Córdoba has a lot of cultural life, except in summer when the scene moves to Carlos Paz and other hillside resorts. But it's too a good centre for sports.

Cultural life

There are over 50 theaters, and many culture centers and "arte bars", where you can see theater, art exhibitions and different music acts. Every 2 years there is the Festival de Teatro del Mercosur, Argentina's most important theater festival, with many groups of South America.

Most important theaters include:

• Teatro del Libertador, Av. Vélez Sársfield / Duarte Quirós, the biggest and most traditional, in Italian opera-house style, featuring opera and classical music, but also more modern pieces.
• Teatro Real, San Jerónimo 66, facing Plaza San Martín, the second traditional theater, with a wide variety of shows, including opera, music, and humour.
• Teatro Comedia, Rivadavia 254
• Spacio Cirulaxia, Pasaje Pérez 12
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• Teatro La Cochera, Fructuoso Rivera 541
• Teatro Pacífico, Dean Funes 266
• Teatro Maipú, Maipú 350
• Teatro Córdoba, 27 de Abril / Belgrano (with cinema exhibitions)

Modern theater is also shown in Cineclub Municipal Hugo del Carril (s.u.), where there are parodies of popular movies, each Monday.

Mainstream cinemas are in the shopping centers of Patio Olmos, Nuevo Centro and Córdoba Shopping, but there are some traditional cinemas in the city center.

There are also more many art-cinemas, with some of them being very active cultural centers.

• Cineclub Municipal Hugo del Carril, Bv. San Juan and Obispo Trejo,
• Teatro Córdoba Cine para ver, 27 de Abril / Belgrano
• Facultad de Lenguas of the University, the
• Centro Cultural España Córdoba (see below)
• Sociedad Británica (British Society).

Many "arte bars" show movies, too.

In the many cultural centres there are not only a wide variety of shows and exhibitions, but you can also assist at many courses:

• Ciudad de las Artes, Av. Ricchieri (Parque Sarmiento; Bo. Villa Revol), a new cultural complex with many institutes
• Paseo de las Artes (see above)
• Pabellón Argentina, the cultural center of the University
• Centro Cultural España Córdoba, Caseros / Independencia, shows of modern music, theater, cinema and multimedia arts, and literature
• Goethe-Institut, Plaza España (Nueva Córdoba), German culture center
• Casa Grote (Padre Grote, Bo. General Bustos), "underground" culture centre, with exhibitions, music and theater.
• 990 Arte Club (Bv. Los Andes y Las Heras)

There are also cultural activities at the CPCs (municipal district centers).

Sports

In the Parque Sarmiento and Ciudad Universitaria you can do a wide variety of sports, including soccer, basketball, mountain-bike, and hockey.

The Universidad Nacional de Córdoba offers courses in a variety of sports, including climbing and sailing. Secretaría de Educación Física, Av. Valparaíso S/N.

The best-known soccer teams of Córdoba are Belgrano and Talleres, although they actually don't play in the First Division. The first division team, Instituto is less known. In Third Division there are Racing de Nueva Italia and General Paz Juniors.

Córdoba has a very good basketball team, Atenas, which holds the record of championships in Argentina and is known as one of the best outside the USA.

Stadiums:

• Estadio Córdoba, Av. R.C. Cárcano, Parque San Martín. Known as "olympic" stadium (although there never were olympic games in Argentina). It doesn't belong to a specific club, so all important matchs are held here.
• C.A. Instituto, Jujuy / Quevedo, Bo. Alta Córdoba.
• El Gigante de Alberdi (Belgrano), Orgaz / La Rioja, near Av. Colón
• La Boutique (Talleres), Av. Riccheri 3200 / Av. Talleres, Bo. Jardín. Often closed, because Talleres often plays in Estadio Córdoba.

Swimming

Although some locals do so, it is not recommended to swim in the polluted Río Suquía, except for the extreme north-west of the city.

