Palacio Barolo Tour: How To Book Tickets & What to Expect!

Here’s how to join a Palacio Barolo tour and explore an iconic Buenos Aires landmark with a unique connection to Dante’s Divine Comedy.

Palacio Barolo is an iconic 100-metre-tall office building that stands along Avenida de Mayo in Buenos Aires. Not only does it offer epic 360-degree views of the city, but it’s also a National Historic Monument of Argentina thanks to its architectural design which pays homage to Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy.

The building was commissioned by Luis Barolo, an Italian immigrant who made his wealth in the textile industry, and it was designed by Mario Palanti, an Italian architect known for several famous constructions in both Argentina and Uruguay. In fact, Barolo Palace has a twin in Montevideo, Uruguay known as Palacio Salvo!

The design of Palacio Barolo is eclectic, to say the least; it has Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and Gothic elements all rolled into one. But what’s unique about the building is the symbolism which takes visitors through the architect’s interpretation of Dante’s Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven.

Palacio Barolo was completed in 1923, and it was the tallest building not only in Buenos Aires but in all of South America for over a decade until it was overtaken by the Kavanagh Building in 1936.

We had walked past this building countless times during our many visits to Buenos Aires, but we knew the only way to truly appreciate it was by joining one of the guided tours of Palacio Barolo, so we finally did that!

In this blog post, I’ll share what to expect from your visit to Palacio Barolo, how to buy tickets, and whether I think the experience is worth it.

🌟 Visiting Buenos Aires soon? You can book this classic Palacio Barolo guided tour or this nighttime Palacio Barolo tour with wine. 🍷

Palacio Barolo & Dante’s Divine Comedy

Palacio Barolo was designed in accordance with Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy (1321), an epic poem that examines the afterlife through a 14th-century Medieval worldview. In this poem, Dante travels through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven.

Along this journey, Dante has 3 guides: Virgil, who represents human reason and guides him for all of Inferno and most of Purgatorio; Beatrice, who represents divine love and theology and leads him from the end of Purgatorio on to Paradise; and Saint Bernard, who represents mystical theology and accompanies him towards the end of his journey in Paradise.

Dante’s poem is meant to be interpreted as the soul’s journey toward God while exploring different themes like sin, redemption, and divine justice.

Because Palacio Barolo was designed with Dante’s cosmology in mind, this means there is plenty of architectural symbolism along the way, which makes for a fun visit!

Palacio Barolo has 22 floors and these are divided into three sections, which we’ll explore in more detail.

Hell

The basement and ground floor of Palacio Barolo represent hell. We didn’t visit the basement level since this is off-limits and not included in the guided visit of Palacio Barolo, however, we did get to explore the ground floor in detail.

The ground level features plenty of symbolism and if you look up at the sculptures that adorn the columns, you’ll see snakes, dragons and gargoyles.

Underneath the central dome, there’s a sculpture of a condor carrying Dante’s body to paradise.

Barolo hoped that Dante’s ashes would be housed in Palacio Barolo as it was an unstable time in Europe and he feared the ashes could be lost or stolen.

Purgatory

Floors 1-14 of Palacio Barolo represent purgatory. We first rode the elevator up to the 4th floor, stopping at the round internal balcony that looks down to the ground floor.

At this point, the architecture changed with some floral motifs, including hidden mouths, horns and eyes. The idea is that each person will see their own personal demons in these.

We then got back on the elevator and travelled up to the 14th floor which is the last level of purgatory. At this point, the architecture becomes much more minimalist and a lot more natural light enters the building signaling we are closer to Paradise.

Heaven

Floors 15-22 of Barolo Palace represent heaven and this is where the real effort begins as you have to climb the stairs to finally reach paradise.

The way up is a spiralling staircase that gets narrower the closer you get to the top. However, it’s worth noting, that you have a landing on every floor, so you can stop to rest and catch your breath if you need!

The reward at the end of the climb is a lighthouse that offers 360-degree views of Buenos Aires! The views are truly spectacular; I would say you get the best views of the National Congress of Argentina.

We lucked out with good weather and we could actually see as far as Uruguay across the River Plate.

