Sightseeing OverviewEva Perón, tango and football
are the three elements that the capital is famed for. Nevertheless, Buenos Aires is littered with museums and magnificent mansions and buildings. After sightseeing and shopping, there are peaceful parks to relax in and bars and cafes for sampling the excellent local cuisine.
Although initially confusing, the city is based on a grid system and is soon easy to master. The main point of orientation is the Avenida 9 de Julio, the
world’s widest avenue, running from Plaza Constitucion to Avenida de Libertador.
Most places of interest are contained in the five main
barrios (neighborhoods) within the Microcentro so the attractions are easily accessible by foot.
The main square,
Plaza de Mayo, is in the city’s southeastern section, which boasts
La Recoleta Cemetery, Evita’s final resting place. Also in the center are La City, the financial district, and Calle Florida and Lavalle - the pedestrianized shopping areas. South of the central area are the oldest parts of Buenos Aires, San Telmo and La Boca, while to the north lie the wealthier
barrios of Retiro, Recoleta, Palermo and Belgrano.
The
Obelisco never fails to catch the eye and this 67m- (220ft-) high monument, together with the multi-lane avenue, in the middle of which it is located, has become a symbol of the city.
Tourist InformationCentro de Información Turística (Tourist Information Center) Tel: 0800 999 2838.
Website:
www.bue.gov.arThe main tourist information centers are at Florida 100, Florida; Dock 4, Puerto Madero; Terminal De Ómnibus, Avenida Antártida Argentina, Retiro; Quintana 596, Recoleta; Defensa 1250, San Telmo.
Secretaría de Turismo de la Nación (National Tourism Office) Avenida Santa Fe 883
Tel: 0800 555 0016.
Website:
www.turismo.gov.arThere are also National Tourism Information stands at the international and domestic airports.
PassesThere are no tourist passes available.
Key Attractions:Plaza de Mayo If Buenos Aires has a center, this is it. Located at the historic heart of the city, and bounded by the key commercial and shopping areas, the Plaza de Mayo is a large public square containing gardens, fountains and statues. On one side is the only surviving government building from colonial times - the
Cabildo, constructed in 1748. In 1810, it was the focus for the May Revolution and the museum reflects the history of this period. At the opposite end of the square is the
Casa Rosada, the dusky-pink Presidential Palace with a world-famous balcony, where General Galtieri, Diego Maradona, Evita and Perón have addressed the crowds at various stages in Argentina’s history. Originally a fortress, the Casa
Rosada was remodeled when Buenos Aires became the Capital of the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata in 1776. It became its pretty, pink color in 1873 when President Sarmiento chose it to represent a mix of the red and white of the two main political parties. The south side of the building houses the
Museo de la Casa Rosada in its basement.
Museo Nacional del Cabildo y la Revolución de MayoCalle Bolívar 65
Opening hours: Tues-Fri 1030-1700, Sun 1130-1800.
Free admission.
Museo de la Casa Rosada Hipólito Irigoyen 219
Tel: (011) 4344 3600.
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 1000-1800, Sun 1400-1800. Guided tours Mon-Fri 1100 and 1600, Sun 1500 and 1630. Guided tours of the palace Mon-Fri 1700.
Free admission. Identity card or passport required.
La Boca This
barrio is best known for its football team,
Boca Juniors, for whom the legendary Diego Maradona played, but also for its multi-colored wooden and corrugated-iron houses. The houses were built and painted by Italian immigrant families. They liberated materials and paint from the local docks where they worked. The most famous street,
Calle Caminito, boasts the best of the painted houses, where artists, street performers and tango dancers congregate daily. The colorful district heavily influenced Benito Quinquela Martín (one of Argentina’s most famous painters) whose work can be seen at the
Museo de Bellas Artes Quinquela Martín. It is also worth exploring the temporary exhibits of Argentine artists at the modern
Fundación Proa museum (due to reopen in the second half of 2008, after a large extension has been built). The working class area of La Boca is now a popular destination for artists and tourists, but visitors should avoid straying into the less touristy areas for fear of pickpockets and muggers.
Museo de Bellas Artes al Aire Libre Caminito Outdoor exhibition on Calle Caminito
Opening hours: Daily 1000-1800.
Free admission.
Museo de Bellas Artes Quinquela Martín Avenida Pedro de Mendoza 1835
Tel: (011) 4301 1080.
Opening hours: Tues-Sun 1100-1730.
Admission charge.
Fundación Proa Avenida Pedro de Mendoza 1929
Tel: (011) 4104 1000.
Website:
www.proa.orgOpening hours: Tues-Sun 1100-1900.
Admission charge.
San Telmo San Telmo is one of the city’s oldest districts, where narrow streets with crumbing buildings add to the cultural intensity of the area. The labyrinth of streets, containing cafes, book stores, antique shops and artist studios all lead to
Plaza Dorrego, which becomes an outdoor antiques and bric-a-brac market on Sundays. Tango music and dance demonstrations can be enjoyed in this square or at a venue such as
El Viejo Almacén, devoted to this melancholy art form. There have been some efforts to regenerate this historic district and the
Museo de Arte Moderno de Buenos Aires houses experimental artwork in an old tobacco warehouse.
Plaza Dorrego Sunday markets from 1000-1700.
Free admission.
El Viejo Almacén Balcarce and Avenida Independencia
Tel: (011) 4307 6689.
Website:
www.viejoalmacen.comOpening hours: Daily dinner and show at 2000. Show only at 2200.
Admission charge (book in advance).
