A stroll in Puerto Madero with its Puente de la Mujer, watching tango performances in San Telmo and La Boca, chilling around impressive Plaza de Mayo and exploring chic Palermo are just a few of the fascinating things you can do in Buenos Aires, the enticing city and capital of Argentina.

Below, you will find some of the remarkable cultural gems in the city that you have to include in your Buenos Aires – or maybe even Argentina itinerary!

Famous for its vibrant Sunday antiques fair in the Plaza Dorrego, as well as the numerous antique shops in the area, San Telmo is the oldest barrio in Buenos Aires. As a strikingly well-preserved colonial neighbourhood, the cobblestone streets have fabulous 19th-century architecture from the city’s heyday. Go for a stroll in San Telmo to soak up the unique atmosphere!

At the time, the San Telmo barrio was poor. In 1806, the Parish of San Pedro González Telmo was established, giving name to the neighbourhood today.

San Telmo church tower | Photo: 139904 / Pixabay

San Telmo continued to develop, and towards the end of the 1800s, it had become an attractive part of the city with the construction of imposing mansions and other extraordinary buildings.

However, an epidemic in 1871 put an end to the development since people massively fled from the area. Instead, many European immigrants from Britain, Spain, Italy and Russia arrived to settle in the attractive Buenos Aires barrio in small communities. As a consequence, the area became all multicultural, and this was in the 1900s, the beginning of a new bohemian era in San Telmo, which drew local artists and exciting cultural activities. Moreover, San Telmo became a hotspot for tango in the Argentinian metropolis.

 
Visit the area around Plaza Dorrego, the old market for antique sellers, on a Sunday morning when the feria takes place. Calle Defensa is full of stalls brimming with antiques, handmade contemporary crafts, a wide range of souvenirs, and enticing restaurants. At the same time, it is the scene of outstanding street performers and traditional tango.

The mausoleum of Manuel Belgrano | Photo: WikimediaImages / Pixabay

Since the immigration population settled in San Telmo, tango became common in the district. The dance has its roots in dances such as the local Candombe traditions inherited from African slaves, the Spanish-Cuban music and dance Habanera, as well as Argentine Milonga music and dance. The tango partner dance flourished in the 1880s in Buenos Aires city and along the Río de la Plata, the river between Argentina and Uruguay. In particular, it developed in lower-class districts of Buenos Aires and Montevideo. From Buenos Aires, the tango spread to Europe in the 20th century.

Bandoneon, a type of concertina used for playing tango music in Argentina and Uruguay | Photo: Pinocoa / Pixabay

With some luck, you may be able to spot a couple of tango dancers in Bohemian San Telmo, maybe at the Sunday feria around Calle Defensa! In Plaza Dorrego, you will often see professional dancers perform for the crowds. It is the perfect spot to experience the unique Argentine dance. Alternatively, enter one of the bars and watch the remarkable 2-person tango show!

Other fascinating tango places to visit in Buenos Aires include La Catedral Club, where you may try your dancing skills in one of the tango classes! It is a former dairy factory and now a remarkable tango dancehall! The style is vintage, and at first sight, you may think it is nothing but a conventional antique shop!

Tango thrives in San Telmo | Photo: ArtTower / Pixabay

While strolling around in San Telmo, why not enter one of the authentic parrilla restaurants to try genuine Argentine beef? These restaurants serve top-quality Argentine beef from the ranches on the plains (las pampas) – and typically offer grilled meat (parrilla means ‘grilled’) with various steaks, sausages and maybe chicken. You will find a parrilla restaurant on every corner here – both upscale restaurants and more casual eateries.

Try a bife de lomo (tenderloin) or ojo de bife (ribeye). Another convenient term to know is asado, identical to ‘barbecue’ here! The meat is, of course, accompanied by the local red wine! Eating beef in Buenos Aires is one of the things linked to the ‘gaucho’ tradition in Argentina – and a must-do while in the city!

Avenida 9 de Julio – Eva Perón’s portrait on the Health Administration building | Photo: Travel In Culture

In 2011, on the 59th anniversary of her death, a gigantic eye-catching 9-storey portrait of popular Eva Perón was revealed on the Health Administration building near the Obelisk of Buenos Aires on Avenida 9 de Julio. It was greeted by wild jubilation in the streets of Buenos Aires! When passing the broad avenue, you cannot help noticing it!

Fighting for labour rights and women’s rights in Argentina, founding the Women’s Peronist Party, and running the Ministries of Labour and Health, she was extremely popular in Argentina, particularly in Buenos Aires City. Moreover, the Argentine Congress gave her the title ‘Spiritual Leader of the Nation’! Tragically, she died from cancer at a very young age (33). Due to her enormous popularity and the results she had achieved, she received a state funeral.

Eva Perón’s tomb | Photo: Wengen / Pixabay

Definitely one of the most unusual cemeteries in the world is the Buenos Aires cemetery Recoleta Cemetery, today containing 6,400 graves and marble mausoleums. Starting out in 1822, it was the Argentine capital’s first public burial place.

Recoleta Cemetery | Photo: 139904 / Pixabay

Once, the site was an orchard of the adjoining Basílica Nuestra Señora del Pilar, owned by the Recollect monks. The place was then, at the beginning of the 1800s, redesigned into a cemetery by the engineer Próspero Catelin, who was also the architect behind the city’s Metropolitan Cathedral in the Plaza de Mayo.

A number of famous people rest in Recoleta Cemetery. One of these is precisely Eva Perón – Evita! She had to wait all 20 years after her death to be buried here in the Duarte family mausoleum in a crypt five metres underground! Among the 90 historic national monuments here, some of the more renowned tombs are, besides Evita’s, the tombs of the former Argentine presidents Sarmiento and Raúl Alfonsín.

