkation, which was the worst ever, but that is a different story!! ;)

[lucyjohnz]

I found the Moreno rated very highly on TripAdvisor. Also, our online travel agent (buycruises) books rooms with a hotel company called booktravelbound.com and they had rates at at least 1/2 the price of those on Travelocity, Expedia, etc. The catch, only the TA can book the rooms and you have to pre-pay for them. But our $150/night rate for an Extra-Large room was cheap compared to other online rates of $250-$350/night for the same hotel. You can go online and look up the rates of the hotels in Buenos Aires (we also used them for Santiago) and then work with a TA to reserver the rooms.

[FunForUs]

We stayed at the Marriott on Florida Street. With our AAA rate it was $180.00 a night. Rooms were very large. Breakfast was included in our rate and was a full buffet with omelets made to order. Very nice way to start the day of sightseeing. We used "privatetours" and were very happy with them. They had the pre-registration at the Marriott also, which is really something to consider. By getting the "green card" , it enabled us to save time at embarkation, which was the worst ever, but that is a different story!! ;)

We also were at the Marriott -- stayed 3 nights -- we were extremely happy with our stay there, including the breakfast. We did our transfers and tours through Carlos at privatetours, too, and everything went very smoothly for us.

[Peregrina651]

Newbie here. We are looking for a nice and quiet hotel located close to where the ships leave from. Can anyone recommend either a hotel or an area to start a search?

 

We just this minute booked our cruise and I haven't started looking at hotels yet, but when I do, my first stop will be to Google maps. It is my favorite travel website. I'll find out where the pier is (saw that in another thread) and then I will ask Google maps to 'search nearby' for hotels. I can read about each hotel right there in Google (including Trip Advisor and other reviews, pictures and links right to the hotel website) and I can take a look at the neighborhood using the satellite view. I use Kayak.com for pricing.

 

Of course, I will also ask folks here on CC for suggestions but having the maps helps me to put it all in perspective.

[Peregrina651]

but when I do, my first stop will be to Google maps. It is my favorite travel website.

 

Well, I did make it to Google maps only to find, well to put it bluntly, nothing. Only satellite pictures. No overlay maps and none of the search features and links that work so beautifully in North America and Europe. I was so disappointed. Sorry that I gave you all a bum steer.

[fredhanson]

A week in Buenos Aires is not too much (especially with day trips to Colonia and the Pampas areas), so consider renting an apartment. Costs for a week can be less than for 2 days in downtown hotels, and then you have a living room in which to relax. Compared to the relatively low costs of transportation (taxis), admission charges to sites, and food (steaks or good wine for $7), hotels are high priced. One budget hotel (but only in larger rooms!) is the Art Hotel (max $150 with breakfast), on a relatively quiet street in Barrio Norte. It's walking distance to a Subte (subway, Metro) stop, fare 30 cents, or taxis to most locations US$3-5.

[SSBosco]

I stayed at the Art Hotel http://arthotel.com.ar/. I prefer to stay in small non-internationally named hotels in neighborhoods where the locals live. It isn't exactly near the port but the taxi ride was only $8. It's in a quiet residential neighborhood 1 1/2 blocks north of Santa Fe, 2 blocks from the Pueyredon Metro station. I walked all over (in the daytime) by myself and it was fine. I took a little city tour and thought the Puerto Madero area of town was devoid of character. One big red brick place.

 

The Art Hotel is very organic feeling but not cold or sterile. Has vases of big twigs, minimalistic, VERY LIGHT due to 5-story atrium. You can see from the photo the original layout used to be one room-hallway- one room wide. They knocked out some of the interior rooms on the right side and made a 5-story atrium. GREAT. Read more about that on some of the travel boards.

 

http://arthotel.com.ar/english/peliculas.html

photo #3 shows the rooms that are accessed from the open balcony that overlooks the atrium. The front door of the room is French doors with the sheer curtains. The only windows are those high ones with no view. I believe the only rooms that have actual windows you can see out of are in the front and back of the building. The room numbers that end with 7 are in the back (quiet), have ONE (1, uno) luggage rack. The second person would have to step over their suitcase placed on the floor next to one of the twin beds. Those are the rooms that were $85 in 2008 listed as "small and cosy" (good for a single). But they have color cable TV, fridge, great AC, hot water and are very clean. No hair-dryers or clocks. My room had half grey concrete floor and half old original wood floor that was MANY years old.

