Buenos Aires, or BA as it is popularly known, has always had a reputation for being vibrant, exciting and muy, muy Latino. The national dance – the sexy, sultry tango – has enhanced Argentina’s exotic reputation, and every year people flock to BA to see the Latin American life for themselves. Buenos Aires is easily navigable for tourists, and though a bit of Spanish will work wonders, it is just about possible to get by on pointing and smiling. We should warn you – since Argentina’s economic crash between 1999 and 2002, the country has gone from dirt cheap to well and truly getting on its feet again. While this is fantastic news for the Argentine, it does mean that the prices in guidebooks go very swiftly out of date, and you should always budget a little more than you think.
WARNING
Don’t worry, nothing too dramatic. Just a quick note about money. Another one. Argentina exercises the kind of control over its banks that really should be banned by some kind of human rights movement. Basically, if you use an international card in an Argentine ATM, you are going to get badly stung, evidently no matter who you bank with. We’ve received reports of a few people who managed not to get painfully charged, but there seems to be no pattern, so we recommend that you assume you will be charged badly. Furthermore, as if this weren’t enough, Argentine ATMS only allow you to dispense between 300 and 400 pesos at a time. This is something in the region of US $100-130. Not very much at all. So basically, they make you use their ATMs frequently, all the while charging you a fortune. The best thing to do is to try and change your money before you go, or take cash to change while you’re there. Aggravating, but not too much of a hassle if you’ve had a heads up.
Transport
Airports
There are two airports close to BA – the international one and the domestic one.
The international airport’s full name is Aeropuerto Internacional Ministro Pistarini (Ezeiza). If you fly into this one, you will need to travel the 35km into the city centre. If you choose to get a taxi into the city, you should be sure to avoid the men who accost you the second you step into arrivals and offer you a lift into the city. They are not licensed taxi drivers and will rip you off quite appallingly. Instead, go straight to the taxi reservation booths inside the airport and get them to sort a taxi out for you. It’ll cost something like US $50.
A cheaper option is to get the mini-bus, provided by the Manuel Tienda Leon Bus Company, which departs on the hour and for various places in the city, and costs under US $30. You will find ticket booths in the arrival hall.
Or you could, if you were feeling very adventurous indeed, get the public bus for about US $2. We should point out that if you have lots of bulky or heavy luggage, then you might wish to rethink this option. However, if you’re determined or seriously strapped for cash, you want bus 86 (ask at the Information counter where to get it from) which takes about 90 minutes to downtown BA. Tell the driver where you want to go to get the right ticket, and stick as near to him as possible so you can ask him where to get off. You will need coins for the bus.
The domestic airport is known as Aeroparque Jorge Newbery (which also has flights to Uruguay), and it is very conveniently situated within BA itself, only 4km north of the centre. As such, one of the easiest ways to get into the city centre from this airport is to get a taxi to the nearest Metro station (most likely Plaza Italia). You can then get the Metro to whichever part of town you are staying in. A taxi into the centre itself will cost about US $8.
The Manuel Tienda Leon Bus Company also have mini-buses from here which, for US $5, will take you into the centre.
Or, again, if you want to really cut down on your spending, you can get public bus number 33 which goes to Retiro terminal, or 37 which goes to Plaza de Congreso. Ask at the Information counter where to get these buses from. You will need coins to buy your bus ticket.
Metro
The best way to get around Buenos Aires is to use the city’s incredible Metro system. We say incredible, not because it is brand new or fantastically clean, but because it is amazingly cheap (roughly 90 pesos/15p/30 cents a ticket for just about anywhere in the city). Buenos Aires as a whole really is too big to walk, so the best thing to do is get the Metro to various districts and take your time moseying around them. The other incredible thing is the trains themselves – Buenos Aires uses the trains that the Japanese discarded 20 years ago. If you’re Japanese this will doubtless be a bit scary.
Bus
With the possible exception of La Boca, we don’t recommend trying to fathom the city’s intricate and fairly insane bus network, unless you’re here for months or you have a friend who lives here who can walk you through it. So to speak.
Areas to see, things to do
La Boca
You must have seen the photos – the artsy area of Buenos Aires with a slightly dodgy reputation, which is completely belied by the beautiful brightly coloured buildings. La Boca has an amazing atmosphere and some great restaurants. You’ll also generally find a lot of street performers, particularly tango dancers strutting their sultry stuff for your entertainment. As the Metro doesn’t yet extend to La Boca, we recommend taking a taxi out here (approx US $4, only takes about 10 minutes) and maybe attempting to get the bus back. You could try to get the bus out here, and if you do, make sure you ask the driver (as many times as necessary) for Caminito Street. La Boca is set within a triangular area – stick to the triangle. It’s safer.
San Telmo
The most famous and exciting part of Buenos Aires, most people end up staying in San Telmo when they come here. There are plenty of excellent hostels and you’ll love the party atmosphere. San Telmo is famous for its Antiques Fair on Sundays and its beautiful architecture and cobbled streets. Make sure you head over to Plaza Dorrego, a beautiful small square lined with cafes and restaurants which plays host to street music and tango almost every night. The chill-out cafe culture is prevalent here, and you should definitely indulge in some people-watching.