You can swim at the following spots:

• La Calera, 18 km north-west from the centre, where the Suquía is clean and there are many pleasant spots, with rocks and little cascades, like Diquecito and Casa Bamba.
• Saldán, north of La Calera, where the Arroyo Saldán and the Río Suquía offer good possibilities
• Río Ceballos, a very attractive suburb, 30 km north-west from the centre in the hills, can be reached by a very good highway. There is the La Quebrada artificial lake, with a dam, and in the surroundings there are many little rivers and cascades.
• Los Aromos, La Bolsa andLa Serranita near Alta Gracia, 30 km south-west, with river beaches and much tranquility.
• Villa Carlos Paz, at River San Antonio, although the more central beaches and the Lake San Roque seems to be polluted, so better go to Cuesta Blanca 10 km south, where there is an isolated, very attractive beach after a 40-min walk, the Playa de los Hippies.

There are many buses (all 20 min) to all mentioned spots.

If your are on a hurry you can swim, too, in the many piscinas (swimmingpools) in the outskirts of the city itself, and even in the city centre, but most of them are rather poor and you will have to pass a medic examination.

Events

Events like congresses, big concerts, and exhibitions are hold at the following centers:

• Predio Feriar, Av. R. C. Cárcano, Parque San Martín. Great events and congresses, some festivals.
• Orfeo Superdomo, Rodriguez del Busto / Cordillera (Bo. Villa Cabrera), music and sports events including boxing
• Pajas Blancas Center, M. P. de Cabrera 7500, concerts and congresses
• Forja, Bo. Talleres Este (5 km east of centre), often concerts, but also congresses
• La Vieja Usina, Av. Costanera R. Mestre (Bo. Alberdi), frequent music and theater events.
• Sala de las Américas, Av. H. de la Torre (Ciudad Universitaria), many concerts and theater events.
• Centro Cultural Gral. Paz, Catamarca / Pringles, an old warehouse, many rock concerts and theater events
• Anfiteatro, Parque Sarmiento, beautifully located but actually little use.

Some events also take place in the soccer stadiums mentioned above.

There are many colonial buildings in the city centre, most of them built by the Jesuits in 17 and 18 century. The Manzana de los Jesuitas, declared Humanity's patrimony by the UNESCO, is a whole block of such buildings, between 27 de Abril, Obispo Trejo, Caseros and Av. Vélez Sársfield.

Churches

• Cathedral, Independencia / 27 de Abril.
• Iglesia Sagrado Corazón, Obispo Oro / Buenos Aires, in neo-gothic style, well worth visiting.
• Iglesia de Santa Catalina de Siena, Plaza Jerónimo Luis de Cabrera
• Monasterio de Santa Teresa, Obispo Trejo / 27 de Abril, a interesting pink building
• Iglesia de San Francisco, Entre Ríos / Buenos Aires
• Compañía de Jesús, Manzana de los Jesuitas, oldest church of Argentina (1671)
• Iglesia María Auxiliadora, Av Colón / Rodríguez Peña (gegenüber Plaza Colón), große monumentale neogotische Kirche in Barrio Alberdi

Other buildings

• Palacio Ferreyra, Av. Yrigoyen / Derqui
• Palacio Municipal, Av. Figueroa Alcorta
• Cabildo, Plaza San Martín, colonial style, with a museum
• Palacio de Justicia, Av. Figueroa Alcorta
• Ex Rectorado de la Universidad Nacional de Córdoba - Obispo Trejo / Caseros, very fine colonial building with a museum and a beautiful patio.
• Colegio de Montserrat, Obispo Trejo / Duarte Quirós. School of the Jesuits.
• Banco de la Provincia de Córdoba, San Jerónimo / Buenos Aires, neo-classicistic style.
• Monument of San Martín, Plaza San Martín
• Monument to Vélez Sársfield, Plaza Vélez Sarsfield (Av. V. Sarsfield / Av. H. Yrigoyen)
• Monument of Myriam Stefford, in the outskirts, on RP5 (Av. Armada Argentina), near the toll station of Los Cedros, a huge obelisque

Museums

There are many museums of all kind of things.

