When I took my cruise to Antarctica last year Atlas Ocean Voyages had us all meet in Buenos Aires before flying to Ushuaia so it seemed like a no-brainer to spend a few days exploring the city since I had never been!
The cruise was quite expensive ($7k regularly $14k!) so it was important to me to minimize my other costs. My friend and I flew from Seattle to LAX on Alaska Air using my yearly $122 companion fare. In LAX I had a 4- hour layover which I passed in the Amex Centurion Lounge and the Star Alliance Lounge (the later was *much* nicer).
I had booked Copa Air business class thru United for 88k transferred from Chase + $6.85. The flight didn't leave until 1am but Copa biz has the 737 Max with lie flat beds so I basically just got onboard and went to sleep for 6 hours! I had a short layover in the Panama airport which I spent in the Copa Club upstairs lounge. Then another 7 hours to Buenos Aires, again with a business layflat. The only disappointing thing on Copa was the food- it was really not very good.
*pro-tip if flying Copa biz on your own, book the aisle seat so that you don't have to climb over anyone to get out!
On the advise of one of my travel groups I had booked my airport pickup with Cesar Zelaya who has a tour company in BA. This worked out really well as I landed at 10pm and he was already there and waiting for me! I ended up using his company 3 times on this trip, highly recommend!
Atlas Cruise was putting us up at the Hilton Buenos Aires the night before departure so I just stayed there the entire time. I got checked in to a nice big room & headed to the bar for a burger, martini, and to catch a bit of the Oscars.
After breakfast at the hotel, which was complimentary since I'm Hilton Gold, my friend Caitlin met me and we headed to the San Telmo neighborhood for a tour of El Zanjón. This elaborate set of tunnels under the city streets were discovered in 1958 when the new owner of the mansion set about doing some restorations.
It was a short walk from here to the San Telmo Market. This is a great lunch stop as the market has a ton of stalls selling all sorts of deliciousness. We did a lap before deciding on De Lucia Tapas where we sat up at the counter and (over) ordered plates of croquettas, tortilla, zanahorias (carrots), etc and washed it all down with a couple of beers. Such a fun and tasty meal!
After lunch we headed to BA's colorful La Boca neighborhood. Historically these buildings were a mashup of colors because the working class who lived here used whatever paint was leftover from the nearby ship port. The residents were typically European immigrants, most from Genoa, Italy. In the 50's a local artist encouraged people to continue and it ended up drawing tourists to the area.
This is also where tango originated and if it hadn't been raining we probably would have seen tango in the streets. And if it is a game day, the local football club Boca Juniors have a very large fan base so you would definitely hear the cheers.
Just as the rain stopped we grabbed an Uber to Plaza Mayor and walked around the famous square known for its political demonstrations. If it had been a Thursday we may have seen the Madres de Plaza de Mayo; Argentine mothers wearing white head scarves, who have been walking the square weekly since 1977 in silent protest of the more than 500 children who went missing at the hands of the military junta dictatorship from 1976 to 1983.
It's easy to spot Eva Peron's balcony in the Casa Rosada at one end of the Plaza. The other end gives you views into nearby downtown.
The architectural all over BA is absolutely stunning! There are mixes of Spanish Colonial, Baroque, Neoclassical, Brutalism, Modernism, etc. And a walk from Plaza Mayor to the Puerto Madero really shows off all the different styles. The Puente de la Mujer pedestrian bridge is a bit of the cherry on top!
That evening, Caitlin and I had a wonderful dinner at tiny Julia. 8 team members, 22 seats, beautiful presentations of traditional-with-a-twist dishes like this prawns, vanilla sour cream, and lime.
After-dinner drinks were had at Floreria Atlantico, a lovely cocktail bar which has been on the scene here for years racking up lots of awards and press. As it's really no secret anymore, I'll tell you that to find the bar you must first go into the flower shop at the address. They'll help you out from there.
Quiet and calm upstairs, but downstairs was packed! We waited for a bit before getting seats at the bar and also waited for the seemingly sole menu in English to make its way to us. But once we settled in we had a great time and stayed for a couple of rounds of expertly made cocktails.
Buenos Aires is a super international food city. Italian and Spanish influences are everywhere, and there is a particular food culture here called Porteno that is actually a blend of the two, vs being one or the other.
I started my 2nd day with breakfast at the hotel and got to try the Argentinian classic medialuna. This a horn shaped sweet roll made with either butter or lard and a cross between a croissant and a brioche. Delicious. I also had an alfajores, which I had seen everywhere the day before. These shortbread sandwich cookies filled with dulce de leche are the national snack and they are so decadent! Breakfast of champions!
In the Barrio Norte neighborhood, Caitlin and I explored El Ateneo Grand Splendid. This bookstore, housed inside a historic theater from the early 1900's is Argentina's largest bookstore carrying over 120,000 books! It's an incredible shop and was even awarded the world's most beautiful bookstore by NatGeo.
