What to do in a taxi, while in Buenos Aires.?

Question

I'm going to Argentina and the one thing I'm worried about (please don't laugh) is the taxi ride from the airport. My Spanish is pretty limited, so I'm nervous about being able to get from point A to B. How would you do this in Spanish, what phrases do you say? Or is a simple address on a piece of paper and a grunt ok?

Answer 1

Hello and congrats on going to B.A.!  I lived there for a few years and it is still my favorite place to go.  Don't worry I can completely understand your concern with the language barrier.  Most of them down there already speak pretty decent English.  Once you collect your luggage, most likely a baggage attendant will want to help you usher your bags into a taxi.  The name of their taxi's down there is 'remis' (pronounced re-mees)  So, you can say if you'd like to try some of their Spanish out, "Necesito un remis por favor"  Then, once in the taxi, I would show him the paper and he will most likely ask where are you from since most are so friendly down there and love meeting outsiders.  

I would brush up on 'Argentine spanish' if you'd like before your trip because they have a very different way of speaking spanish, it's been known to have almost a melodic tone and they speak very fast and use pronunciations different than other latin countries.  But it's very beautiful to hear them speak.  

I'm sure you will enjoy yourself fully.  Don't forget to visit Avenida La Florida and Avenida Santa Fe for some great shopping and impromptu tango shows on the street.

It is now summer down there, so if you are going within the next months, pack bathing suits and light clothing.  Have fun!  :)

Answer 2

Haha, I'm happy to say that to get from point "a" to "b" all you need is the address on the paper and the grunt. If you want to know the price you will have to pay you can simply ask someone in the airport to help you out, i did this once in Thailand because i had absolutely no time to even learn a couple of common phrases before i left (i work for the government in Nicaragua and travel a lot).

But, if you want to do it yourself you can ask the cab driver:

"cuanto (or "cuanto cuesta") para llevarme a "point a" hasta "point b"? which translates to "How much to get me from "point a" to "point b"?

Also, if you are going straight from the airport to a hotel you can call up the airport ahead of time and they most likely will arrange for someone to transport you there.