Retiro Neighborhood and Terminals

Retiro Neighborhood

Retiro is located south of the exclusive Recoleta neighborhood and north of San Nicolas and is with no doubt the main travel hub of Buenos Aires. Its name originates in a grand mansion that occupied what nowadays is the San Martin Park and that was called "The Retiro."

Between the two world wars this was the place where immigrants arrived, the historical "Hotel de Inmigrantes" (Immigrants Hotel) is now a museum of that era. The San Martin Park occupies a large area almost connecting the low parts of the neighborhood with downtown Buenos Aires; since it is on slanted ground, it allows excellent views of Retiro.

One of the most famous monuments in the area is in front of the railways terminal and resembles a miniature Big Ben. Accordingly it was called "Torre de los Ingleses" (Englishmen Tower); however, since the Falkland War the name has been formally changed to Torre Monumental (Monumental Tower). The San Martin Tower features also monument to the soldiers that died in that war and to the general that gave his name to the park.

Kavanagh Building

Located on 1065, Florida St, the Kavanagh Building is a ubiquitous sight in Retiro. It was inaugurated in 1936 as one of the first skyscrapers in Buenos Aires by Corina Kavanagh, who sold two of her ranches in order to finance the project. The 120 meters tower is in front of the San Martin Park and for a while was the tallest building in South America. It is built of several rectangles that decrease in size with height and is quite narrow; as a result it is very different from most modern skyscrapers. Corina Kavanagh lived in the 14th floor, the whole of it.

Retiro Subte Terminal

Retiro is accessible also by "subte," the subway railways of Buenos Aires. The Line "C" terminus station – this is the line running perpendicular to all others and roughly parallel to the main 9 de Julio Avenue – can be accessed directly from the Retiro Mitre Railways Terminal. Line "E" would be connected here in the future; the planned lines "G" and "H" would also begin from here.

Retiro Railways Terminal

By far the largest single structure in the area is the railways terminal; behind it is the infamous "Villa 31," one of the poorest neighborhoods in the city.

The terminal itself consists of three structures, each one home to a different company of railways: the proper names are Retiro Mitre, Retiro Belgrano, and Retiro San Martín; the second part of the name denotes the company served in that part of the terminal. Retiro Mitre – the most impressive structure in the complex - has been declared a national monument in 1997. The impressive structure features at least one coffee shop that should not be missed; the travelled is assured to feel like in Europe of the late 19th century while sipping his espresso.

Sadly, in 1993 all the passengers’ lines were cancelled, except with the short distance one to Tigre (from where boats cross the Uruguay River to Uruguay). Since 2003 the trains to Rosario have been renewed and since 2005 to Tucuman and Cordoba. Yet, no responsible traveler would trust such an option; it is better to check out once there if there are any available trains, if not, the Retiro Bus Terminal offers better services to wherever Argentinean trains go.

Retiro Bus Terminal

The largest bus terminal in Buenos Aires is located here, next to the railways terminal. More than forty metropolitan bus lines pass through it and it is connected practically with any city of importance in the country. Moreover, buses to Montevideo, Santiago de Chile, Asuncion del Paraguay, Porto Alegre and Sao Paulo also leave from here regularly. There is a fortnightly service to Bogota, Colombia.

The huge terminal doubles as a commercial center; even barbers can be found in the huge building. Having used it extensively, I am happy to report that there is no need to make reservations. I always found seats even to main locations like Mendoza, Rosario and Tucuman. Argentinean buses are modern, rather expensive and most of them offer basic meals and stops from time to time. Some of them – my favorite – even feature complimentary coffee all along the trip.

Retiro Buquebus Terminal

The side of the neighborhood facing the river features a port. That would be of little interest for the regular traveler if the Buquebus Terminal weren’t located there. Buquebus is the name of the fast boats service connecting Buenos Aires with Montevideo.

A direct trip costs well over a hundred American dollars, but the expense is justified; I found the trip comparable to the crossing of the Pearl River with Hoover Boats from Macau to Hong Kong. A way of lowering the expense is taking the Buquebus from Buenos Aires to Colonia. Colonia del Sacramento is one of the major touristic attractions in Uruguay – maybe even in South America – from there are frequent buses to Montevideo.



From journal More Buenos Aires