Buenos Aires
Boulevards, tango, steak and a city that stays up late.
Buenos Aires is the grand capital of Argentina on the wide Río de la Plata, laid out with Parisian avenues, Italian cafés and a Spanish grid, and lived in with its own passion for football, tango, late dinners and long conversations. San Telmo, La Boca, Palermo and Recoleta are its famous quarters; the pampas and the delta are at its edges.
Why go
For a European city with a South American heart: the cafés of the Avenida de Mayo, the bookshops on Corrientes, a milonga in a neighbourhood hall, a parrilla dinner that starts at ten, the Sunday antiques market in San Telmo.
And for the days around it: the delta towns of Tigre by train, an estancia on the pampas, the ferry across the river to Colonia in Uruguay, and the flights to Patagonia and Iguazú.
Highlights
What people go for, in no particular order.
01The Obelisco and the Avenida 9 de Julio
The needle on the widest avenue in the city, with the Teatro Colón opera house beside it and the theatres and pizzerias of Corrientes running off it.
02San Telmo
Cobbled streets and tango on the corners, the Sunday antiques fair on Plaza Dorrego and the market hall's grocers and lunch counters.
03La Boca and the Caminito
The painted corrugated houses of the old port quarter, the Caminito's street artists and tango dancers, and the Bombonera stadium of Boca Juniors nearby.
04Recoleta
The cemetery of mausoleums where Eva Perón lies, the grand apartment buildings, the fine arts museum and the cafés under the rubber trees.
05Palermo
The parks and the rose garden, the bars and restaurants of Palermo Soho and Hollywood, the MALBA museum of Latin American art and the boutiques in old townhouses.
06Tango and steak
A tango show for the polish or a milonga for the real thing, and a parrilla for the beef, the chimichurri and a bottle of Malbec, late.
07Tigre and Colonia
The delta's channels, houses on stilts and rowing clubs an hour by train, and the Portuguese colonial town of Colonia del Sacramento an hour by ferry across the river.
Areas
Where to base yourself, and what each area is like.
Palermo
Boutique hotels among the bars, restaurants and parks. The base most visitors choose.
Recoleta
Grand hotels and elegant streets near the cemetery and the museums, central and calm.
San Telmo
Historic guesthouses on cobbled streets with tango and the Sunday fair on the doorstep.
Puerto Madero
The renovated docks with tower hotels, the nature reserve and restaurants on the water.
When to go: Buenos Aires
- SpringSeptember – November
- Mild, sunny and jacaranda-purple in November: the pleasantest season for walking the city.
- AutumnMarch – May
- Warm days cooling gently, golden plane trees and the cultural calendar in full swing. Another prime season.
- SummerDecember – February
- Hot and humid, with the city emptying to the coast in January; outdoor concerts and quieter streets.
- WinterJune – August
- Cool, grey and damp at times, rarely cold; cafés, theatres and milongas come into their own.
Getting there
Airports
Two airports in our search serve Buenos Aires. Distances are measured in a straight line.
- EZEEzeiza International
- AEPAeroparque Jorge Newbery
Distance from
- JNBJohannesburg8,110 km
- JFKNew York8,510 km
- CDGParis11,070 km
- LHRLondon11,110 km
- SYDSydney11,800 km
- DXBDubai13,660 km
- BOMMumbai14,930 km
- SINSingapore15,890 km
Getting around: Buenos Aires
Ezeiza is the international airport, an hour from the centre; Aeroparque by the river handles domestic and regional flights. The subte metro, buses and taxis cover the city, with a SUBE card for public transport.
The centre, San Telmo and Palermo are walked; the avenues are long, so taxis and ride-hailing fill the gaps. Trains run to Tigre; ferries to Colonia leave from Puerto Madero.
Practical facts
The country, its currency and languages, the time zone and the time there now.
- Country
- Argentina
- Currency
- ARS · Argentine Peso
- Languages
- Spanish
- Time zone
- Argentina Standard Time
- Local time now
- Calling code
- +54
The atlas
Buenos Aires in figures
The figures under this guide: the climate on modelled 2001–2020 averages, how far it is from the UAE, and the places around it.
Climate
The weather in Buenos Aires, month by month
- Jan28°
- Feb27°
- Mar25°
- Apr21°
- May17°
- Jun14°
- Jul13°
- Aug15°
- Sept17°
- Oct20°
- Nov24°
- Dec26°
- Mild to warm and dry
- Mild to warm, humid or showery
- Hot
- Cool
- Wet
- Cold
Good for going, on these averages: October to April.
Mean highs run from 13°C in July to 28°C in January, with about 1,104 mm of rain in a year.
These are modelled averages for 2001–2020; the seasons described above are our own reading of a typical year.
Month-by-month climate for Buenos AiresModelled averages for an area about 50 km across, not a weather station's record: NASA POWER climatology, 2001–2020.
Airports
How far it is from the UAE
From DXBBuenos Aires
13,660 km
16 hrs 50 mins · Estimate
From AUHBuenos Aires
13,550 km
16 hrs 40 mins · Estimate
The great-circle distance, and a rough flying time: the distance at an average 850 km/h plus 45 minutes for take-off and landing. Real flights follow airways, meet headwinds and wait for traffic, so schedules differ.
On the map
Places near Buenos Aires
Plan this trip: Buenos Aires
Open the trip builder with Buenos Aires already filled in. Flights, stays and everything else are priced together in one quote, prepared by a person on our team.
