Photos and Letter: Peter Wentzel
Glossy magazines, press releases and billboards aside, the best queer travel advice still comes around by word of mouth. Here's some great information ton gay-popular hotels that one of our readers, Peter Wentzel, is sharing from a recent jaunt to Buenos Aires!
"Buenos Aires welcomed two new, affordable gay-friendly boutique hotels to its ranks this past month: The Telmho Boutique Hotel in the heart of San Telmo, and the Puro Baires Boutique Hotel in trendy Palermo Soho. The Telmho, where my boyfriend and I stayed, sits right on Plaza Dorrego, which is very convenient for antiquing when the square and surrounding streets host the weekly Sunday antiques fair.
There were a few issues with air conditioning and water pressure, but we cut them some slack as a new hotel with some kinks to iron out. Breakfast was included, delicious and plentiful and the staff was generally very kind and thoughtful, and very eager to help with restaurant bookings and flight confirmations.
The Telmho is a classy and convenient option for those interested in exploring the sights of San Telmo, the Plaza de Mayo, Monserrat and Congresso.
From the Telmho, we moved on to the Puro Baires in Palermo SoHo for our last two nights. We loved this place! Very well-designed (retro-mod), with a nice outdoor patio off of the mostly-white lobby/breakfast/tea room, a small gym/sauna and a roof deck with a pool.
The hotel is “green” and eco-friendly -- hall lights only switch on when someone has entered the vestibule. The affordable rates include a continental breakfast, there are WiFi hubs set up on each floor, and the staff is fantastic -- jumping at our every request and question. The ideal Puro Baires location is on a quiet block within walking distance of lots of hip & trendy shops and restaurants. We would return in a heartbeat!"
-Peter Wentzel
