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Puerto Madero. Photo by Andrzej Otrębski.

Top 10 fun facts about Puerto Madero

Puerto Madero is an extremely unique regenerated portside that represents the urban renewal project in the city of Buenos Aires.

This underrated district is the largest and one of the most successful recent waterfront renewal projects in the world.

It is a reconditioned dockside area that underwent an impressive revival in merely a decade and now is the center to which the modernized redbrick buildings.

These buildings were once warehouses that underwent the largest urban renewal project and now host popular upscale steakhouses popular with tourists and offices.

Across the docks, tourists are attracted to the gleaming skyscrapers that house multinational corporations, luxury apartments, the Costanera Sur Ecological Reserve for trail loops around its several lakes, and the beautiful Puente de la Mujer suspension bridge.

Visitors definitely experience Puerto Madero’s mix of history, cosmopolitan culture, and nature.

Here are 10 fun facts about Puerto Madero:

1. Puerto Madero currently represents the most significant urban renewal project in the city of Buenos Aires

 The creation of Puerto Madero dates back to the 19th century as Buenos Aires’ first port, was built in front of Argentina’s federal administrative center and the President’s residence.

The port was then redeveloped to address urban decay in cities and create opportunities for higher-class housing, businesses, and other developments by the Argentine government.

The project was called Puerto Madero set to build a new residential and commercial district to replace the city’s old port and docks.

The revamped dock that occupies a significant portion of the Río de la Plata riverbank has earned great success with more than 50 skyscrapers built in the last 20 years.

This in hand made the port the most expensive and exclusive neighborhood in Buenos Aires.

2. The graceful suspension bridge Puente de la Mujer is located here

Puerto Madero.Diego Torres Silvestre from Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Another factor that makes Puerto Madero one of a kind is the exemplary bridge named after women.

The Women’s Bridge known locally as Puente de la Mujer was created by Spanish architect structural engineer, sculptor, and painter Santiago Calatrava.

He is most famous for sculptural forms that often resemble living organisms.

The bridge which is the newest link between the east and west docks of Puerto Madero resembles a hook or a tooth of some sort but was actually designed to look like a couple dancing the tango.

Puente de la Mujer is pedestrian-only and rotates a full 90 degrees to allow ships to pass by.

3. Puerto Madero has been redeveloped with international flair

The Puerto Madero project was incredibly successful with the creation of more than 50 skyscrapers boosting its economy.

It attracted businessmen, architects, and designers from all over the world like Philippe Starck Norman Foster, César Pelli, Santiago Calatrava, and Alan Faena, among others.

The port has grown tremendously over the past 20 years becoming one of the trendiest boroughs in Buenos Aires with increasing property prices that have also generated interest in the area as a destination for foreign buyers.

The port has since become the preferred address for growing numbers of young professionals and retirees.

4. Puerto Madero is home to several museums

Estación Puerto Madero. Photo by JonySniuk.

 Puerto Madero covers an area of 2.1 km2 and is covered with incredible features such as skyscrapers and restaurants whose illumination in the night lights up the port.

Puerto Madero also has several museums and art galleries such as De la Cárcova Museum, Fortabat Art Collection, and Faena Arts Center.

The port is near Río de la Plata therefore there are also nautical museums that specialize in the display of objects relating to ships and travel on large bodies of water.

Sarmiento was built in the 1890s as a training vessel for the Argentine Navy and now visitors can tour and see its armaments, living quarters, and deck of the ship.

It is also said to have circumnavigated the globe six times.

5. local and foreign investment led to a massive regeneration effort

The refurbished Puerto Madero required massive capital to upgrade and revitalize it.

There were numerous Local and Foreign investors who funded the project of recycling and refurbishing the west side warehouses into elegant houses, private universities, offices, lofts, etc.

The initiative that was started in the 1990s was aimed at recreating the district into a new turning its back to the river.

The new businesses would regenerate profit and expand attracting visitor’s luxurious hotels Led by the 1999 opening of the Hilton Buenos Aires, state-of-the-art multiplex cinemas, theatres, cultural centers, and corporate buildings located mostly on the east side.

6. The expressway connecting the north and the south of the city through Puerto Madero has created controversy

There is an expressway plan set to connect the north and the south of the city through Puerto Madero.

The project has long been in the planning stage with several alternatives to be considered.

There is a proposal by private developer Julio Torcello to build elevated, ground-level, underground, and even an underwater road.

They are supposed to run under the four docks but the proposal was dismissed because it would be too hard to build.

Furthermore, the elevated and ground-level options would constitute a barrier between Puerto Madero and the rest of the city.

The underground scheme because of the cost and the negative impact during construction.

Placing the expressway between Puerto Madero and the Buenos Aires Ecological Reserve has also been considered but was strongly opposed by environmentalists.

7. Numerous new residential high-rises of up to 50 stories have been built facing the Rio de la Plata 

Puerto Madero. Photo by Justraveling.com.

Puerto Madero is one of the fastest-growing docks in the world.

Since 2000 numerous new residential high-rises of up to 50 stories have been built facing the Rio de la Plata.

These buildings include Alvear Tower, Renoir Towers, Chateau Tower of Puerto Madero, El Faro Towers, and Mulieris Towers amongst others.

Many of them have recently been inaugurated like the Le Parc Tower and Hilton and River View Towers.

In Puerto Madero, many offices and hotels are built high-rises such as the Repsol YPF Headquarters and the Conrad Buenos Aires Hotel & Resort whose construction is slated to begin at the end of 2008 and completion scheduled for late 2010.

In addition, St. Regis Starwood Hotel is being built in the first Dique and is scheduled to open in 2013.

8. The neighborhood’s road network has been entirely rebuilt

During the regeneration of Puerto Madero, numerous facilities were rebuilt. The neighborhood’s road network for instance has been entirely rebuilt.

This was set to re-urbanize the area and allow businesses to be built.

The east side was changed more than the rest with three wide boulevards that run east-west crossed by the east side’s main street, Juana Manso Avenue.

This layout is complete with some other avenues and minor streets, that runs both east-west and north-south, and several pedestrianized streets.

9. The Costanera Sur Ecological Reserve is located in the port

Puerto Madero Buenos Aires. Photo by Andrzej Otrębski.

This reserve is known as the biggest and most biodiverse green space in the city of Buenos Aires.

It is located on the tract of low land on the Río de la Plata riverbank on the east side of Puerto Madero.

The reserve offers tourists an escape from the hustle and bustle of the metropolis to reconnect with nature.

There are trail loops leading to the river which are perfect for birdwatching and strolling.

There are also numerous bike shops in Puerto Madero for cyclists and nature lovers. The gorgeous ecological reserve also offers a serene space for people to hold picnics in the areas close to the water

10. An Architectural Time capsule can be located near Puerto Madero

The time capsule El Zanjón consists of restored labyrinths & urban archaeology on the site of the first Buenos Aires settlement in 1536.

It is located in the historic San Telmo district that neighbors Puerto Madero.

The residence that was originally a mansion was turned into a tenement house by the early 20th century and then abandoned and walled off.

It has since been restored and fitted with elegant new steel and glass elevators that transport visitors to and from the illuminated depths of El Zanjón.

Tourists now explore and find amazing colonial buildings alongside the grand ruins of a 19th-century mansion