Buenos Aires, mas caro

We started coming to Argentina in 2006, and have come down for a month each year since. There are many reasons why we do this: it's late winter here, the off-season, while Texas swelters. Buenos Aires is a cosmopolitan city with lots of museums and events, easy public transportation, many parks and plazas, and beautiful architecture. We study Spanish, wrestling with the language and the distinctive Argentine accent. Airline tickets are expensive ($1,000 to $1,200 or more), but we've always been able to use our frequent flyer miles to fly for free. The food and wine, while not comparable to Italy or Spain (what food is?), are satisfying.

In the past, Buenos Aires had a further allure: estaba barato, it was cheap. Each year we saw prices creep up a little, but always they were cheap.

No more. Inflation has accelerated to the point that trips to the supermarket show prices similar to those in the U.S.: a pound of decent coffee is $12, a small package of sliced cheese $3, a quart of milk more than $1. A loaf of Fargo bread is about $3.50, more than a loaf of Oroweat at Super Target in Fort Worth. Norton Clasico, a simple but tasty red table wine, used to be $2.25 but is now pushing $4. A big lunch of meat and beer that was $12 in 2008 is almost $25. Empanadas are over $1 each. The smallest ice cream cone at Freddo or Volta is $3. (Just to be clear, those prices are in equivalent U.S. dollars, not pesos. The current exchange rate is about A$3.94 to US$1.)

A year ago, ATMs here started charging a $3 fee. (Before that, they were free, like those in Europe.) Now the fee is $4. (Fortunately, our Schwab and Fidelity debit cards rebate all ATM fees.)

We want to go see a soccer game, preferably Boca Juniors at La Bombonera, but that will set us back US $150 to $200 per person. Less popular games at less famous stadiums are as low as $100 per person.

Argentina has long had an exit tax, around $30. In late 2009 they added a 'visa reciprocity fee' of $140 per person, payable at Ezeiza airport upon arrival. It's good for ten years, but casual U.S. tourists now have to pay almost $200 just to get into and out of the country.

None of this is outrageous, certainly not high enough to discourage us from visiting. The cost of our apartment rental is the same as three years ago, and the colectivos (buses) are still A$1.20 (about 30 cents U.S.).

The plazas and museums are as pleasant as ever, the people just as friendly even if a bit poorer, and the buildings still beautiful. Come and enjoy Buenos Aires, as we do, but be prepared to pay.