INSURANCE: Be prepared to spend a few days searching for insurance. It took us two days but we met others who had taken one week to find some. There is a story that a overlander truck had a accident, when it was tested it failed on mechanical problems - making a insurance claim very difficult. Whether this story is true or not we don’t know but, it does seem that most of the insurance companies do not want to give foreign vehicles cover. The usual excuses are - ‘We don’t insure campers’ , or ‘Your vehicle is too old / too big’.
We stumbled upon: Ana Ines Bonomi at LA HOLANDO, Sarmiento 309, Buenos Aires Tel 4321 7617
She was happy to issue insurance but only 3rd party and only for 6 months. It cost 1,172 pesos = £186.
Ask for Mercosur coverage as this will include Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay and Paraguay and take some recent photographs of your vehicle with you. We were issued with insurance in one hour - English spoken.
There are several insurance offices in the city centre and it is just a matter of walking around and asking.
If you speak and understand Spanish then you could try calling these offices first:
LIBERTY SEGUROS Tel 0800 222 7854 or 4346 0400
Av L.N Alem 518 Floor 12
Buenos Aires
BERKLEY SEGUROS Tel 4378 8100
C. Pellegrini 1023
Buenos Aires
LA MERIDIONAL Tel 4909 7000
Tte Gral. J.D Peron 646 Floor 4
Buenos Aires
This final company were happy to give one year insurance in January 2009 for 2,000 peso;
MERCANTILANDINA - ask for Martin Gonzalez
505 Paseo Colon Floor 1
Buenos Aires
BUENOS AIRES CITY INFORMATION AND HELP
BUQUEBUS car park stay overnight for 50 peso’s - 24 hour charge - safe and relatively quiet. GPS S34.59556 W058.36871 There is a blue concrete bollard with a fresh water tap and you can use the free wifi in Buquebus between 3-6pm.
Our friends park on Bv Macacha Guemes in the Puerto Madero area, near the Hilton. They say it is full of CCTV camera’s, there are police always about, there is a water source and, if you walk to the city side of the bridge, there are toilets. It is busy during the day and quiet at night but it is only roadside parking.
FOOD SHOPPING there is a Carrefour express supermarket on the junction of Av. 9 De Julio and Rivadavia - walking distance from Buquebus and a 10 peso taxi ride back.
A huge Carrefour can be found on the way to Tigre. It is easy to get to from the motorway and you can park on the street outside. GPS; S34.45407 W058.57521 Norte Ramal a Tigre route.
MOTOR HOME HELP AND PARTS -
Juan J. Melo lives in Buenos Aires, District- Ituzaingo, Street name - Soler Miguel E, Number 1502.
GPS; S34.64536 W058.67625 www.mhomemisangelitos.com.ar
Mobile telephone numbers - 0111551795284 or 0111564651200
Juan works from home and speaks NO English but is very friendly, can order parts and is generally helpful.
There is a experienced motor home builder in Corboda (440 km’s north west of Buenos Aires) We will post full information on this when we visit - see TRIP 5 below.
MERCEDES TRUCK GARAGE and parts GPS; S34.65987 W058.61423 On Rp 4 route.
For all automotive parts and accessories you can’t beat Rp 4, Pte Av 99, Moron District. It is a very long route full of garages and all things auto car and truck, we also saw another motor home fabrication workshop somewhere along this route and a Sodimac store GPS; S34.61998 W058.63387 It’s a huge DIY warehouse store - very handy to find.
EASY SHOPPING - Rp 1 has a Carrefour, Makro and Sodimac store all beside each other - GPS; S34.58946 W058.51887 Close to where the General Paz Rp 1 crosses San Martin Av, B.A.
Top tip - You must have reflective tape, yellow or white, on the side of your truck and red on the rear plus a reflective speed sticker and nationality sticker on the rear of your vehicle to be legal on Argentinean roads. Seatbelts must be worn at all times and headlights should always be on.
ATM MONEY - the cheapest way is to go to CITI Bank on Florida Av. Use the internal multi language ATM and you can get up to 1,500 peso withdrawal per day at a lower charge rate. Other machines charge 11 peso’s per withdrawal and give you a much smaller amount per day - on average 300 peso.
