Common Tourist Scams in Buenos Aires (and How to Avoid Them)
Calle Florida — what the 'cambio cambio' touts actually are
- The street: Florida is the pedestrianised shopping street running from Plaza San Martín to Avenida de Mayo. Touts shouting "cambio, cambio, dólares" line both sides between Lavalle and Avenida Córdoba.
- What they actually are: most are arbolitos — runners who walk you to a cueva (back-office exchange) in a nearby building. The cuevas are tolerated by AFIP as long as they don't operate as full banks; many have operated continuously since the 1990s.
- Legal status in 2026: the new regime no longer prosecutes small cueva transactions; the cuevas remain technically informal but are not raided. Touts are not undercover police.
- The risk: counterfeit pesos and short-counts. Argentine pesos include 10,000 and 20,000 notes (introduced 2024) that many tourists don't recognise; touts have been known to substitute lower-denomination notes. Always count the full stack before leaving the cueva.
- Recommended cuevas: established offices like Cambio Olano (Suipacha 622), Maguitur (Calle Pellegrini 1149), Eves (Calle Tucumán 702) post their rates publicly and give receipts. The Florida-street arbolitos may give a slightly worse rate plus the substitution risk.
- Verdict: with the 3-5% blue-vs-official premium, it's no longer worth the friction. Use Western Union or your card.
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