While Argentina has lost some ground as an international tourist destination, a recent report found that visitors to the country highlight and recommend local tourist attractions.

This research, conducted by the Interdisciplinary Institute of Political Economy (IIEP) of the University of Buenos Aires (UBA) and the National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), analyzed more than 330,000 English-language posts from TripAdvisor’s Argentina forum.

Comments reflect the true geography of Argentine tourism: the City of Buenos Aires (CABA) accounts for 73% of the posts, and Patagonia, 13.9%. The three remaining regions (North, Litoral, and Cuyo) together make up just over 13%.

This imbalance has a structural root. According to data from the think tank Fundar, Buenos Aires (Buenos Aires City and the Buenos Aires province), Córdoba, and Río Negro account for 64% of overnight stays in the country.

“For Cuyo, the North, and the Litoral region, the results should be interpreted as indicative rather than as statistically precise measurements equivalent to those for the City of Buenos Aires or Patagonia,” explained the IIEP (Institute of Economic and Political Research).

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The researchers emphasized that the study “reveals a country with positively evaluated tourist attractions, especially in the North and Cuyo.”

However, they also stressed that there are “clear bottlenecks in services.” According to the analysis of this data, Buenos Aires City lags behind in lodging, the Litoral region shows signs of saturation, and Patagonia bears the highest transportation costs.

According to the latest official data from INDEC (National Institute of Statistics and Censuses), a total of 4,177 foreign tourists visited Argentina in recent months. While this represents an 8.2% increase, it is a significant drop compared to 2024 (-17.6%).

Tourist attractions take center stage. 

The IIEP report observed that “Argentina’s tourism offerings generally generate a very favorable impression on foreign visitors, regardless of the destination,” it explained.

Tourist attractions are evaluated within four categories: “Overcrowded,” “Worth visiting,” “High price,” and “Well maintained.”

• The Litoral region has the highest number of mentions of “overcrowded” and “high price,” although the mention of “worth visiting” is among the highest.
  
• Cuyo combines the fewest mentions of being “overcrowded” with the highest percentage of mentions of “worth visiting.”
  
• The North registers the fewest mentions of high prices and one of the highest values ​​in the “well maintained” category. 

Transportation worsens in major destinations

In terms of transportation, assessments across various categories showed that major destinations exhibit more problems than inland regions.

• In the “overcrowded transportation” category, the fewest mentions correspond to Cuyo, while the City of Buenos Aires and the Litoral region are at the opposite end of the spectrum.
  
• The Northern region reports the lowest value in “expensive fares,” while Patagonia registers the most expensive fares, followed by the Litoral region and CABA.
  
• Cuyo shows the lowest values ​​in the “unreliable schedules” section.
  
• In the “safe travel” category—associated with discussions about road, geographical, and weather conditions—the Northern region and Patagonia led in mentions, while Cuyo was the region with the fewest references to this issue. 

Contrast in accommodation and traveler advice

Accommodation showed the most striking contrast between the capital and the interior, as the four inland regions surpassed it in every aspect evaluated.

• The North leads in “clean and tidy” and “friendly staff.” The Litoral region follows closely in “friendliness.” Cuyo stands out in mentions of “excellent location.”

• In all inland regions, the “noisy environment” rating drops significantly compared to the City of Buenos Aires (CABA).

Meanwhile, in the “traveler advice” section, a heterogeneous picture emerges:

• The “useful recommendation” indicator has a high level of mentions in all regions, with peaks in Cuyo and the North.
  
• Patagonia leads the conversation on “tips for saving money,” reflecting its profile as an expensive destination.
  
• Patagonia also tops the mentions of “scam alerts,” as does the City of Buenos Aires (CABA).
  
• The Litoral region has the highest demand for information on “safe travel”, mainly due to issues related to health safeguards and border regulations.