MOBILE PHONE - Other travellers report SIM and top up cards that only work in the region where purchased. Claro and Movistar are the two main providers. Under 10 peso for a sim card but not cheap for international calls- around 12 minutes = 30 pesos. But the coverage can be poor. Skype is your best and cheapest option as there is plenty of wifi over here.
CRIME - Bag snatching and pickpockets are daily occurrences - be VERY careful when walking in the city.
Exchange rate:
6.30 pesos =£1.00
TRIP ONE
Buenos Aires to El Calafate
ARGENTINA INFORMATION
ROAD TOLLS:
No- one talks about these but you will find road tolls all over the country. In B.A
they are on the main Rp’s only and average 2 pesos’s for a truck, less for a car.
Out of the city they tend to be around 5 pesos’s but with large distances between
booths. It does not add up to much to get south to Patagonia - 15 pesos’s.
FOOD CHECK POINTS:
Argentina has food check points - like Oz - where they want to prevent ‘contamination’
by movement of certain products. We came upon our first one near Bahia Blanca at
5 pm and decided to turn around before reaching it, so we could cook our chicken
and sleep in the YPF fuel station before crossing over the next day. It was just
as we drove into the YPF we heard sirens - not again!! Oh yes, we were chased by
4 officials in a jeep. They DEMANDED that we turn back and cross the check point
even after we explained why we had turned around - which involved Dave doing a funky
chicken dance at the side of the truck to demonstrate that we had meat on board!
They placed an official in the truck with us and then made us drive through the checkpoint!!
After all of that it turned out that chicken is allowed across the checkpoint. These
guys are obviously bored.
FOODS TO AVOID - meat and mutton and any byproducts, exotic fruits, apples and peppers.
We had cheese, butter, milk, vegetables, cereals and spices on board - they were
not a problem at the north Patagonia checks.
Checkpoints :
Route 3 - Between Bahia Blanca and El Empalme there are 3 checkpoints. Also at each
border crossing.
VISA EXTENSIONS:
Argentina has just increased it’s rate from 100 peso’s to 300 peso’s for a 3 month
extension! You can extend in any big town within 4 days of expiry - not sooner.
POLICE FINES:
Police issue fines or ‘multa’s’ for various reasons - sometimes to extort money from
overlanders - if you are ever faced with a situation where talking doesn’t work then
accept the ticket and take it to the nearest town to pay either at the Banco National
or the Municipalid. If you pay promptly then the cost is only 20% of the amount written
on the ticket. NEVER, EVER pay the policeman as it will go straight into his pocket!
WIFI:
Most YPF fuel stations have free wifi, sometimes you can park outside & connect,
or you need to go and purchase a coffee to be given the access code. We have also
found unsecured wifi in some of the larger towns.
GARMIN MAPS: Go onto Garmin’s page and upload the latest free South American maps
- very good detail.
CRIME - Trelew is a favourite place for smash and grab theft from overlander vehicles.
Leave NO valuables in sight.
CAMPING IN ARGENTINA: It couldn’t be easier. Almost every town, even small ones, seem to have a Municipal ground that has BBQ areas, toilets and will allow camping - some even have a swimming pool and sports area. A few are free to use but we would imagine they get very busy on summer weekends.
If you are not completely self sufficient then you can book into a campsite. Prices have increased dramatically in the last year, for a hot shower and electric power point you will now pay between 10 - 25 peso’s per person per night.
Because life on the road is SO easy here we are only going to list our favourite places to stay.
FAVOURITE PLACES TO STAY
TANDIL - a very pleasant town with rock climbing, horse riding, a reservoir and friendly
locals. A good mid-way stopping point on the way south. Bush camp by the reservoir
or choose a campsite - Pinar de la Sierra is out of town but in a lovely area with
very friendly dogs, hot showers and electric. 20 peso’s per person. Book ahead in
the holiday season/ summer. S37.35929 W059.14724
NECOCHEA - a huge beach area with good bush camping opportunities and beautiful sunsets.
We were completely alone there but we imagine it would be busy in the summer.
Turn off at Viedma to La Loberia and find beach/bush camp heaven! Firstly, the 70,000
parrots who live on the cliffs at La Loberia, then move on to see whales, shocking
red flamingoes and sea lions along this coast.
ENSENADA - S41.15386 W063.37253 right on the beach - we saw whales here.
