Puerto Madero is Buenos Aires' newest neighbourhood — a former industrial port district east of the Centro that has been transformed since the 1990s into a waterfront promenade of converted red-brick warehouses, glass-tower residences, and the Santiago Calatrava-designed Puente de la Mujer, a rotating pedestrian bridge that has become one of the city's most recognisable modern landmarks.
The four docks (diques) of the old port have been lined with restaurants, many occupying the converted brick warehouses that once stored grain and hides for export. The dining is upscale by Buenos Aires standards, and the waterfront setting — particularly at sunset, when the warehouse facades turn golden and the modern towers behind them catch the last light — makes it one of the more attractive dining environments in the city. The Faena Hotel, designed by Philippe Starck in a converted grain silo, anchors the eastern end with the kind of theatrical luxury that only Buenos Aires can produce with a straight face.
The Costanera Sur Ecological Reserve, a 350-hectare nature reserve on reclaimed land at Puerto Madero's eastern edge, is one of the city's great surprises — a wetland of lagoons, grasslands, and forests that is home to 300 bird species and feels like an entirely different ecosystem from the concrete city five minutes away. The reserve is free, open daily, and provides one of the only places in Buenos Aires where you can stand on the riverbank, look east across the Río de la Plata, and see nothing but water stretching to the horizon.
Verified Facts
Puerto Madero's redevelopment began in the 1990s
The Puente de la Mujer was designed by Santiago Calatrava
The Costanera Sur Ecological Reserve covers 350 hectares
The reserve is home to approximately 300 bird species
Get walking directions
3 Duque de Abruzzi, Escobar, B1635, Argentina
