San Telmo Tourism (Buenos Aires, Argentina)

Introduction

San Telmo is one of the oldest neighbourhood of Ciudad Autonoma de Buenos Aires. Prepare yourself to walk a lot, some parts of the neighbourhood could be very dangerous at night or on Sundays when there are fewer people on the street.

At Sundays on Defensa Street, you can find a nice craft fair that goes from Plaza de Mayo up to Plaza Dorrego, we recommend to visit Defensa street on Sundays since it will have fewer cars and you will walk more freely.

Defensa

Defensa is one of the most important streets in San Telmo. You can walk from Plaza de Mayo up to Parque Lezama without problems.

There are a lot of old churchs in San Telmo and several museums to visit. All subways except for "H" will finish at Plaza de Mayo or very close to it. In this article, we will cover walking from Plaza de Mayo to Parque Lezama on Defensa Street. Near Plaza Dorrego You will find many things to do and visit.

The best hotel in San Telmo

Kenton Palace is a great hotel to book for you to stay in Buenos Aires. The hotel is close to everything in San Telmo and since it's very close to Plaza de Mayo you can take subway or buses that will allow you to travel to almost any place in the cicty.

You will be amazed at breakfast at this hotel!

Kenton Palace

Kenton Palace is located at Defensa 383, at the hearth of San Telmo. Kenton Palace is so close to everything that you will need to walk a few blocks to see museums, churchs of differen attractions of San Telmo. The hotel is also very close to Plaza de Mayo, where you can take buses and subways which will allow you to travel to almost any place in the city.

Half block from Kenton Palace you will find a church called Basilica de Nuestra Senora del Rosario Convento de Santo Domingo. Inside are the remains of Manuel Belgrano, which took part in the Argentine Wars of Independence and created the Flag of Argentina. In front of the church there is a mausoleum of Manuel Belgrano. It's very recommended to visit this place even if you are not religious, due to its history.

Basilica and convent

Basilica de Nuestra Sra del Rosario y Convento de Santo Domingo was consecrated at 1783. It's lcoated at defensa 422. Inside are the remains of Manuel Belgrano, two spanish flags and one british flag. At the convent walls, you could still see the bullets holes from the british invasions.

If you continue walking on Defensa street you will find several places that sell dulce de leche. Most of the places in San Telmo which sells dulce de leche have a great variety of brands, which could be very expensive. You could taste for free most of them at these places.

We recommend to buy at a normal super market a dulce de leche of the brand "Serenisima" and it particular the one named "Colonial", the only issue buying this is the package.

Dulce de leche

Dulce de leche which is sold at San Telmo. You will find several different brands, most of the more expensive that the one you can buy at normal super markets.

Our next stop will be the Mercado of San Telmo located at Carlos Calvo 495, between Defensa and Bolivar. The market has several options to eat and all the food is fresh, if you are close to the market you can eat safely here. You will also find antiques which could be a very nice souvenir, like some old knives. The market is not very visited during the week, but on weekends you could see a lot of people.

Mercado San Telmo

Located at Carlos Calvo 495 Mercado San Telmo is a must do. You will find food, fruits, antiques. The San Telmo Market is open every day of the week from 10 a.m. until sundown.

Inside Mercado San Telmo

A lot of antiques and curiosites could be found in the shop inside the San Telmo Market. It got our attention to old knives and clocks, but you could find other things like instruments or old clothes.

You will find that some shops sell vegetables and fruits, those shops usually sell export quality. You must buy cherries, plums, pears or any other fruit from the country. You will notice that at the centre of the market there is a place called Coffee Town stand, which offers an excellent coffee. If the day is not too hot, take a rest and have a coffee here.

Coffee Town

Coffee Town is run by professional baristas. This place has beans from all over the world, think countries like Colombia, Mexico, Ethiopia, India, Guinea, Yemen and Sumatra. You will enjoy a great coffee inside the San Telmo, try it by yourself!

To continue with our trip we went back to defensa street until we arrive at Defensa 1179 where we find the "Casa de los Ezeiza". The place is a typical example of how houses are in San Telmo. Right now it is a commercial gallery where antique dealers, art galleries and different shops sell crafts and old objects.

Casa de los Ezeiza

The place is also known as pasaje defensa. The house was built in 1880. In the 30s during the crises, the house hosted several families.

Casa de los Ezeiza

Another view from inside the house. It has two big patios and several rooms. The height of the roofs, the width of the bedrooms, the size of the patios and the style of its facade show Italian influences.

Just around the corner, at Humberto 1ero 340, you will find Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de Belen. It was fund by jesuits in 1734, but it was finished in 1876. The Bethlemite monks took over in 1785, made their hospital in the annexe which was later to be used as a jail. The jail was inaguarated as a museum in 1980 and you can visit it on week days from 14 to 18 hs.

Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de Belen

The last remodelling took place in 1918. It was fund by Jesuits in 1734, but it was finished in 1876.

Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de Belen

A door to the prision, which was a hospital at the beginning, now closed. You can get to the prision by other doors.