Things to do in Mar del Plata, Argentina

Mar del Plata is the Pearl of the Atlantic, Argentina’s beach resort for the middle class.

In January, the peak of the Southern Hemisphere’s summer, it feels like the entirety of Argentina descends onto its beaches.

Mar del Plata’s winter baseline population hovers at just under 700,000, a number that doubles in January and during major summer holidays, like Carnival, it can even triple.

This guide will help you find all of the best things to do in Mar del Plata, whether you form one of the hoards flooding its busy beaches during the summer or you’ll be frolicking on open sand on the empty shoulder and low seasons.

History of Mar del Plata: Argentina’s Beach Resort

Despite previous settlements that were marked by clashes with the local Tehuelche people, the current city of Mar del Plata wasn’t officially founded until February 10, 1874.

From that date, it only took three years for someone to see its beach resort potential. Pedro Luro, a Basque merchant, came up with the idea of Mar del Plata as a European-style bathing resort. He later founded a hotel that grew into what is today the Grand Hotel.

That same year the railway arrived to Mar del Plata, bringing with it both tourism and French, Spanish, and Italian immigrants from Buenos Aires. In the early 1900’s, the Argentine aristocracy began to construct chalets as their summer residences, living here from November through the hot summer months.

At around the 1950’s a number of factors began to transform Mar del Plata into what is now – a beach resort for Buenos Aires’ middle class. President Perón’s welfare policies gave workers rights to paid time off and holidays. At the same time, his government also built union hotels and tourism complexes.

All of this happened at the same time as a new fast train from Buenos Aires with tourist railway rates that made travel quicker and more affordable.

How to get to Mar del Plata

Planes, trains, and automobiles, how can you get to Mar del Plata? With all of the above.

But personally, I prefer to drive to have the freedom of a car to get around. If you can’t or would rather not drive, I’d recommend taking the bus as the easiest option.

Here are all of your options on how to get to Mar del Plata:

• 🚘 By car: Check here for rental car options. The drive is 4.5 hours and very easy, mostly along Ruta 2. Keep your GPS open, though, to monitor the ruthless speed cameras.
• 🚌 Bus: Check here for long distance bus options, which is a very common and comfortable way to travel in Argentina. Think full lay flat seating, ideal for a long nap.
• ✈️ Plane: Mar del Plata’s airport (MDQ) receives regular flights from Buenos Aires and seasonal flights from other major cities including Cordoba, Mendoza, Tucuman, and Rosario.
• 🚆 Train: The train takes around 6 hours from Buenos Aires, check here for tickets (typically released at three months in advance).

When to visit Mar del Plata

Today, Mar del Plata remains the people’s beach resort. Locals typically travel in two week periods called “quincenas” throughout January and February. The city swells to twice its normal population throughout these months and people battle for patches of sand.

So, depending on your own preferences (or aversions to crowds), then summer may be the best or the worst time to visit Mar del Plata. You decide. This busy season kicks off right after Christmas and through the end February when Buenos Aires’ kids go back to school.

In my (absolute expert) opinion, the best time is the shoulder season. November through Christmas and then again in March will give you summer temperatures without summer crowds.

But I would sell Mar del Plata as a great destination year-round.

With art museums and a burgeoning food and shopping scene, you won’t be bored, even in the dreariest of days.

How long to stay in Mar del Plata

If you’re visiting in the summer then the amount of time you can spend here is technically limited only by how much you love the sun and the beach.

As I said above, Argentines typically visit for two weeks at a time, cooking themselves on the sand.

But if you’re coming in low season, then Mar del Plata makes for a great long weekend away. With three days you can see the beaches (even if you don’t catch any sun), the museums, and visit some of the city’s most iconic restaurants.

The Best Things to do in Mar del Plata

Here are the best things to do in Mar del Plata including its best beaches, where to get the city’s most iconic churros, museums, and more.

Eat Churros at Manolo

When it comes to what to eat at the beach in Argentina, churros are surprisingly at the top of the list.

When in Pinamar and surrounding beaches you’ll want to eat El Topo, and if you’re in Mar del Plata, find Manolo.

There are locations throughout the city but the best one is the waterfront location by Parque San Martin. They have a full menu if you’re really hungry but don’t forget that you’re here for the churros. Their alfajores are an acceptable order, as well.

Despite its massive interior there can often be a line to get a table at any time of the year. So try to visit at an off time or you can pick some up to go from the ground level storefront.

Torreón del Monje

This waterfront tower is icon of Mar del Plata. I do feel like it should be attached to a modern castle, rather than form part of this modern city.

Ernesto Tornquist donated it to the city in the early 20th century and it was originally called Torre Belvedere. Today it houses a restaurant and you can have a coffee or lunch on the terrace overlooking the water.