Microcentro
This is where it gets all modern. Microcentro is all about people striding around with places to go and people to see, and everything is very slick and shiny. It’s quite a lot like London’s Canary Wharf, only with slightly less water. It’s a great place to see the real life of the city, with everybody going about their day-to-day business. It’s a very commercialised place, full of pedestrianised shopping streets and giant shopping malls. There are a couple of money exchange places (cambios) here with good rates, and a few Metro stations around for you to access the area. Head for Av. De Mayo for bars, restaurants and cafes. Make sure you go over to the Plaza de Mayo and have a look at the Casa Rosada, the famous parliamentary Pink House. From here Eva Peron addressed her nation, followed by Madonna who addressed a whole crowd of extras in imitation. You can easily spend a whole day in this area.
Recoleta
This wealthy area, home to the richest street in Buenos Aires, is most famous for its massive and ostentatious cemetery (Cementerio de la Recoleta), where you can find the graves of Evita Peron and a whole host of ornate, marble crypts and statues. Recoleta also has many beautiful parks to relax in.
Palermo
It’s all about the parks! Palermo is Buenos Aires’ principle relaxing area, and you’ll find that what seems like most of BA turns up here on weekends to take advantage of the beautiful parkland. A really lovely thing to do here is to hire a bike and go for a cycle along the parks’ bike paths. You could even rent a boat and have a float on the lake. Palermo is also famous for its zoo! Apart from a decent collection of animals in general, this particular zoo is well-known for some certain animal species just wandering around the grounds – among them, fauns and... wait for it... capybaras! These weird animals stroll around, looking bizarre. You’ll definitely enjoy it.
Puerto Madero
New, shiny dockside area that has been recently had its old warehouses converted to trendy new apartments, offices and restaurants. It’s always nice to be by the water, and strolling around the area is very nice indeed.
Restaurants and general munching...
Now, this is Latin America. As we’re sure you can imagine, it is packed to the gills with pizza, pasta and steak. You will have no trouble finding places to eat this kind of fare, we’re sure. Here’s a few tips first...
Asado or Parrillada is Argentine Barbeque. Argentina is good at barbeque. Try them. A word of warning though – it will often include intestines, kidneys and the like. You can either bite the bullet and try the local delicacies, or you can avoid it. Up to you.
As with many European-influenced places, people eat late here. Often as late as 10pm.
A typical dessert out here is dulce de leche, which is a sweet caramel dish.
And here are a few restaurants that you might like to try.
Costumbres Criollas – Libertador 308 – Serves typical Argentine food, has outdoor seating and a very good standard food. You might have to put up with occasional indifferent service, but the price is good, so you can’t really have everything.
Angelito – Camargo 490 esq. Scalabrini Ortiz – This place has grilling down to a serious art. It also has outdoor seating for those warm evenings.
Desnivel – Defensa 855 – 4300 9081 – Some great Argentine fare at incredibly low prices, and a great atmosphere. Just to warn you, it gets ridiculously busy, so come early for lunch...
Biwon – Junin 548 – Craving Asian food? This Korean joint should do the trick... For about $10 per main, you can get some of the most authentic Korean food outside of Seoul. Easily as good as anything you’d get in London or Vancouver at very good prices. Have a break from steak.
Lotos – Av Cordoba 1577 – If you’re up for something meat-free (we don’t envy vegetarians who decide to come here) then fear not, come on over to Lotos! For about US $3-5, you can get some very nice lunch-type food, such as soups, salads and sandwiches. This place will make you feel far healthier than the vast amounts of grills the city has on offer.
Bars and General Nightlife
Granados Bar – Chile 378 – For food and drinks, outdoor seating and a lively, student vibe, this is the place to be. It also has WiFi, by the way. It belongs to Hostal Granados (which is a very good hostel).
Todo Mundo – Pasaje Anselmo Aieta 1095 – A restaurant-bar with outdoor seating but a very cool interior, this place is a nice alternative to Argentine rock. Instead there is a lot of live music specialising in Latino vibes. Great atmosphere.
Cafe Tortoni – Ave de Mayo 829 – Well known and traditional, Tortoni is a very chilled out kind of a cafe that does indeed serve alcohol, has pool tables and also often has Tango shows on. The building itself is of interest, and the cafe was established in 1858. It’s huge, but it gets very busy.
Tango!!
Please please please, don’t come to Buenos Aires and miss out on the Tango shows! Watch the professionals in action – you won’t be disappointed. Here are a couple of suggestions for Tango places:
La Ventana – Balcarce 425 – Dinner and Show US $70-85
Bar Sur – Estados Unidos 299 – Show and unlimited pizza US $15
El Querandi – Peru 302 – Dinner and Show US $90
Caminito Tango Show – Del Valle Iberlucea, La Boca – Show US $45