There's a coffee shop on the stage and 3 floors of books to explore, not to mention the frescoed ceiling and ornate balconies to check out. Stunning.
Lunch was at 1 Michelin star Don Julio Parrilla. Parrilla means grill and this restaurant specializes in grass-fed Argentinian beef (they also have a vegetarian menu). Arriving at the world-famous location with its signature green & white awning we were offered glasses of sparkling wine while the team took care of seating everyone. There were also mini empanadas being passed but I didn't want to spoil my lunch!
We were seated in a smaller room that was connected to the outside terrace which was nice as it was quieter. We missed being able to watch the kitchen & grill action however. As we looked over the menu we were offered empanadas again and this time accepted, my first Argentinian empanada and they were delicious!
I know there are widely differing opinions on Don Julio; many say best steakhouse in the world, currently #10 on The 50 (name changed from 50 Best), others say overhyped and overpriced. Well we had an absolutely fantastic 3 hour lunch here and I personally would say don't miss trying it.
I enjoyed a stellar Chenin Blanc from Argentina producer Michelini i Muffato. Chenin is an unusual grape in the country, the signature white grape is Torrontes, and I loved that they were using a Coravin as I was only having a couple of glasses. We also had our first provoleta, the grilled sizzling provolone cheese of the Porteno culture. Um, yes please!! And of course a perfectly cooked and especially flavorful bife de chorizo similar to NY Strip cut which we had along with a green salad and fries. Dulce du leche ice cream and coffees to finish. Our bill was about $150 for the both of us.
We had planned on walking off our lunch at the Recoleta cemetery but by the time we got there it was closed! So we headed back to the Palermo/Hollywood area and had a couple of drinks at Tres Monos which is just down the street from Don Julio.
The bar is inspired by punk rock so it tends to be a bit loud and chaotic, but at 5:30pm on a Tuesday it was pretty chill. They sent us shots, served us very good cocktails, and also explained that they run a bartending school and a bar consultancy program. All ingredients used here are local so the team creates their own spirits too. Currently they are #10 on The 50 bar list.
We then had an absolutely lovely walk to our next destination #26 on The 50, CoChinChina. I really liked this spot! It's a restaurant and a bar with multiple areas to choose to sit in. We sat up at the bar which is always my favorite. Drinks were fun, creative, and delicious. Service was top notch! Highly recommend!
Caitlin and I both had very early mornings the next day so we said our goodbyes. She was taking a boat to Uruguay and I had a 3am bus to the airport to head to Antarctica!
After Antarctica my friend Gail and I had one night & one full day in the city before flying home. We had arranged for Cesar's company to pick us up again and this time were staying at the Park Hyatt Buenos Aires. This gorgeous property is housed in the Palacio Duhau which was built and lived in by the Duhau family from 1934 until 1995 when they sold it and it became part of the Hyatt portfolio.
I had booked the room for 25k per night (normally $697!) and then used my Hyatt card for incidentals as I had a bi-annual $50 statement credit still available.
After a drink at the hotel's tony Oak Bar with it's garden-view terrace we headed to El Preferido de Palermo which has been serving classic Italian dishes since 1952. It's a great space and we sat at the pass with a full view of the kitchen. Food was excellent, especially this gigantic milanese of mine!
The next morning we set out for a big walk around a few neighborhoods including Recoleta, Bellas Artes, and Palmero. We walked thru an artist fair, saw a crazy old ficus tree, and had some more of delicious provoleta with lunch at La Ferneteria.
We continued our walk to and through the Botanical Gardens which was absolutely gorgeous! It's really the perfect place to just wander and enjoy.
And then we took an Uber to the Cementerio de la Recoleta and went in search of Evita. This cemetery is very similar to the ones in New Orleans or Paris, it is a little city and you definitely want a map in order to find who you are looking for. We found one online and found Eva without much work (psst her last name was Duarte and she is in the family crypt). But there are so many beautiful burial spots here, give yourself some time to explore!
Our flight back to the states was at midnight so we had booked our room for 2 nights so that we had it the entire time- another bonus to booking with points as I don't feel like I'm "wasting money" by not actually sleeping in the room! We got back to the Park Hyatt, got cleaned up, finished packing, and headed out for dinner at Roux.
Another delicious meal! Roux reminded me of a French bistro- small room, lots of locals sitting close to each other, great food and presentation, lovely small wine list.
Then we met one of Caesar's drivers (we had scheduled in advance) back at our hotel and made our way to the airport.
I was so impressed with Buenos Aires, not only is it gorgeous but there are a crazy number of parks all over the city and it is surprisingly quiet! Drivers don't honk and we didn't encounter any construction or other city noise makers. It's a big, beautiful, and peaceful city and I'm really surprised that more people don't talk about how fantastic it is!
We flew home on Copa in biz class, I wasn't able to score a seat with points so opened a new card and purchased it to work on the SUB. Sometimes that is how it goes!