Cementerio de Recoleta (Recoleta Cemetery) A cemetery may not be everyone’s idea of a tourist attraction, but La Recoleta, founded in 1822, is famous as the final resting place of Maria Eva Duarte Perón or Evita. The burial site can easily be located by following the guided tour groups or by seeking out the mass of bouquets. The populist sentiment of the inscription on Eva’s tomb, ’
Volverá y seré millones’
(I will return and be millions), did not endear her to the descendants of the members of
porteño high society buried around her. The cemetery also contains the tombs of writers, scientists, national heroes and former presidents, exhibiting a variety of architectural styles.
Calle Junín 1790.
Tel: (011) 4804 7040.
Opening hours: Daily 0800-1800. Free English language tours at 1100 Tues and Thurs (in fine weather only).
Free admission.
Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires (MALBA) This ultra-modern building was built to house the Costantini collection of Latin American art and is a welcome addition to the city’s cultural landscape. The museum, opened in 2001, promotes appreciation of Latin American art from the early 20th century to the present day. Many Argentine artists are represented, including Xul Solar, Benito Quinquela Martín and Antonio Berni. Brazilian and Uruguayan works are also shown and a famous self-portrait by Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. This light, airy gallery also has spaces for temporary exhibits, an outdoor sculpture balcony, gift shop, library and a smart cafe.
Avenida Figueroa Alcorta 3415
Tel: (011) 4808 6500.
Website:
www.malba.org.arOpening hours: Thurs-Mon and holidays 1200-2000, Wed 1200-2100.
Admission charge; free Wed and for children under 12 daily.
Museo Evita Only inaugurated on 26 July 2002, on the 50th anniversary of Evita’s death, the Museo Evita tells the life story of Eva Perón using a moving mixture of personal artifacts, dresses, photographs and compelling audiovisual displays. Already a famous radio and theater actress in her own right, Eva Duarte became both one of the most revered and reviled figures in Argentine history when she married Colonel Juan Domingo Perón who was elected president in 1946. Evita used her position to further the rights and conditions of the working class. Her life came to an abrupt end when she died of cancer, aged 33, in 1952. Evita has become the subject of various books, films and a stage musical, but this museum does little to address the burning question of the cult of personality.
Calle Lafinur 2988
Tel: (011) 4807 9433.
Opening hours: Tues-Sun and holidays 1100-1900. Guided tours 1600, 1700 and 1800.
Admission charge.
Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes Housed in a redbrick neoclassical building in the Recoleta district, the airy National Fine Arts Museum contains European paintings and sculpture along with a complete collection of Argentine art. Downstairs, there are galleries devoted to Impressionists, such as Renoir, Monet, Degas, Pissarro and Sisley. Rubens, Rothko, Pollock and an assortment of other renowned artists also feature, along with internationally famous Argentine artist, Lucio Fontana. Visitors can also see the works of other Argentine artists and temporary exhibits on loan from international museums.
Avenida del Libertador 1473
Tel: (011) 4803 0802.
Website:
www.mnba.org.arOpening hours: Tues-Fri 1230-1930, Sat-Sun 0930-1930.
Free admission.
Teatro Colón Located near Plaza Lavalle, the Teatro Colón is regarded as one of the greatest opera houses in the world and is an essential visit, even for those not usually interested in classical music. The Renaissance-style building, designed by Italian architect Francisco Tamburri, has seen the likes of dancers Vaslov Nijinsky and Anna Pavlova grace the stage. Bernstein, Strauss and Stravinsky have conducted here and Caruso, Melba, Callas, Pavarotti and Domingo have all sung in the 2,500-seater auditorium and tested the highly regarded acoustics. Visitors can take guided tours through the Central Hall, the ornately gilded and mirrored Salon Dorado and the auditorium, whose dome is decorated with frescoes by Raul Soldi.
Box office and theater entrance:
Libertad 621
Guided tours entrance:
Pasaje Toscanini 1168 (on Viamonte 1100)
Tel: (011) 4378 7344.
Website:
www.teatrocolon.org.ar Opening hours: Daily 0900-1700. Guided tours in English or Spanish are Mon-Fri hourly 1100-1600, Sat hourly 0900-1600, Sun hourly 1100-1500.
Admission charge.
Further Distractions:Jardín Japonés (Japanese Garden) The Jardín Japonés is one of the most pleasant open spaces in the city, and is the perfect antidote to the noise and bustle of the city. Created in 1967 as a gift from the Emperor of Japan, the garden is a tranquil park of Asiatic shrubs and trees beautifully landscaped around a small lake bubbling with huge carp. The garden is something of a hub for the city’s sizeable Japanese community and the Japanese restaurant is well worth a visit for lunch.
Avenida Casares 2966, near Avenida Figueroa Alcorta
Tel: (011) 4804 4922.
Website:
www.jardinjapones.com.arOpening hours: Daily 1000-1800.
Admission charge.
Puerto Madero An ambitious regeneration project has turned this former working dock into a lively and popular area for a stroll, a drink or a bite to eat. The old redbrick warehouses now house galleries, bars and restaurants. Old docking cranes line either side of the dock, which is spanned by the
Puente de la Mujer (Bridge of the Woman). The area does feel a little sterile, but that may improve as more projects are completed.
Docks 3 and 4, Avenida Alicia Moreau de Justo
Reserva Ecológica Costanera Sur
Built on land reclaimed from the River Plate, this 360-hectare (890-acre) ecological reserve has become a verdant park packed with plants and creatures typical of the region. Paths for walkers and cyclists (bikes are for hire at the entrance) crisscross the park where there are many viewing platforms from which you can spot numerous species of birds.
Avenida Tristan Achával Rodríguez 1550
Tel: (011) 4315 1320.
Opening hours: Tues-Sun 0800-1800 (April-Oct); 0800-1900 (Nov-Mar).
Free admission.
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The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
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