ENCAHNDI - S41.15980 W063.54861 cliff top bush camp spot with some parrots.
LOROS - S41.02596 W064.07646 beach bush camp with red flamingoes and a beach full
of gorgeous shells.
At Bahia Creek the road suddenly disappears - the sands tend to drift over the dirt
road and swallow it for approx. 5 km’s. If you have 4 wheel drive it is no problem
and not too deep.
PLAYA CANTERAS - S42.64286 W064.96713 WOW! Sit in the comfort of your vehicle and
watch whales frolic and play less than 50 feet from you. THE place to whale watch
in Patagonia. There's a toilet and it’s FREE for now.
See our diary page for photo’s and story......
PUNTA NINFAS - S42.97912 W064.30934 Is a great place to see Elephant seals, Sea lions
and Orcas'. It is isolated so take everything you need with you and be careful on
the very steep cliff paths - one is vertical!
PUERTO MADRYN INFORMATION
Dentist - ADRIAN GARCIA, speaks English, good clean clinic - on the Plaza on 28 de Julio.
Supermarkets - CARREFOUR - on Av Gales - GPS S42.77548 W065.04951
LA - on Felds - GPS S42.78021 W065.03681
Gas man - on Estivariz SW - GPS S42.77819 W065.04337
Computer repair shop - UNIPRINT - on the corner of Mitre and 9 de Julio.
Rubber man for seals, mats, belts etc - GOMATEX - on corner of Zar M A and Av Gales.
Vehicle parts shop - ROCAR - on AV Gales GPS S42.77438 W065.04490
Plug-in internet -CLARO - on the Plaza near dentist.
Electronics shop - LASER - on corner near San Martin and 28 de Julio.
Excellent mechanic - No name or sign - at the top of 9 de Julio - GPS S42.77378 W065.05027
Chemicals for toilet - KODAK - also sells sureflow pumps! On Av Roca near Roque Saenz Pena corner.
DIY store - Hiper Tehuelche - behind Carrefour.
ACA Camping - turn up, let yourself in and use the electric, hot showers and BBQ facilities for the day. Tell the owner that you are there for a shower and he will only charge 15 peso’s for the day. Great value.
FAVOURITE PLACES TO STAY CONTINUED.....
BAHIA BUSTAMANTE - S45.09686 W066.51772 Superb estancia with petrified forest, penguin and sea lion colony.
CIRCUIT CURIOSO - Lots of choices - here are our two favourites:
Camp 4 - turn down past the derelict buildings and park near the rocks to see commerson dolphins and penguins. S49.24675 W067.67069
OR Camp 6 - for a lovely beach side camping area. S49.26856 W067.71153
MONTE LEON - National park - you can park near the beach but there are only 9 places, you must register at the estancia first AND you can only stay between November and April. S50.33445 W068.88448
GLACIER MORENO - you are permitted to stay overnight in the top car park for one night only. Very lovely view.
EL CALAFATE - El Ovejero camping - Humberto has let the Lonely Planet go to his head and is now trying to charge 95ps a night!!!!!!! We were still laughing when 20 minutes later we were parked by the lake with gorgeous views for free - S50.30217 W072.31644
GARAGES NOT TO USE!
Trelew Mercedes - Use cheap and incorrect oil for servicing.
Comodoro Rivadavia - charge almost double the price of other Argentina Mercedes garages.
BORDER CROSSINGS
Los Cipreses - Very friendly and easy. Food check was a glance in the fridge only. We were issued a 3 month visa but this time Nessie only got a 3 month import paper instead of usual 8 months.
Corentoso - No problems leaving this very well organised border.
CRIME - Bariloche is NOT the place to visit as an overlander. You are almost guaranteed to have your vehicle broken into and emptied of all valuables! We have heard of several victims and actually met one unlucky couple. They are convinced that an organised gang watch the main road into town, follow your vehicle to where you park it and then empty it. They lost everything. But worse than that - they went to the police and came away convinced that the police are somehow involved.
DO NOT leave your vehicle unattended in Bariloche city or the lakes car park.
BARILOCHE INFORMATION
Bariloche city centre is not an easy place to drive around, it’s best to park and walk to some of these places and for that reason we have named the streets rather than use GPS points.
Spare parts - for all things automotive go to E. Elordi street. This one you drive down to reach the city centre.
Insurance - All the main insurance offices can be found in Dr. A Gallardo street. We could only find one who would sell us a policy - La Segunda, they charged 831ps for a 6 month policy that included Chile, Brasil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Peru and Argentina.
Goma and superb herb shop - Goma man sells a good selection of seals etc and the herb shop sells excellent Indian spices, European mustards, Basmati rice etc etc. On John O’Connor street.
Gas man - top up or change your bottle here. On corner of Eldori and Albarracin streets. You can drive here also.
Truck tyres etc - Goodyear truck gomeria can be found on Cte Piedrabuena. Another drive to place.
BUDGET NEWS - £24.50 a day : 14 days and 728 km’s.
Fuel costs - Cheapest was El Bolson at 2.580 litre, most expensive was Dina Huapi at 2.990 litre.
Budget includes all costs, camping, meals out etc. Does not include truck upkeep.
BORDER CROSSINGS -
Paso Pehuenche - Small, friendly and easy. Closes at 6pm. 3 month visa for us and 5 months for the truck.
Cristo Redentor - Has a terrible reputation for being difficult and having sniffer dogs. We arrived at 8am to beat the crowds but we still had to wait in the non ventilated tunnel for 15 minutes because the queues were so large. The Argentine border for foreigners leaving is in the same building as the Chilean border point - at the west end of the Cristo Redentor tunnel. No problems leaving.
Favourite camping places ..........
MALARGUE - Municipal campsite. Excellent value - hot showers, electric and SLOW wifi. Only 10ps per site!
S35.46671 W069.59205
VISTA FLORES - Lovely campsite with a pool, shelters, electric, hot showers. 50ps S33.62373 W069.14823
MENDOZA - The San Martin park is potentially a nice place to stay but locals are frightened of crime - if you do decide to stay there then park beside the big lake - it is well patrolled by the police and security officers.
Campsites in the city are expensive - we have listed 4 options for you -
PILMAYKEN - Has electric, hot showers and wifi. Helpful staff. 48ps per vehicle and 7ps per person. Can be very busy and noisy - they allow extra football traffic to park here during a match. S32.89086 W068.88350
MANGRULLO - A pool, electric and hot showers. 25ps per person. S32.85608 W068.89412. Some disco noise at weekends but very, very friendly owners who also sell excellent empanadas.
CHACHINGO PARK - Roughly 10 kilometres from the centre in the MAIPU district. A safe park with water canals busy during the weekend but quiet every night. S33.04968 W068.75442
VINAS DE VIEYT - A big sign saying -NO ENGLISH WITH ANIMALS is a poor welcome but this site has a pool and we assume all the usual facilities. 60ps for 2 people. S33.01516 W068.83607 Just off route 40 south.
POTRERILLOS - A pleasant lakeside area that is nice and quiet. S32.97085 W069.18037
MENDOZA INFORMATION
Looking for anything automotive? Then drive to the MAIPU area of the city and along the MAZA and PENA streets. MAZA street is a very long road FULL of everything you could need - spare parts, garages, metal workshops, electrical shops etc etc. The junction GPS is S32.93694 W068.78039.
MERCEDES GARAGE - Av Bandera de Los Andes. Beside Rt 7 east bound. S32.90869 W068.77837
Chiropractor - A excellent clinic in the city centre, near the park. Avellaneda 840, Mendoza. Tel. 0261- 4239334. Guillermo Corvalan speaks some English and has 17 years experience. 40ps/session S32.88459 W068.86018
SHOPPING -
Palmares Mall - S32.95488 W068.85732 Just off Av Grl. J de San Martin. Excellent cinema complex.
Jumbo and Easy - S32.91525 W068.83862 Just off Av Costanera. Big food and DIY stores. EASY sells SIKAFLEX!
Makro - S32.92546 W068.82944
There are also Carrefour and Walmart stores in the city.
ROUTES -
These have come highly recommended from other overalnders. We did not drive them.
Hermoso Valley, after Las Lenas follow a rough ripio track 20 kilometres north to this beautiful valley.
4x4 track that takes you from Termas de Vilavicencio to Uspallata.
DO NOT expect to bushcamp with your vehicle in Parque Aconcagua - it has walking trails only!
BUDGET NEWS - £28 a day : 18 days and 1,585km’s.
Fuel costs - Average cost from YPF was 2.899 per litre.
Budget includes all costs, camping, meals out etc. Does not include truck upkeep and medical costs.
BUDGET NEWS - £18.75 a day : 80 days and 5,251 km’s.
Fuel costs - average was 2.5 litre.
We have included everything ; a dentist visit, new fleece top for Dave, food, camping, fuel, postcards, a haircut and the daily costs of truck insurance. We have NOT included servicing costs of truck - this will be on our NESSIE page.
We met a couple in a van who live on £8 a day - but it’s hard.
BORDER CROSSING
Cancha Carrera - it is a seasonal border only but was open in mid October when we used it. Staff were easy going and we had no problems.
Favourite camping places.......
RIO GALLEGOS - Not an easy place to camp so we have included this information to help you. On route 5 you will find this place - not great but good and quiet for one night. Pescazaike S51.62889 W069.61910
El CHALTEN - All free camping areas have been closed. We parked in the Sendero trail carpark - not ideal but okay. S49.32145 W072.89431 Hot showers are available in nearby Rancho Grande hostel for 5 pesos and you can empty your chemical toilet in the pit toilet at Campamento Confluencia - opposite the park ranger office.
NATIONAL PARK PERITO MORENO - It’s a LONG drive in on roads that are sometimes bad but IF you get good weather and if you LIKE isolation then this may be the place for you. Four wheel drive only. Entrance is free.
LOS ANTIGUOS - Municipal campsite. Excellent value for money. You pay 20 pesos for your vehicle only once then you are charged 5 pesos per person per day. Electric, hot showers and fire pits - limited sunny areas to park. S46.54405 W071.60901
BORDER CROSSINGS
Monte Aymond - Route 3 south of Rio Gallegos. Very friendly, we were issued with the standard 3 month visa and a 8 month entry for our truck. No-one checked the truck for food.
Los Antiguos - Very easy - no problems leaving Argentina.
USEFUL INFORMATION
SHOPPING - Stock up in Rio Gallegos, El Calafate, Gobernador Gregores and Los Antiguos. All other towns have limited and very expensive food stocks - especially El Chalten. Gas is available in Perito Moreno town.
ROUTES -
Route 40 is still a mix of ripio and asphalt, some sections are pretty rough.
Route 39 and 41. We wanted to drive from Bajo Ceracoles to H Yrigoyen and then turn north following the border all the way to Los Antiguos. This route can be very difficult. Always ask locals of conditions before attempting, four wheel drive is required and some sections are narrow. We were told it was impassable, this was mid November, after a week of sun our friends in a Toyota Landcruiser attempted to drive south on it and had to turn around after 65 km’s. Ice, snow and holes in the road were the cause. Probably best attempted in December or January.
TRIP TWO
Rio Gallegos to Los Antiguos
BUDGET NEWS - £18.10 a day: 28 days and 1,774km’s.
Fuel costs - Cheapest was Rio Gallegos 2.524 litre. Most expensive was Los Antiguos 3.298 litre.
As usual this includes everything except vehicle maintenance costs.
Favourite camping places .........
PARQUE NACIONAL LOS ALERCES - Free entry to park and lots of free camping areas on lake. Our favourite was
Punta Canero - driving north, go past the last guard post and take the second left track. We squeezed into a great spot right on the waters edge - S42.60699 W071.64571 We also slept at Punta Mattos and Los Rocas.
EL BOLSON - Camping Cerveza. Excellent facilities - wifi, electric, hot showers and a free washing machine. Plus their own micro-brewery! S41.94252 W 071.53683 20ps per person per night.
BARILOCHE - Truchas beach. Hidden from the main road and beside the lake. May be noisy on weekends.
S41.11046 W071.41982
DINA HUAPI - A good quiet lakeside spot if you don’t want to stay overnight in Bariloche.
S41.07294 W071.17576
LAGO TRAFUL - The only lakeside bush camp we saw was here. S40.64560 W071.43886
VILLA la ANGOSTURA - A quiet carpark by the lake. Good for one night. S40.78360 W071.65835
TRIP THREE
Trevelin to Bariloche
Exchange rate :
6.13ps = £1.00
TRIP FOUR
Malargue to Cristo Redentor
Exchange rate :
5.99ps = £1.00