Ezeiza (EZE)
International gateway, 35km south of centre. Fixed-price taxi via Tienda Leon (around $25 USD) is the safe default; Uber works but pickups can be messy.
Pre-book transferFour Days in Buenos Aires: A First-Timer Itinerary
A first-timer four-day Buenos Aires itinerary - San Telmo to Palermo, La Boca to Tigre, with where to stay, what it costs, and when to go.
The route at a glance
Tap to jumpPatrick's takeBuenos Aires rewards the visitor who slows down. Four days is barely enough, and the temptation is to cram. Don't. Eat one long lunch a day, walk between neighbourhoods rather than taking taxis, and accept that the best moments will happen in the gaps between the things you planned.
What it costs
Per person, per day. Buenos Aires is cheaper than most South American capitals if you eat where locals eat, and dramatically cheaper if you're paid in dollars or euros.
Budget$60-90/day
Hostels, parrillas, public transport, free walking tours
Mid$120-180/day
Good Palermo hotel, one tango show, taxis when tired
Comfortable$280+/day
Boutique stay, private guides, best steakhouses
When to visit
ColdCoolMildWarm
Southern hemisphere, so seasons flip. Spring (October to November) and autumn (March to April) are the unanimous picks: warm days, jacket nights, jacaranda in bloom.
Getting there & around
SUBE card + walk
Buy a SUBE card at any kiosco, top up, use on subte and buses. Most of this itinerary is walkable; cabs are cheap when you tire.
Tigre by train
Mitre line from Retiro, 50 minutes, around $1. The scenic Tren de la Costa is an alternative for the last leg.
Where to stay
Three neighbourhoods worth your money. Pick one and stay put - the commute between them is part of the experience.
Palermo Soho
$80-180/nightTree-lined streets, the densest concentration of good restaurants and bars, walkable to Recoleta. Lively after dark without being raucous.
Vibe: leafy, socialWalk score: highSubte: Plaza Italia (D)
Search hotels in PalermoRecoleta
$100-220/nightBelle epoque grandeur, the cemetery, cafes that have been there a century. Calmer evenings, smarter restaurants, walkable into Palermo.
Vibe: refined, quietWalk score: highSubte: limited
Search hotels in RecoletaSan Telmo
$60-140/nightCobblestones and tango on every corner. Gritty in patches; rewarding if you want texture over polish, and the cheapest of the three.
Vibe: bohemian, rawWalk score: mediumSubte: Independencia (C/E)
Search hotels in San TelmoThe four days
San Telmo & arrival
Land, drop bags, eat. Don't try to do too much on day one - porteno dinner happens at 10pm and you'll need the appetite. Spend the afternoon walking San Telmo's cobblestone grid, where antique shops give way to leather workshops give way to the kind of cafes that haven't changed since the 1940s.
Afternoon
Plaza Dorrego & antique shops
Wander south from the centre into San Telmo. The Sunday feria is the famous version, but the streets are atmospheric any day.
Late afternoon
Cafe Tortoni for a coffee
Touristy, yes, but the room is genuinely beautiful and the medialunas are good. Sit, write a postcard, watch.
Activity - bookable
Evening tango show with dinner
Rojo Tango at the Faena is the high-end pick; Cafe de los Angelitos the more traditional option. Either delivers the cliche in the best possible way.
Recoleta & Palermo
The contrast day. Morning in Recoleta is all 19th-century formality: the cemetery, the Bellas Artes museum, coffee at a marble-topped table. Afternoon in Palermo is leafy, modern, full of design shops and craft beer. Walk between them through the parks if the weather is kind - it's about 40 minutes on foot.
Morning
Recoleta Cemetery
Eva Peron is buried here, but the real draw is the architecture: a city of marble mausoleums in miniature. Pick up a map at the entrance.
Tour - bookable
Guided cemetery walk
A good guide turns this from a curiosity into a primer on Argentine 20th-century history. Worth the upgrade if you only do one tour.
Afternoon
Palermo Soho
Start at Plaza Serrano, drift outwards. The independent design shops on Honduras and El Salvador are where to look for leather goods that aren't aimed at tourists.
Evening
Dinner at Don Julio
Steakhouse, ranked among the world's best, books out weeks ahead. If you can't get in, La Cabrera is the (very good) backup.
La Boca & a tango show
La Boca is two blocks of beauty surrounded by an area that requires sense. Stick to Caminito and the Boca Juniors stadium; don't wander off the route. It's a half-day visit, not a full one. Use the afternoon for the MALBA museum and the evening for tango of the participatory kind.
Morning
Caminito & La Bombonera
The painted houses are kitsch and crowded, but they're also beautiful in the morning light. The Boca Juniors stadium tour is a must if football is your thing.
Tour - bookable
La Boca + La Bombonera tour
A guide is genuinely useful here, both for the history and for the gentle steering away from the streets you shouldn't walk.
Afternoon
MALBA - Latin American art
Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, Antonio Berni. Compact enough for two unhurried hours. The cafe is good.
Evening
Milonga at La Catedral
A real milonga, in a converted warehouse, where portenos actually dance. You can take a beginner class at 8pm before the floor fills.
Tigre delta day trip
A gentler last day. Tigre is an hour north by train, on the delta where the Parana river breaks into a thousand channels. Take a boat trip, eat lunch by the water, browse the Puerto de Frutos market. Back in the city by evening with time for one final dinner.
Morning
Train to Tigre
Mitre line from Retiro station. Sit on the right for river views as you approach.
Activity - bookable
Delta boat tour
A 90-minute commercial boat is the easy option; a private launch with lunch at a riverside parrilla is the better one.
Afternoon
Puerto de Frutos market
Less about the fruit, more about leather, wicker, and lazy stalls selling decent mate sets. Easy hour.
Evening
Final dinner - Mishiguene
Modern Jewish-Argentine in Palermo, a fitting last meal. Or return to wherever you ate best on night two and order it all again.
Pack
- Comfortable walking shoes (cobblestones, lots of them)
- A jacket even in summer (restaurants over-air-condition)
- Clean USD bills for the parallel exchange
- A converter - Argentina uses type I plugs
Skip
- Puerto Madero - sterile, overpriced, no character
- Tourist-trap tango shows on Florida Street
- ATMs (use a cueva instead)
- Trying to see Iguazu on a four-day trip