The views are beautiful and the ambience is very nice compared to restaurants on the water by Playa Bristol and the Casino next up on this list, just down the boulevard.

🚶🏼‍♀️‍➡️ From here walk along the Rambla for amazing people watching on the beach to reach the city’s iconic sea lion statues on Playa Bristol…

The Casino, Sea Lions, & El Centro

From the Torreon del Monje, keep walking along the beach towards the heart of it all: Playa Bristol and the Casino.

We didn’t actually go into the casino but entrance is free if you’re curious. The building itself is a Mar del Plata landmark.

There are restaurants (mediocre in quality, but great in authentic vibes) in the gallery here overlooking the beach.

Take pictures with the two massive sea lion statues flanking the beach and grab a spot on the sand (unless you’re visiting in January, when you’ll unlikely be able to find any available sand between the throngs of sunbathers).

If you’d prefer to keep walking, continue 7 blocks inland to La Catedral basílica de los Santos Pedro y Cecilia which dates back to 1905.

WALKING ROUTE: For a complete walk through downtown Mar del Plata, start at Torreon del Monje and end at the Cathedral. You could make the walk even longer by grabbing churros at Manolo first and walking from there.

Eat Seafood at Club de Pesca

Mar del Plata’s iconic fisherman’s club sits at the end of a dock over the water on Playa Bristol. This current pier was inaugurated in 1927 by Marcelo T. Alvear after the original pier was destroyed in a 1920 storm.

Above it towers a larger than life Quilmes sign that has been there since 2002 that somehow adds to the vibe, rather than detracts. The building’s design was meant to resemble the hull of a ship.

Mar del Plata’s Club de Pesca was founded in 1927 and the city has evolved around it ever since. Go for a meal here to see an original piece of Mar del Plata’s history with the city’s best ocean views.

The Best Beaches in Mar del Plata

The top thing to do in Mar del Plata is to take advantage of its many beaches and you have plenty to choose from.

• Playa Bristol is right in the heart of the city center in front of the casino and its sea lions.
• Punta Mogotes is a bit more top, as the Argentines would say. It’s a complex of 24 “balnearios”, these clubs have everything from swimming pools and volleyball to restaurants and spas to fill your day at the beach.
• La Perla is just north of the city center and largely frequented by locals and families. A complex of five beach resorts here (called balnearios) was designed by Argentine brutalist architect Clorindo Testa.
• Playa Varese is a small, sheltered beach between Torreon del Monje and Cabo Corrientes. It’s known for its calm water due to the two breakwaters protecting it from the rough Atlantic waves, making it ideal for swimming and for families.

The beaches north of the city are very calm and expansive and the best ways to get away from the busy summer crowds. Alternatively, as you head south of Mar del Plata you’ll find cliffside beaches that are popular among the more elite and younger crowds.

Further south, leaving the city behind entirely, you’ll reach the cliffside surfer’s paradise of Chapadmalal.

See the view from Torre Tanque

This massive tower isn’t a medieval tower designed to defend Mar del Plata from foreign attacks, it’s the city’s public water tank and it is now open to the public.

It was built between 1939 and 1943 in the Tudor Revival style, built to replace an old concrete tank that originally stood in its place. When visiting, you can take the stairs or elevator to the top for epic 360 degree views and you’ll receive a brief (and interesting!) history of the tower.

Today you can go to the top for the best view in Mar del Plata. Entrance is not free but is very affordable. Oddly, payment (as of September 2026) is only accepted via QR code if you pay onsite (otherwise buy your entrance in advance online). It is currently open Monday through Friday in the morning, confirm opening hours here.

If you don’t have a local bank or MercadoPago account (available only to Argentine residents), then the only way to pay via QR code is with WanderWallet.

Villa Victoria

This home in residential Mar del Plata was the summer home of the high-society Ocampo family. Victoria Ocampo, Argentine writer and intellectual, inherited the home and eventually donated it UNESCO in 1973.

The museum is currently open in the afternoon from Tuesday through Sunday from 3-7 pm. Tickets are available in cash only. Confirm hours here on their Instagram page before going as these things often change.

Villa Victoria was constructed in England in 1912 and shipped to Argentina as a pre-fabricated kit. It’s a classic English wooden and iron bungalow and the home occupies an entire city block with its surrounding gardens.

☕There is a cafe, Avelina by Ficus, in the gardens of Villa Victoria that is open 7 days a week.

Juan Carlos Castagnino Municipal Art Museum

This museum reopened to the public during our most recent visit to Mar del Plata and we were grateful for the chance to visit.

