buenos aires - 4 days - what to do!

jobless

for those of you that have been there, what would you recommend to do and see over four days?... am open to all ideas...
Apart from all the steak i'll be eating which i've been told about so many times is wonderful i would like to work it off some how

SheroN

I will be there in September. I plan on eating a lot of steak.

coddle

Lucky you jobless! Spent the best part of the winter in SA and Buenos Aires was by far the best city we went to

There is so much to do that i'm not sure 4 days will be enough!

Depending on when you are going the highlight for me was going to see a Boca Juniors match at the Bonbonera (sundays). It's absolutely fantastic. atmosphere. Arrange tickets through a hostel or travel company as trying to get your own tickets involves going down to queue for hours in a dodgy part of town. It costs about $250 pesos which seems a lot, but believe me it's worth every penny.

You have to go to Caminito for the day - it's where the Bonbonera is. Take a bus down - it's a wonderful area and you could spend the day wandering around looking at the colourful houses and market. You can even get a photo with the Maradona lookalike on the street. It's near the Bonbonera and if you're into football go to the Bonbonera museum as well and then stroll around Caminito.

Tango shows are popular and Cafe Tortoni seems to be the main touristy one. Think it cost about $80 pesos, and while it was good, you do see Tango dancers on the street so if thats enough for you then don't bother with the full on show. Do go to the Cafe itelf though for a coffee and a look - it's a beautiful old cafe and worth a look

Recoletta is the 'Evita' graveyard. Again you can get a bus down and it's a good way to spend an hour or two. We walked back to the main strwetch from there and although it took a while (about 40 mins) you do get a good feel for BA by doing that. Look out for all the Irish names on the graves as well (I say graves - they're more like mini houses!)

Other things worth seeing: Placa Grecia (the giant 'flower' that opens and closes), Evita's palace (it was closed for refurb while I was there but may be open again), you can do a day trip to Uruguay on the ferry as well - go to the port for tickets (need to book)

You will have a ball. Be alert, but it wasn't as dodgy as any other part of SA I've been to.

Oh and the BEST steak restaurant is La Cabrera in Palermo - it's more expensive than most, but well, well worth the visit. Long queues and no reservations, so go early (about 9 BA time), stick your name down and go for a beer next door. You'll get seated within the hour

Enjoy! Any questions, feel free to ask.

jobless

thanks for the reply coddle.... will be sure to check those attractions out...
where would you recommend to go for good nightlife?

coddle

Best place for nightlife is Palermo district - near to Recoletta (again its a district). Thats where most of the good nightclubs and bars are. San Telmo is also decent enough, but mainly for bars - didn't see many good nightclubs down there. It's more a backpacker area.

Taxi's are very reasonable though, so no matter where you're staying you'll be able to get around easily

Oh - just reminded me. Loose change is really hard to get for buses (it's like here you have to have exact change) So when you get some 1, 2 & 5 peso coins make sure to hang onto them for bus journeys!

cashback

coddle wrote: »

Lucky you jobless! Spent the best part of the winter in SA and Buenos Aires was by far the best city we went to

There is so much to do that i'm not sure 4 days will be enough!

Depending on when you are going the highlight for me was going to see a Boca Juniors match at the Bonbonera (sundays). It's absolutely fantastic. atmosphere. Arrange tickets through a hostel or travel company as trying to get your own tickets involves going down to queue for hours in a dodgy part of town. It costs about $250 pesos which seems a lot, but believe me it's worth every penny.

To be honest, I'd just go and buy them at the stadium. We did and paid about 30 pesos for the cheap seats behind the goals. Maybe the main stand might cost a little more.
La Boca(where the stadium is located) can be dodgy but during the day it's generally fine and lots of tourists are around. We went to two matches and both times just went to the ticket stands before the games.
One word of advice; do NOT bring any expensive cameras or possessions to the game.
The Aussie guy in our group had his DSLR camera with big zoom lens snatched from his hands just before the game started. We went to the police station after and there was a few other similar cases there.
Now we were in the cheap seats where it's a little more hectic and maybe the seated stand is fine but maybe best not to take the risk.

Otherwise San Telmo is a really nice area and has a great antique market on Sundays and lots of Tango dancing on the street.

Neamhshuntasach

The Boca tickets are only sold to club members in a similar vein to GAA tickets. You can buy them from touts at the stadium but a cashier may well refuse you if you are not with a licensed group tour. Me and a friend got in and the other 3 were refused. Granted we both pass as Argentines and i speak Spanish.

To get around just use the metro. It´s dirt cheap and goes everywhere. Taxi´s are quite expensive by South American standards or even other parts of Argentina.

I´ve been here for the past 2 weeks and really need to get outta the city. The nightlife is good and goes on late but Porteños are the most ignorant people i have experienced in all of Latin America.

jobless

thanks lads...
the weekend i'm there is international week with Argentina playing Columbia in River Plate.... i hope to try and get to to this but not sure what the ticket demand will be like... will definately visit the Boca area for stadium tour...

has anyone done any excursions to ranches on the outskirts of the city?