Here are the available villas for rental in Buenos Aires.

Land of the tango

From the Mail on Sunday

The brightly pastel shaded houses that line the quayside of the La Boca barrio in Buenos Aires these days attract afternoon strollers and evening revellers to their neighbouring bars and cafes.
But they used to be bordellos that served the sailors returning home from the sea at the end of the last century and it was here that the tango was born.
Wherever you are in Buenos Aires, you are never far from some representation of the music and movement of the tango. The dance can be melancholic or joyful, threatening or flirtatious, but it has an hypnotic effect on the Latin soul. Its appeal has also spread across the oceans in recent years with tango clubs popping up from New York to Tokyo.
The tango actually started as an all-male affair as a machismo display ritual with three, four or five guys taking the floor to compete in demonstrating their masculinity.
Then the girls got in on the act and, through its whorehouse associations, the dance was condemned as immoral in the early decades of this century and practised only among the lowest orders of Argentinian society. Spanish and Italian immigrants particularly identified with its most plaintive aspects which reflected their sense of loss of homeland and anxiety for the future.
It was not until a charismatic tango singer called Carlos Gardel swept to fame that the dance became respectable, largely through the force of his wholesome personality. Gardel's winning smile still beams down from posters and photographs in every club and bar in Buenos Aires.
Then came Rudolph Valentino, with his smouldering interpretation in The Four Horsemen Of The Apocalypse movie and the rest of the world woke up to the emotional intensity of the work. ... more

It takes one to tango

Don't laugh at me Argentina, tra la la, but I've caught tango fever, really badly, and have fallen madly in love with Buenos Aires.
I am besotted by La Boca, the city's most vibrant quarter by the River Riachuelo where tango first took off.
The houses here are built from wood and corrugated tin painted dazzling pinks, purples, yellows and blue, with dilapidated balconies and terraces where washing flaps and locals play tango music 24 hours a day.
El Caminito is one particularly colourful street where Argentine artists sell their paintings and the exteriors of houses and cafes are a riot of vividly painted bas-relief fruit, flowers and figures.
A large glass of wine at one of the al fresco cafes costs two pesos (50p) and, if you don't mind looking a bit foolish, you can try to tango while the bands play and impossibly lithe ladies in high heels and slashed skirts slink and slouch seductively across the pavements with their brilliantined partners.
OK, I did look silly in my Scholl sandals and Bhs jog pants, but in my heart I was a tango temptress nimbly shifting my posterior to those hot rhythms.
My base was The Sheraton Hotel, in a room on the 24th floor overlooking the murky brown River Plate(the world's widest) and the night lights of a buzzing city.
Wherever you walk, you find exquisite parks and squares with lush flower beds, tall palms, fascinating sculptures and, in spring, blossoming jacaranda trees.
One such square is the Plaza de Mayo, with the rose-coloured presidential palace, Casa Rosada, where Eva Peron made histrionic promises to the workers and Madonna posed to sing Don't Cry For Me, Argentina in the film Evita.
This square is also where - on Thursdays - mothers gather to demand news of sons missing since the 1976 coup. Only a handful come, aware that their quest is hopeless.
But if you enjoy a stroll, beware. Buenos Aires has the world's longest zebra crossings. The fearsome 13-lane Ninth Of July Avenue cuts through the city and to cross it involves taking a deep breath and stepping out - fast - onto what seems like suicide alley.
Once across, you find enticing side streets, shops, cafes, basilicas, stately boulevards, an Irish pub (honest), convents, churches, murals and grand fin-de-siecle architecture.
And, of course, there are the fantastic shopping malls. La Recoleta is the posh district with more parks, giant rubber trees and red carpets laid along the sidewalks for wealthy shoppers.
The cemetery is a must-see - wide avenues of ornate mausoleums roamed by hundreds of skinny grey cats. They slink about the necropolis as if they own the place. ... more

Vibrant and friendly

Buenos Aires is a vibrant, friendly city. The restaurants are staffed by people who care. They make a difference by being friendly and attentive and, more importantly serve wonderfully cooked food.
We stayed in the Recoleta region of the city in an apartment block called Anchorena Plaza. They were beautifully kept and the concierge, although he spoke little English, was most helpful.
The taxi system is the most efficient and speedy way of getting around. We did travel to La Boca on a bus which was quite brave for three ladies but did not find it a problem.
We will return one day.