Reservations grew strongly in travel agencies

With the Argentine economy in crisisChile once again positioned itself on the horizon of Argentine travelers as a possible getaway destination: to know, walk and, especially, to buy.

Its tempting prices, much more convenient than those shown in Argentine windows, are an incentive. Clothing and technology are halfway done.

This trend was strongly marked the last extra long weekend of Easter, when a strong influx of Argentines was recorded crossing into Chile through the Los Libertadores Pass that connects Mendoza capital with Santiago, the capital of the neighboring country.

The phenomenon continued to be seen the following days: people from Mendoza, San Juan, Puntanos and Córdoba crossing during the day or on the weekend to do the shopping in Santiago or, at least, reach nearby towns such as Los Andes and San Felipe.

In the travel agency he increase in demand to travel to Chile it is also felt, as is the case on accommodation booking platforms such as Booking.com where for the week of April 27 to May 1, Santiago is the fifth most searched international destination, behind Rio de Janeiro, Madrid , New York and Buzios.

“The General sale of tourist products and services to Chile has increased during the last 6 weeks30% compared to the same period in 2023,” says Martín Romano, CEO of Atrápalo Argentina.

Furthermore, the interesting thing about this destination is that there is little advance notice and the demand goes beyond whether or not there is a long weekend.

The destination is “a phenomenon that was consolidated as the summer progressed,” according to the Travel Services agency: in the destination ranking most chosen, in the last quarter of 2023, Santiago de Chile was ranked 12th. But in the first three months of the year, it climbed to fifth place.

Guido Boutet, Marketing Manager of this agency, explains it like this: “Santiago de Chile did not have anticipated demand at the end of 2023 and It began to be purchased in January, but for trips in February and March. What we conclude about the behavior of travelers according to the demand for registered trips is that You don’t need a long holiday to travel to Santiago”.

And he adds: “At this moment we noticed that a maximum of a weekend or four days to go shopping in Santiago became very convenient“.

This increase in demand is also confirmed in the Despegar agency.

“Argentines are taking the opportunity to visit Chile due to the favorable exchange rate. We observed that searches to travel from Buenos Aires to Chile increased by 150% if we compare this week and the previous one (referring to the first of April) vs. the last weeks of March,” says Alejandro Festa, manager of Hospedajes y Servicios Turísticos at Despegar.

Festa’s recommendation currently is to buy in dollars.

“It is the most convenient option for those looking to travel outside the country because it allows you to save up to 40% without the PAIS tax and perceptions. This is because today a financial dollar can be purchased for $1,000 and the card or tourist dollar is around $1,400,” he explains and clarifies that at the moment Despegar accepts dollars with bank transfer, credit card and “soon it will be will enable the option to do it in cash” in its branches.

Shopping is clearly a good impulse: research by Booking.com on motivations for travel highlights that “19% of Argentines feel motivated to travel to do shopping”.

Matías Mute, from Promos Aereas, believes that shopping trips are mostly made by car rather than by plane. In any case, he believes that “there is a lot of interest in traveling to Chile to go from there to a third destination, because it is usually cheaper to fly from there to other destinations.”

• Departures in May with Travel Services. Flight Buenos Aires/Santiago de Chile/Buenos Aires (with carry on), regular transfers to and from the airport, 3 nights in a 3-star hotel with breakfast, from US$ 559 per person on a double basis (without fees). From $701,674 (with payments and according to the exchange rate of the day).

• Package of 3 nights, from April 19 to 22 with Despegar, costs from $418,511 / US$391 per person. Includes direct round-trip flight, and accommodation with breakfast, gym, bar, pool and parking.

• Package of 4 nights to Santiago, from April 26 to 30 with Despegar costs from $453,462 / US$399 per person. Includes direct round-trip flight, accommodation with swimming pool, gym, massage service and free parking.

• Air ticket Round trip for the last weekend of April, from April 26 to May 1 holiday, costs from $260,000 without luggage in JetSmart. With carry-on luggage and another checked baggage, $432,885.

• For the weekend of May 3 to 5, with departure and return to Aeroparque, the Aerolíneas Argentinas tickets They cost $328,784 round trip, but only with hand luggage of up to 10 kilos.