 

The rooms that end with 8 are larger and also have a real window. They are also in the back.

 

Photo #5 shows the grey concrete floor that has a sealer on it. No carpet or fancy tile or marble. There is some wood inset into the concrete. Nice touch. The public computer backs up to the small elevator.

 

Photo #7 is the lobby and the only view of the little reception desk is the place with the 3 lights above the counter. The main door (enter by buzzer) is just to the left of the reception desk. The elevator is behind the mirror and fireplace mantel and the computer is on the other side of that.

 

#8 and 9 are the breakfast room.

 

#10 is probably the fancy front room facing the street.

 

Walk downhill 1 1/2 blocks and you're on Santa Fe. Turn right and go two blocks to the metro. A restaurant on every block. Walk uphill for 15 minutes and you're at Recoleta Cemetery where Evita is buried.

 

Very friendly young staff. All ages for guests. Taxis are CHEAP.

 

If you're coming into EZE, there's an big oval kiosk in the lobby (taxiezeiza) where you arrange for a taxi for 78 pesos. You give your destination, the lady puts it into the computer and a receipt comes back with your taxi driver's name on it. A porter type person walks you to your exact taxi (and will ask you for a tip if you're one second late getting out your change) with that exact driver. DO NOT take a rogue or unmetered taxi into town. You WILL be overcharged.

 

P.S. I like Santiago better than BsAs. I stayed 3 nights in both places, pre- and post-cruise.

[emileg]

We stayed at the Marriott Plaza for ten nights in 2005. While the room was not luxurious, it was spacious and clean. We kept our room while we went to Iguazu Falls for two nights. When we came back we asked the concierge if he could get us tickets for El Hombre de la Mancha (Man of La Mancha) that was playing but closing that same night with one of the great Argentine actors. He called his scalper, who got us two tickets 5th row center for $20 US a piece. The price on the tickets equaled $15 US. So only a $5 commission to cover both the "scalper" and the concierge!

 

Also the Marriott is right at the beginning of the pedestrian walk through the main shopping area and within walking distance of practically everything major in Buenos Aires.

 

We liked the Marriott so much that we are staying there again at the end of our cruise in January 2009.

[ragbag1]

We stayed at the Tryp Buenos Aires on San Martin street a block away from Florida for 5 nights at the end of a cruise and it was fine. $137 per night including the breakfast buffet which kept us fuelled up for most of the day. After our stateroom the 18 ft X 21 ft room seemed huge! :D Simple contemporary furniture, very clean, good airconditioning and very quiet. There are two free computers in the dining room foyer for guests' use. Staff helpful and security tight. In addition to a doorman, you can only operate the elevator with your room key.

Tryp is a division of the Sol Melia chain and we booked it through their US reservation office, paying at the end of our stay.

[Peregrina651]

We stayed at the Tryp Buenos Aires on San Martin street a block away from Florida for 5 nights at the end of a cruise and it was fine. $137 per night including the breakfast buffet

 

Thank you for the heads up. I checked it out. They are asking $180+tax for the nights that we will be there at the end of December. There is a premium for holiday travel. :eek:

 

 

[lucyjohnz]

We loved this hotel, which is in the San Telmo district but a 10-minute walk from Florida street and a 5-minute walk to the town square and the Pink Building (not the right name) where Eva Peron gave her speeches. It has free breakfast (continental) on the roof-top terrace and free wireless internet in the rooms and a free internet computer in the lobby. Our room was gigantic (the size of a small 1-br condo) and was decorated in a combination of Art Deco and modern and the AC worked great.

 

Some info on taxi costs - from the port to our hotel, it was $20. From the hotel to the airport, it was $25. Then, we took taxis all around town and typically paid about $3-$4 per ride - very cheap.

 

So, again, don't worry too much about getting a hotel near the port - find a great hotel in a good location and worry about the taxi rides later.

[helpmesailaway]

We are gathering information for a South American cruise. I looked at the Marriott and the prices were $400.00 and up for next year. Does this seem right?:eek: