Until recently, Argentina was an expensive country to visit - so expensive that Argentines were in the habit of taking their holidays in 'cheap' countries, like the USA. The economic policy that pegged the peso one-to-one to the US dollar kept prices high but inflation under control.

The recent devaluation of the peso means that all bets are off. At present, the peso has shrunk to about half the value of the US dollar, and it's anyone's guess as to how much further it may drop when banking restrictions are eased. Travelers may discover that two-tiered price structures - one price for Argentine nationals, and a second, higher price for foreigners - have been adopted in some industries. In general, however Argentina is far less expensive for foreign travelers than it once was.

US dollars are no longer accepted officially, but there's such a run on dollars at the moment that many shopkeepers would be glad to take them. You'll get a better rate at an official cambio, but be prepared to wait in line for several hours. Not surprisingly, there's a thriving black market in currency exchange, mostly for US dollars but also for Euros. Avoid the black market - not only is it illegal, but you might end up with counterfeit pesos. Travelers should bring some of their own currency and change it into pesos little by little. ATM withdrawals that reflect the current exchange rate are the best way to keep up with the fluctuating value of the peso.

Visa and MasterCard are the most widely accepted credit cards, but don't rely on them - some travelers have reported problems getting vendors to accept credit cards these days. The same goes for traveler's checks. Tipping around 10% is customary in restaurants. Bargaining is uncommon, except in the artisan markets of the Andean northwest.

Attractions

To the city's poet laureate, Jorge Luis Borges, Buenos Aires was as eternal as air and water. To many Argentines, their capital city is synonymous with the country itself - indeed, nearly 40% of the population lives in the city or its massive, sprawling suburbs. Buenos Aires is situated on the banks of the Río de la Plata. A city transported from its European parents, its compact and regular center is reminiscent of Paris, and its tree-lined avenues and frequent plazas have a beguiling, faded elegance.

In this cosmopolitan city, sophisticated dressers mingle with the shabbier unemployed from the surrounding suburbs. Downtown, the Plaza de Mayo is the traditional focus of activity, and lately has been the scene of mass protests against the government's handling of the economic crisis. Nearby Avenida 9 de Julio is popularly known as the world's widest thoroughfare and is truly a pedestrian's nightmare. Avenida Santa Fe is the most fashionable shopping area.

Buenos Aires' attractions include the Catedral Metropolitana, which contains the tomb of revolutionary hero José de San Martín; the Teatro Colón, a world-class facility for opera, ballet and classical music, and a cluster of worthwhile and popular museums like the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, the Museo del Cine and the Museo Histórico Nacional, which presents a panorama of the Argentine experience. Don't miss the colorful Italian suburb of La Boca, which features brightly painted wooden houses lining the Riachuelo waterway, or the Cementerio de la Recoleta, a testament to the national passion for death.

Buenos Aires is an expensive city, but whether you're after a bargain hostel or a top-end hotel, it is possible to stay right in the center of things. Congreso is a good place to look for inexpensive lodgings, while mid-range hotels are concentrated on Avenida de Mayo. Food bargains can be had in the suburbs of La Boca and San Telmo. Downtown, Lavalle and Avenida Corrientes are the places to go for pizza, coffee with the city's intellectuals or one of those ubiquitous meaty dishes.

Summer means the beach to the inhabitants of Greater Buenos Aires, and Mar del Plata is most often the beach they have in mind. Situated on the northern Atlantic coast, 400km (228mi) from the capital, beaches in this area sprawl for 8km (5mi). Sophisticated mansions from the area's heyday as an upper-class resort mingle with the newer, more modest resorts catering to middle-class porteños. Sea lions keep an eye on the fishing activities around the wharves, and a replica of the grotto of Lourdes is a kitsch paradise.

Argentina's second city, Córdoba, long rivaled Buenos Aires for political, economic and cultural supremacy; indeed, while Buenos Aires languished through neglect in the 17th century, Cordoba was the country's architectural treasure house. Today, a fine collection of colonial buildings is concentrated in its compact center. They include the old market, the Iglesia Catedral (featuring a Romanesque dome) and the Jesuit Iglesia de la Compañía. The Museo Histórico Provincial Marqués de Sobremonte is one of the most important historical museums in the country.

