Preliminary Program, General Information and what to bring with you for your Argentinean Adventure:

 Day 1: Buenos Aries in the morning

Our driver Juan will be there to meet you at Ezeiza International Airport in Buenos Aries, the capital of Argentina. International flights normally arrive between 7 - 9am.

Juan, our driver, will have a card with your name on it, as you walk through arrivals he will be standing on the left hand side.

Your flight down to Mar del Plata is at 13:50 and leaves from the city airport called AEROPARQUE. Ezeiza is about 45 minutes from the city center, so you have time for a quick tour of the city, breakfast in Recoleta or time to wander around La Boca and watch some Tango, before catching your flight down to Mar del Plata. If you want to do something specific in Buenos Aries, Juan is an expert Guide and knows where everything is, from buying a cashmere sweater to finding a tango show.

If you want to stay in Buenos Aries and see more of this beautiful city, at either end of your trip to Mar del Plata, we would recommend the hotel Las Naciones, see web site www.hotellasnaciones.com.ar it is very central, clean, spacious, with a great breakfast and very good value for money (about US$85 per night). We can book this hotel for you if you would like to see a little more of Buenos Aries. If you want to use Juan to drive you around Buenos Aries he charges 25 pesos an hour (about US$8 an hour), it is worth doing this as he will look after you, show you the city and is happy to wait for you, while you shop! Taxis can be unreliable and drive erratically in the city, if you want a relaxing drive, tour or shop, book Juan!

We can organise your internal flight down to Mar del Plata as it would be three times more expensive for you if booked outside Argentina. This is booked electronically, so no need for a ticket, just show your passport. Juan will take you into the city airport where you check into the Aerolineas Argentinas desk, the aeroplane takes just 50 minutes to fly down to Mar del Plata and we will be there at the airport to meet you. If you would rather come down to us directly from Ezeiza by luxury coach this can also be arranged and takes 5 hours.

The cost of the internal flight is U$102 one way, and the luxury coach is U$23, for a driver to bring you down to us, which takes 4 hours in a private car is U$200.

Day 1: Mar del Plata in the afternoon

 We will be there at Mar del Plata airport to meet you, it is a small airport as the only flights that come into it are from Buenos Aries. Look out to your right as you come into land, you fly over the ocean and beach and you will spot the polo grounds and the park in which the polo club stands. It does not take long to get your luggage once you have landed and as the airport is only 10 minutes from the center, so you are soon checking into your hotel and settling in.

There is a huge selection of accommodation in Mar del Plata from budget for gap year students to five star hotels, we book your hotels as we can
often get a better price locally. We spend most of the day at the polo club and the evenings eating out in fantastic restaurants, little time is spent actually in your hotel, just sleeping, showering and breakfast so most people stay in the Maison Apart Hotel, and are more than happy with this accommodation. It is a smaller, friendly hotel and our regular visitors know all the staff by name. Each room has sheets changed daily and beds turned down at night.

Maison Apartment Hotel

Belgrano 2143

7600 Mar del Plata

Argentina

Phone Number: 00 54 223 492 1071

www.apartmaison.com.ar

Each apartment has a fully stocked and equipped kitchen, cable televison,  safe, sofa and table with chairs, bath with shower. Close to the beach and opposite the casino. Also included is a very good breakfast.

A wireless network connection is available free if you have your laptop with you.

The cost per night for a double room (for one person) is 250 pesos (about £38.00) high season (Dec17th until end of Jan) and £35 per night out of season. This hotel is in the center, only 10 mins drive from the polo club and has a laundry and restaurants close by and is opposite the beach.

This price is for cash and will be 10% more if paid on a credit card.

These photos show the apartment rooms.

Other five star hotels are:

The Hermitage Hotel

Av. Colón

1643 y Blvard.

Maritimo. P.P. Ramos 2657 (B7600JVA)

Mar del Plata - Argentina

Tel: (54) (0223) 451 9081/86

Fax: (54) (0223) 451 7235

Cost for a double room in high season (Dec17th until end of Jan) is £85 per night and £45 per night out of season).

This hotel is opposite the beach and 10 minutes from the polo club and Park Camet.

www.hermitagehotel.com.ar

The Costa Galana Hotel

Blvd. Marítimo P.P.

Ramos 5725, Mar del Plata (B7602EAI)

Teléfono: 54 223 486-0000  Fax: 54 223 486-2020

Reservas: 0810-222-8600

www.hotelcostagalana.com.ar

Cost for a double room in high season (Dec17th until end of Jan) is about £95 per night and £65 per night out of season). This hotel is opposite the best beach in Mar del Plata, has an excellent spa and is 20mins in the car to the Polo Club, along the coast road.

