Buenos Aires Landmarks, Fast and Free
Buenos Aires gives you world-class sightseeing without much of it costing anything, most of the marquee stops are either free or cheap enough not to plan around.
Plaza de Mayo, and what actually happens there
The political heart of Argentina since 1580, Plaza de Mayo is flanked by the pink Casa Rosada (look for the balcony where Juan and Eva Perón addressed crowds), the colonial-era Cabildo, and the neoclassical Catedral Metropolitana, which holds the mausoleum of General José de San Martín under Grenadier guard. It’s more than a photogenic square: every Thursday at 15:30, the Madres de Plaza de Mayo still march counter-clockwise around the Pirámide de Mayo, wearing white headscarves, in a weekly demand for justice that’s been running since 1977. If your visit lands on a Thursday afternoon, it’s worth witnessing.
Cementerio de la Recoleta
Founded in 1822, this 5.5-hectare walled necropolis holds 4,691 marble and bronze mausoleums, most famously the Duarte family tomb where Eva Perón is buried five meters underground. Foreign visitors pay ARS 24,030 (card only, at the Junín 1760 entrance); Argentine residents enter free with DNI. Open daily 09:00-17:00.
Teatro Colón
Designed by Francesco Tamburini, Vittorio Meano, and Julio Dormal and opened in 1908, Teatro Colón is ranked among the world’s top five opera houses acoustically. The 2,487-seat horseshoe auditorium and gilded Salón Dorado are open for 50-minute guided tours departing every 15 minutes from 10:00 to 16:45 (English tours at 11:00, 12:00, 13:00, 15:00). Foreign admission is ARS 34,000; check teatrocolon.org.ar for current pricing.
The Obelisco and Puente de la Mujer
The 67.5-meter Obelisco, erected in 1936, sits at the intersection of Corrientes and the 16-lane Av. 9 de Julio. Down in Puerto Madero, Santiago Calatrava’s 170-meter Puente de la Mujer swing bridge crosses Dique 3 and is free to cross 24 hours a day.
Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes
Av. del Libertador 1473 holds Latin America’s best public art collection, Goya, Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Rodin, Degas, alongside Argentine masters like Xul Solar and Antonio Berni, and it’s 100% free for everyone, no reservation required.
Getting between them
The neighborhoods cluster naturally: Microcentro (Plaza de Mayo, the Obelisco) connects on foot to San Telmo and, further south, La Boca. Recoleta and Palermo sit north along the same Subte lines. Stick to daylight hours and the painted Caminito blocks if you head into La Boca, the surrounding residential streets carry a real robbery risk, so taxi in, stay on the tourist strip, and taxi out before dark.
For a self-guided route through several of these in one afternoon, see the walking tours page . A hop-on hop-off pass from Buenos Aires Bus covers 22 stops including Recoleta, Teatro Colón, and La Boca for around ARS 45,000 (24-hour pass). Skip-the-line tickets for Teatro Colón or Recoleta Cemetery tours are bookable through GetYourGuide or Viator .