Buenos Aires With Kids
What Buenos Aires with kids really looks like, from a family that plans these trips for a living.
Nicole Damiano, ASTA Verified Travel Advisor with FG Luxury Travel
Is Buenos Aires good for kids?
With planning, yes. It is more a grown up's city, but the colorful Caminito, the huge parks with boats and bikes, the planetarium and a child adoring culture make it a warm, rewarding stop. Base in green Palermo and keep the pace relaxed.
How many days?
Three days for the city and a Tigre Delta day, before flying to Iguazú or Patagonia.
What is the one thing we cannot miss?
The colorful Caminito in La Boca and pedal boats in the Palermo parks, with the lovely El Ateneo bookshop for a rainy hour.
Do we need a car?
No. The Subte metro, buses and cheap taxis run on a SUBE card, and the neighborhoods are walkable. Arrange a transfer from the airport, and skip the car.
When should we go?
Spring, September to November, and autumn, March to May, are the loveliest, warm and comfortable for the parks and city walks. Summer is hot and humid, winter mild. The seasons are flipped from the north.
The Paris of South America
Buenos Aires is the Paris of South America, a grand, elegant, passionate city of wide boulevards, café culture, tango on the street and some of the best beef on earth. It is more of a grown up’s city than a kid’s playground, but with a little planning, its colorful neighborhoods, huge parks and warm, family loving culture make it a wonderful stop with children.
The city is a patchwork of distinct barrios. Elegant Recoleta has the grand hotels and parks, sprawling Palermo has the green spaces, the zoo and the trendy streets, and historic San Telmo and colorful La Boca hold the tango and the old soul. Base in leafy Palermo or Recoleta and use the metro and taxis to reach the rest.
Getting Around
Getting around is easy and cheap. The Subte metro, the buses and taxis all run on a rechargeable SUBE card, and the neighborhoods themselves are very walkable. Buenos Aires has two airports, both a drive from the center, so arrange a transfer in with kids and bags. You will not need a car.
Neighborhoods worth basing in
Recoleta
The elegant, Parisian style district of grand mansions, wide avenues and lovely parks, home to the famous Recoleta Cemetery and some of the best hotels. Refined, green and safe, a comfortable and central base for a family.
Palermo
The huge, leafy district of parks, the rose garden, the planetarium, the ecopark and the trendy Palermo Soho streets. Green, relaxed and full of space for kids to run, this is my usual pick for a family base.
San Telmo
The atmospheric old quarter of cobbled streets, antique shops and its famous Sunday market and tango, full of history and character. Wonderful to wander by day, a lively and characterful area, though most families base in greener Palermo.
The Alvear Palace
Buenos Aires’s grand old landmark hotels, all belle epoque elegance and impeccable service in the heart of Recoleta. The blow the budget treat, in the city’s most refined district.
A Palermo hotel
Palermo and Recoleta have plenty of comfortable, family friendly hotels near the parks and the metro. Practical and central, with green space and cafés close by.
A Palermo apartment
Palermo and Recoleta have roomy apartments in handsome buildings, good value for a family and handy for simple meals. Book near the parks and a Subte stop.
The Three I Build Every Buenos Aires Trip Around
La Boca and the Caminito
Spend a morning in La Boca, the working class port neighborhood whose Caminito street is a riot of color, its corrugated houses painted in bold blues, reds and yellows, with tango dancers performing for the crowds. It is touristy but joyful for kids. Pair it with a look at the grand Plaza de Mayo and the pink presidential palace, the Casa Rosada, in the historic center.
Recoleta and the Grand Bookshop
Recoleta rewards a wander, from the amazing Recoleta Cemetery, a city of ornate marble mausoleums where kids find the grandeur and the stories fascinating, to the leafy parks and weekend craft market alongside it. Nearby, El Ateneo Grand Splendid, a bookshop set inside a converted grand old theater, complete with painted ceiling and box seats, is a lovely stop for all ages.
