Argentina's national library dates back to 1810 and was founded in the wake of the May revolution by the country's first government, for whom access to books and the ideas they contained was one of the ideals on which the new republic was founded. These days the library is housed in a striking, brutalist concrete building. Bring photo ID to enter.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Museo Nacional de Arte Decorativo

0.21 MILES

This museum is housed in the stunning beaux-arts Residencia Errázuriz Alvear mansion (1917), once the residence of Chilean aristocrat couple Matías…

2. Facultad de Ingeniería

0.29 MILES

This neo-Gothic building (1912), designed by Uruguayan architect Arturo Prins, is an architectural landmark.

3. Floralis Genérica

0.3 MILES

This gargantuan flower sculpture, located in the center of Plaza Naciones Unidas, is the inspired creation of architect Eduardo Catalano, who designed and…

4. Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes

0.3 MILES

This is Argentina’s most important fine arts museum, containing many key works by Benito Quinquela Martín, Xul Solar, Eduardo Sívori and other Argentine…

5. Museo Participativo de Ciencias

0.36 MILES

This hands-on science museum designed with children in mind has interactive displays with plenty of levers to pull and buttons to press. A great place for…

6. Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar

0.39 MILES

The centerpiece of this gleaming white colonial church, built by Franciscans in 1732, is a Peruvian altar adorned with silver from Argentina’s northwest…

7. Centro Cultural Recoleta

0.39 MILES

Part of the original Franciscan convent and alongside its namesake church and cemetery, this excellent cultural center houses a variety of facilities,…

8. Cementerio de la Recoleta

0.4 MILES

This cemetery is perhaps BA's top attraction. You can wander for hours in this incredible city of the dead, where the ‘streets’ are lined with impressive…