Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina is the perfect stop to discover Argentine food, history, culture, and of course Tango.
When Mathew and I travel we try to avoid spending too much time in the cities when we can. The reason being is we’ve tried over and over again to give the city life a try, but we always end up disappointed. Buenos Aires is not one of those times.
We spent 5 days in Buenos Aires, eating some of the best food, walking around beautiful neighborhoods and witnessing one of the best entertainment shows we’ve ever seen.
Buenos Aires is a special city, and with 5 full days you’ll be able to get a glimpse of just how special this city is.
This post is all about a Buenos Aires Itinerary: 5 Days of Food, Culture & Tango.
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Best Time to Visit Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is a year round destination although peak season (December thru March) brings large crowds and high prices.
Spring and fall bring comfortable temperatures, fewer tourist, and colorful foliage. June through August brings colder temps and higher chances of rain.
Summer: from December 21st to March 20th
Fall: from March 21st to June 20th
Winter: from June 21st to September 20th
Spring: from September 21st to December 20th
How to Get Around Buenos Aires
Getting around Buenos Aires is actually very easy and cheap. Here are some options.
Public Transport: Colectivos(Buses), Trains and Subway using a prepaid Sube card. Sube cards can be found at the subway station or at the many corner kiosks found around the city.
Taxi/Uber: Fares are very reasonably priced. We never spent more than $5 USD a ride. If a taxi is available, the “libre” sign will be lit up in the windscreen.
Walking: Buenos Aires neighborhoods are perfect for exploring on foot.
Biking: Buenos Aires offers free bicycle rentals throughout the city. Using the BA Ecobici por Tembici app and a LOCAL SIM CARD you can unlock a bike and use the bike for an hour Monday through Friday or 2 hours on the weekend. If you need it for longer than the time allotted simply dock it for 5 minutes before using your app to get another unlocking pin.
Buenos Aires Hop on Hop Off Bus: There are two companies who offer hop on hop off tours and that is Buenos Aires Bus and Grayline.
Best Neighborhood’s in Buenos Aires
First Time in Buenos Aires & Night Life: Palermo Soho & Palermo Hollywood, packed with cafés, bars, restaurants and beautiful shops.
For the Luxury Traveller: Recoleta, a trendy neighborhood with exquisite architecture, chic shops, and excellent selection of restaurants.
Traveling on a Budget: San Telmo, the oldest barrio in Buenos Aires. Filled with cobbled stone streets, historic buildings, antique shops, and budget accommodation.
The Coolest Area: Villa Crespo, more local vibes, less tourist but you will still find trendy bars and amazing restaurants.
Best Area for Families: Bellgrano, a safe relaxed neighborhood with easy access to other parts of the city.
Best Area for Sightseeing: MicroCentro, the heart of the city where you will find major attractions and experience the true liveliness of the city.
Modern Vibes: Puerto Madero, Buenos Aires newest developed neighborhood. Great neighborhood if you are looking for somewhere safe, quiet, and low-key.
CHECK ACCOMMODATION RATES HERE
Buenos Aires Travel Tips
Don’t rely on ATM withdrawals. Due to the lower official rates banks use in Argentina, you will lose money taking cash out of an ATM. The best way to get the highest exchange rate for your USD is to wire money through Western Union. We did this several times while in Argentina and it gave our dollar value an almost 50% increase value. You will hear the Argentinians refer to this as the blue dollar rate.
Spanish is the official language.
Pay with cash as much as you can.
Spanish is the official language.
Currency: Argentine Peso
5 Day Buenos Aires Itinerary
DAY 1
Arrive in Buenos Aires
You will most likely be landing at Ezeiza International Airport or Aeroparque Internacional Jorge Newbery. Grab a taxi or a prearranged transfer and head to your hotel. Relax, enjoy a shower and take a power snooze.
Tonight is the perfect night to introduce yourself to the Argentinian cuisine. Steak will never be the same, you’ve been warned.
Our recommendation is either the 9 course dinner at Fogon Asado or The 6 course dinner with Argentine Experience. We went with Fogon Asado and it was AMAZING.
After dinner grab a drink at Boticario.
DAY 2
Palermo, Recoleta & Tango Class
Wake up early and dead to the trendy neighborhood of Palermo and grab breakfast at one of the many outdoor dining restaurants. After breakfast take a stroll around Palermo Soho and Palermo Hollywood.
Continue your day with a visit to Jardin Botanico Carlos Thays. Entrance is Free.
Time for a food tour! Join a local foodie tour in Palermo, you’ll visit a total of four different restaurants, where you’ll sample at least eight drinks and dishes.
Join the highly rated Foodie Tour Here
After your food tour it’s time to continue the walking tour. Head over to Floralis Genérica an enormous aluminum and steel flower gifted to Argentina by architect Eduard Catalano.
