Buenos Aires is an excellent city to explore independently, but a guided tour will reveal layers that you just can’t find on your own. We did a Buenos Aires walking tour with Urban Adventures, and although we’d been to most of the destinations before, I felt like I’d only scratched the surface on previous visits.

We met our guide Daniel outside the Metro Cathedral on the Plaza de Mayo. Our first destination was the cathedral itself, where Daniel explained the history of some of the statues and decorations. Notably, we learned that the reason South American statues of the Virgin Mary have triangle-shaped cloaks was to relate Christian imagery with the volcanoes that were venerated by the locals. We also saw a statue of Jesus that was donated to the cathedral by Argentinian football players, who visit it before a big game; as well as the mausoleum of St Martin.

Next up, we headed outside to the Plaza de Mayo, where we learned about the buildings that line the square as well as the protests that take place there. A bit of a history lesson was in order here, to explain how the mothers of the desaparecidos (people who were kidnapped and killed during the military regime of 1976-1983) turned the square into the place of protest and why veterans of the Falklands War have a permanent demonstration in the square.

The walking tour wasn’t all just walking: we also caught two buses, the first to La Boca to see the famous Caminito and the second to San Telmo, where we ended the tour. Caminito was as bustling as ever, with its brightly-painted walls and tango dancers dancing or posing for photos. San Telmo was more relaxed, we saw the church that gives the area its name, as well as the old market and an example of the kind of house where immigrants lived at the turn of the last century.

Although all these places can be freely accessed by travellers wandering around independently, having a guide to explain the history and cultural significance of each location (and teach you how to use the buses) made this tour a great re-introduction to Buenos Aires.

Book your tour

You can book this tour, and several other Buenos Aires tours below:

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This article was written by Linda Martin

Linda Martin is a self-confessed word geek, Spanish addict and world traveller. She and Craig have been travelling full-time for six years, taking in parts of Europe, Asia, Australia and South America. She's currently in A Coruña, Spain.