Buenos Aires, Argentina

Paris with steak and tango, summer in December. Fall (March–May) and spring (Sept–Nov) are the best weather.

cityfoodtangonightlifewine

Best time to visit

Month	High	Low	Rain	Season
Jan	28°	21°	84 mm
Feb	27°	20°	104 mm
Mar	25°	18°	119 mm	prime
Apr	21°	15°	100 mm	prime
May	17°	11°	73 mm	prime
Jun	14°	9°	58 mm
Jul	14°	8°	73 mm
Aug	16°	9°	70 mm
Sep	18°	11°	76 mm	prime
Oct	21°	14°	107 mm	prime
Nov	24°	16°	95 mm	prime
Dec	27°	19°	86 mm

30-year averages (1995–2024) from ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo. Rain is the monthly total.

Serves travellers at Backpacker→Premium level. Typically around $90 a day on the ground.

Ranges are typical costs, not quotes. Check the real price before you book.

Cards are accepted widely in restaurants and shops, but cash remains useful for markets, taxis, and small neighbourhood places. Tipping in restaurants is customary and usually given in cash.
money · editorial
You cannot pay cash on the buses or the Subte; you need the rechargeable card, sold at kiosks and stations, before you travel. Dinner does not start until late and booking for nine oclock means an empty room.
know before · editorial
January, when the heat is humid, the city empties and half the restaurants shut while their owners are at the coast. Midwinter is grey and damp rather than cold.
when not to go · editorial
Palermo is where most visitors end up, split into Soho for bars and Hollywood for restaurants. Recoleta is grander and quieter. San Telmo is the old city with cobbles, antiques and the Sunday market. Villa Crespo is cheaper and next door to Palermo.
where to stay · editorial
The Subte and an enormous bus network, both on a rechargeable transport card. The barrios are flat and walkable within themselves but far apart. A car is pointless.
getting around · editorial
International flights land at Ezeiza, about an hour from the centre by road. Domestic and regional flights use Aeroparque, which sits on the river inside the city. There is also a ferry across the river from Uruguay.
getting there · editorial

The Obelisco
In the middle of sixteen lanes of traffic. Crossing to it is the task.
Caminito
Two blocks of painted sheet metal. Go, look, and move on to the rest of La Boca.
Cementerio de la Recoleta
A city of marble. Get lost in it on purpose.
Casa Rosada
The balcony. You know which one.
Teatro Colón
If there is no performance, the guided tour demonstrates the acoustics anyway.
El Ateneo Grand Splendid
A theatre from 1919 turned bookshop, and it kept the stage.
La Bombonera
From outside it is yellow and blue and ugly. Inside it is vertical.

Eat a bife de chorizo at a neighbourhood parrilla, not one from a guidebook
Bife de chorizo
Ask for it jugoso. If it comes well done, that was your own fault.
Coffee with medialunas
In the morning, sitting down, no phone on the table.