The tunnels
A mystery below.
Hermann Luyken — CC0 · Robert2183 — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Hermann Luyken — CC0 · Hermann Luyken — CC0 · Lucio Grinspan — CC BY-SA 4.0
The Manzana de las Luces, the «Block of Enlightenment», is a historic complex filling a whole city block near Plaza de Mayo. The Jesuits settled here from 1661, building a school, residences and offices to run the Guaraní missions; after their expulsion in 1767 it became home to the city's leading places of learning, including the Colegio Nacional de Buenos Aires and the university's first building. The newspaper El Argos gave it its name in 1821 for its many institutions of learning. Visitors walk through courtyards, cloisters and old buildings, including the hall of the province's first legislature and the Jesuit mission offices dating from 1730. Its best-known feature is a set of historic underground tunnels, whose origin and purpose historians still debate, part of which can be visited. Guided tours and tunnel visits have been free in recent seasons: the tunnels at weekends, booked ahead, for ages 16 and over, in small groups.
A mystery below.
From the 1600s.
Provincial history.
Perú 222, between Alsina, Bolívar and Moreno, central Buenos Aires
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Plaza de Mayo and the Casa RosadaPlaza de Mayo is the main square of Buenos Aires and its historic heart since th4 minutes walk4.5
Café TortoniCafé Tortoni is Buenos Aires' oldest and best-known café, opened in 1858 by a Fr5 minutes walk4.6
Galería Güemes and its ViewpointThe Galería Güemes is an Art Nouveau building in the heart of Buenos Aires, open6 minutes walk
El Zanjón de Granados (Historic Tunnels)El Zanjón de Granados is an old house in San Telmo, carefully restored, hiding b9 minutes walkAt weekends, booked ahead, ages 16+, in small groups; they have been free in recent seasons.