Great Press For BuenosTours!

As you might have guessed from the lack of blog posts around here recently, we’ve been working hard giving lots of walking tours around Buenos Aires. And it’s certainly paying off, with some good press coming in from both traditional and modern publishing formats…

This weekend we were recommend by the Guardian newspaper (one of the UK’s most widely read dailies) in their article on The Five Best Cemetery Tours, in which they listed BuenosTours and our tour of Recoleta Cemetery (plus surrounding areas) first – I guess making us the best cemetery tour in the world! (TM)

if you want to book the “best cemetery tour in the world” with us, click here and scroll down to the “Recoleta & Retiro tour” heading for more information.

And some Podcasting love too…

But the recommendations don’t stop there. BuenosTours also has fans living in the high-tech age. The podcast guys over at For Whatever Reason yesterday posted up their latest episode, including a long feature on the recent walking tour of Buenos Aires city center they took with us and how much they enjoyed it. Thanks guys! Just to quickly quote a few things they said about the tour in the podcast:

“This walking tour was possibly the best thing that we did on the entire trip”

“A great way to get a feel for everything and learn a lot about the area”

“Most people booked a tour of Buenos Aires, most of them booked a bus tour where they got on a bus and somebody with a loudspeaker talked as they drove through different parts of the city. The tour that we booked was actually a private walking tour and so it was just the tour guide, and me, and Tim… It was wonderful, we had a lot of one-on-one time, or two-on-one time, with him, we could ask questions without feeling like we were interrupting someone else’s tour, we didn’t have other people interrupting what we felt like was our tour, and having been on lots of tour type situations that’s always the case where… you just feel like the experience isn’t what you want it to be, where this was what we wanted it to be, and it was so perfect.”

“He was very knowledgable in history – he had funny stories, he had tragic stories, he had everything inbetween.”

“It gave us a great sense of comfort to walk around the streets… in fact I stopped him about 10 minutes into the tour and said thank you… because this is the first time I have done any kind of international travel… and you’ve helped me realize that this isn’t any different than home, it’s just a different city.”

You can listen to the episode here: For Whatever Reason on BuenosTours (the part about Buenos Aires and BuenosTours starts at about 16 minutes in).

(And stick around to listen to some more of their stuff, because it’s pretty cool, plus they have great radio voices! Also, check out their Buenos Aires photo album on Flickr, with photos from their walking tour, including a couple of rather unfortunate ones of yours truly…)

Finally, you can click here to book the private guided city center walking tour they took!

Now were just waiting on that long-promised Oprah endorsement, and we’re all set…

[Second photo credit: Javier Kohen @ Flickr]

Cerrito 618 (between Tucuman and Toscanini), City Center

NEW UPDATE: At long last, the Teatro Colon reopened its doors, as expected, on the 25th May 2010. Tickets are now available either at their ticket office, or buying online through TUENTRADA.COM using the following link: Buy Teatro Colon Tickets Online Here for Opera, Ballet and other Concerts (after purchase you will still need to collect the tickets from the ticket office between 2 hours before and 30 minutes before the scheduled start of the show).

[Note from Alan: Updated this post to reflect the change in the expected re-opening date for the Colon Theatre - now due for 25th May 2010 - as I know a lot of people read this post and I don't want to mislead people due to outdated material]

(Original post written October 25th 2006)

Earlier this week I finally took the opportunity to take in a performance at the Teatro Colon (Colon Theater) which many say is the ‘jewel in the crown’ of Buenos Aires, as one of the most famous opera houses in the world.

I was prompted to get along to the Colon by the fact that it is closing for reconstruction work at the end of October 2006, with plans to reopen on May 25, 2010, on the 200th anniversary of the May Revolution, when Argentina split from the Spanish to become an independent nation.

A long wait until the re-opening, and that’s IF the works are actually completed in time. Knowing Argentina, I would be extremely suprised if things go according to plan!

[Further edit: I was right here! The works have indeed been delayed for 2 years, as the original reopening date was supposed to be 25th May 2008. Who knows if they will even make it for 2010! ]

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Lanin 1 – 200 (between Brandsen and Suarez), Barracas

A more colorful Caminito, without the hordes of tourists

Calle Lanin is beautiful little street in the barrio of Barracas, in the south of Buenos Aires. If you are going to La Boca to see the colorful and historical Caminito street, then you might also consider taking the time to explore some of the neighboring barrio of Barracas, where you will find the quieter, shady, yet extremely colorful Lanin. (Don’t try this at night, it’s not really a safe place for tourists to be after dark). The murals there, created in the year 2000 by local artist Marino Santa Maria (who actually lives on this street), are definitely worth the trip to take a look.

Unfortunately I’m still pretty tight for time at the moment, so probably the most efficient way to give you an idea of what Lanin street is like, and to spare you my boring waffle, is through posting up a few more photos. Click below to see them!

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On the corner of Avenida Las Heras and Avenida Sarmiento, Palermo

Note from Alan – Sorry once more for the long time since the last posting on this blog – I’ve been crazily busy for the past couple of months with my Buenos Aires Tours. Until I get some more time free to write something myself, here’s a great post from Kim on the Buenos Aires Zoo to keep you going:

It’s all happening at the zoo…

And it really is! The Buenos Aires Zoo is spectacularly charming for anyone with an afternoon to spare. Located in the heart of Palermo off the Plaza Italia subway stop, the zoo spans the distance between Avenidas Las Heras and Libertador. Home to over 350 species and known for some of its exotic breeding, the zoo is the perfect place for families, a romantic date or an afternoon alone.

On sunny weekends this attraction is packed full of children, which isn’t always entirely different from the weekdays, when many school field trips attend. Nevertheless, the best time to visit the zoo is on a sunny weekday afternoon, when you can lounge in front of the white tiger enclosure or elephant house with few others peering over your shoulder.

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Av. Tristán A Rodríguez 1550 (near Padre M Migone), Puerto Madero

[Photo Credit: jmpznz, under this CC licence]

Costanera Sur – a quiet nature reserve just a stone’s throw from the city

The hustle and bustle of the Microcentro are lost in the cooling mood of the only ecological reserve in the city, the Reserva Ecologica Costanera Sur. A stone’s throw away from the trendy, modern Puerto Madero and you find yourself walking along the park’s boardwalk littered with nuzzling couples, parrillas, and more pigeons than you can throw a stick at.

The Costanera Sur’s walkway borders the front of the reserve and from there you can see the greater landscape that opens up into the park. The boardwalk itself is entertaining, with beautiful architecture and sculptures, casual eateries and dozens of pickup games of futbol. Your initial examination of the swampy marshland is only an introduction to the many more birds and interesting views that await you upon entering.

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