The unrelentingly flat Pampas is Argentina's agricultural heartland and the home of that symbol of romantic nationalism, the gaucho. Comprising the provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa and major parts of Santa Fe and Córdoba, its varied environments include forested hills, extensive grasslands and flamingo-flecked salt lakes. The Parque National Lihué Calel is a popular detour, with wildlife including some puma and many guanaco, rhea, native hares and a variety of wild chinchilla called a vizcacha. The cities of La Plata, Luján (whose basilica to La Virgen de Luján receives 4 million pilgrims a year), Rosario and Santa Fe are worth seeing for their many museums, churches and faded colonial buildings.

Situated in the Parque Nacional Iguazú near Puerto Iguazú, these spectacular falls lie just east of the confluence of the Iguazú and Paraná rivers. At least 5000 cubic m (176,570 cu ft) of water per second plunge the 70m (230ft) into the abyss below. If they look familiar, it's because they were the supporting actors in the film The Mission; appropriately, the area has historic ruins of Jesuit missions which also draw many visitors. San Ignacio Miní, built in a style of architecture known as 'Guaraní baroque', is especially popular. Above the falls, the waters are suitable for canoeing, kayaking and other water sports. The surrounding park is home to 55,000 hectares (135,850 acres) of pristine subtropical rainforest, with abundant wildlife and plant species.

Off the Beaten Track

The Cuyo region consists of the Andean provinces of Mendoza and San Juan, and adjacent San Luis. The area retains a strong regional identity, with a unique mestizo population reflecting the influence of neighboring Chile. An important agricultural region, particularly famous for its grapes and wine, it lies in the shadow of the massive Andes and is visited for its many sporting and recreational activities, such as climbing and trekking. Wineries, hidden mountain villages and the centers of Mendoza and San Juan are other attractions.

Home to abundant natural attractions and atmospheric relics from the pre-Columbian and colonial past, this is the more 'traditional' part of Argentina. It includes the provinces of Jujuy (numerous wildlife reserves), Salta (with the best preserved colonial city in the country, hundreds of archaeological sites, subtropical forests and polychrome desert canyons) and Tucumán, La Rioja, Catamarca and Santiago del Estero.

This enormous region south of Buenos Aires province features a glacier-dotted mountainous interior, unique coastal wildlife and Andean national parks. Península Valdés is a special treat for lovers of wildlife, with large numbers of sea lions, elephant seals, guanacos, rheas, Magellanic penguins, sea birds, flamingos and right whales. The Perito Moreno Glacier of Santa Cruz is a 60-meter-high (197-ft-high) river of rising, toppling and exploding ice, though it hasn't been advancing for several years. Carmen de Patagones is a beautiful colonial city and there are unexpected vestiges of the area's previous Welsh inhabitants - in particular the town of Gaiman.

Argentina shares half of this island territory in the South Atlantic Ocean with Chile. It's a place of oil derricks, sheep, glaciers, wind and waterways. Ushuaia and Río Grande are the two main towns; awesome scenery, wild walks and fishing are the island's main attractions. Argentina's only coastal national park comprises rivers, lakes, forests and glaciers, with great trekking and wildlife-spotting opportunities.

Just one example of the prevailing Italian influence is the importance placed on soccer, by far the country's most popular spectator and participatory sport. Argentina also has oodles of activity sports such as trekking, skiing and watersports. Elite sports such as rugby and polo reflect the influence of the country's immigrant societies, and skiing, despite its expense, is gaining in popularity. Argentina actually has some of the best skiing in the world, and many of the resorts have ski schools. There are several major skiing areas: the southern Cuyo region, the Lake District, La Hoya and near Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego.