Arts:

• Museo Provincial de Bellas Artes Emilio E. Carrafa, Plaza España, with interesting paintings
• Museo Municipal de Bellas Artes Dr. Genaro Pérez, Av. General Paz 33, somewhat more "underground" than the Carrafa, interesting.
• Museo Ecclesiástico Déan Funes Plaza San Martín in the Oratorio O. Mercadillo, religious art
• Museo de Arte Religioso Juan de Tejeda, Independencia 122, best museum for religious art in Argentina
• Museo del Teatro y la Música Cristóbal de Aguilar, Velez Sarsfield 317, Teatro El Libertador
• Centro de Arte Contemporáneo Chateau Carreras, Parque San Martín, Av. Ramón C. Carcano. A little 19th century castle with a beautiful patio, which exhibits modern art.
• Art Galleries in the Paseo de las Artes, Belgrano/La Cañada/Pasaje Revol
• Museo Iberoamericano de Artesanías, Belgrano / A. Rodríguez, folk art of Latin American Indians and typical "latinoamericanism" pieces
• Museo Cultural General Paz, Pringles/Catamarca, Bo. Gral. Paz (sometimes closed)

Science:

• Museo Paleontológico de la Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Velez Sarsfield 249, where there is the fossile of the greatest pre-historic spider of the world.
• Museo de la Anatomía Dr. Pedro Ara, Chubut 149.
• Museo de Ciencias Naturales Dr. Bartolomé Mitre, H. Irigoyen 115.
• Museo de Mineralogía Alfredo Stelzner, Av. Velez Sársfield 299
• Museo de Zoología, Av. Velez Sarsfield 299, 2nd level
• Museo Nacional de Meteorología Dr. Benjamin Gould, San Luis 801. Best museum for meteorology in Argentina.
• Museo de Antropología de la UNC, H. Irigoyen 174.

Technology:

• Museo del Automóvil, in the industrial complex CIADEA, Bo. Santa Isabel.
• Museo de la Industria, Parque General Paz, Bo. General Paz, many cars and motorbikes of local production, and an interesting giratory house (casa giratoria).
• Museo para Niños Barrilete, Av. Costanera, La Vieja Usina. A technical museum for kids.

Historic Museums:

• Museo Histórico Marqués de Sobremonte, Rosario de Santa Fe 218, shows the history of city and of Argentina.
• Museo Histórico de la Universidad, Obispo Trejo 242, at the "Ex Rectorado" (now Facultad de Derecho), will show the university's history.
• Museo Colonial Hispanoamericano, Entre Ríos 24.
• Museo Obispo Salguero, Obispo Salguero 84, Art and historic documents.
• Museo Obispo Fray José Antonio de San Alberto, Manzana de los Jesuitas, religious items
• Museo Numismático del Banco Nación, P. San Martín, Banco de la Nación, coin collections
• Museo Banco de Provincia de Córdoba, P. San Martín

Varied exhibitions:

• Museo de la Ciudad, Cabildo, Plaza San Martín, varied exhibitions, often very interesting
• Centro José Malanca, Entre Ríos 40
• Centro Obispo Mercadillo, Rosario de Santa Fe 39

Parks and squares

• Parque Sarmiento, Nueva Córdoba, the most popular park of the city, with a zoo, a flower garden and an artificial lake
• Parque Las Heras, Bv. Las Heras / Av. Gral. Paz, a little park at the river Suquía
• Parque de la Vida, at the La Cañada river, south-western Córdoba, a great, pleasant park with interesting scenery
• Parque General Paz near the Río Suquía
• Parque San Martín, Av. Ramón C. Cárcano, at the Río Suquía, 10 km. west of the city center. Córdoba's greatest park with a ferial complex, a soccer stadium and a (run down) nature reserve.
• Jardín Botánico, near Río Suquía 8 km west of the center.
• Isla de los Patos, Av. Costanera / Hualfín (Bo. Alberdi), an island in the Río Suquía with a little park, ideal for families.
• Plaza San Martín, San Martín / Rosario de Santa Fe, the heart of the city, surrounded by historic buildings
• Paseo de Sobremonte, La Cañada / 27 de Abril, an old, very pleasant square of 1785.
• Plaza España, Chacabuco / Av. Yrigoyen, modern square in a rationalistic design.
• Plaza Colón, Av. Colón / Mariano Moreno, Barrio Alberdi, green, beautiful square
• Plaza de las Naciones, Av. Sagrada Familia, Barrio Cerro de las Rosas, great picturesque square with a hill
• Paseo de las Artes, Belgrano / Fructuoso Rivera, square with well-known art and crafts market and old-style buildings

Other

• Córdoba Observatorium, in Barrio Observatorio, one of the world's most important until 1900.
• Centro Espacial Teófilo Tabanera, Ruta C-45, Falda del Cañete, 15 km south-west. Argentina's main space center, with a museum.
• Observatorio Bosque Alegre, 25 km south-west of the city, now the main telescope.

