Patagonia: Argentina/Chile-Help with Details

I can't answer all of your questions but have a little bit of info for you.

No wifi issues at places we stayed in Buenos Aires, Ushuaia, Torres del Paine and Santiago. I didn't attempt to use my phone otherwise. My sister has AT&T and she made a call or two to the US with no problems

I bought a folding hiking pole in BA so as to do carry on only from the US to Buenos Aires. The flight from BA to Ushuaia was on a small plane and all baggage had to be checked. Other transport was by bus and ship (Road Scholar tour); checked my bag on return flight to US from Santiago to US. As part of a tour group, I didn't have to worry with flight notifications and the like.

Very strict TSA type of experience at Santiago airport. Stick with the same restrictions as US TSA. regarding liquids. Everyone was stopped on the jet bridge to board from Santiago to Miami. A woman nearby had bought a cola after security and was not allowed to carry it on the plane. She was highly annoyed but had no choice but to trash it. I'd never seen that happen before. I don't recall the questions we were asked but likely was related to how much cash one was carrying as I've experienced that sort of questioning in Central America.

Enjoy your trip!

You do have a lot of question. We have traveled to South America specifically Argentina and Chile several times. They are great countries and you should have a fantastic time. I’ll try to answer what I can.

We have T Mobile so we have had good coverage in South America. Exception was in Torres Del Paine and at the Moreno Glacier that I remember. Seems I remember wifi at the visitor center at the glacier. The explora lodge should have wifi that you can access when in the hotel. We stayed at a luxury yurt camp and wifi at the main lodge was great but not at our Yurt. Since it had an open bar - we had no issue connecting at the lodge 😀. All of our other hotels we have stayed at have had very good wifi. No more issues there than anywhere else we have traveled including within the US.

We carry brick portable charges that have USB connectors we can plug our charging cables into. Some of our chargers have dual ports where you can charge two devices simultaneously.

What’s app is easy to use. I’d suggest downloading it and use it with friends/family before you leave so you are familiar with it. It works like sending a text - same type of coverage/signal required. You can also use it to make phone calls.

We bring our own poles and check them in our luggage.

For wall charging You will have to google what type of adapters you will need. If you have lots of devices to charge we often bring a multi outlet extension cord with us to avoid needing lots of adaptors. I don’t know off the top of my head which ones work there. You will need a different adaptor for each country. I remember our last trip my husband didn’t bring the Argentina adaptors and we had to buy some.

We check luggage and only carry on essentials so anything sharp is in our checked luggage. I don’t remember if we could bring filled water bottles on board or not. Many countries outside of the US allow that. You can look at the Latam or Aerolineas websites. I saw whee Latam has a good list of what is allowed and prohibited. I do remember having my hair spray removed out of my checked luggage in Peru and my husband had bug spray removed. We have flown both latam and Aerolineas as well of budget carriers in South America. All have been comparable to US carriers in regard to check in, status etc. They have good apps - download those and manage your reservations in the app.

We have worked with a South American expert travel agent for all of our trips. We have booked some of our hotels, tours on our own like in Buenos Aires. If you book your own hotels in Argentina - you can get the vat taken off your bill using a US credit card. Ask your hotel about it. It may not automatically be deducted. We have used Fodors travel guides in the past. We rely mainly now on online sources.

Some advice about currency particularly in Argentina. Bring large clean US bills ($100 bills) and ask at your hotel about exchanging them as you will get a substantially better rate than pulling cash out of an ATM. Our guides have also been helpful with this aspect. Bring smaller bills for tips and smaller purchases. Many shops post prices in US$/Euro with a better exchange rate. Guides/Drivers/Bell hops/Taxis will want US $ not pesos for tips and transit.

Bank ATMs in Chile are fine - we have found a large difference in ATM fees. Seems HSBC was pretty favorable. Our ATM does reimburse our ATM fees.

Hopefully this will help. Have a wonderful trip!!

