Salt Lake City to Buenos Aires Flights (SLC to EZE): Connections, Flight Time and Arrival Guide

Every trip connects through a southern US hub

No airline flies nonstop between Salt Lake City and Buenos Aires Ezeiza, so every itinerary connects at least once. Because the long leg to Argentina runs overnight from a southern or eastern US hub, the usual pattern is a daytime domestic flight out of Salt Lake City and an evening departure south.

As of recent schedules, Delta, with its Salt Lake City hub, connects through Atlanta, which has a nightly Buenos Aires nonstop. United connects through Houston, American through Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami or New York JFK, and Aerolíneas Argentinas, the national carrier, flies to Buenos Aires from Miami and New York. Delta and LATAM are partners, so a Delta ticket may also route you through Lima, São Paulo or Santiago on LATAM.

Copa Airlines, through Panama City, and Avianca, through Bogotá, are two more one-stop options from the US, though they involve a connection from another US city first. For most travellers from Utah, Atlanta, Houston and Dallas give the shortest totals.

Total travel time and distance

The great-circle distance between SLC and EZE is roughly 6,100 miles, about 9,800 km. The domestic leg from Salt Lake City to Atlanta or Houston takes three to four hours, and the overnight flight to Buenos Aires another 9.5 to 10.5 hours. With a layover, plan on 16 to 20 hours in total from Salt Lake City to landing in Buenos Aires the next morning.

The return is similar in total, with the overnight flight north usually arriving at the US hub early in the morning and a connecting flight home to Salt Lake City by midday or early afternoon. This route runs mostly north to south, so there is no date line to cross and the time change is small.

Departing from Salt Lake City International

SLC has a single terminal with two concourses, A and B, linked by an underground walkway. Delta uses Concourse A and parts of B; United and American use Concourse B. Security is consolidated in one checkpoint, and lines are longest in the early morning when Delta's first wave departs.

The TRAX Green Line light rail runs from downtown Salt Lake City to the airport station in about 20 to 25 minutes. The walk from security to the far end of Concourse B is long, so allow extra time if your gate is there.

Check your bags through to EZE and confirm the tag at the counter. On a Delta connection through Atlanta, the bag should transfer automatically; with a mixed itinerary, ask before you leave the counter.

Arriving at Ezeiza and getting into Buenos Aires

Ezeiza, officially Ministro Pistarini, is about 35 km southwest of central Buenos Aires. Most international flights use Terminal A, with Terminal C handling some airlines; the two are connected by a walkway. Immigration usually moves at a steady pace in the morning peak, but several US flights land within the same window.

Ezeiza is far from the city and traffic can be heavy, so plan the last leg in advance:

• Airport bus services: coaches from Ezeiza to central terminals in Retiro and Puerto Madero, with onward transfers to hotels, typically 45 to 75 minutes depending on traffic.
• Official taxis and remises: book from the authorised counters inside the arrivals hall, where the fare to your destination is set before you leave. 45 to 75 minutes to Palermo, Recoleta or San Telmo.
• Ride-hailing: available, with pick-ups from designated areas.
• Public bus: very cheap but slow, and impractical with luggage.

Buenos Aires has a second airport, Aeroparque Jorge Newbery, on the river close to the city. Most domestic flights to Patagonia, Mendoza, Iguazú and Salta leave from there. If you are connecting onward within Argentina, check which airport the flight uses; the transfer between them takes 60 to 90 minutes.

Best time to fly and when to book

Seasons are reversed. Buenos Aires is hot and humid from December to February, when many locals leave for the coast and the city is quieter. Spring, from September to November, and autumn, from March to May, are the best months to visit the city, with mild temperatures and the jacaranda trees in bloom in November. Winter, June to August, is cool and damp but rarely freezing, and it is the ski season in the Andes.

If you are heading to Patagonia, the season runs from November to March. Fares from the US are highest around Christmas and New Year, the US spring break and the Argentine winter holidays in July. For those dates, book three to four months ahead; for other months, six to ten weeks is usually enough.

Entry requirements and documents

As of recent rules, US passport holders can visit Argentina for short tourist stays without a visa, and the reciprocity fee that Argentina once charged US citizens is no longer in effect. Your passport should be valid for the length of your stay. Check the Argentine government's migration website or the Argentine Embassy in Washington before you fly, since rules can change.

Argentina's currency and exchange rules have changed often in recent years, and the difference between card and cash rates has at times been large. Check current guidance from reliable sources before you decide how to pay, and tell your bank you are travelling.

Time zones and jet lag

Buenos Aires does not observe daylight saving time. It is 3 hours ahead of Salt Lake City during US daylight saving time and 4 hours ahead in winter. That small difference means there is little jet lag in the usual sense; what you feel is the overnight flight. You land in the morning after a short night, so a light first day and an early night help.

The return is the same in reverse: a night flight north, a morning arrival in the US and a connection home.

What travellers on this route get wrong

The most common mistake is booking an onward domestic flight from Aeroparque without allowing for the transfer from Ezeiza. The second is taking an unofficial taxi from outside the terminal instead of booking at the authorised counters. The third is arriving without a plan for paying in Argentina when exchange rules have shifted. Each is avoidable with a little preparation.