Get FREE email communications from Fodor's Travel, covering must-see travel destinations, expert trip planning advice, and travel inspiration to fuel your passion.
Sorry! We don't have any recommendations for Buenos Aires right now.
Whether you're looking for a unique handicraft, the latest boutique-vineyard malbec, a one-off pair of rhodochrosite earrings, or jeans no one's got back home, you're bound to leave Buenos Aires with your suitcases full. Argentina’s designers inject their wares with creativity, and innovative items can be found everywhere from elite boutiques to neighborhood street fairs.
If you love the hustle and bustle, elbow your way through the city's outdoor ferias. The array of open-air markets testifies to the fact that locals enjoy stall-trawling as much as visitors do. Crafts—whether traditional or contemporary—often take center stage, with artisans proudly selling their own creations; however, the selection can also include art, antiques, curios, clothing, jewelry, and assorted household goods.
At the other end of the spectrum, this city certainly isn’t lacking in high-end couture. During Fashion Weeks (www.bafweek.com.ar) in February and August, Buenos Aires turns the spotlight on both its world-class designers and its talented up-and-comers. But at any time of year you can swank it up at Patio Bullrich or at posh Recoleta boutiques where the security is as tight as an airport.
Clothing bargains are harder to find than they once were, but that doesn’t mean visitors should pay through the nose. Although haggling isn’t commonplace, do ask for a discount if paying in cash, especially if you decide to snap up leather wrist cuffs for all your cousins at a sidewalk stall. Also look out for the tax refund sticker in many shop windows.
Argentina is cow central, and leather goods—from boots to jackets to polo saddles—are an excellent value. Buenos Aires' well-established antiques trade is also thriving, but modern houseware shops are putting up some fierce competition. On the wine front, many local vintages still aren't exported, so this may be your only chance to try wines from regions other than Mendoza.
It’s not just about retail therapy, either. Part of the Buenos Aires experience can be wandering around and stepping, unexpectedly, into a restored mansion selling silk frocks and vertigo-inducing heels, then taking a break at a bistro or juice bar. People-watching is the name of the game. Known for their good looks, Argentineans like to watch and be watched from the café sidelines.
Gabriel's good taste means 50-year-old Louis Vuitton trunks don't look out of place beside wooden church statues or scale-model ships with canvas sails. Ceramic rubber-glove molds, one of his specialties, are some of the more accessible conversation pieces. The flagship store takes up a sizable patch of the Plaza Dorrego shop front; there's a second shop at Libertad 1214 in Recoleta.
Sequined flapper dresses, dashing white-linen suits, and creamy lace wedding veils are some of the items you might stumble across in this casa chorizo, a typical multiroom property that stretches back to the next block. Period accessories include Castilian hair combs and lacy fans that beg you to bat your lashes from behind them.
White-leather trefoil chairs and gleaming walnut side tables with black-lacquer details are among the many heavenly furniture items in this art-deco emporium. Much more packable (though not cheap) are the Clarice Cliff dinner services or French rosewood cigar boxes.
A Spanish-style abode built in 1745 contains several tempting shops. One is filled with enough miniature wooden furniture to fill several dollhouses; another sells golden-age Argentine cinema posters. Wind-up monkeys, brass fittings, old apothecary bottles, and vintage leather suitcases are other interesting finds.
Classic silver trays, cutlery sets, tea sets, and ice buckets have been favorites on porteño high-society wedding lists for more than 125 years. Department stores worldwide stock Lappas silverware, but why pay export prices?
This cavernous auction warehouse is crammed with furniture, mirrors, statues, rugs, dinner sets, and even salvaged doors and windows. Scores of chandeliers glitter overhead, and glassware is packed into cabinets along the edges. Some pieces are antique, others are simply old—size them up during the week, then return for the auction. Alternatively, you can make an advance offer which opens bidding in your absence.
Despite being crammed with furniture, this corner store looks extravagant rather than chaotic. It's probably due to the alluring European collectibles, ranging from terracotta amphoras and gilt-wood church candles to Louis XV–style chairs reupholstered in buttercup-yellow silk.
Sign up for Travel Tips & News
Thank you for your interest!