Wilderness walks are also very popular, with vast and beautiful treks through the Andes, Sierras de Córdoba and the Sierra de la Ventana in Buenos Aires province. Climbers should head for Aconcagua, west of Mendoza, the Fitzroy Range in Parque Nacional Los Glaciares in Santa Cruz province, and the Sierra de la Fentana (for advanced climbing). White-water rafting is becoming increasingly popular on the rivers that descend from the Andean divide; the main possibilities include Río Mendoza and Río Diamante in the Cuyo region, Río Hua Hum and Río Meliquina near San Martín de los Andes and the Río Limay and Río Manso near Bariloche.

Pre-Columbian Argentina was farmed by sedentary Indian groups such as the Diaguita and used as a hunting ground by nomads. Indian resistance inhibited Spanish incursions and discouraged Spanish settlement. Buenos Aires was not successfully established until 1580, and remained a backwater for 200 years. A declining and unevenly distributed Indian population, which could not be milked for its labor, led to the creation of huge cattle ranches, known as haciendas - the genesis of the legendary gaucho (cowboy) and the source of great wealth for a lucky few.

Buenos Aires became the capital of the new Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata in 1776, acknowledgment that the region had outgrown Spain's political and economic domination. However, continuing dissatisfaction with Spanish interference led to the revolution of 25 May 1810 and eventual independence in 1816. Independence revealed the seething regional disparities which Spanish rule had obscured. The Federalists of the interior (conservative landowners, supported by the gauchos and rural working class) advocated provincial autonomy, while the Unitarists of Buenos Aires (cosmopolitan city dwellers who welcomed the injection of European capital, immigrants and ideas) upheld Buenos Aires' central authority. After a disastrous and tyrannical period of rule by the nominally Federalist Juan Manuel Rosas, Buenos Aires and Unitarism prevailed, ushering in a new era of growth and prosperity with the Unitarist constitution of 1853.

Sheep were introduced and the Pampas was given over to the cultivation of cereal crops. European immigration, foreign investment and trade were hallmarks of the new liberalism. However, excessive foreign interests made the economy particularly vulnerable to world economic downturns; wealth was concentrated in the hands of the very few, and unemployment rose as smallholdings failed and farmers were forced to leave the land and head for the cities.

The first decades of the 20th century saw increasingly weak civilian rule, economic failure, continuing resentment of the landed elite and distrust of British interests, leading to a military coup in 1943 which paved the way for the rise of dictator Juan Perón. An obscure colonel with a minor post in the labor ministry, he won the presidency in 1946 and again in 1952. With his equally popular and charismatic wife Eva at his side, he instituted a stringent economic program which stressed domestic industrialization and self-determination, appealing to both the conservative nationalist and working-class factions. His party was squashed by a military coup in 1955, leading to Perón's banishment to Spain and initiating 30 years of disastrous military rule, interspersed by only brief periods of civilian rule. Perón returned to rule briefly in 1973, dying in office in 1974 and bequeathing power to his third wife, Isabel. Increasing economic problems and political instability led to strikes, political kidnappings and guerrilla warfare. Isabel's government fell in 1976, and the new military government instituted a reign of terror.

The years 1976 to 1983 have been described as the years of the Dirty War. Opposition and criticism were eradicated by paramilitary death squads which operated with the state's complicity, bringing about the 'disappearance' of between 10,000 and 30,000 citizens. The most famous victims of this period were the Madres de la Plaza de Mayo, women who bravely kept an open, public vigil for the 'disappeared' members of their families, and who often 'disappeared' themselves.

This internal conflict ironically came to an end only with the emergence of a 'real' war in the south Atlantic: the battle for the Malvinas/Falklands. General Leopold Galtieri seized the Malvinas from the British to distract attention from Argentina's appalling political corruption and economic mismanagement. Surges of nationalistic hysteria in both countries resulted in a British flotilla sailing across the world to save one of the few remaining pink bits on the map. Britain was the eventual 'victor' in what was a mutually shameful and costly episode. Ownership of the Malvinas, however, remains disputed. In June 1995, the Argentine foreign minister offered to buy the islands, offering each of the 2000 islanders US$800,000 for their nationality. The matter has been further complicated by Britain's belief that oilfields lie offshore, and further bickering seems likely.

