Argentina Hotspot For Budget Travel

One of the hottest spots for budget travel these days is Argentina. Quality leather goods are plentiful and inexpensive, high-end hotels go for $150 USD/night and late-night dinners of steak and red wine are ultra-cheap. And there's also culture. And culture is, like, cool too. Affordable Argentina from the San Jose Mercury News gives some helpful tips for travelers planning to visit.:

- When it comes to hotel bargains, buyer beware. We found that making reservations online can be an iffy proposition. Although there are excellent bargains, some hotel Web sites use four-year-old photos, which don't show the stained carpets, peeling wallpaper.... - My main shopping stomp was Calle Florida, a nearly milelong walking street that cuts through the Microcenter (financial center) and ends on Plaza San Martín. - Don't change money except in very small amounts. You can change the Argentine peso to U.S. dollars at the airport, but you won't be able to back at home. - Serious carnivores should head to La Cabaña, where Argentine beef, Japanese Kobe beef, you name it -- will land on your plate in whatever weight you desire. You don't have to name it -- your beef is so personalized, it arrives with a certificate giving the birth date of the cattle, the name of the ranch where it was raised, its vaccination records....