To GoAnywhere:
Thank you for your detailed guidance Question:
1. You mention that Santiago checks every bag/backpack, no carryons-correct? (I carry a backpack that’s perfectly legal on United, but not sure it would work on Latam.
2. You mention that their TSA rule enforcement is strict…and that liquids follow the US rule. TSA now allows liquids be kept in carry-ons, with no inspections of individual bags unless there’s a concern. Has Latam adopted this new practice/policy?
3. What about Aerolinias: what is their policy? Especially regarding carry-ons and liquids?
4. So re. carrying cash on the way home, what’s the right amount of cash? Curious is this really their business?
5. Carrying our poles is our first choice, so long as they fit in the checked bag. How many checked bags did you take/is usual?
Thanks again for all your help!

Covering a couple of items:

I have used the big cube universal adapters, but on my last couple of trips I have been using the Anker Nano Travel Adapter, which works well and is about half the size, although it feels a little less solid than the big cube ones.

WhatsApp is very widely used outside the US. We get most of our messages from guides, taxi drivers, hotels, Airbnb hosts, etc. using WhatsApp when traveling abroad. Almost a travel necessity in my book. It requires a phone or Wi-Fi connection to receive messages.

I have collapsible hiking poles that fit in my carry-on (I travel with only a carry-on) and have not had any problems with them at airport security, although I always wonder if they will be a problem.

Our biggest flight change was our Aerolíneas Argentinas flight from downtown Buenos Aires to El Calafate, which was changed to the international airport a couple of days prior to departure — a big change, since the main international airport in BA is quite a trip from the city center. We were notified when the change was made.

We travel a lot and have the T-Mobile Magenta plan, which includes international data. Between Wi-Fi and phone service, we felt very well connected throughout Buenos Aires and Argentine Patagonia.

I was on American Airlines from Santiago to Miami. Carry-ons are certainly permitted. On the smaller plane from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia, I carried on my personal item - a backpack with meds and similar items that I'd need if my bag went missing. But the overhead bins were not large enough for luggage. I travel with only a backpack and carry-on sized bag.

I don't specifically recall the liquids rule. I likely had some in my backpack on the flight to Ushuaia. But I had flights in the US on both ends of my trip so I stuck with the 3-1-1 rules.

You might check the various airport websites and airline info for the latest rules.

Many countries restrict the amount of cash you can take into/bring out. It's typically much more than you'd likely carry while traveling. I was once quizzed about the amount of cash I was carrying into Costa Rica. They're looking for drug money, etc.

Yes, it is their business. Watch a few episodes of Contraband, Seized at the Border. I think that's the name. Your phone can be searched, every square inch of your luggage can be searched, every bit of your body can be searched. Sometimes those searches are random, sometimes there is nervous passenger behavior that prompts a search, sometimes there's intel that causes a passenger to get further treatment. Ever been pulled aside for secondary screening in the US? That's nothing compared to what airport security has the right to do. Smile and cooperate. And know the rules.

What an incredible trip- I was there last January although used a tour company (Odysseys Unlimited) so details including flights were all arranged.
I always avoid checking a suitcase but the planes to Patagonia were small. I didn't worry as much about the bag getting lost since it was a direct flight and everyone had to check them. I remember all the security in all the airports being very strict.
A note on money. I am an outlier in that I am ok paying the exhorbitant fee at the airport exchange for between 100-200 USD in small bills before exiting when I travel.
In Chile I experienced the literal mountain of bills that 100 US is- as in, $935! They didn't have Argentinian money and in fact it was pretty difficult to procur even in Argentina. There's limits on the ATMs, so you don't receive much.
I ended up buying some at our hotel on arrival.
WhatsApp is ubiquitous and very easy to use. I keep airplane mode on to avoid Visible daily fees and can also text family in a group I created with photos, etc. Wifi was pretty prevalent at visitor centers, cafes, etc.
Be sure to think about really warm and waterproofv clothing and shoes. (By the time we got to El Calafete the red parka wearing Antartica visitors were everywhere!)
I used an international charger adapter that I don't like because it's so heavy.
Have a wonderful trip!