Next Stop: Mar Del Plata, Argentina

Happy New Year!

I hope 2023 started off great for you. But if it didn’t, I really hope things turn around soon.

Now, I’d love to share how we ended 2022 and kicked off the new year—with a trip to one of Argentina’s popular vacation spots: Mar del Plata.

Mar del Plata is in Buenos Aires Province, about 400 kilometers from the capital city, Buenos Aires (also known as La CABA).

It’s famous for its beautiful coastal beaches and upscale resorts. But I’ll be honest—everything I read online about what to do there left me feeling underwhelmed.

If you Google things to do in Mar del Plata, you’ll find a list of museums and tourist sites, many with religious themes. But I didn’t see any of the fun, modern places I’m used to visiting in Buenos Aires, like the Japanese Garden, Chinatown, the Ateneo bookstore, or restaurants serving American-style food.

This was my first trip in three years, so my main concern was:

“Is there going to be anything to do besides walking on the beach and sitting in my hotel room?”

Luckily, my worries were completely unnecessary—the trip turned out to be better than I ever expected. I took so many photos that I’ll need to split the trip into several posts to share everything.

So, let’s start at the very beginning…

The cab ride from our house to the Córdoba airport cost 4,200 Argentine pesos (about $23.21 USD). That’s a lot when you earn in pesos and not dollars. Back in 2019, the same ride cost around 1,500 pesos. But with Argentina’s soaring inflation, I guess it shouldn’t have surprised me.

Anyway, after that pricey taxi ride, I found myself back at the Córdoba Airport—and I couldn’t help but feel a wave of nostalgia. It’s been just over ten years since my husband and I first passed through this airport together. So much has changed since then.

Back in 2012, I never could have imagined that a global pandemic would hit in 2019—or that I’d be traveling again in 2022, right in the middle of another COVID wave.

Infection rates had been rising in the weeks leading up to our trip, and I was genuinely worried. Being maskless in enclosed spaces like airports and airplanes felt risky. Yes, we’re both vaccinated, but there’s always a chance of getting sick.

For the past three years, I’ve been wearing a mask, spraying alcohol on my hands, and sanitizing just about everything I touch. But I realized that if I truly wanted to relax on this trip, I had to let go—at least a little.

So, while I kept my mask on at the airport, I eventually worked up the courage to take it off.
Okay, I’ll admit—I put it back on every time I heard someone sneeze or cough.

Argentines don’t usually cover their mouths when they do either, so I felt completely justified in being cautious.

Once the hubs and I boarded the plane, I experienced the usual three things that most travelers notice when flying out of Córdoba Airport.

• First, the view from above—Córdoba’s landscape still looked almost empty. It was the same back when we arrived in 2012. There are very few buildings and a whole lot of seemingly uninhabited land. In other words, Córdoba City hasn’t grown much at all.

• Second, the painful ear-popping from the change in cabin pressure—some things never change.

• And third, the sight of more populated areas as we neared our destination.

The entire plane ride took about an hour and thirty minutes. 

Once we landed, we took a cab to our hotel. The ride took almost an hour and cost about 2,000 Argentine pesos. As we drove, the city didn’t impress me much.

I saw warehouses, homes, supermarkets, and mom-and-pop shops—it looked just like Córdoba City, but without the stylish architecture you’d find in La CABA. By this point, I started thinking my worries about the trip being boring were spot on.

But then, as the cab reached the coastline, my husband and I felt like kids at Disney World. On our left was a beautiful beach, complete with everything you'd expect—crashing waves, sandy shores, and lots of people soaking up the sun.

On our right, there were several hotels lining the beach, and just a few blocks away from our "home away from home" was a McDonald's—right next to The Hotel Costa Galana.

When we arrived, the hotel staff greeted us—some of them even wore stovepipe hats, just like Abraham Lincoln.

The hotel lobby was incredibly luxurious, with shades of bronze and holiday decorations all around.

After being cramped in a taxi like sardines, we were eager to check into our hotel room and stretch our legs. But when we got to the front desk, we were unexpectedly left waiting.

To be continued...