It is very easy to reach Córdoba from other parts of Argentina because of its position in the country's geographical center.

By plane

The International Airport Ingeniero Talavella, also called Pajas Blancas is 10 km north of the centre. There are flights to several towns in Argentina, to Santiago de Chile, Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Bolivia) and Porto Alegre (Brazil), though now there are much less flights then in the 90s because of the economic crisis. If you come from overseas you must change in Buenos Aires (you can also do it in Santiago de Chile), where you probably will have to change from Ezeiza airport to Aeroparque Jorge Newbery (shuttle bus service relatively expensive, more than half the price of a taxi!).

From the airport there is a normal bus to the central area (A5, 1,20 AR$), a minibus service (about AR$ 5 per person) and taxis(about AR$65).

By train

Until the 1980's Córdoba was an important railway centre with many connections. Today, the only line left is that to Buenos Aires, via Villa María and Rosario, two times a week. The train is very cheap ($25 for tourist class) in comparison to buses, but the journey is about 5 hs. longer because of the deteriorated rails. There is also a daily local train to Villa María ($4). Train station (there were many, but most of them are out of use now) is near the omnibus terminal, on Boulevard Perón, another in the suburb of Barrio Ferreyra (south-east of the city).

By car

The city is connected with most greater towns by good asphalted routes. A motorway to Rosario is being built to connect Córdoba with the Buenos Aires - Santa Fe highway, it's already done until Oncativo and between Carcarañá and Rosario. Another motorway links Córdoba with Carlos Paz. There is a plan to build other motorways to Santa Fe, Tucumán, and Río Cuarto.

By bus

Buses are now the most popular public transport. Ominibus terminal is at the crossing of Boulevard Illía with Boulevard Perón near the Río Suquía. There are direct connections to all greater cities and tourist centres of Argentina, with the exception of Ushuaia (you will have to change in Río Gallegos). Very frequent buses to Buenos Aires and Rosario. Also, the local buses to the suburbs stop here, another stop is at Mercado Sur near Plaza San Martín.

Since the abolition of the tramway in the 1960s, public transport is limited to buses. They now are divided in "corridors", each of them is associated with a colour and a letter: Red (R), Orange (N), Blue (A), Green (V), Yellow (C) and celeste (E). There are trolleybuses, too (A, B, and C), and a "Transversal" line (T). Most buses will charge 1,20 $, you must pay with bus coins (cospeles) or a special bus card. The buses of the lines 500-501, 600-601, and 700-701, which go around in the outskirts rounding the city, will charge 1,35 $, while the barriales (short-distance-buses) only charge 0,80 $.

There are also interurbanos which serve the suburbs of the city. They charge accordingly to the distance to the terminal, prices vary from about $2 to La Calera up to $6 to the peripheric suburbs of Villa Carlos Paz, Jesús María and Cosquín.

Yellow taxis and green remisses (with almost their only difference being the color nowadays) are a comfortable way of getting around, with prices startig from around $4 for a 15-block ride. During the last year, traffic in the downtown area has been getting increasingly messy, and the quickest way to move around this area (if you are healthy enough for it) is definitely by bike.

Córdoba is a good shopping city, where you can buy near all kind of things now at very cheap prices. The most active zone is the peatonal area and the nearby Mercado Norte, with cheaper prices. There are modern shopping malls, too: Patio Olmos and Garden Shopping (centre), Dinosaurio Mall and Córdoba Shopping (northwest), and the Nuevo Centro Shopping (west) where there is also the Sheraton Hotel. In the Nueva Córdoba area, but also in some central galleries, there are many modern-style shops and boutiques for young people, with often self-designed clothing. Note that electronic items like televisions, cameras and computers are the same price like in Europe and the US; particularly cellular phones even tend to be more expensive and are using old standards like GSM and CDMA.

