Best Buenos Aires Barrio?
 

Looking for advice on which neighborhood to stay in while in BA. I would like to be somewhere we can walk on foot to local restaurants & nearby sites, but not be in a traditional touristy area like SF's Fishermans Wharf or Honolulu's Waikiki.

Thanks for your suggestions!

EG

You should consider Recoleta and Palermo. Stay away from Florida Street downtown.

The places that come to mind when trying to compare to Fishermans Wharf or some other impossibly touristy place are Boca, Palermo Soho and San Telmo.
But then they are also neighborhoods where people live and work and go to school.. there are just a lot of touristy things happening there.
Recoleta and Palermo are huge barrios and residential, family neighborhoods with schools etc.
I agree wholeheartedly about avoiding Florida Street.. I hate that place ! it is a hunting ground for thieves and pickpockets and cheats.
This is a city made up of large neighborhoods (barrios) and each has its own personality, all have schools, churches, shops and restaurants.. Recoleta has a lot of huge beautiful parks, museums and the feria on weekends as well as the amazing Cemetery.
Palermo has the Japanese Gardens, Botanical Gardens, Zoo and then there is VIejo and Soho where weekends are fun for the markets and cafes etc.
San Telmo is fine during the week but on weekends it is jam-packed with tourists. Mondays can be dead because everything is closed.. it is atmospheric and charming but I enjoy visiting more than I would enjoy staying there.

- Recoleta - for living/staying


But do go to the other neighborhoods and take in all of the delights that prevail!

Thanks for your tips, it helps me narrow down between what I have researched. I will definitely make a note of avoiding Florida Street!
:)

E_Galea hello,

You do not need to absolutely avoid FLorida Street - just do not stay in a hotel/apt. there. And when you visit there, take extra 'big city/tourist mark' precautions. This does have aspects of that Fisherman's Wharf area - but not so pretty.

I go to Florida Street (as to Fisherman's Wharf) with my purse close to me, and without exposed jewlery etc. I am alert and have enjoyed seeing the bustle and very BsAs drag on the way to the lovely mall and Borges concert hall. You can even have a pleasant lunch there. Just know that you must stay alert, but not worried.

Enjoy your stay in BsAs. ~Marnie

Just an FYI- you can avoid Florida Street and go to Galeries Pacifico and the Borges Center * top of Galleries Pacifico* by going on Viamonte.. We take a taxi from Recoleta, straight to the door, avoiding Florida St entirely.

There are several areas to avoid if you want to stay away from touristy places similar to Fisherman's Wharf or Waikiki--
Recoleta's "restaurant row" is pretty touristy...the restaurants in Puerto Madero....most of Palermo Soho...La Boca ...and Florida Street come to mind. While I do not want to stay on Fisherman's Wharf when I go to SF, no trip to the Bay area is complete without a visit there. The same principle holds true in BA--Visit the touristy places, just do not stay there.

These all are helpful tips, and yes I agree that a trip to SF is not complete without a visit to Fishermans Wharf, however I wouldn't be caught dead in any restaurant down there. I'm a bit weary now after hearing that the restaurants in Palermo are the exact opposite of what I've heard. I'll probably start a new forum on BA eats, but do any of you have suggestions for outstanding restaurants or bakeries? Thanks! - Elizabeth

Not to push the competition, but TA has an excellent thread of BsAS Restaurants as a Sticky(permanent)Post by drdawggy.

There are also at least two really good links:
OLEO GUIDE: http://www.guiaoleo.com.ar/index.php
SALTSHAKER: http://www.saltshaker.net/restaurant...aurant-reviews

& a Great Restaurant BLOG: = KARMALAW’s Blog
http://argentinarocks.blogspot.com/s...Buenos%20Aires

I cannot imagine what you learned about restaurants in Palermo that put you off - most visitors (including ourselves)Porteños and ex-pats that I know rave about so many of them. It will be interesting to read your restaurant reviews, after your trip. Enjoy it. ~Marnie

We go to Palermo all the time to restaurants !
This is a huge city with millions of restaurants.. all Barrios have good and bad.
It is like saying I hear bad things about restaurants in Brooklyn ..

I second the suggestion of looking at TripAdvisor.com and read the Sticky at the top of the Buneos Aires page by dr dawggy.

And for up to date recommendations, I agree, just look at the TA forums as well as Oleo and Saltshaker. Find trip reports ( Marni writes a good one!) and others who recommend restaurants.

The city has a bakery on practically every block. Which neighorhood are you staying in ?
The same with ice cream places and parrillas , you can find one in every part of the city, which is such a Good Thing :D

Aloha Fodors friends! Thanks for the links, I'm going to check them out today. We leave for our trip -6 weeks in SA - in a little over a week!! BA is the last leg of it and we will be there the first ten days of December. I still haven't narrowed down a barrio to stay in, but am leaning toward Palermo (unsure of which sub-barrio) or Recoletta. l am grateful for the advice I've received on this forum it's helped me out!

E_Galea, you need to hurry and book the BA hotel I think. It is tourist time here and a lot of people are already having trouble getting hotels that they want, they are booking up fast.
Palermo Botanico is the larger part of the barrio, Botanical Gardens, Zoo, etc.
Soho and Viejo are the older parts with the trendy cafes and shops. a little farther away from Recoleta .

I am interested in the Recoleta area for a trip in Feb...any suggestions of reasonably priced hotels or b&bs?