Argentina’s Atlantic coast is not one place. Along the shore of Buenos Aires province there is a string of resorts that have little in common: quiet villages among pine trees, towns with bars open until dawn, and one proper city. One thing they share is worth knowing first: the sea is cold and the coast is windy. Choosing well is mostly a matter of knowing what kind of holiday you want.
With young children
The towns of the Partido de La Costa district, such as San Clemente del Tuyú, Santa Teresita and Mar de Ajó, are long-established family resorts and the closest to Buenos Aires. San Clemente also has the Mundo Marino oceanarium for a day off the beach. Further south, Miramar has the same calm character. In all of them you walk from your flat to the sand.
Forest and quiet
Cariló, next to Pinamar, and Mar de las Pampas, south of Villa Gesell, are villages set among pines, with sand streets and next to no nightlife. People come to rest and eat well. Accommodation is mostly houses and cabins, so arriving by car with everything you need is the practical way.
Lively and young
Pinamar has beach clubs, wide sands and a busy night scene. Villa Gesell has a lively main avenue and a young crowd as well as families. San Bernardo is the classic choice of Argentine teenagers.
A city as well as a beach
Mar del Plata is on another scale: a large city with a summer theatre season, a casino, a fishing port, restaurants and things to do on rainy or windy days. It works all year and is the only resort you can also reach by train or plane. The options are set out in Buenos Aires to Mar del Plata.
Further away
Necochea offers very wide beaches and fewer people. Monte Hermoso, a good deal further south-west, is known for warmer water and for a sun that both rises and sets over the sea. These are longer trips that suit stays of several days.
Getting there
Long-distance buses serve every resort. By car you leave on Autovía 2 and, depending on the destination, continue on Ruta 11 or Ruta 56. In January, February and on long weekends the traffic out and back is heavy, and it is worth avoiding peak times.
A door-to-door private transfer suits a family with suitcases, a parasol and a pushchair, or travellers who land in Buenos Aires and go straight to the sea. For groups, see the minivan. Book the return at the same time, because in season that is the part that gets difficult first. All destinations are listed under long-distance transfers.