9 of the Best Parks and Green Spaces in Buenos Aires
From themed gardens and open-air art to wildlife-rich parks and quiet spots for sipping mate under the shade of an ancient tree, there’s a spot for every type of local and visitor.
Buenos Aires is a big, bustling, and sometimes overwhelming city where Art Nouveau and French Bourbon mansions elbow up against modern towers. But beneath the mass of brick and concrete, the city is rich in verdant plazas and parkland that invite nature lovers and urban explorers alike to find respite from the daily bustle. From themed gardens and open-air art to wildlife-rich parks and quiet spots for sipping mate under the shade of an ancient tree, there’s a spot for every type of local and visitor. Here’s a rundown of our favorite city parks.
Parque Tres de Febrero (Palermo)
Also known as Palermo Woods (Los Bosques de Palermo), Parque Tres de Febrero is the city’s most popular place to connect with nature. Akin to London’s Hyde Park or New York’s Central Park, it’s a group of interconnecting parks that occupy around 914 acres (370 hectares). Large parts of it were designed by Carlos Thays, a French-born landscape architect responsible for several green spaces around the city. Weekdays are a primarily local affair with porteños coming to walk and exercise, while on weekends, it seems that everyone and their family are here to enjoy it all.
Highlights of Parque Tres Febrero
Plaza Holanda: The busiest area of the park with grassy lawns and a mile-long running track that surrounds a boating lake. There’s a line of restaurants and bars called Paseo de la Infanta, and it’s not uncommon to find free fitness classes on weekends.
El Rosedal: Within Plaza Holanda is a rose garden that blooms with 18,000 flowers.
Lago de Regatas: Large lake home to waterbirds encircled by a running track and expansive lawns.
Jardín Japonés: Ornamental Japanese garden with koi ponds, art exhibits, and a sushi restaurant.
Ecoparque: On the site of the city’s old zoo, this free ecological park and rehabilitation center has enclosed and free-roaming animals, including capybara, flamingo and tapir.
Planetario Galileo Galilei: The city’s UFO-shaped planetarium has astronomical displays, interactive exhibits, a collection of meteorites, and audiovisual shows.
Check out our in-depth guide to the park here.
Costanera Norte
The Costanera Norte (Northern Riverside) is the city’s riverside escape, a recreational corridor that skirts the Rio de la Plata shores. Once synonymous with food carts and nightclubs (which are both still there), it’s undergone an impressive redevelopment over the past few years. New parks and plazas are opening regularly, creating a welcoming area of greenery and coastal air ideal for walking, biking, picnicking and simply enjoying the river views. The entire corridor runs in front of Aeroparque (the city’s domestic airport) to Avenida General Paz (the city and province border). It’s part of BA Costa, a plan to regenerate around 15 miles of the riverside.
Highlights of the Costanera Norte
Parque Deportivo Costanera Norte (aka Parque St. Tropez): This Bustling park loved by skaters and BMX riders features a bowl, halfpipes, pump track and street skating area.
Parque de la Memoria: Large sloping park with riverfront walkways and panoramic views of the city and river. It honors the people that disappeared during Argentina’s dictatorship years and features commemorative artwork and a wall engraved with the victim's names.
Parque Norte: Outdoor sports complex with two huge pools, waterslides, tennis courts and other facilities. One of few places in the city where you can turn up and pay a day-fee to swim.
Reserva Ecológica Ciudad Universitaria: A 52 acre (21 hectare) wetland reserve home to over a thousands animal species, including 75% of the city’s birdlife and 25% of all birds present in Argentina.
Plaza Intendente Alvear (Recoleta)
Popularly, although mistakenly known as Plaza Francia (which is nearby), Plaza Intendente Alvear is the busiest park in the Recoleta neighborhood. Pathways lined with benches wind around well-kept lawns that provide a respite from the heavily transited streets surrounding it. Weekends are peak visiting time here when one of the city’s most famous artisan markets takes over the park. Live music and theater performances often take place on the lawns. It’s also notable for acting as a front yard to several of the neighborhood’s most-loved tourist attractions.
Highlight of Plaza Intendente Alvear
Feria Artesanal Intendente Alvear (aka Feria Plaza Francia): Held on weekends and public holidays, this is among the city’s oldest markets. Local craftspeople offer everything from leather goods and handmade jewelry to one-of-a-kind art and ceramics.
Centro Cultural Recoleta: Housed in a building from the 1700s, this cultural center puts on a range of art classes, workshops, concerts and exhibitions. It’s free to enter and most activities are also free.
Museo Participativo de Ciencias: Inside the cultural center, this interactive science museum has exhibits dedicated to art, mathematics, music, weather patterns and more.
Parque Centenario (Caballito)
Located in the geographical heart of the city, where the barrios of Villa Crespo and Caballito converge, is another park designed by Carlos Thays. This circular-shaped park has tree-shaded pathways and lawns set around a lake and fountain. There are several children’s playgrounds, exercise stations and an ever-busy skatepark. Art lovers can look out for sculptures such as “La Aurora” by French sculptor Émile Peynot and “Victoria Alada” by the Italian-born Eduardo Rubino.
Highlights of Parque Centenario
Anfiteatro Eva Perón: Open-air amphitheater with a year-round schedule of theater and dance productions, including shows by Teatro Colón.
Bernardino Rivadavia Natural Science Museum: Series of exhibition rooms dedicated to geology, paleontology, sealife, mammals, reptiles and more.
Feria Artesanal del Parque Centenario: Weekend and public holiday artisan market with local vendors offering everything from handmade jewelry and pottery to general bric-a-brac.
Parque Rivadavia (Caballito)
Occupying land once owned by the aristocratic Lezica family, Parque Rivadavia is a green lung of 15 acres (6 hectares) in the heart of Caballito. Parto of the Carlos Thays Parks collection, it boasts grassy tree-shaded lawns dissected by pathways, a playground, a roller skating area, and a carousel. Relatively quiet on weekdays, when the weekend comes, local families and groups of friends arrive to enjoy picnics, take naps, and play games. Cafes, restaurants, and takeout joints line the surrounding streets.
Highlights of Parque Rivadavia
Paseo de los Libros: A collection of around 100 kiosks selling all manner of second-hand books in addition to collectible comics and magazines. There are also vendors dedicated to vinyl records and CDs.
Monumento a Simón Bolívar: In the park’s center stands José Fioravanti’s Simón Bolívar monument: an imposing bronze sculpture of Argentina’s independence hero riding a horse, marble figures and bas-reliefs.
Sticker Collecting: If you’re into sticker albums - particularly fútbol ones - this is the place to exchange your repetidas (swaps). Weekends are the best, when people gather close to the book kiosks.
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