StarwoodGuy: Southern South America With Starwood Hotels Day 8 Travel and Sheraton Hotel and Convention Center Buenos Aires

I woke up at 6:00 am at the Sheraton Four Points Montevideo and had a quick workout before heading down to breakfast. I then checked out and jumped in a taxi the short five minute drive to the Montevideo Ferry Terminal. I arrived at 8:40 am with recommendations for arriving at least two hours ahead of time, my ferry was at 10:30 am. There was already a line of around twenty people for immigration but the First Class line was empty for check in for the ferry itself so I grabbed my boarding pass very quickly (opting not to check my bags since I do not on the plane either) and then waited for only a few minutes in the line before immigration opened and we were through quite quickly. The most important thing when entering Argentina is to make sure you pay the reciprocity fee, similar to the -Visa for Australia. It can be done online but you should print the Visa itself with barcode as well as the receipt. The same for your ferry ticket. South America so far had amazed me with their advanced finger printing and bar code usage. Once immigration was out of the way there are a few duty free shops and some waiting space. I was surprised because I was taking the Francisco, the largest of the Buquebus ferries, but the waiting rooms seemed too small for the hundreds of potential passengers. There are actually 4 classes of service and the website can be a little limited in finding out information on each one. There are some good online posts in Spanish which have some pictures and information. The Especial service is the First Class, though there is a Business Class called Primera. Either pay for one of the two basic tickets or go all out for the Especial. There is a nice Salon VIP for those in Especial or Primera or with a VISA Signature card which was happily air conditioning with plenty of charging stations and food and drink options for pay before we departed. I had over an hour in here so I definitely did not need to go to the terminal so early, but perhaps it is different in the busy season or on weekends. I was surprised dogs were allowed in the lounge and on the common areas of the ship but there was cute puppy next to me in the lounge.

There is separate boarding area with Especial passengers boarding first. I made my way from the lounge to boarding and was very impressed with the ship. The boat was built in New Zealand and is a massive catamaran. I was trying to see where the cars were loaded but I could not get this vantage point from the upstairs entry. I am accustomed to Washington State Ferries, sadly very outdated now and underfunded, and BC Ferries which are quite nice on the larger vessels, as well as the Victoria Clipper service from Seattle to Victoria, BC Canada with all economy style seating at a low price, but this was something else. This Buquebus service is of course a private company like the Victoria Clipper, not state or provincially run, but the ship had everything for every price point. Upon boarding I was whisked up a grand staircase to the upper deck, very similar to many cruise ship designs. At the rear of the upper deck was the Tourist Class section or I guess premium economy which looked nice with a cafeteria style restaurant. The middle of the deck had a bar and glasses of champagne were handed out to Primera or really Business Class passengers as we all entered. Here there was the option of table seating or comfier looking leather chairs then in Tourist Class. Attendants ushered me forward to the front of the ship when they saw my ticket. A wristband is given to you as you enter Especial Class so you can roam around the ship and re-enter this lounge like area whenever you wish. The curved bow area of this upper deck is reserved completely for the Especial Class with stunning views. On each side there are rows of pod-like chairs similar to angle Business Class chairs on a plane. More champagne was handed out from the buffet and bar/kitchen combo in the center of this area. At the very front section is the beautiful dining area complete with china plates and table clothes, something not seen on BC Ferries in decades. I skipped the buffet which did have a fee of around $25.00 but the pod and atmosphere were relaxing. For $140.00 US for this Especial service it seemed like a steal compared to the cost of getting to the airport and paying the departure tax plus pricey cab fares, and the the views and comfort were outstanding. There are a few other boat options from Buquebus as well as other companies, the other options are less expensive but take at least twice as long with some connecting sby bus through the historic town of Colonia, but this trip on the Francisco was well worth the money for the speedy three hour trip. I ordered a glass of wine for $3.00 US and had some of the canapes they passed around. The vessel also has on-board currency exchange so I got rid go my leftover cash from Uruguay and transferred some US dollars into Argentinian Pesos. I had tried to get Argentinian Pesos from Wells Fargo in advance (I had order Peruvian Soles and Chilean cash before leaving North America) but it was a no go for Argentinian pesos which were in constant flux. It was $6.00 for on-board satellite wifi which I gladly paid since it was now 12:00 pm Buenos Aires time but the work day was starting back at home. The two hour trip flew by with work, wine and great views. The views are breathtaking arriving into downtown Buenos Aires.

I had picked the Sheraton Buenos Aires Hotel and Convention Center Hotel which was visible as we docked. There are several other options, but this seemed like the best middle range property at $160.00 US per night with tax.

I decided to walk since it was only ten minutes and a cab seemed silly for under a kilometer but in the 90 degree heat and sun it was sweltering. I arrived at the hotel and was ushered to the elevator to go to the 22nd Floor and the private check in area. My room had been upgraded to a Premier Suite which apparently comes with these perks. The suite consisted of a large sitting room, table and bar area, a master bedroom, and a bathroom that was accessible both from the main room and the bedroom with a tub and shower, and a toilet and bidet in a separate glassed in room. I dropped my bags and headed right out armed with a map from the Concierge.

I had read the Buenos Aires was like Paris in South America, and that was apparent almost immediately. There was no one area that was the historic center easily reached. Instead large avenues spanned out over the city with green spaces, old Parisian style buildings mixed with new towers (far more new towers then in Paris) and throngs of cars and people. I decided to focus my first afternoon walk on the large Park spaces that extended parallel to the train tracks and included the city's Embassy row, many of its statues, the Japanese Garden, and a large park with a track around a large lake in the middle. All of this started at the train station right outside the hotel and it was an easy start to get my bearings. The zoo was located in this stretch as well. It took an hour to reach the large lake area and it was so hot I decided to turn around at this point after having seen many of the beautiful parks and statues, hoping to save the zoo for another day. Rather then follow the beautiful green spaces back I cut into the Recoleta neighborhood with its wonderful shopping and mix of business and residential buildings. I tried to stop in at the famed Recoleta cemetery but it was just closing for the day so I instead stopped for an early bite to eat at one of the plentiful sidewalk cafes before heading home to get some sleep, I was excited for the next two days in Buenos Aires and wanted to get an early start.