Only have a few hours in Buenos Aires for sightseeing, Hoho bus? boat ride? hotel location suggestion

[gam888]

We will be arriving Buenos Aires by plane in March. I figure by the time we check into a hotel, it will be around 4:30pm and we only have a couple of hours of day light left. We are supposed to check into our Celebrity Infinity cruise ship before 3pm.  The ship sails at 6:30pm. We plan to check out of our hotel by 9am, leave our luggage there until we are back to pick them up later, and head out to do maybe about 5 hours of sight seeing. Is there enough time to take a hop on and off bus? Other than La Boca area, where is a must see that we can cover within a few hours of time. Is there enough time to do a quick city tour and the boat ride? What district should we be picking a hotel in? We only need a clean hotel to stay for one night, so no need for any luxury hotel. Perhaps somewhere central for sightseeing purpose would do. Is it easy to get a taxi from the airport to a hotel in  the center of town? Any info on the transportation, sightseeing, hotel in Buenos Aires are welcome. Thank you in advance.

[TMLAalum]

I would book a Tours by Locals for the morning before the ship departs. HoHo bus in BA is not as well run as in other cities and would not be a good use of your short time in the city IMHO. Plan on crashing when you arrive in the late afternoon, so choose a hotel that is near restaurants for a late dinner which is typical in Argentina, maybe even a tango dinner/show? La Boca is great but also consider the cemetery de la Recoleta and the floralis generica.

[hawkesbaynz]

We are staying at the NH Collection Buenos Aires Historico Hotel  for two nights at the end of a cruise end February. Choose it as good reviews, they responded to me about an early book in, and walking distance to a Tango Show we booked, a bike tour and a foodie tour. Eg central location. 
 

Tours by locals is good advice. There are lots of tours on Viator too.

[jelayne]

It’s a shame you have so little time as BA is a city that has so much to see and experience.  See if you can book a tour where the guide can pick you up at your hotel in the morning and drop you off at the port.  

[kathynorth]

What about after you cruise? Do you disembark in BA or somewhere else? If ending in BA have you checked out the available Celebrity tours with drop off at airport? We took one of these, when we had a 10pm flight home, that included a tour of BA, visit to a ranch, then drop off at the airport. 

[REEtired]

We stayed at the Hilton pre-cruise and it was a great location in Puerto Madero. Walking distance to some great restaurants and sites. We also took the tour at end of cruise to the ranch and airport drop off. I would do it again.  Best steaks in Buenos Aires and a tour of the cemetery is a must. Contact tours by locals. They are great to work with.  Also suggest you find your roll call for the sailing and ask. Roll calls are a great resource.  Enjoy!  

[Iriel]

I'm a local, and I wouldn't rely on taking a taxi from the airport, I think you'll waste a lot of time waiting. Probably your hotel can arrange a transfer. You could also try Uber and Cabify, but I'm sure you'll have to wait a lot. I heard nice things about the hop on and off bus, it seems like a good idea to me.

[alcpa1]

gam888,

If you are referring to the Tigre River boat tour I don't recommend it with such a brief amount of time. It is a good option of you are there for 3-4 days. The ride from the center of the city to the river will not take you by many sites of note. The packaged tours also usually stop at a lovely church and take you by a local amusement area before you get to the docks. The boats move very slowly along the river. We are doing it again in a couple of weeks but we have been in the area before and will be in the city for an extended stay.

As noted the HOHO is not the best. A local guide would provide the best plan for your short day. Try to find one that can take your luggage in their vehicle so you don't have to return to your hotel. 

[HRH SR]

The Sheraton Buenos Aires is fantastic and the cruise lines also book PAXs there 

 

 

Edited December 14, 2022 by HRH SR

[Torfamm]

I would consider trying to hire a private guide who could pick you up at the hotel in the morning and drop you off at the ship in the afternoon 

[DonRoberto88]

The Recoleta area is very nice with great restaurants all around.  You can walk to many interesting places or take a bus or taxi.  My favorite steakhouse: El Mirasol de la Recova.