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Argentina  / Buenos aires
BUENOS AIRES ARCHITECTURE TOUR

Our starting point is naturally Plaza de Mayo, where we observe the most conspicuous of Buenos Aires' Colonial buildings: the Cabildo, primitive town hall. We also admire the neoclassical Metropolitan Cathedral, and our Presidential Palace, known as the Pink House, with its peculiar asymmetrical façade. Finally, we trace the tracks of Monumentalism, visible in the Ministry of Economics building. Next, we walk across Avenida de Mayo, a tree-lined boulevard built in the late 19th century, when Paris was undisputedly the center of the world. Alongside the Avenue, many different-styled buildings were erected -Academicism, Borbonic, Italian, Neo-Baroque, Art-Nouveau and Art Deco, among other styles. Some of the buildings we'll be seeing in more details are, among others, La Prensa, nowadays the House of Culture; the Vera Palace; the traditional Hotel Castelar; and the monumental Barolo Palace, inspired on Dante's Divine Comedy. At the other end of the avenue lies the Congress, and the traditional El Molino tearoom. Next, we head for Puerto Madero, a cutting-edge urban renovation project initiated in 1991, located in the docks of a huge abandoned port district were recycled into upscale residential buildings, trendy restaurants and VIP nightclubs. On our way to Recoleta, we'll pass along the impressive Tribunales building, a patent example of the early 20th century Academicism style, built by French architect Norbert Maillard, the Colón Theater, one of the city's greatest attractions, and the Cervantes National Theater, a Renaissance building with Plateresque columns. Then, we'll visit Plaza San Martín, designed by French-Argentine landscape architect Charles Thays. Around the square lie some of the city's most conspicuous buildings: the former Palacio Paz, nowadays the Military Society, and the Kavanagh Building, South America's first skyscraper, among others. Once in Recoleta, we'll visit the namesake Cemetery, one of Buenos Aires' greatest attractions. Inaugurated in 1822, this true labyrinth of funeral monuments commissioned to some of the greatest artists of the last two centuries is the eternal home of the most conspicuous -and wealthy- figures in Argentine history, paradoxically including Eva Perón, who was a known enemy of the upper classes. Next to the Cemetery, we visit the Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar, a Colonial church built in 1732 that is surprisingly well preserved. We then walk across Alvear Avenue, where we observe the sumptuous palaces built by the Argentine aristocracy to rival with Paris, such as the Ortiz Basualdo palace. After seeing the imposing Neoclassical mass of Buenos Aires Law School, on Figueroa Alcorta Avenue, we'll visit the peculiar Sanitation building, with its strange majolica façade, built in 1887. This strange French Renaissance palace was built entirely from detachable pieces.

Argentina  / Buenos aires
BUENOS AIRES CAFÉS TOUR

In 1998, the Government of the City of Buenos Aires passed a law to protect and promote the city's Remarkable Cafés. In this tour, you'll have the chance to visit four of them, all of them located in traditional areas of the city, and to experience that typical Porteño habit of getting together at a coffee shop to talk for endless hours and honor friendship. Our journey starts at the neighborhood of Montserrat, near the Plaza de Mayo. A few blocks from there lay La Puerto Rico, founded in 1887 on Peru and Alsina and moved to its actual location in 1925. There used to gather writers and intellectuals such as Paul Groussac, Arturo Capdevila and Rafael Obligado. The establishment owes its name to its owner Gumersindo Cabedo's fascination for Puerto Rico, where he lived for some time. Next we visit London City, a coffee shop that became famous after being mentioned by Julio Cortázar in his novel Los Premios [The Prizes]. The café is located in the ground floor of a building built by E.A. Merry that used to be part of the annex of the traditional Gath y Chaves department store, in Buenos Aires' financial district. Then we travel to San Telmo, where we visit the Bar Dorrego, located on the corner of Defensa and Humberto Primo. From its tables, overlooking the traditional Plaza Dorrego, we'll soak in the Colonial atmosphere of this charming, historical neighborhood. Finally, we arrive to Almagro. On the corner of Rivadavia and Medrano we find the sumptuous Confitería Las Violetas, opened in 1884 with the presence of President Julio Argentino Roca. After being closed for three years, it reopened in 2001, completely and spectacularly refurbished. Writers such as Roberto Arlt and Alfonsina Storni were regulars. Just to imagine the kind of luxury we'll see there, here's a simple fact: the café has 80 square meters of splendid vitraux.

