Health & safety
Health and Safety in Argentina
Argentina ranks among South America's safer destinations, and violent crime targeting tourists is rare. The precautions that actually matter here are less about crime and more about the country's extreme geography — altitude in one region, sun in another.
Updated 2026-08-15
Buenos Aires: petty crime, not violence
The realistic risk in Buenos Aires is opportunistic theft — pickpocketing, phone-snatching, bag theft — concentrated in crowded tourist areas and on public transport, not violent crime targeting visitors. Ordinary precautions cover most of it: don't display phones or cameras carelessly on the street, use a money belt for larger amounts of cash, and take a registered taxi or rideshare app rather than hailing an unmarked cab late at night. Well-touristed neighbourhoods like Palermo, Recoleta and San Telmo are generally safe to walk during the day; normal urban awareness after dark is sensible rather than fear-driven caution.
Altitude in the Northwest is a genuine risk
Salta, Jujuy and the wider Andean Northwest sit at genuinely high altitude — the Salinas Grandes salt flat and the Tren a las Nubes route both exceed 3,000 metres, high enough for altitude sickness to affect unacclimatised visitors with headaches, nausea and fatigue. Ascending gradually where the itinerary allows, staying well hydrated, and treating the first day at altitude as a rest day rather than a hiking day meaningfully reduces the risk. It's a genuinely different consideration from the rest of Argentina, and one visitors coming straight from sea-level Buenos Aires can easily underestimate.
Patagonian sun is stronger than it looks
Patagonia sits closer to the seasonal ozone thinning over Antarctica than almost anywhere else inhabited, which measurably increases UV exposure during the southern spring — a genuine environmental fact, not exaggerated caution. Combined with clear mountain air and, often, snow or ice reflecting additional light, sunburn happens faster here than the mild air temperature suggests. Sunglasses, a high-SPF sunscreen and lip protection are worth treating as essential gear on any glacier or trekking day, not an afterthought.
Healthcare and insurance
Healthcare in Buenos Aires and other major cities meets a good standard, with private clinics widely used by both residents and visitors. In remote parts of Patagonia and the Northwest, the nearest serious medical facility can be a genuine distance away, which is the practical argument for travel insurance covering medical evacuation on any itinerary involving trekking, ice trekking or the more remote reaches of Ruta 40 — not a formality, but a real safeguard given the distances involved.