Neighbourhood guide · Buenos Aires
The Teatro Colón, the Plaza de Mayo, the Avenida de Mayo and the Tortoni, the Obelisco and the Plaza San Martín.
Neighbourhood guide
The Teatro Colón, the Plaza de Mayo, the Avenida de Mayo and its cafés, the Obelisco and the theatres of Corrientes, and the Plaza San Martín in Retiro.
Opera, ballet and tours
One of the great opera houses of the world: a horseshoe of red and gold, with its own ballet, orchestra and chorus. Tours and performances.
Where the city began
The founding square of Buenos Aires, with the Cabildo, the cathedral and the pink Casa Rosada.
The pink house
The pink seat of government on the Plaza de Mayo, with guided visits.
On the Plaza de Mayo
The cathedral of Buenos Aires on the Plaza de Mayo, behind its neoclassical portico.
A lighthouse on the Avenida
The office tower on the Avenida de Mayo built on the plan of Dante’s Divine Comedy, with a lighthouse at the top. Guided visits.
Avenida de Mayo 1370, C1085ABQ Buenos AiresExplore View on map
The heart of the city
The white obelisk at the crossing of Corrientes and the vast Avenida 9 de Julio.
Concert halls in a palace
The former central post office on Leandro N. Alem, now a national cultural centre with concert halls, among them the Auditorio Nacional.
On the Avenida Corrientes
The city’s theatre company, with the Teatro San Martín on the Avenida Corrientes and its cinema, the Sala Lugones.
Avenida Corrientes 1530, Buenos AiresExplore View on map
The national theatre
The national theatre, in its Spanish Renaissance building on Libertad.
Libertad 815, C1012AAQ Buenos AiresExplore View on map
Shade and palaces
The sloping square of Retiro under great old trees, framed by palaces and the Kavanagh building.
On foot
The city’s grand avenue of cafés and theatres, from the Cabildo to the Congress.
Bib Gourmand
Argentinian cooking in Retiro. Bib Gourmand in the 2026 guide.
Avenida del Libertador 405, C1001ABE Buenos AiresExplore View on map
Since 1934
The pizzería on Talcahuano, opened in 1934 in a tiny triangular room.
Talcahuano 937, Buenos AiresExplore View on map
Since 1858
The oldest café in Buenos Aires, in its own words: a French-style room of stained glass, wood and marble on the Avenida de Mayo, open since 1858.
Avenida de Mayo 825, C1084 Buenos AiresExplore View on map
Behind a flower shop
A cocktail bar in a basement reached through a flower shop in Retiro.
Arroyo 872, Buenos AiresExplore View on map
By the Obelisco
A tango show and dinner a few steps from the Obelisco, recreating the golden age of the 1940s.
Cerrito 570, Buenos AiresExplore View on map
A tango salon
The tango salon on Riobamba, with milongas and classes every day of the year.
Riobamba 416, Buenos AiresExplore View on map
Under painted domes
The shopping galleries on Calle Florida, under a central dome painted with murals.
Since 1939
Argentine leather since 1939: bags, jackets, gloves and travel goods.
Marcelo T. de Alvear 640, Buenos AiresExplore View on map
Been to the Colón or the Tortoni? Tell the next visitor how to plan the centre.