Argentina  / Buenos aires
BUENOS AIRES WALKING TOUR

Historical Buenos Aires walking tours available: 1) Puerto Madero: The goal of this tour is to show how, like it has happened in many great capitals of the world, maybe in London more than in any other, an abandoned area can become the city’s most select neighborhood with an exclusive marina, and a modern cultural, hotel and restaurant district. Our visit kicks off at the Buquebús Ferry Terminal. Considering its old warehouse wasn’t recycled back in the 1990s, we’ll get a chance to see how the area looked before the renovations started. Next, we walk down Alicia Moreau de Justo Avenue, were we see the sharp contrast between the refurbished warehouses, of English industrial style, the state-of-the-art Inclán Building (designed by César Pelli), the Fortabat Tower and the Diario La Nación Building (both by the SEPRA buffet), and buildings from the early 20th century, such as the Central Post Office, the old Customs Building and the Ministry of Defense. Next, we visit the Sarmiento Frigate. This ship houses a museum, where we’ll see how a 19th century frigate actually operated. Then, we head for Madero Este crossing the Puente de la Mujer (Woman’s Bridge), designed by Spanish genius Santiago Calatrava. Once there, we’ll realize everything looks very modern. Nevertheless, we’ll be able to notice the contrast between the Faena + Universe, designed by Phillippe Starck, which used to be a silo, and the Los Molinos Building, designed by the McCormack buffet, which used to be a mill. Our visit ends back on the other side of the building, where we’ll admire once again the contrast between the renovated old and the modern buildings. 2) Retiro and Recoleta In the early 20th century, the Argentine aristocracy experienced an unprecedented prosperity; back then, Paris was the undisputed center of the world, and local aristocrats dreamed of competing with Paris, and of displaying their wealth on the city’s architecture, imitating the splendor of the French capital, in order to finally turn Buenos Aires into a global metropolis. Our starting point is the splendid Plaza San Martín, located in the heart of Buenos Aires. Around Plaza San Martín stand tall some of the city’s most conspicuous buildings. Some of them will allow us to imagine the splendid life the wealthier classes lived in the early 20th century: such is the case of the former Palacio Paz, which nowadays houses the Military Society, the Palacio Anchorena, that presently hosts the Ministry of Foreign Affaires, and the Palacio Haedo, which is used by the National Parks Administration. Then, we visit the monumental Retiro Railway Station, Academicist in style, opened in 1915. Although the design and materials came from Britain, it rivals in spirit with the traditional Parisian gares. Next, we walk across the elegant Arroyo Street –the word actually means ‘stream of water’, and it certainly honors the meandering course of this charming street. Besides its great architecture, Arroyo concentrates the most important art galleries in town. Finishing our tour, we walk down Alvear Avenue, a sort of smaller-scale Champs Elysées. There, we admire the sumptuous French-styled palaces, such as the Ortíz Basualdo Palace, nowadays the French Embassy, and the Pereda Palace, which now houses the Brazilian Embassy. 3) La Boca is arguably one of Buenos Aires’ most authentic neighborhoods. Away from the modernizing and internationalizing waves that have been shaking the city since the 1990s, this working class port district has been jealously guarding its identity, of which soccer and Tango are very important parts. The first that strikes the visitors about La Boca is its peculiar architecture. On one side, we find the typical houses made out of tin and scrape metal, painted with a wide array of colors. They were erected by immigrants, who used leftover materials and paint from the docks and nearby shipyards. On the other side, we see the famous tenement houses, were many families from the working class lived tightly crammed together. On of the neighborhood’s most recognizable icons is the Alberto J. Armando Stadium, nicknamed La Bombonera (The Chocolate Box), which is Boca Junior’s stadium, the country’s largest soccer team, and the one favored by Diego Maradona, probably one of the most famous people in the world. We also visit the emblematic Caminito Street, a true outdoor museum, dedicated to soccer and Tango. Finally, we enter the Quinquela Martín Museum, located in a building decorated and donated by the artist in 1933, to house an elementary school, an Argentine art museum and his own home and workshop. Here, we learn about his intense life and his strong social commitment.