The Parks of Palermo
The green heart of the city, the parks of Palermo, is where families exhale. The Bosques de Palermo has lakes with pedal boats, wide lawns, a rose garden and bike paths, the planetarium sits alongside, and the Buenos Aires Ecopark, the reimagined old zoo, is nearby. An easy, breezy day of running, riding and boating in the middle of the city.
Family Time, Built In: Buenos Aires With Kids
Buenos Aires does more for kids than its grown up reputation suggests. The colorful Caminito, the pedal boats and bikes of the Palermo parks, the planetarium, a stunning theater turned bookshop, dulce de leche ice cream on every corner, and a culture that adores children and keeps late, lively hours. Warm, welcoming and full of flavor.
The harbor ferry to the beach
Sunday fish market
Paddle boats on the the river
Planten un Blomen
the Caminito plaza
PARK & DOWNTIME PICK
The Bosques de Palermo, the sprawling green parklands with lakes, pedal boats, a rose garden, bike paths and lawns, or the Recoleta parks. Wide open, easy space to let kids run and ride in the heart of the city.
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AlfajoresNicole’s Perspective
An elegant, passionate city that welcomes kids
I have spent years planning South America for families, and Buenos Aires charms me every time. It is sophisticated and soulful, and its people adore children, welcoming them everywhere and at all hours. As a bonus, it is the gateway to Argentina’s giants, the thundering Iguazú Falls and the wilds of Patagonia.
I steer families to Buenos Aires for a few cultured, flavorful days built around the parks and the barrios, usually as the start of a bigger Argentina trip. It is a warm, welcoming landing, best paired with the natural wonders beyond.
The Day Trip: The Tigre Delta
An hour north of the city, the Río de la Plata fans into the Tigre Delta, a vast green maze of rivers and channels dotted with stilt houses, reachable only by boat. Families take a launch or a commuter boat trip through the waterways, an easy, relaxing outing that feels a world away from the city, with a fun fair and craft market at the Tigre town waterfront.
Things I Would Tell A Friend Before They Booked
How Many Days
Three days suits Buenos Aires with kids. One for La Boca and the historic center, one for Recoleta and the bookshop, one for the Palermo parks, plus a day for the Tigre Delta. Then fly on to Iguazú or Patagonia.
Day one for colorful La Boca, the Plaza de Mayo and the Casa Rosada. Day two for the Recoleta Cemetery, El Ateneo bookshop and the parks. Day three for the Palermo parks, boats and planetarium, with the Tigre Delta as a fourth.
Add a Tigre Delta boat day, then fly to the spectacular Iguazú Falls, one of the great natural wonders and a huge hit with kids.
Buenos Aires is the gateway to Argentina’s wonders. From here fly to the thundering Iguazú Falls or the mountains and lakes of Patagonia, so give the city a few days and build a nature leg around it.
Buenos Aires With Kids, Answered
Is Buenos Aires good for kids?
With planning, yes. It is more a grown up’s city, but the colorful Caminito, the huge parks with boats and bikes, the planetarium and a child adoring culture make it a warm, rewarding stop. Base in green Palermo and keep the pace relaxed.
How many days?
Three days for the city and a Tigre Delta day, before flying to Iguazú or Patagonia.
What is the one thing we cannot miss?
The colorful Caminito in La Boca and pedal boats in the Palermo parks, with the lovely El Ateneo bookshop for a rainy hour.
Do we need a car?
No. The Subte metro, buses and cheap taxis run on a SUBE card, and the neighborhoods are walkable. Arrange a transfer from the airport, and skip the car.
When should we go?
Spring, September to November, and autumn, March to May, are the loveliest, warm and comfortable for the parks and city walks. Summer is hot and humid, winter mild. The seasons are flipped from the north.
Ready To Put Buenos Aires On The Calendar
Send me your dates and your kids’ ages and I will map the barrios and the parks, sort a base in Palermo or Recoleta, add a Tigre Delta day, and plan the flights on to Iguazú or Patagonia.
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