Don’t try to leave, Argentina

I’m busily packing some last-minute shopping when a note from reception is pushed under my hotel room door. “We are so sorry – but we can’t book a cab to the airport at your appointed time, as Argentina is playing in the World Cup and no driver wants to miss the match. Could you perhaps leave earlier, as we’ve found a driver who can then watch the match at the airport?”

My weekend in Buenos Aires has so far been a joy. And I’m willing to accommodate this nation where huge portraits of football heroes like Maradona – the god of the game – adorn high-rise buildings and where team captain Lionel Messi is a GOAT.

It turns out to be just as well. By the time I arrive at Ezeiza International Airport there is almost no-one to be seen. I am quickly checked in by staff watching their mobile phones, and the buildings are eerily empty.

Suddenly, the departures hall echoes with cheers as a goal is scored. The rest is World Cup history. It really speaks to the passion of this great nation that nothing gets in the way of the game.

I’m in the Argentinian capital en route to a Viking cruise to Antarctica. Latam Airways stops here en route to the southernmost tip of the country, Ushuaia – and I’m glad they do.

I’m staying at the Sofitel Buenos Aires Recoleta – smack-bang in the centre of one of the best districts in the city, within walking distance of great designer shops, a restaurant strip, a Saturday art market and the graveyard where Eva Peron is buried.

The five-star hotel with 175 rooms is a five-minute drive from Museo Nacional De Arte Decorativo and Teatro Colon, the Obelisco and MALBA, the Latin American Art Museum of Buenos Aires. Across the road is a shopping arcade with a food hall and restaurants that quickly show you what’s on offer – from beautiful ham to fabulous steak (of course!).

Recoleta is a barrio, or neighbourhood, in the north with some of the ritziest real estate, known for Parisian-style townhouses and posh boutiques. Buenos Aires is Argentina’s big, cosmopolitan capital city. Its centre is the Plaza de Mayo, lined with stately 19th-century buildings including Casa Rosada, the iconic, balconied presidential palace. Other major attractions include Teatro Colón, a grand 1908 opera house with nearly 2,500 seats, and the modern MALBA displaying Latin American art.

Over 15 million people live here, and with an area of 200 square kilometres it’s one of the world’s biggest metropolises.

Take a walk in the arts district of La Boca, where if you’re lucky, you’ll witness some street dancing among the sculptures and colourful houses.

We spend one night in the Hilton Buenos Aires, a new property in the newly renovated riverside district of Puerto Madero, just a 10-minute walk from the Women’s Bridge and one kilometre from fine arts museum Coleccion de Arte

In a whirl of colour Clockwise, from left: Doing the tango outside El Viejo Almacén; MALBA museum, Buenos Aires; the neighbourhood of La Boca.

Amalia Lacroze de Fortabat.

We walk to some of the local restaurants on the riverbank and take a stroll through the city in the evening to see the sites.

I take a three-hour Red Bus tour of the city. My bus leaves at 3pm, which turns out to be the perfect time, taking in the last of the day and the beginnings of the city at night.

It’s a great way to get your bearings, and worth every cent. I knew exactly which destinations I wanted to revisit.

But our highlight was thanks to the Sofitel. I’m keen to see one of the city’s famous tango clubs – but, of course, I want the experience to be authentic.

They gave me a list of five – but recommended El Viejo Almacén, a restaurant and tango bar in the San Telmo district, about 20 minutes away.

I’m glad they did. There are 179 tango bars

Recoleta sights

Clockwise, from above: Plaza Naciones Unidas; the Sofitel Buenos Aires; the Museo Nacional de Arte Decorativo.

Buenos Aires

We loved

The hotel: The Sofitel Buenos Aires Recoleta is in a great location with rooms starting at $654 a night. See all.accor.com.

The tour: Our Red Bus Tour was US$30 (about AU$43). See grayline.com

The tango show: El Viejo Almacén is a restaurant and tango bar in the San Telmo neighbourhood. Dinner and show cost US$75 (about AU$105). See secretsof buenosaires.com listed on Tripadvisor alone, so choosing without help is a lottery. But their recommendation turned out to be precisely what I was looking for. And to top it all – it was among the cheapest.

Why did I like it? First, the club picked me up in a coach along with a number of other passengers, including many Argentinians (I’m heartened – if they think the dancing is good, it must be pretty special!).

Second, the sirloin strip steak dinner with dulce de leche dessert (a famed South American concoction made by simmering milk and sugar very slowly so it turns into a caramelised cream) was delicious. It came with generous glasses of Argentinian Malbec.

Third, as we walked across the road to the famous tango house which has been operating for more than half a century, there is a buzz of excitement. I’m given a seat on the second storey overlooking the small stage at 9.30pm.

Soon the club’s quintet of two accordions, a violin, drummer and pianist strike up the familiar tango refrain. And for the next two hours, we are treated to an array of singers – some famed Tango vocalists who draw rousing cheers from the crowd of over 100 – and tango by four young couples whose lithe, supple bodies dressed in cocktail dresses and tuxedoes produced that amazing, alluring magic through solos, set and dress changes.

I was once awarded a certificate for the most promising newcomer at a tango class on Cunard’s Queen Mary – it was a token issued in sympathy for my pathetic, flat-footed attempts to master possibly the sexiest dance steps on Earth.

Tango originated here – so no surprises Argentinians treat it like a religion and are very good at it. Many believe seeing it on the streets is enough – but don’t be fooled. A real tango club is sublimely different and sensationally sensual.

We left the club after midnight, as the young dancers and their musicians, now dressed in jeans and T-shirts, set off for a nightcap.

And now the fourth reason I was happy with my evening: there was our bus, ready to take us back to our hotel.

South America has a pretty grim reputation for street crime. Look up Buenos Aires on the Australian government’s Smartraveller website and you’ll see all the warnings about bag snatches and more.

I’m glad I stayed in a good district – it’s worth the investment. And I didn’t take risks. If you do the same, you’ll be rewarded with a great South American experience. Just don’t try to leave when Argentina is playing football. CT