Buenos Aires Travel Guide
Tango in Buenos Aires
The visitor's guide to tango in its home city — how dinner shows differ from milongas, which kind of show to choose, beginner-friendly milongas and classes, the codes of the dance floor, street tango in San Telmo and the August festival.
Tango was born in Buenos Aires and Montevideo in the late nineteenth century, in the port barrios, tenements and dance halls where immigrants from Italy, Spain and beyond mixed with Argentines of African and criollo descent. It began as a dance of the margins and became, by the golden age of the 1940s, the soundtrack of the whole city, with great orchestras playing to packed halls every night. Today it is recognised by UNESCO as part of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity, and it lives on in two very different forms: the stage show and the milonga. To understand tango in Buenos Aires, you should see both.
Tango shows: spectacle. Tango shows are professional productions designed for audiences, with virtuoso couples performing choreographed, often acrobatic routines, singers, a live orquesta típica built around the bandoneón, and usually a segment of Argentine folk dance. Most are sold as dinner shows, with a set menu and wine, and many include transfers from central hotels. They range from big theatres such as Señor Tango in Barracas, with around forty performers, to intimate historic cafés like the Café de los Angelitos and smaller venues in San Telmo, and the luxurious Rojo Tango in the Faena Hotel. Purists may dismiss them as tango for tourists, but the dancing is dazzling, and a show early in your trip gives you a feel for the music and the steps that makes everything else more meaningful.
Choosing a show. Decide what matters most. For maximum spectacle and a big night out, choose a large production. For atmosphere and closeness to the dancers, choose a small venue. For food, consider booking show-only and having a late dinner at a good parrilla afterwards, because the meals at dinner shows are good rather than memorable. Check whether drinks are included, how far your seats are from the stage and whether pickup covers your hotel. Book a day or two ahead, more for the smallest venues.
Milongas: the real thing. A milonga is a social dance, and it is where tango truly lives. Ordinary porteños of every age, from students to grandparents, gather in clubs, dance halls and community centres to dance to recorded music from the golden age, in sets called tandas of three or four songs separated by a short cortina, a snippet of non-tango music that clears the floor. The dancing is close, improvised and mostly unshowy, and the atmosphere, especially after midnight, is intoxicating. Visitors are welcome to watch for the price of entry and a drink, and if you know how to dance, to join in.
Milongas for beginners. Some milongas are relaxed and welcoming to newcomers, with group classes earlier in the evening before the dancing starts. La Catedral in Almagro, in a vast old warehouse decorated with art, is bohemian and friendly, with classes from early evening most nights of the week. La Viruta, in a basement in Palermo, runs classes for all levels and a busy milonga several nights a week that goes on until dawn. Club Gricel in San Cristóbal hosts some of the most traditional milongas, and El Beso in Balvanera draws serious and professional dancers, so watch rather than dance unless you are experienced. At weekends, La Glorieta in Barrancas de Belgrano holds a free open-air milonga in a park bandstand, perfect for watching. Schedules change, so check a listings site for what is on each night.
The codes. Milongas follow etiquette that has hardly changed in a century. Invitations are made with the cabeceo, a glance and a nod across the room: a man catches a woman's eye and nods, and if she nods back, he walks over to her. Refusing is done simply by looking away, which spares everyone's feelings. You dance a whole tanda with the same partner, and saying thank you means you are finished. Dancers move anticlockwise around the floor, staying in their lane and not overtaking. Dress smartly but comfortably, with shoes that can turn on a wooden floor. If you are watching, do not walk across the dance floor, and do not film people without asking.
Classes. Many visitors take a class or two, and Buenos Aires is the best place in the world to learn. Group classes before milongas are inexpensive and sociable; private lessons with professional teachers are widely available and offer faster progress. Even one lesson helps you understand what you are watching.
Street tango and free tango. On Sundays, couples dance for tips at the San Telmo fair and on Plaza Dorrego, which often becomes an open-air milonga in the evening. Dancers also perform on Caminito in La Boca and on Calle Florida in the centre. The city's cultural centres and parks host free classes and events, especially in December, the month of tango, around National Tango Day on 11 December.
The festival. Every August, the city hosts the Tango Buenos Aires Festival and World Championship, with concerts, classes, milongas and competitions in stage and salon tango, much of it free. It is the best time of year for tango lovers, though the city is in winter, so bring a coat.
A perfect tango plan. On your first or second night, see a show to hear the music and see the dance at its most spectacular. Later in the week, take an early-evening beginner class at a milonga and stay to watch the locals dance until late. On Sunday, watch the dancers in Plaza Dorrego. Stay in San Telmo if tango is the heart of your trip.