Live tango and cumbia shows, free guided tours and other immersive experiences are happening in Buenos Aires this Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 May, as part of the Tourism Weekend organized by BA city government. The event also includes discounts in the city’s Food Markets (the San Nicolás, Belgrano, and Bonpland Markets), entertainment, tourist buses and boat trips. 

Free guided and “theatrical” tours (with advance registration) will give visitors the chance to learn about the history and artistic life of the city, with photographic walks around San Telmo, visits to some of the neighborhoods where football legend Diego Maradona used to live (Paternal, from his Argentinos Juniors days, and Villa Devoto), and guided tours of landmark sites such as the Plaza de Mayo and the City Legislature building. Other thematic tours include the city’s fashion industry, literary tradition and transportation history. 

In a city that saw millions of people going out to the streets to celebrate the Argentine team’s triumph at the World Cup last year, football is a highlight of the tours.
The Three Cups, Three Legends will take visitors through the most memorable World Cup moments, led by a tour guide, a football commentator, and a passionate hinchada (fan). The World Cup Stories tour offers a trip down memory lane led by a football fan who got to see Argentina’s win in Qatar, describing the early careers of Gonzalo Montiel, Germán Pezzella, Guido Rodríguez, Enzo Fernández, Exequiel Palacios and Julián Álvarez in the River Plate team (the tour ends in “La Parrilla del Hincha Argentino” near River Plate’s Monumental stadium). A mapping show entitled “Champions of the World” will add to the World Cup vibes with three shows on Sunday at 8, 9 and 10 p.m. at the Municipal Palace (Bolívar 1).   

Cumbia and tango go hand in hand when it comes to popular Buenos Aires music, and Tourism Weekend will offer both: cumbia bands Grupo Play and Villa Diamante will play at a public stage on the corner of Libertador Avenue and Austria, in Recoleta, on Saturday. That same day, in the Amphitheater of Parque Centenario, an urban music show will feature La Boombap (7:30 to 8 p.m.), MCH El Markuzi (8 to 8:40 p.m.) and Flor Gómez (8:50 to 9:30 p.m.). Admission is free but you have to register in advance.

Tango Porteño is a venue that relives the most important period in tango history: the 1940s. During Tourism Weekend, a 30-minute free guided tour of this landmark venue will be available at 6 p.m. (with prior registration), offering a music and dance show at 8 p.m. that includes empanadas and a glass of wine.  At 7 p.m. there will also be a live, free outdoor tango show with an orchestra, singers, and folkloric bids out on the street, just meters away from the city’s Obelisco.

More information on times, locations and registration can be found here.