Afterwards, check out Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes. Entrance is Free.
Don’t forget to snap a picture of the ever changing mural at Centro Cultural Recoleta.
Next up, Buenos Aires most famous attraction, Recoleta Cemetery. Recoleta neighborhood is known for luxury for a reason, after Recoleta Cemetery take a stroll through Avenida Alvear, which showcases that perfectly with gorgeous and elegant architecture.
Las stop for the day is the historic bookshop, El Ateneo Grand Splendid.
I have a feeling you’ll be skipping dinner and what better way to spend your evening than with the locals, sipping wine and learning how to Tango.
If you need a late night snack afterwards I recommend some late night tacos at Taco Factory or Taqueria Diaz, both are delicious, pick the one closet to you.
Note: Prefer a Private Guided City Tour check out this tour Buenos Aires City Private Tour with Local Guide
DAY 3
Historical Sites, San Telmo & Tango Show
Start your day with a tour of Teatro Colon Opera House.
Afterwards, pass by the Obelisk and 9 de Julio Avenue before proceeding to Cafe Tortoni which opened in 1858 and is Buenos Aires most iconic cafe. Grab a coffee or hot chocolate with some delicious churros.
Tip: Don’t have a full meal here, I have a better place for you to enjoy lunch.
Next stop, Plaza de Mayo to check out the Cathedral, Cabildo and Casa Rosada.
Now it’s time to eat, hope you’re hungry. Make your way to Mercado San Telmo walk around and let your eyes and your nose do the picking, afterwards wander the beautiful cobblestone streets.
Tip: If you happen to be in Buenos Aires on a Sunday make sure to come back here for the Sunday Feria, where hundreds of stalls set up outside along Calle Defense and Plaza Dorrego.
Last stop is Museo Histórico Nacional, entrance is FREE.
For the evening book a dinner and tango show.
I’m sure yesterday you picked up a few Tango skills so tonight you’ll get to show them off, joking, but the beauty of taking the class and then seeing the show is the appreciation you’ll feel watching how flawless and skilled these dancers are. It’s incredibly beautiful to watch.
The Best Tango Shows in Buenos Aires
- Rojo Tango This is the dinner and show we went to and could not recommend it enough. It was honestly so amazing and dinner was delicious.
- La Ventana
- Piazzolla
- El Viejo Almacen
- El Querandi
- Señor Tango
DAY 4
A Day in the Countryside
Today you’ll spend a full day exploring the countryside of Buenos Aires.
Venture into the wild Argentinian pampas and experience ‘gaucho’ (cowboy) life on a traditional ‘estancia’ (ranch). Saddle up for a horseback ride, visit the country town of San Antonio de Areco, and enjoy a folklore show.
You”ll learn all about gauchos and their ranch life by becoming a Gaucho for a day.
DAY 5
Mate Class, La Boca, Puerto Madero & Asado Class
Wake up early and enjoy a very unique experience. Learn how to drink Mate like a true Argentinian. You will see mate drinkers everywhere even more so than coffee.
Next, explore the colorful streets of La Boca before heading to modern Puerto Madero to see the beautiful Women’s Bridge. Take a stroll down Reserva Ecológica Costanera Sur, a great place on the edge of the city to enjoy nature.
For the evening, we highly recommend taking an Asado class. We had so much fun at ours and you’ll definitely want to learn how to cook like an Argentinian because once you’ve had an asado you’ll always be craving it back home.
After 5 days in Buenos Aires I’m sure you’ll feel the same as we did, that Buenos Aires in fact a special city.
If you have another day in Buenos AIres I would highly recommend a day trip to Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay.
Hope this post was helpful, Buenos Aires Itinerary: 5 Days of Food, Culture & Tango.
BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE:
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Travel Resources
Here you can find all the travel site links that we personally use and recommend.
CAMPSITES/CAMPGROUNDS We like to use a couple apps for last minute campsite bookings. Our favorites are HipCamp, The Dyrt and Campendium.
ACCOMMODATION: We find the best deals with BOOKING.COM. The more you book the better the perks like free breakfast with your stay, room upgrades and even higher discounted room rates.
CAR RENTALS: We have always used RentalCars.com and find them to have the best deals, customer service and selection of locations.
FLIGHTS: Our go to for looking up flights is SKYSCANNER, but we try to always book directly with the airline.
TOURS/EXCURSIONS: GET YOUR GUIDE and VIATOR are two very reputable sites with easy and hassle free bookings.
TRAVEL INSURANCE: It’s so important to travel with insurance and for this we use SafetyWing. We are currently using them for our 1 year trip.
TRANSPORTATION: For all our bus, ferry and train transfer needs in Asia we use 12go.asia.
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