Are you planning a visit to Buenos Aires and want to make the most out of your time in Palermo? This guide is the ultimate traveler’s handbook to exploring one of Buenos Aires’ most iconic districts (like a local!).
Known for its bohemian vibe, the street art scenes, the wealth of restaurants and bars, and the huge green areas, Palermo, Buenos Aires, becomes the favourite district of the city for many travelers.
If you open a map of Buenos Aires, Palermo neighbourhood will be the first one to get your attention as this is the biggest one of the city. Thus, it is divided into smaller quarters, each one with its own unique personality. The trendy area of Palermo Soho is known for cool cafés and design stores, the high-end quarter of Palermo Chico is characterised by magnificent mansions, Palermo Hollywood is renowned for the numerous restaurants, bars and nightclubs, and the area known as “Bosques de Palermo” (The Woods) hosts the largest park in the city and is popular for nature walks and picnics.
Every year more and more travelers are choosing Palermo as the preferred area to stay in Buenos Aires. And also digital nomads and expats, who are settling in the city for the quality of life and convenient exchange rate.
The reason to call this area home -at least for a few days- is that it has a laid-back atmosphere, plenty of restaurants where you can get a meal anytime so you never go hungry, excellent hotels and it is considered one of the safest areas of the city.
Accommodation in Palermo neighbourhood, Buenos Aires, consists mainly of boutique hotels, with an average of 15 rooms, so if you are not into big hotel chains and prefer a more customised service, there are great options both in Palermo Soho and Palermo Hollywood.
Location: Street art can be found all over the neighbourhood, but it is most concentrated on Santa Rosa and Russel lanes, just a minute walk from Plaza Serrano.
Buenos Aires is renowned for its vibrant street art culture, and was listed as one of the top cities in the world to see urban art. Palermo neighbourhood is bursting with colourful works of art from some of Buenos Aires’ best-known street artists.
Location:
Palermo is not only the hippie chic area in Buenos Aires: it is also its green lung. Whether it’s to walk, relax, do sport or meet people and drink “mate”, enjoy the city in the open air.
Buenos Aires Ecopark invites you to enjoy and learn about caring for animals and environments by respecting nature and contributing to the conservation of biodiversity.
The Japanese Garden is the largest of its type outside Japan and offers a great alternative for a relaxing day to admire a traditional and unique design.
The Botanical Garden is the perfect place to walk, relax and discover a range of plants and trees native to Argentina and to other regions in the world.
And the terrific Rose Garden boasts a collection of more than 18,000 roses surrounded by a lake and acres of parkland.
Pro tip: They can all be combined in the same day as they are part of a green corridor of the city.
The city’s nightlife is as varied as intense. Prepare to adjust your watch to Porteño time. Whatever our age, we eat late, go out late and make the night our own, seven days a week. The options are endless.
Making a decision on where to go can be hard: the options range from speakeasy bars where you can enjoy a unique cocktail, passing also around discotheques, cultural centres, and “milongas”, where not only you can see people dancing tango -not professionals-, but also you can be part of it by learning a few steps. Some of these “milongas” to find in Palermo:
Further below in this post you will find our selection of bars and restaurants in Palermo.
Location: Plaza Serrano and Plaza Armenia.
If you happen to be in Palermo on a weekend, then heading to one of the handicrafts markets to get some souvenirs may be a great choice. Either if you visit Plaza Serrano or Plaza Armenia (or both, as they are just a few blocks apart), you will find a great deal of local products to make unique gifts.
Location: Lafinur 2988, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
Learn about the life and work of the woman behind the legend in this museum detailing the life of Eva Perón through films, photographs & a collection of personal items.
Location: Av. Pres. Figueroa Alcorta 3415, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
The Latin American Art Museum of Buenos Aires is one of the best art museums in the country. It collects, conserves, studies and creates awareness of Latin American art from the early 20th century to the present.
Palermo district is known as a transportation hub in Buenos Aires, being Plaza Italia the busiest area with plenty of buses to go to the city center, and the subway station (Line D) with the same name that goes all the way to Plaza de Mayo, the heart of the city.
That being said, we suggest you move around by taxi, as they are cheap and can be found everywhere. Remember to take the ones that have the “Radio Taxi” sign as they are the safest ones and don’t forget to have some pocket money with you and that taxis are metered: whatever it shows on the meter will be the total price to be paid in Argentine pesos.
If you want to delve beneath the surface of Buenos Aires city while seeing Recoleta and other major attractions leaving the organization up to someone else check out our Small-Group Buenos Aires City Tour, a great tour to do if you want to get a good feeling of the city and discover places to keep exploring afterward.
Another possibility could be booking a private tour, which is more convenient if you want to have a fully customized experience based on your particular interests, have a closed tour exclusively for your travel group, and have all of the tour guide’s attention for yourself. If this is the case, we recommend you to take a look at both our Private Highlights of Buenos Aires Tour and our Private Customizable Walking Tour to see which option is best suited for your needs and budget.
Read on for a list of the best restaurants and bars to hit up in Palermo.
Don Julio. Location: Guatemala 4691, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
La Cabrera. Location: José Antonio Cabrera 5127, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
These are two restaurants but we decided to place them together in the list because they are famous for the same reason: Argentine beef made to perfection.
As they are extremely popular, you should book in advance to make sure you get a table.
Location: Jorge Luis Borges 1757, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
Intimate fine dining spot offering European fare & wines in a vintage house with a shaded patio. Great option to stop and rest while you are exploring the street art.
Location: Julián Álvarez 1998, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
Most of Argentine traditional dishes in one place. If you would like to travel around the country through its flavours, this is definitely a place you should not miss.
Location: Jorge Luis Borges 2108, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
A traditional “bodegón” reinvented for the 21st century. The kitchen focuses on the classic dishes of Buenos Aires, which were influenced by Italian and Spanish immigrants.
Location: Arévalo 1538, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
Distinguished for serving the best authentic Italian cuisine in Buenos Aires, this restaurant was founded by Donato Di Santis, an Italian culinary artist living in Argentina.The menu is diverse and portions are large.
Location: Thames 1472, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
Plant-filled spot with a stylish ambiance serving pub grub staples & creative cocktails. If you want to try something new, go for “Día de Campo” (day in the countryside). Not only does the mix of Campari, orange and apricot brandy contains yerba mate, the bitter plant used to make the most famous drink of Argentina, but it’s actually served in a mate gourd, drunk from the traditional metal straw known as a bombilla, and even comes complete with a Thermos flask for top-ups.
Location: Ángel Carranza 1670, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
A locals’ favourite, this intimate wine bar is the perfect spot for a special night or an afternoon detour.
Location: Honduras 5207, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
The bar is themed after an old pharmacy. Nowadays they infuse various types of liquor with herbs themselves and test out new ways of crafting cocktails with these infused liquors. From the decoration to the drinks, everything is so coherent and faithful to the theme. The drinks are very well harmonised in complex flavours, and the bartenders are very skilled, so the drinks are beautifully executed.
Location: Arévalo 2030, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
Hip hangout featuring international fare & cocktails, plus a New York subway–themed entrance and speakeasy ambience.
Location: Gorriti 5910, Palermo, Buenos Aires.
Wine and Jazz in the same place can never lead to a bad night.
There are over fifty bottles of Argentinian wines hooked up to temperature-controlled dispensers. You swipe a card, read a brief description of the wine, and choose between three sizes of pours. This is a casual, approachable way of tasting many varietals from many different vineyards.
