My husband and I just returned from a week's stay at the Bel Air Hotel and would definitely stay there again for a variety of reasons. Perhaps the first is the location, a block away from the Avenida Santa Fe, one of the major shopping streets in Buenos Aires. We were in a beautiful neighborhood, full of lovely shops and restaurants, and within walking distance of many of the sights in the Recoleta district. We were also short distances away from other neighborhoods and got back and forth easily, through good chunks of BA, by radio taxi.

The outside of the hotel is very 19th century, Belle Epoque, while the inside has much more of a hip, modern ambiance. The staff were young and very helpful with all our questions and requests, the buffet breakfast (complete with CNN in Spanish - great way of improving your language skills !) was excellent and, for those who want it, there's a small computer area and gym on the premises as well.

Only possible downside: our room, although well furnished with everything you could need (necessary toiletries, mini-bar, a safe), was a bit small and spare. Neither of us are large people but we were a BIT cramped. The "view" consisted of looking outside at an inner shaft with great vistas of our neighbors' windows. Still, we were hardly in the room so all of the other positives outweighed the negative.

The Avenida Arenales, on which the hotel is located, is a street divided between baby stores and luxurious interior design shops with beautiful displays so for those travelers interested in seeing how another country presents itself, one would be in paradise !!

We loved the Bel Aire Hotel situated in central BA near wonderful shops and restuarants. The room we had was large, clean and comfortable; booked at a very reasonable rate. A restaurant shares the ground level, with large picture windows to the street. We thought the restaurant's food was quite good, as was the service, also inexpensively priced.
(If you don't speak/read Spanish, a Spanish/English dictionary would be helpful as this restaurant, and most others, do not translate the fare into English.)
The Bel Aire's employees were very helpful with recommendations of sights/restaurants/etc. However, I would caution that if you need to get a taxi to the airport, it be made clear by you which airport is needed, as the front desk assumes tourist want the international airport-Ezeiza, not the domestic airport or Aeropark-located in the city.

This hotel used to be one of the nicest maternity clinics in Buenos Aires. You can't tell... so I am just giving you a "little history" here! THe location is probably the best. You will be in the heart of the Barrio Norte. From the hotel you can walk (sometimes just a little, sometimes more) to Santa Fe Av., Florida, Recoleta... THe staff is extremely helpful and will give you directions and hints about the city if you ask them. The hotel is really clean and they are generous with shampoo, body lotions... The pictures of the hotel in their website are REAL, the exterior is beautiful (sorry, I forgot to take pictures!) and inside they also have a restaurant but is expensive. Our choice was a few feet down the road. THere is a restaurant called "Teodoro" where you can try the typical Argentian food like a local, sorrounded by locals! It is really interesting to sit there and see what goes on...
OUr rooms had no bathtubs but their showers were AWESOME... TV and many channels, a complete mini-bar, and an excellent breakfast are some of the things that definitely will make us go back to this hotel in the heart of Buenos Aires.
Rooms facing the inner part are really quiet (sleeping till noon!!) but the view is not very interesting... No, it isn't claustrophobic, just the back of other buildings, typical of a big city!

Right in the middle of the Recoleta district, Bel Air is a very nice boutique hotel. The staff was bi-lingual and very professional. The place was very clean and the rooms were very nice (not huge, but big enough). If you only have a few days in town and are planning on walking around or seeing the sights, this is a very good choice. The prices are hard to beat -- we paid $125US for the largest room in the hotel (which included breakfast and full use of hotel services). Don't waste you money at Alvear -- for the tiny room you'd get there, you can live like a king here.