It’s currently open from Wednesday through Monday (closed Tuesdays) from 2 pm to 7 pm. Entrance was affordable (under 5,000 pesos as of September 2026) but when we visited it was cash only, so come prepared. Confirm details here.

Museo Castagnino is housed in Villa Ortiz Basualdo, originally a summer home to a wealthy Argentine family built in 1909. It is one of the few remaining homes from the early 20th century when Mar del Plata was the summer residence of Argentina’s aristocracy.

The home itself is as interesting as the art the museum houses, with the Normandy style exterior, stained glass windows, and original Art Nouveau furniture in the second floor living area. There’s even a musician’s balcony above the living room.

Visit the Casa Sobre El Arroyo

This house, also referred to as the Casa Puente (Bridge House), was designed by Amancio Williams for his father, musician and composer Alberto Williams.

The home was built literally spanning the Las Chacras stream, giving the home its name.

Years of abandon had left the home in ruins but it was restored and reopened to the public in 2023.

The park is open to the public Monday through Friday from 8:30 am-2:30 pm. They have scheduled guided tours as well, but only twice per day. Click here for more information and to confirm opening hours and the times for guided tours.

See at the Sea Lions at the Port

The sea lions and fresh fish market at the port is one of my favorite things to do in Mar del Plata despite being the smelliest thing to do there.

📍Here is the Google map location to help find the right spot.

The sea lions live in absolute lethargy on the concrete next to the docked fishing boats, surely living off off the cast offs. You can get fairly close to them while remaining safely out of reach.

Sit for a while and watch them sleep. The fun comes when one decides to move locations and they bicker with other for a bit before one always scedes the way for the larger intruder.

Behind the sea lions is a small market. Some shops sell canned fish and souvenirs. Others sell the day’s catch. If you’re staying somewhere with a kitchen, take advantage and pick up something to cook up for dinner.

Prepare for the stinch. I don’t know if its the fresh caught fish or the sea lions or a mix of both but the aroma here is strong. My daughter still talks about the “olor feo” and never wants to see another sea lion again.

Museo MAR

This is the Museo de Arte Contemporaneo but is better known as the Museo MAR.

The front of the museum is adorned a massive golden sea lion, a modern version of the pair in front of the casino.

The exterior of this sea lion, however, is covered in golden alfajor wrappers from Havanna (originally from Mar del Plata). It was designed by the quirky Argentine artist, Marta Minujin.

Entrance is free, open Tuesdays through Friday from 10 am to 4 pm. And on weekends from 2 pm to 8 pm, Mondays closed. Hours can often change so confirm on their social media pages.

Trattoria Napolitana Vespoli: Eat Argentina’s First Sorrentinos

Trattoria Napolitana Vespoli is an Italian pasta house in La Perla that invented a pasta that you can now find on nearly every menu across Argentina.

Sorrentinos are a round filled pasta and were invented right here in Mar del Plata.

Francisco Saverio Véspoli arrived in Mar del Plata in 1887, opening a hotel with a restaurant that served southern Italian food. Francisco’s youngest son, Argentino Enrique “Chiche” Véspoli, became the face of the family, running the current restaurant that has been in the same location in La Perla since 1972.

There may be disputes on the origin of the Sorrentino but the Véspoli family holds the trademark and it can’t be argued that they’re not responsible for the round pasta’s fame. The restaurant is currently run by Chiche’s niece and her husband, so it’s still in the family.

📚 Read the history of the Véspoli family and the Sorrentino pasta in the book Los Sorrentinos by Virginia Higa. It’s an easy beach read full of family lore and drama.

Where to Stay in Mar del Plata

For those on a budget, I recommend renting an apartment so you can prepare your own breakfasts and picnics for the beach and generally make yourself at home.

I recommend an apart hotel like this one right on the beach. It blends the best of both worlds, giving you an apartment with the amenities and service of a hotel.

If you want to treat yourself, the Sainte Jeanne Hotel is a beautiful option right by Varese Beach.

One our more recent visit we stayed at Hotel Nuit in the heart of Mar del Plata’s shopping and restaurant district. The room was extremely comfortable and the location was incredible, especially in winter since being right next to the beach wasn’t our priority. To get to the beach you’d need an Uber or taxi to get there in just a few minutes.

And if you want to stay Mar del Plata adjacent without actually being in the city, I highly recommend staying in nearby Chapadmalal. This small village just south of the city is peaceful and jaw-droppingly beautiful.

Read More about Argentina

• The 7 Best Beaches in Buenos Aires: From Pinamar to Mar Azul
• Chapadmalal: Cliffs, Surf, & The Most Beautiful Beaches in Buenos Aires
• The 14 Best Day Trips from Buenos Aires
• 10 Days in Argentina Itinerary

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