Local arts and crafts are sold at the Paseo de las Artes (saturday and sunday recommended), where you also can buy some local food like salamis, honey, and alfajores (a local sweet with dulce de leche) in the very pleasant Güemes district (see above). There is also a arts and crafts market at Parque las Heras, on weekends, and some others at the main city squares and at the pedestrian mall at night after 8 pm. In summer most craftsmen move to the Sierras, where there is an attractive market at the dam Dique San Roque 10 km north of Carlos Paz, 15 km west of La Calera and 25 km from Córdoba itself, via route E-55.

Most restaurants are in the Cerro de las Rosas area, the Avenida Colón and in Nueva Córdoba, but nearly in all parts of the city you will find some good places to eat.

Budget

• 31 Grados, Bv. Chacabuco, pleasant modern bar which serves hot dogs ("panchos") in all sort of exotic flavours, and electronic music
• Juanito, Av. Pueyrredón, mexican food, often crowded at weekends
• Mega Döner, Ituzaingó / Rondeau, Döner Kebap in various flavours
• Ugi's Pizza, Bv. Illía / Ituzaingó, cheap pizzas (a clone of the Buenos Aires original)

Mid-range

• Rincón Chino, Av. Colón, All-You-Can-Eat with Chinese and Argentine food
• Potrerillo, Bv. Las Heras / Av. Tillard, Mexican food, after 3am it converts into a (mainstream) discotheque
• Casa de Salta, Caseros / Independencia, northern Argentina food
• Al-Malek, Derqui 255, arabic food, pleasant, good food, but often crowded
• Plaza Austria, Costanera, German food and local beer, at the Río Suquía
• Las Tinajas, Bv. San Juan, another at Av. Colón, a huge All-You-Can-Eat with Argentina and Chinese food
• Equilibrate, V. Sársfield 29, vegetarian restaurant and delivery

Splurge

• Rita (four restaurants, in Nueva Córdoba, Villa Cabrera, Alta Córdoba and Carlos Paz), modern and stylish resto-bar with electronic music or live bands, and a wide variety of ethnic food.
• 18, Av. Costanera, nouvelle cuisine
• Il Gatto, Av. Gral Paz and Av. Colón, Italian food
• Guccio, Av. H. Yrigoyen 71, international specialities
• Rancho Grande, Av. Rafael Nuñez, typical Argentine "Parrilla", meat.
• San Honorato, Pringles esquina 25 de Mayo, (0351) 453-5252, http://www.sanhonorato.com.ar/ Closed on Mondays, open for lunch & dinner. Built inside an old bakery, San Honorato is not only delicious food, it is an experience in itself. After ordering, you will be asked to proceed to the vine cellar, where the owner and his son welcome you with a glass of wine and some bites while your food is cooking. $50 - $100

Cordoba has a very vibrant nightlife although it dies of somewhat during the university holidays over Christmas and doesn't get going again until March-ish. There are places to cater for all tastes from dingy bars to live shows to the latest and greatest music. The main events can be seen at the Site "Córdoba.Net" and in the La Voz del Interior newspaper. If you like electronic music, the web portal Cosmobeat will guide you to the main events in city and surroundings. Only the gothic scene is under-represented, there are only irregular parties. Also don't expect too much night life between sunday and tuesday, when only a few clubs are open (particularly monday).

In the following three districts there is the most active night life:

• Nueva Córdoba, where many students from the interior live, there are many bars and pubs and some mainstream clubs
• Ex Abasto. the "red-light district" near River Suquía, many rock and cuarteto clubs and some greater discotheques, wide variety of music between mainstream and underground. The surrounding area is relatively unsafe, so keep at the main streets, which at weekends are full of young people.
• Chateau Carreras, near Parque San Martín, the most "chic" area, expensive clubs, most of electronic music, some with international pop or cuartetos.