Know Before You Visit Palacio Barolo

• You will need to climb 160 steps during your guided tour of Palacio Barolo. This happens towards the end of the tour as you reach the narrowest part of the building. It is the equivalent of 8 flights of stairs, however, there are landings in between each floor so you can stop and catch your breath if need be.
• You must wear comfortable shoes given the amount of stairs to climb. High heels are not allowed. This is because you will be climbing spiralling staircases where part of the steps are narrow. You need comfortable shoes for your safety.
• The narrowest point you’ll go through while visiting Palacio Barolo is 48 centimetres or 18 inches wide. This will take place during the final 2 floors as you take the spiralling staircase up to the lighthouse.
• It’s a good idea to bring a water bottle so you can stay hydrated, especially if you’re visiting Palacio Barolo during the summer months. It can get quite warm, especially in the lighthouse where you have glass windows in all directions.
• This tour is not accessible considering you must be able to climb stairs. Our guide did mention there is a 1-person elevator (typically not available to visitors) that can get you as far as the balconies where you can enjoy city views, but the only way to reach the lighthouse is on foot.

How to Book a Palacio Barolo Tour

There are a few different ways to book a guided tour of Palacio Barolo.

In Person

We were already in Buenos Aires and we were staying just a couple of blocks from Palacio Barolo, so we decided to buy our tickets in person.

Also, because we were travelling during the low season, we weren’t too worried about spots completely selling out.

We arrived at Palacio Barolo an hour before the tour start time, bought our tickets in the lobby and then explored the area until the tour started.

Online

You can book 3 different Palacio Barolo tours on the official Palacio Barolo website which are offered via Los Sombreros Tours. These include daytime tours, nighttime tours and themed tours. However, you’ll have to complete the booking in Spanish. While the tour is bilingual, the website is not!

Alternatively, if you’d prefer to complete the online booking in English, you can book the tour via GetYourGuide. They offer the classic Palacio Barolo guided tour as well as this nighttime Palacio Barolo tour with wine at the end.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Salón 1923 (@salon_1923)

Palacio Barolo Rooftop Bar

Another way to enjoy the views from Palacio Barolo is to visit the rooftop bar, Salon 1923.

This cocktail bar opened its doors in 2019 and is located on Palacio Barolo’s 16th floor, which architecturally puts it in the Paradise section of the building.

There are two outdoor spaces: TERRAZZO OBELISCO which faces east and TERRAZZO CONGRESO which faces west and offers some spectacular sunsets. There’s also an indoor space called SPAZIO INTERIORE set in the 1920s in terms of its design and music.

Salon 1923 has set hours, and the menu ranges from tea time to cocktails to tapas. Visitors can enjoy:

• Merienda (afternoon tea time) – Friday thru Monday at 17:00
• Cocktail Hour – Wednesdays at 18:30, 20:00 and 21:30
• Gourmet Tapas – Thursday thru Monday 19:00 and 21:00

You may want to double-check their hours and menu here as these are subject to change.

Is Palacio Barolo worth visiting?

Prior to visiting, I wondered if the Palacio Barolo tour would be worth it, especially considering I haven’t read Dante’s Divine Comedy yet.

Would I be able to appreciate the architectural symbolism? Would climbing all those floors to paradise be worth it? Would it be scary for someone who doesn’t love heights?

Now having done the tour, I would say, yes, visiting Palacio Barolo is worth it! I would do it for the views of Congress alone. You also get some epic panoramic views of Buenos Aires’ Monserrat neighbourhood and other parts of the city.

Most visitors joining this tour haven’t read Dante’s Divine Comedy either and the guides do a really good job of summarizing the poem, important themes, and symbols that are present in the building’s architecture. We learned lots of cool facts about the building and got to see some Masonic symbols that were hidden in the building’s design. It was loaded with lots of fun information.

Climbing the last 8 floors through Paradise and up to the lighthouse was easier than I thought it would be. We took it nice and slow, plus as I mentioned earlier, each floor had a landing where we could stop to catch our breath before continuing upwards.

As for the scary factor for people who don’t love heights, I’ll say that I’ve tackled worse buildings! The staircase spirals around an elevator shaft, so just don’t look down that way. Focus on each step or look at the wall on your left. Once you reach the glass lighthouse you can feel a bit exposed (I did!), so I chose to sit on the ground instead of the glass benches.