Recoleta Cemetery | Photo: ArtTower / Pixabay

The cemetery is usually open during day hours, and free guided tours take place on a daily basis. If you would like to visit one of the more quirky things in Buenos Aires, this is unquestionably the site to go to!

It is also in Recoleta you will find the fabulous steel and aluminium sculpture Floralis Genérica, just a stone’s throw away from Palermo. The artwork, designed to open its petals in the morning and close them again in the evening, was a gift to the city from the Argentine architect Eduardo Catalano, created in 2002.

The sculpture Floralis Genérica | Photo: Nick115 / Pixabay

The sprawling and popular neighbourhood of Palermo can be subdivided into three parts: Alto Palermo, Palermo Chico, and Palermo Viejo. There is a wide variety of things to do and see in this hip Buenos Aires district!

Palermo Chico is known for its magnificent mansions and the awesome Museum of Latin American Art of Buenos Aires. Finally, Palermo Viejo is the vibrant, local and casual part, where you can indulge in tiny boutiques, cosy cafés along the cobbled streets, authentic and lively markets, and even a film studio or two.

La Boca | Photo: Manu Talaixa / Pixabay

One of the must-do things in Buenos Aires is to visit the colourful neighbourhood La Boca with the renowned Caminito cobblestone lane flanked by spectacular painted artworks, murals and stalls. It is an open-air street museum displaying the most vivid sides of the city.

The district has a background of Italian influence since, in the past, many of the immigrants came from the Italian city Genoa. The Italian settlers found work in the warehouses and meatpacking industry here. Still today, there is Italian dominance, with Italian taverns dotting the lanes in the artists’ colony.

The Caminito | Photo: ArtTower / Pixabay

Another noteworthy place in La Boca is the kaleidoscopic-looking Teatro de la Ribera, donated to the city in 1971 by a local artist, the painter Benito Quinquela Martín. The venue offers absolutely reasonably priced tango shows.

Outside the tourist areas, La Boca is a relatively poor working-class neighbourhood with many social challenges. La Boca is also known for its stadium La Bombonera from 1940, which is the home stadium of the football club Boca Juniors (where the world-famous Diego Maradona also played).

The Caminito in La Boca | Photo: Clairegoyer / Pixabay

Don’t miss the Teatro Colón in eclectic style (also known as the Columbus Theatre), the main opera house in Buenos Aires – and one of the finest opera houses in the world! The original theatre in front of Plaza de Mayo, designed by Charles Pellegrini, dated back to 1857, when it opened with Verdi’s La Traviata. Soon, it became one of the most attractive things to do – to get tickets to enjoy an opera at the 2,500-seat venue in Buenos Aires city. Due to a lack of amenities, this first theatre closed again in 1888.

Teatro Colón | Photo: Felipe Barchi Pim / Pixabay

After a 20-year period of theatre performances taking place at other theatres in the city, it was replaced by the current Teatro Colón in 1908, featuring a rich interior scarlet and gold decor and a sumptuous cupola, originally painted by Marcel Jambon. The inauguration performance was Verdi’s Aida, and the theatre soon became one of the leading theatres in the world with top-class acoustics, drawing the very best conductors and opera singers to Buenos Aires.

Now, the Teatro Colón is again a magnificent top-notch venue in the heart of Buenos Aires featuring world-class performances – absolutely worthy of a visit!

The Argentine Palacio del Congreso Nacional | Photo: 139904 / Pixabay

The neoclassical Palace of the Argentine National Congress (Palacio del Congreso Nacional in Spanish), designed by Vittorio Meano, is the seat of the Argentine National Congress, the senate and the chamber of deputies.

The architectural design is stylish, with white marble giving the building a unique character. Also inside, it features a remarkable design, not least the Blue Room and the Lost Steps Hall. The huge bronze-plated dome is fantastic – and one of the most characteristic features of this iconic landmark in the Argentine capital. Usually, there are free guided tours of the senate on most weekdays!

Palacio Barolo, Avenida de Mayo | Photo: 139904 / Pixabay

As a curiosity, you will find the Kilometre Zero for Argentine national highways on a milestone all near the Congress Palace. Close to the Palacio del Congreso, another outstanding palace stands: the impressive Palacio Barolo. It is an extraordinary blend of every significant architectural style you can imagine!

The Plaza de Mayo is one of the most iconic things in Buenos Aires city – and one of the most famous squares in Argentina. As the oldest public square in the city, it has been the scene of significant historic events and bull running! Today, it is the perfect site for people-watching in Buenos Aires!

Plaza de Mayo, Casa Rosada | Photo: Graphical Brain / Pixabay

The square is named after the revolution initiated on May 25, 1810. Not surprisingly, it has been a focal point for political demonstrations, protests and other gatherings, Eva Perón’s speeches from the balcony of the Casa Rosada, and marches, such as the weekly ‘Las Madres de Plaza de Mayo’ marches with participating ‘mothers’ of people who ‘disappeared’ in the 1970s.

Photo: Bodypel / Pixabay

Read next
Enjoy the Architecture in Buenos Aires
Santiago de Chile Travel Guide

Find useful travel gear: Travel Essentials

Travel Insurance / Visa
Have you considered what you will do in the (unlikely) event of something unforeseen happening? Do you need travel insurance? Check here if you need travel insurance for your trip – and check here if you need a visa for your trip and apply for it!

Where to Stay in Barcelona
The 6 Best Areas & Places

Travel In Culture

… Continue reading →

Where to Stay in Rome: The 5 Best Areas & Places

Travel In Culture

… Continue reading →