There are also some expensive clubs in the Cerro de las Rosas district. In Alta Córdoba and nearby General Bustos districts there are many arte bars with live music. In the suburbs of Villa Allende, Saldán and La Calera there are some popular clubs too. In summer there is a very active night life in Villa Carlos Paz, minibuses will take you to the biggest clubs from Plaza Vélez Sarsfield at 1 am if you pay the entrance fare in advance.

The authentic urban music of Córdoba is the lively, fast Cuarteto, invented in the 1940s but has changed greatly in the 1980s and 1990s, including more central-american (merengue) and pop influences. Bands of this genre play live several times a week, in the so called bailes, at sport centers, halls and great discotheques. Most of the visitors of these bailes are working-class youths or slum kids. If you want to visit a baile, particularly that of the most popular singer La Mona Jiménez, take a local with you, because there is frequent fighting and other alcohol excesses, but men generally only get in trouble if they speak to someone's girlfriend. For women there are no special dangers, because Argentine men are generally very polite to them, but don't feel disturbed if many boys want to speak to you...

The order of the following list is from cheap to expensive:

• Bar de Don Mario, San Martín / Rondeau (Nueva Córdoba), a little, cheap rock bar in Nueva Córdoba, frequented by students
• La Rústica, Zona Ex Abasto near Av. Tillard, cheap bar with local punk rock and heavy metal, no live music, but sometimes strip dancers, frequented by students and "rollinga" (rock) youths
• Pétalos de Sol, Av. Figueroa Alcorta / Bv. San Juan, one of the most popular and typical student rock / reggae bars in the centre, open every day.
• Paris Bar, student club in Nueva Córdoba, with pop music, a chic but a bit "retro" athmosphere
• 990 Arte Club, Bv. Los Andes, alternative club with live music, at the Abasto, rock, reggae and sometimes theater. One of the centres of Córdoba's "hippie" culture.
• Jamaica, Montevideo / Figueroa Alcorta (centre), afterhour bar with rock and reggae music
• Beep Pub, Sucre near Av. Colón, gay afterhour bar with shows
• Casa Babylon, Bv. Las Heras 34 (Ex Abasto), alternative club, electronic music on fridays, but thursdays, saturdays and sundays there is live music of local and national bands of all musical genres.
• El Ojo Bizarro, Igualdad 154 (Ex Abasto), the most famous alternative pub-bar with retro floor and electronic music, hip hop and reggaeton at Tuesdays.
• Peekaboo, Av. Tillard 1255 (Ex Abasto), electronic music club, a little bit more chic than Babylon and El Ojo.
• La Barra Boliche, Lima / Alvear (Centro), big mainstream club with three floors (pop / cuarteto / electronic)
• Palm Beach, Bv. Las Heras (Ex Abasto), Cuarteto club, only open if there is a live band
• Era Groove House, Bv. Las Heras / Gral. Paz (Ex Abasto), electronic music afterhour
• Bon Voyage, Bv. Las Heras (Ex Abasto), another electronic music afterhour, very dark
• Captain Blue, Av. Tillard, frequent local and national live bands.
• Piú, Bv. Las Heras (Ex Abasto), after hour with a bit "special" music and a bit strange people, open often until 2 pm
• Zen, Av. Fuerza Aérea near Cañada, big gay disco with two floors, now very much the "in" place
• Dublin, Bv. Chacabuco Ecke San Lorenzo, Irish Pub with some traditional Irish food and beer
• Johnny B. Good, Rafael Nuñez, another at Yrigoyen, expensive after-office and cocktail bar with live rock and electronic music
• Rinzaclub, Bv. Illía 34, electronic music and pop, wednesdays recommended
• But Mitre, Marcelo T. de Alvear (Nueva Córdoba), big, expensive club with very "chic" visitors
• Lokitas, Av. del Piamonte S/N (Zona Chateau), the most famous Techno and House Club
• Carreras, Av. del Piamonte S/N (Zona Chateau), techno-house club with expensive drinks
• El Colono, Av. del Piamonte S/N (Zona Chateau), cuarteto and mainstream music
• El Rancho, General Paz / Costanera (Ex Abasto), expensive mainstream after hour
• Piaf, Barrio San Martin, best-known gay club in Córdoba