Ignominious failure at home and abroad finally sealed the fate of Argentina's military rule, and the country returned to the constitution of 1853. Former Perónist president Carlos Menem instituted major economic changes - selling off nationalized industries, opening the economy to foreign investment and pegging the peso one-to-one to the US dollar in 1991 - which reduced inflation from 5000% in 1989 to an astonishing 1% in 1997. But while these changes tamed inflation, they also led to rising unemployment and a prolonged recession.

President Fernando de la Rua of the UCR center-left Alliance, elected to a four-year term in 1999, promised a crackdown on corruption and tough fiscal measures to balance Argentina's budget. But after four years of recession and with an unemployment rate of more than 20%, the Argentine people had enough. De la Rua's austerity plans prompted nationwide strikes and demonstrations, which grew violent after the government instituted harsh restrictions on bank withdrawals. Argentina plunged into economic and political turmoil in December 2001 when it defaulted on a US$132 billion loan repayment - the largest default in history. De la Rua and many of his government ministers resigned amid rioting, looting and widespread civil chaos in which 27 people were killed.

On January 1, 2002, Eduardo Duhalde became Argentina's fifth president in two weeks. A staunch Perónist, Duhalde takes a populist and protectionist stance, though a skeptical public has not forgotten the corruption scandals that clouded his term as governor of Buenos Aires. One of his first moves was to unpeg the peso from the dollar; the currency devalued by more than 50% almost immediately. The move was unpopular but necessary to secure any further aid from the International Monetary Fund.

In a positive sign, the devalued peso has done better than expected in the world currency market, though government imposed banking restrictions may account for its relative strength. Duhalde plans to make sweeping changes to Argentine government, including scrapping the current presidential system for a parliamentary democracy. The public remains dubious about such reforms however, as economic strife and government corruption seem to be endemic here. Protests continue almost daily, strikes are in the works and frustrated people who can't get to their money have vandalized banks. If conditions don't improve soon, Duhalde may have trouble on his hands.

But despite the continuing protests and the long lines at currency exchanges, the violence has for the most part eased and the stage of siege has been lifted. Argentines are waiting warily for word from the IMF (although many blame that organization for causing the crisis) and keeping a worried eye out for the return of hyperinflation. Argentina's climb out of this ever-deepening financial pit promises to be long and arduous.

Culture

European influences permeate Argentina's art, architecture, literature and lifestyle. However, in the field of literature in particular, this has been a cross-cultural transaction, with Argentina producing writers of international stature such as Jorge Luis Borges, Julio Cortázar, Ernesto Sábasto, Manuel Puig and Osvaldo Soriano. With the education of many Argentines taking place in Europe, Buenos Aires in particular has self-consciously emulated European cultural trends in art, music and architecture. As a result, there are many important art museums and galleries in the city, and it has a vigorous theater community. Argentine cinema has also achieved international stature, and has been used as a vehicle to exorcise the horrors of the Dirty War.

Probably the best known manifestation of Argentine popular culture is the tango - a dance and music which has captured the imagination of romantics worldwide. Folk music is also thriving. Sport is extremely important to the Argentines and soccer is more of a national obsession than a game. Argentina won the World Cup in 1978 and 1986, and the exploits of Diego Maradona (the most famous Argentine since Che Guevara), have kept soccer fans, paparazzi and columnists busy for the past 10 years.

Argentine Roman Catholicism, the official state religion, is riddled with popular beliefs which diverge from official doctrine. Spiritualism and veneration of the dead are deep-seated, with pilgrimages to the resting places of relations and of the famous dead a common sight. Spanish is the official language, but some immigrant communities retain their language as a badge of identity. Italian is widely understood, reflecting the influence of the country's single largest immigrant group, and BBC English is the preserve of the Anglo community. There are 17 native languages, including Quechua, Mapuche, Guaraní, Tobas and Matacos.

Meat dominates Argentina's menus, and 'meat' means beef. Mixed grills (parrillada) are apparently the way to go, serving up a cut of just about every part of the animal: tripe, intestines, udders - the lot. In this vegetarian's nightmare, Italian favorites, such as gnocchi (ñoquis), are a welcome alternative. Exquisite Argentine ice cream (helado) deserves a special mention - again reflecting Italian influences. The sharing of mate, Paraguayan tea, is a ritual more than a beverage, and if offered is a special expression of acceptance. The leaves, a relation to holly, are elaborately prepared and the mixture is drunk from a shared gourd.

