Buenos Aires Car Hire
Many passengers go for a car rental in Buenos Aires, especially if they plan on exploring the city’s nearby areas. Although Buenos Aires’ public transportation is adequate -even efficient- finding the right bus line can be complicated, while the effective subway often gets overcrowded and is prone to pickpockets. On the other hand, the city’s taxis are notorious for scamming incidents, and the more reliable remises require a pre-booking procedure. Thus, car rentals are a popular choice among visitors who want to transfer around Buenos Aires independently and safely.
Do you Need a Car When Visiting Buenos Aires?
Truth to be told, renting a car if only planning on wandering around Buenos Aires city center isn’t advisable. First of all, the traffic levels are very high during rush hours, while navigating around the city can be challenging due to the many unidirectional streets and the common prohibition of turning left when moving on a two-way road. What’s more, finding a parking spot is a hard task, and driving can be overall a stressful experience as local drivers don’t generally follow the traffic rules. However, if you intend to discover the majestic areas lying within a close driving distance from Buenos Aires, a car rental is the ideal way to secure relaxed and hassle-free trips.
How do I Rent a Car in Buenos Aires?
The key to booking the top rental car in Buenos Aires is one: search and compare. The Argentinian capital shelters plenty of car rental agencies. Thus, the competition is strong, and you can benefit from this fact by doing your research. Check each company’s deals and offers and contrast your findings to come up with the best value-for-money option. After settling on the right car rental for you, the rest is simple: all you have to do is fill out the respective booking form, following the given instructions.
Do you need some more tips to secure the best bargain?
- Make your reservation as early as possible. Not only will you find more car-type options, but -as a rule- in-advance bookings are cheaper than last-minute reservations.
- Check previous customers’ reviews. You may find useful advice to help you decide on the car rental company and the rental type.
- Always pick the fuel-to-fuel policy. Refilling the car yourself is usually much cheaper than paying the rental agency for fuel.
- Be aware that you are being charged per day. Thus, if you return the car after the 24-h time limit, you may have to pay for an extra day.
- Photograph your car before leaving the pick-up point to be able to prove the vehicle’s existing defects.
- Overall, renting your car from a city location is considered cheaper than picking it up from the airport.
What do I Need to Rent a Car in Buenos Aires?
Renting a car in Buenos Aires requires some conditions. Hence, you must hand over your passport, your driver’s license (valid and not expiring until the end of the rental period and being obtained for at least two years), the booking voucher, and a credit card in your name. Please keep in mind that the car rental company will withdraw a small amount of money as a guarantee. Finally, if your license isn’t written in Latin characters, the issue of an International Driving Permit will also be necessary to rent a car in Buenos Aires.
How Old do you Need to Be to Rent a Car in Buenos Aires?
The minimum age limit for renting a car in Buenos Aires is 21 years. However, young drivers (usually between 21 and 25 years of age) are charged an extra fee. On the other hand, drivers older than 75 aren’t allowed to rent a car.
How much Would it Cost to Rent a Car in Buenos?
The cost of a car rental in Buenos Aires depends on several factors. For example, luxury cars are much pricier than mini ones. Moreover, the time of the year and the renting duration also affect prices. In general terms, a car in Buenos Aires can be rented for 54600AR$(55$/50.50€) per day.
What is the Best Car Rental in Buenos Aires?
The most popular car rental category in Buenos Aires is economy cars. As far as the car models are concerned, Chevrolet Celta, Nissan March, and Toyota Etios are listed among the top car rental choices of travelers visiting Buenos Aires.
Where to Drop off a Rental Car in Buenos Aires?
You’ll find many picking-up and dropping-off locations around Buenos Aires. Apart from the airports and the central stations, car rental offices are to be found at the city center as well as the surrounding Buenos Aires barrios. Thus, you can pick up your car rental and drop it off at a different location, usually at no extra charge. Nevertheless, if the drop-off area is in another city, supplementary fees will apply.
Can you Pick up or Drop off the Rental Car if the Car Rental Offices are Closed?
The majority of car rental agencies in Buenos Aires offer after-hours services, yet upon charge. Additionally, many of them have key drop locations where you can pick up or return the vehicle around the clock without being charged.
Can I Rent a Car Without Insurance?
No, insurance (at least minimum) is necessary to rent a car in Buenos Aires. If you want to save money from insurance, you should check if your primary insurance extends to car rentals or if the used credit card offers any kind of insurance coverage. In any case, renting a car without insurance is out of the question. In fact, full insurance (which includes personal injury, third-party liability, collision, etc.) is always recommended.
How can I Rent a Car Without a Credit Card?
Debit cards are also accepted by most car rental companies in Buenos Aires. However, whereas agencies withdraw only a small amount of money from the credit card as a guarantee when it comes to payments via debit card, the entire sum is withdrawn from the card.
Where can I Park my Car in Buenos Aires?
Generally speaking, free parking on the street is rare, especially in the city center. Street parking in Buenos Aires downtown is overall metered. Thus, you leave your car and head to the nearest kiosk to pay the parking fees. When parking the car on the street, you may be approached by “self-employed” persons (locals call them trapitos) who will ask you to take care of your vehicle while you are gone. Those individuals benefit from the common phenomenon of car theft in Buenos Aires to make some extra money. It is advisable to give them a small amount of money just to be safe. On the other hand, the safest way to park your car in Buenos Aires is to use one of the many parking lots scattered around the city. The parking garages are indicated by the letter “E” (estacionamento) and offer adequate services. Even though they are considered rather expensive, they are still more affordable than car parks in Europe or the USA.
A Few More Tips for an Unwinding Buenos Aires Car Rental Experience
- Always go for a car type you are familiar with. However, please keep in mind that most car rentals in Buenos Aires are manual and that automatic vehicles are pricier.
- All the necessary documents should be inside the vehicle at all times.
- You should always follow traffic laws.
- However, local drivers usually don’t follow them. Don’t expect them to use the light signals or respect the priority at the intersections.
- The right way to drive is on the right side of the road.
- When moving on a two-way street, most left turns are not permitted.
- In Buenos Aires, drivers are obliged to have the car’s low-beam headlights always on, no matter the time of the day.
- All the passengers must wear a seatbelt. In fact, the driver is responsible if one of the passengers has taken his seatbelt off.
- The use of mobiles is prohibited. You can talk on the phone only with a hands-free system.
- Buenos Aires has adopted a zero-tolerance policy for drinking and driving.
- The signs for the speed limits can be confusing, as sometimes, the city’s employees put up new signs without removing the old ones.
- Car theft is a thing in Buenos Aires. Thus, you should park your car in well-lit parking spots.
- All the highways around Buenos Aires are toll roads.