17 things to do in Buenos Aires under US$100 (2026 prices)

Key Takeaways

• Nine bookable Lati experiences come in under US$100 per person: five private walks priced per party, from US$60, and four per person experiences from US$35.
• The walks are the best value in the city: US$60 to US$113 buys two to three hours with a guide who is yours alone.
• Food experiences sit at the top of the band. US$89 to US$98 buys a full meal with wine, not a tasting.
• Eight of the seventeen things on this list are free or close to it.
• Argentine peso prices move fast. Book anything important in US dollars and keep pesos for coffee, taxis and markets.

The full list of things to do in Buenos Aires under $100

#	Experience	Price	Duration
1	Recoleta Cemetery walking tour	US$113 for the party	2 hours
2	La Boca neighbourhood walking tour	US$60 for the party	2 hours
3	Buenos Aires city centre walking tour	US$113 for the party	3 hours
4	San Telmo walking tour	US$113 for the party	2.5 hours
5	Recoleta and Retiro walking tour	US$113 for the party	3 hours
6	Yerba mate brunch experience	US$35 per person	1.5 hours
7	Mate and paint experience	US$57 per person	3 hours
8	Regional lunch and wine pairing	US$89 per person	2.5 hours
9	Empanada cooking class	US$98 per person	3.5 hours
10 to 17	Free and near free city things	US$0 to US$15	Varies

The walking tours: one price for the party

1. Recoleta Cemetery walking tour, US$113 for the party, two hours. The most stories per block in the city: Eva Peron’s family vault, the sailor and his daughter, the woman who died twice, the gravedigger, the Knights of the Night. A bilingual guide, meeting at the cemetery gate. The entrance is a separate city government charge, paid there by card. Book the Recoleta Cemetery walking tour.

2. La Boca neighbourhood walking tour, US$60 for the party, two hours. Caminito, the conventillos where immigrant families shared a courtyard and a tap, the fileteado lettering and the streets around La Bombonera. Book this one if you only do one walk, because La Boca is the barrio where wandering off the marked strip is genuinely not advised. Details at the La Boca neighbourhood walking tour.

3. Buenos Aires city centre walking tour, US$113 for the party, three hours. Plaza de Mayo, the Casa Rosada, the Cathedral, the Cabildo, Cafe Tortoni, the Obelisco and 9 de Julio, finishing at Puerto Madero. Most of the postcard city in one morning, from the corner of Libertad and Viamonte.

4. San Telmo walking tour, US$113 for the party, two and a half hours. Defensa street, the market, Plaza Dorrego, the street tango and the old conventillos. A Sunday puts you inside the antiques fair, which is busier and better.

5. Recoleta and Retiro walking tour, US$113 for the party, three hours. Plaza Lavalle, Plaza San Martin, the Alvear and Arroyo palaces, Plaza Francia and a guided visit to Recoleta Cemetery. The long version of number 1, with the neighbourhood around the cemetery added. The cemetery entrance is not included.

The routes are compared by length, meeting point and what each one covers in our guide to Buenos Aires walking tours.

The mate experiences: US$35 to US$57 per person

6. Yerba mate brunch experience, US$35, ninety minutes. In a Palermo Hollywood tasting room. You learn the ritual properly, who pours, who drinks first, why you do not stir the straw, then drink from your own cup alongside homemade medialunas and sandwiches de miga. The cheapest way to understand the most Argentine thing there is. Our guide to how to drink mate in Argentina covers the rules, and you can book the yerba mate brunch experience.

7. Mate and paint experience, US$57, three hours. Same tradition, longer version, and you leave with a wooden mate cup you painted plus the bombilla. Facturas and biscochitos included, coffee or mate cocido if mate is not for you, Monday to Friday with a 16:00 pick up. The one families with children book, and the souvenir beats anything on Florida street.

The food experiences: US$89 to US$98 per person

8. Regional lunch and wine pairing, US$89, two and a half hours. A sit down regional Argentine lunch with wines matched to each course. Two and a half hours, which is the correct length for a meal in this city.

9. Empanada cooking class, US$98, three and a half hours. In a Palermo Hollywood atelier, hands on, two classic empanada styles made from scratch including the repulgue, the crimped edge that tells you which filling is inside. Snacks and drinks during the class, then everyone eats what they made with Malbec. There is a family format with a minimum of two adults and one child, and a non alcoholic alternative. Book at the empanada cooking class in Buenos Aires.

All three food experiences ask for dietary restrictions in advance and close bookings two days ahead. Special rates apply on 24, 25 and 31 December and on 1 January.

Free and near free things to do in Buenos Aires

10. Recoleta Cemetery on your own. The ticket is a city government charge, sold at the gate and paid by card. Eva Peron’s family vault is the one everyone looks for, but the cemetery rewards aimless walking more than a checklist.

11. El Ateneo Grand Splendid. A 1919 theatre converted into a bookshop, with the boxes intact and a cafe on the old stage. Free to walk in.

12. Feria de San Telmo, Sunday. Defensa street closes and fills with antiques, leather, records and street performers, from Plaza de Mayo down to Plaza Dorrego. Free, and the best people watching in the city.

13. Bosques de Palermo and El Rosedal. The rose garden, the lake, the paddle boats, and on a Sunday half of Buenos Aires with a thermos under one arm.

14. Reserva Ecologica Costanera Sur. 350 hectares of wetland reclaimed from the river, right next to Puerto Madero’s towers. Free, flat, and full of birds.

15. MALBA. The Latin American art museum in Palermo, home to Frida Kahlo’s Autorretrato con chango y loro and a strong Argentine collection. Modest entry fee, reduced on Wednesdays.

16. A cafe notable morning. Cafe Tortoni is the famous one, Las Violetas in Almagro is the beautiful one. A cortado and two medialunas costs a few dollars and buys you as long as you want at the table.

17. Feria de Mataderos. Sundays, out in the west of the city. Folk music, gauchos on horseback, regional food, and almost no other visitors, even though the city’s own tourism office counts around 15,000 people every weekend. The one on this list that locals are surprised you found.

Just over the line, and worth it

If you can stretch past US$100, three experiences are worth breaking the budget for.

Experience	Price	Why
Argentine family asado	US$104	Three hours in a Palermo Soho home, grass fed beef, a bottle of wine per two guests
Premium tango show with dinner	From US$120	Full orchestra, three course dinner, wines from Mendoza, in San Telmo’s Casco Historico
Boca or River match experience	From US$150	A local host, a welcome drink and a seat inside La Bombonera or El Monumental

For the football options, see our guide to getting Boca Juniors tickets as a tourist.

A three day plan of things to do in Buenos Aires under $100 a day

Day one. City centre walking tour in the morning, US$113 for the party. Yerba mate brunch in the afternoon, US$35 per person. Free evening in Palermo. Two of you: US$183.

Day two. La Boca walking tour, US$60 for the party. Recoleta Cemetery walking tour, US$113 for the party. El Ateneo and a cafe notable in between, a few dollars. Two of you: US$173.

Day three, US$98 each. Empanada cooking class. Recoleta Cemetery or the Reserva Ecologica in the morning, free or close to it.

Where to start

If you have one afternoon, book the La Boca walking tour at US$60 for the party. If you have one morning, book the city centre walk at US$113. If you want the thing you will still be talking about at home, book the empanada class at US$98 and go hungry.

For the walking tours side by side, see our guide to Buenos Aires walking tours, and for the rest of what a trip through Argentina can look like, browse the full travel guide.