Environment

Argentina forms the eastern half of South America's long, tapering tail. It's a big country - the eighth largest in the world, and the second largest on the South American continent. It borders Chile to the west (separated by the Andean Cordilleras range) and Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil and Bolivia to the north and east (separated by rivers). It also shares the offshore island territory of Tierra del Fuego with Chile, and continues to dispute the ownership of the Islas Malvinas (the Falklands to the Brits). Argentina's topography is affected by both latitude and altitude, and is accordingly varied. The country can be divided into four major physiographic provinces: the Andes to the west (with arid basins, grape-filled foothills, glacial mountains and the Lake District), the fertile lowland north (with subtropical rainforests), the central Pampas (a flat mix of humid and dry expanses) and Patagonia (a combination of pastoral steppes and glacial regions).

More than twenty national parks preserve large areas of these varied environments and protect wildlife (much of it unique) such as the caiman (or yacaré), puma, guanaco (a lowland relative of the upper-Andean llama), rhea (similar to an ostrich), Andean condor, flamingo, various marine mammals and unusual seabirds such as Magellanic penguins. Thorn forests, virgin rainforests, flowering cacti, extensive forests of monkey-puzzle trees and southern beech are also protected.

Argentina's climate ranges from subtropical in the north to humid and steamy in the centre, and cold in the temperate south. The Andes region has erratic rainfall, flash floods in summer, searing heat, snow at higher elevations, and the Zonda - a hot, dry wind. The lowlands receive sufficient rainfall to support swampy forests and upland savanna, but rainfall decreases from east to west; shallow summer flooding is common in the east. The winter dry season is pronounced, and the summer heat can be brutal. The flat pampas areas are also vulnerable to flooding; Patagonia is mild year-round in the east and glacial in the south.

Getting There & Away

Argentina has excellent worldwide air connections, with Aeropuerto Internacional Ezeiza, outside Buenos Aires, the main international airport. A departure tax of US$23.50 (plus 21% IVA) is payable on international flights; the tax is US$5 (plus 21% IVA) on flights to Uruguay. Note that all taxes and costs will be up in the air until the monetary crisis sorts itself out.

If you're arriving at the Ezeiza airport, there are several buses you can take to Buenos Aires. The buses take a while (up to 2 hours if traffic is bad), but they're a cheaper option than taxis, especially considering the recent taxi scams.

A multitude of land and river crossing points connect Argentina with neighboring Uruguay, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia and Chile. Travel from Chile usually involves a hike through the Andes, while overland travel to Bolivia can go through the border towns of La Quiaca, Tarija or Pocitos/Yacuiba. Paraguay can be reached by bus and/or river launch, and the most common crossing to Brazil is via Foz do Iguaçu or Uruguaiana. Uruguay is linked to Argentina by road bridges, and ferries sail between Buenos Aires and Colonia in Uruguay.

Getting Around

Five major Argentine airlines attempt to make this big country appear smaller: privatized Aerolíneas Argentinas handles domestic as well as international routes, while Austral covers domestic routes only. Línea Aéreas Privadas Argentinas (LAPA) competes with Austral and Aerolíneas on many domestic routes. Líneas Aéreas del Estado (LADE), the air force's passenger service, serves mostly Patagonian destinations. Dinar serves smaller domestic destinations. Discount deals and passes are advisable as fares are expensive. In some cases, however, flying can be cheaper than covering the same distance by bus. Domestic flights carry a departure tax of around US$6 (including 21% IVA).

Long-distance buses are fast and comfortable; some even provide on-board meal services. However, fares are expensive and fluctuate wildly. Private operators have assumed control of the formerly state-owned railways, but have shown little interest in providing passenger service except on commuter lines in and around Buenos Aires. The provinces of Río Negro, Chubut, Tucumán and La Pampa continue to provide much-reduced passenger service.