Alter check in, Carlitos then takes you, with all your riding gear to the polo club, for your first ride on the beach so that he can assess your riding and plan your next two weeks polo training. Please tell us what you hope to get out of your time with us. Carlitos aim is to improve your game so that you can play polo with confidence and skill. He will push you and is a tough coach so be ready for many hours of hard tuition, however please feel free to feedback to Carlitos how you feel physically as we see your safety as more important to us than anything else.

All our ponies are very well trained with impeccable manners.

Your riding equipment is kept safely at the Polo Club all the time you are with us.

What to bring with you?

What to pack:

2 pairs of whites for tournaments

Boots

Mallets

Whip

Polo Helmet

Polo Gloves

Light waterproof jacket

Sun tan cream

Swimming costume

Spanish/English phrase book or dictionary

Please let us know if you cannot bring any of these things before you leave so that we can organise to supply them before you arrive.

For everyday riding and chukkas please bring jeans. Your boots are kept at the club and cleaned every day so bring trainers to wear to and from the club. Long sleeve t-shirts are the best to ride in as the sun is strong here and you can get burnt very easily.

You will have the option to ride for many hours a day so its good to bring a back and wrist support and some ibuprophen gel or deep heat spray or cream for those aching muscles you will feel after the first couple of days, you will hopefully work through this by the end of the first week.

It is nearly impossible to buy products like radox bath salts, so it is also a good idea to pack a box in your suitcase. Also if you are prone to blisters please purchase Compeed you can buy this in Boots and works as a second skin if you get blisters. It is much more effective than a plaster.

Evening Wear -

Dress in Argentina is very casual, please pack just very casual clothes, this is meant to be a relaxing holiday and no one dresses up for dinner here. It does get chilly in the evenings so please bring a light fleece or jumper as well. You do not have to pack huge amounts as there is an excellent laundry service here, with same day turnaround and costs about £1.30 a load, this is a service wash so you can drop it off in the morning and its washed, dried and folded for the evening, it is opposite the hotel.

Costs while you are in Mar del Plata -

Eating out each evening costs about £10 a head in a good restaurant with wine and three courses. We will be organising barbeques at lunchtime sometimes, which are included in the cost of your holiday.

Taxis to and from the Polo Club cost about £4 each day, we organise this each morning and pick you up from your apartment hotel

General -

A phrase book or Spanish/English dictionary is very helpful to bring as very few Argentines speak English so its a great way to start speaking and practising your Spanish. The grooms love talking to you in English although they know very little so its a great way for them to practice as well.

Contacting home: There are excellent telephone booths and internet cafes everywhere in MDP you can walk into these and call home, they are very cheap.

Currency -

In Argentina the currency is pesos, currently the exchange rate is 1 GBP = 6.6 pesos and $3.15 pesos to U$1.

You can change US dollar or travellers cheques in three exchange banks in Mar del Plata, the exchange rate into pesos is always the best for dollars (cash or travellers), there are only a few cash machines where you can draw money so its better to bring dollars travellers cheques or cash. If you buy anything in Buenos Aries remember the $ sign is in pesos and not dollars so make sure you pay in pesos and NOT dollars.

To buy anything in Mar del Plata you need pesos apart from larger stores who will sometimes take credit cards.

 Banks -

Once you arrive in Argentina it is nearly impossible to walk into a bank and draw money on your cards or transfer money from the UK to Argentina. So please make sure you bring dollars travellers cheques. If you wish to purchase goods or presents here, some larger stores do take cards, however they will often call for authorisation, which will take time. There are a few cash machines in the center however these have often run out of money and can not be relied on. A private bank here will let our clients cash travellers cheques, they will not give cash on your cards. Six years ago the banking system virtually collapsed so please read this carefully.

The polo itinary each day will be:

Each morning:

9:30am pick up from hotel

10:am Ride on the beach, to get used to the polo ponies, warm you up and learn how to control your pony polo, stopping and turning and how to go fast on your polo pony, to get used to the speed of the polo tournaments.

11:30am Practise how to hit the ball from your polo pony (Stick and Ball exercises) and tuition from Carlitos on how to stick and ball correctly.

2pm BBQ in the stables, (at the weekend lunch in the polo club restaurant).

3-4pm Siesta

4-7:30pm Chukkas, Playing polo as a team, learning team tactics, defense and attack and how to play the game of polo.

8pm back to hotel, wash and change

9pm Evening meal in excellent local restaurants to discuss the day with Carlitos and plans for the next days training.

Final weekend, scheduled club tournament where you will take part, the tournament matches take place in the afternoon, so the itinary stays the same in the morning at weekends as on a weekday.

For more information contact us