20221111_094056Plaza de Mayo (November 2022)

Argentina had been on my bucket list for years, and it finally came to fruition last November. With the world opened up to travel following the worst of the COVID pandemic, I decided to just go for it and began planning my trip as early as August. After consulting with a local travel agency in Buenos Aires, booking a 15-day packaged tour and my flights, and requesting my days off from work, I was off to Argentina for a whirlwind of a journey.

Getting to Buenos Aires (“BA” for short) was already a journey in itself: there are no direct flights to the Argentine capital from Los Angeles, and it required connecting in either Santiago or Lima. I connected in Lima with a whopping 13-hour layover (and in the middle of a political protest!), and finally made it to Buenos Aires at 3h00 local time, after 24 hours in transit. Part of the packaged tour offered airport pickup, so my guide transfer picked me up– as we walked out, I was surprised to find that the airport was still super busy, in the middle of the night! My guide transfer stated that it was normal, which was a huge difference compared to flights out of LAX, which stop after midnight.

It was about a half-hour drive to BA, specifically to Recoleta for my hotel. I stayed in the Palacio Duhau- Park Hyatt (which I reviewed here), and it was luxurious! Lobby was decked out in marble and gold, and the hotel room was spacious: massive king-sized bed, enormous bathroom (with a shower AND tub), and lovely views overlooking the hotel, which is a historic palace. I felt absolutely pampered during my stay, and definitely a hotel experience I will never forget.

20221111_083124Views from my hotel

As I arrived to my hotel by 4h00 at this point, I only had enough energy to brush my teeth and crash for three hours before I had to wake up and start my city tour of BA. After a delicious breakfast in the hotel, my tour picked me up at 9h00 to start the day. It was a small group of six, as we took the coach to four districts of the city. BA is a large metropolitan area with 48 neighborhoods, but we only had a half-day to see a few of the most-notable ones.

We started in Plaza de Mayo, a major square that’s home to the president’s office (called the Casa Rosada, or “the Pink House”), as well as Diagonal Sur, Buenos Aires Cabildo, and the Pirámide de Mayo. Our guide gave us the history of Argentina, as well as the country’s politics (long story short, the Argentinian population isn’t satisfied with their current government– not a surprise given that it’s a similar sentiment in many countries). What did surprise me was the abundance of European-style buildings, whether in Art Deco or Gothic: much of it is influenced by the styles from France, and it’s no wonder that BA has been nicknamed “the Paris of South America.”

20221111_094007Buenos Aires Cabildo on Diagonal Sur


20221111_095130Casa Rosada

Next was La Boca, a working-class neighborhood that’s known for its colorful Caminito. A small, two-street affair, this tiny part of La Boca is filled with vibrantly-painted houses reflective of its immigrant past, as they were constructed by Genoan settlers at the end of the 1800’s. The homes are made of scrap metal and wood, due to lack of resources in the past. Today, it’s become a wildly-popular tourist spot to walk through not only to take Instagrammable photos of the colorful homes, but also to souvenir shop and check out tango being performed. It’s important to note that outside of Caminito, La Boca can be rather seedy and have petty crime, so it’s advised not to step out of the touristy area. We got about half an hour to walk the street, take a few photos, and we were on to the next site.

20221111_102941Caminito


20221111_103502On Caminito

After passing through a few districts like San Telmo and Palermo, we got off and ended in Recoleta, an upper-class and wealthy neighborhood in which my hotel was. Our guide dropped us off here, concluding the tour– however, she gave us recommendations on what we could do for the rest of the day, including visiting the eponymous cemetery and gelato recommendations. Argentina is known for having a huge Italian-immigrant population, so dishes like gelato are ubiquitous and well-made there. I got some of the best gelato at one of the recommended shops, with dulce de leche and pistachio flavors: the latter was my favorite with its incredible nutty taste and creamy, thick texture. It was so good that I went back there before I left at the end of my trip!

20221111_123314Dulce de leche and pistachio gelato

I checked out the Recoleta Cemetery afterwards, which is modeled after the Père Lachaise in Paris. I paid $14 USD to enter and spent some time wandering the hundreds of tombs in the cemetery, before coming across the most-notable one: Eva Perón (“Evita”). A former actress-turned-First Lady of Argentina, Perón pioneered the woman’s suffrage law and formed the Peronista Feminist Party in the 1940’s and 1950’s. She also helped increased labor wages and donated enormous sums to hospitals, schools, and elderly homes. Although her life was tragically cut short at age 33, Perón remains a beloved figure in Argentinian history. A sizable crowd was at her tomb when I visited, including one older woman who seemed to be praying to Perón– goes to show that she’s left a huge influence on what Argentina is today.

20221111_122300Recoleta Cemetery


20221111_115638Inside the cemetery


20221111_121100Tomb of Eva Perón

There’s still more of my Buenos Aires adventures, but at the risk of this post getting too long, I’ll save it for the next one. Stay tuned!

— Rebecca

Published by Rebecca

Blogger, world traveler, poet, foodie, part-time penguin. Welcome!

56 thoughts on “Destination: Buenos Aires, Argentina (24-Hour Flight, City Tour, and Incredible Gelato– PART 1)”

    1. Same! I was actually supposed to go on the Antarctic cruise last year, but ended up canceling due to spikes in COVID cases on-board. But Argentina was a lovely alternative. Hope you can see both some day!

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    1. I did my best to stay awake! I think it was the excitment of traveling that kept me going for those 24-plus hours…although I was ready to crash at the end of it! More adventures from Argentina are coming soon!

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  11. I really enjoyed seeing BA through your eyes 🙂 It brought back some good memories for me, although as we were there in a 40 C heatwave, what I remember most is being too hot! That gelato looks great – pistachio is one of my favourite flavours 😀

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  12. Always wanted to visit Argentina but it’s just so far from where I am, I don’t think my vacation leaves are enough to cover a proper trip. I didn’t realize it took 24 hours from California! I look forward to your future posts.

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    1. Yes, Argentina is quite far from much of the world. There aren’t direct flights over from California, so I had to do a layover in one of the cities in South America. In the end, it was worth it!

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  15. I love the colorful buildings in Caminito. I had to chuckle that BA is called “The Paris of South America” since so there are so many “The Paris of ____” around the world. Just when I thought I’d heard them all, along comes another one. 🙂

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  16. I love how colorful Caminito is. You weren’t kidding when you said their cemetery looks like Père Lachaise in Paris! Looking forward to reading more about your discoveries in Buenos Aires! 🇦🇷

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    1. Caminito was a gem, as well as Recoleta Cemetery; the cemetery really brought me back to my visit to the Père Lachaise in Paris several years ago! Thanks for reading, Darlene, and Part 2 of Buenos Aires will be up soon!

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  19. Caminito looks like a vibrant place with the coloured buildings. The cemetery is so interesting with the small buildings and not usual tombstones sticking out of the ground. Looking forward to the rest of the posts of the trip.

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  22. Sounds like your Argentina trip was off to a really good start with a stay in a luxurious hotel and lovely day exploring the neighbourhoods. Caminito looks amazing. Recoleta Cemetery would be a wonderful place to wander and explore, I’m guessing there are hundreds if not thousands of notable graves there.

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  23. It looks like an absolutely incredible city with so much to see and do. Argentina, and South America more widely, is the main area of the globe that has eluded me thus far in my travels but we plan to right that over the next few years 🙂

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  25. Pingback: Destination: Buenos Aires, Argentina (Tango Tour, Bookstores, and Empanadas– PART 2) – Rebecca Goes Rendezvous

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