Argentina  / Buenos aires
EVITA TOUR

Eva Perón is one of our country's most famous personalities, respected and admired all over the world because of her relentless efforts for the cause of the humble and underprivileged. In Argentina, nevertheless, her figure is rather controversial: loved by the working class, whom she generously aided during her brief but intense political career, and hated by the wealthier classes, with whom she had an ardent dispute, nonetheless she never arouses indifference. We'll depart from Retiro Railway Station, where a very young Eva Perón saw Buenos Aires for the first time. Then, we'll visit Plaza de Mayo, where we'll admire the famous balcony of the Pink House from where, already married to General Perón, she delivered her most famous speeches, addressed to the Argentine workers who idolized her. Next, we'll visit the former building of the Eva Perón Foundation, an institution created by Evita to promote social assistance all over the country. Then we visit the CGT (which links together all the unions in the country), where we'll learn about the peculiar alliances that were formed to bring Perón to the presidency. Next we see the Congress, and once in Recoleta, we'll walk across the Recoleta Cemetery, an enormous labyrinth of splendid funeral monuments, and a traditional stronghold of Argentine aristocracy, where we'll witness Evita's posthumous victory over the people who had unceasingly fought her when she was alive. Ending our tour, we'll travel to Palermo, where we'll visit the Evita Museum, inaugurated for the 50th anniversary of her death. (Important: Evita Museum closes on Mondays)

Argentina  / Buenos aires
TOUR STADIUMS BOCA JR. & RIVER PLATE

We will begin with an Introduction of the origins of Soccer in our soil, where the immigrant´s importance to develop this Passion in Argentina Will be highlighted. We will go through Iconic Places such as the ground where the first Amateur game was played. Then we will go over 100+ years of history of this sport in our country; first teams, those that still survive and those that are no longer. Players, anecdotes, myths and legends. Then we will focus on the visit to the two stadiums of the city's emblem teams. The Superclassic; “It is the most intense sports experience in the world”, according to the British newspaper The Sun. We will definitely finish the Tour knowing in detail the sports and social characteristics of each club. ⚽ Museo de La Pasion Boquense It is the first football-themed space in America, it offers the public the opportunity to live an unforgettable experience linked to the most important club in Argentina and one of the most recognized in the world. Modern and impressive exhibition techniques, more an entertaining and dynamic tour for all types of public, show the dimension that Club Atlético Boca Juniors has reached during its more than one hundred years of history. Its triumphs, celebrations and the passion that identifies the club are part of the Museum and attract both fans as visitors from all latitudes. ⚽The River Museum aims to be a reservoir of club history and heritage, able to be enjoyed by the public interested in River Plate and football itself as an expression of popular culture.

Brasil  / Río de janeiro
CORCOVADO & SUGAR LOAF

Drive along the downtown area of Rio until reaching the famous football stadium of “Maracanã” (inside visit not included). From there continue back through the center of town (old part of the city) passing by the Sambadrome, Modern Cathedral and Municipal theatre. Continuing via Flamengo Park until reaching Urca neighborhood and Praia Vermelha cable car Station where you will be taken to the Urca Mountain (mid-way station) with its gardens and look-out points. Then, the second part of the ride will take you to the peak of the Sugar Loaf Mountain, 400 m.a.s.l. Sugar Loaf is located in a neighborhood called Urca at the entrance of Guanabara Bay. It is group of two mountains, one called Urca Mountain and the other called Sugar Loaf. The original cable cars were inaugurated in 1912. In 1972, the construction of a new aerial path was concluded within new standards and using modern technology. Corcovado lookout is set 709 meters above sea level, at the very top of the mountain with the same name. From there, the visitor can see nearly the entire city of Rio de Janeiro. Also located at this world-famous tourist site, is the “Cristo Redentor” statue (Christ, the Redeemer). Corcovado is set right in the "Tijuca Rainforest National Park” (the largest urban park in the world) which is in the heart of the city of Rio, being considered by locals as the “lung of the city”. A cogwheel train, constructed by Swiss engineers, takes visitors up–passing lovely parts of the forest allowing visitors to have panoramic views of the city while climbing up. Finally, after reaching the mountain top, escalators are available as well as elevator to assist passengers reaching the statue – which stands on its 28 meters of height. And the most marvelous view of the city!