There’s (plenty of) life after 70: things to do in Buenos Aires

Betty teaches English to adults, but what she does goes far beyond language. She understands something essential: the importance of keeping the mind stimulated over time. She has groups—some with people over 80—that meet in cafés for tea while chatting in English for an hour and a half. It’s not a traditional class: it’s a space for connection, exchange and mental exercise, almost without noticing.

She also offers private lessons, and her students are as diverse as they are interesting: doctors, journalists, curious people who don’t want to stop learning or who want to keep the language active in their minds.

Before starting, she organizes groups by level so everyone feels comfortable and can progress—a simple but key detail. For Betty, speaking isn’t improvisation. There’s a foundation that supports everything, and from there, the language flows. More than learning English, it’s about staying active. She’s proof of it herself: she keeps studying and training all the time. “The brain is a muscle. If you don’t train it, it weakens,” she says. And adds: “I’ve always loved my profession. I’m passionate about teaching.”

Good to know: learning a language stimulates memory and attention, and helps keep cognitive functions active.

Where: Inquiries via WhatsApp at +54 11 3826 6265.

A healthy mind in a healthy body—at any stage of life. If there’s a sport that balances both, it’s tennis. Santiago Veneri, coach at La Nueva Legión Tenis and a specialist in sports medicine, knows it well: what sets tennis apart isn’t just its physical benefits, but its unique mix of movement, strategy and social connection.

On the court, it’s not only the body that trains. There’s coordination, reaction and game reading. There’s also constant mental exercise. Add to that something crucial—especially for older adults—the social aspect. Classes are usually group-based, with shared moments before and after playing, building bonds that go beyond sport. It’s no coincidence that various studies link racket sports with longer life expectancy.

Physically, tennis improves balance, strengthens the core and provides stability, helping prevent falls. With good technique, it also supports joint mobility—especially in the shoulders—and offers cardiovascular benefits.

For those looking to start or return, there are group and individual classes adapted to different levels.

Good to know: in Argentina, clay courts are the most common—a surface that absorbs impact and is gentler on the joints.

Where: Venues in Núñez and Vicente López. Offices at Av. del Libertador 7281, Núñez.

Watching films isn’t just about looking—it’s about learning to read an image, understanding staging and discovering what lies behind each shot. Training your eye. That’s the idea behind Sebastián Cardemil Muchnik’s film and art series at the Asociación Amigos del Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes—one of the most active cultural programs for those who want to keep learning year-round.

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A filmmaker and teacher, Muchnik combines cinema, literature and visual arts in monthly sessions from April to November. Groups are around 50 people, 95% of them women—film lovers, curious and engaged.

The atmosphere says it all, and so do the titles: “Tarantino is pure pop… and we love it that way” or “David Lynch: Surrealism and beyond.” Programs that already invite you in, guided by a sensitive and well-grounded perspective.

Good to know: each class works as a unique experience—a shared conversation around a film or book and its artistic context.

Where: Av. Figueroa Alcorta 2270, Recoleta.

Skincare in later life isn’t just about aesthetics—it can also be a form of relaxation and wellbeing. Dermatocosmetologist Claudia Cobrero offers facial and body treatments focused on people over 70. Her sessions combine deep cleansing, technology and massages on the face, neck and décolletage to boost circulation, relax and reduce stress.

For the body, she adds decontracting massages and gentle isometric exercises, always tailored to each person, to maintain muscle tone and relieve tension.

She also offers home visits—a highly valued option for those who prefer comfort without sacrificing professional quality. In that more intimate setting, sessions often become something more: Cobrero brings warmth and sensitivity, and many treatments turn into moments of connection.

Good to know: physical contact, like massage, reduces cortisol and stimulates endorphin release, positively impacting both the skin and overall wellbeing.

Where: Palermo and Belgrano.

When was the last time you truly listened to yourself? At Santa Locución, Silvana Rabuffi’s classes are a pause. You step into the booth, read aloud, experiment, play—and gradually, you start listening to yourself again. A trained announcer, dubbing actress and teacher with over 18 years of experience, Silvana keeps it simple: less theory, more doing.

The workshop is open to all ages, but for those over 70 something special happens: the voice becomes a driver. It activates memory, organizes thought and sparks imagination. And above all, it connects—not just with a microphone, but with others and with oneself.

It’s not about learning voice-over—it’s about daring to speak. To hear yourself again. Over time, groups build something more: trust, connection, desire. From there come public readings, radio plays, afternoons when your own voice finally has an audience.

Good to know: classes are 100% practical, held in a professional booth.

Where: Saavedra.

“Art is not something you can take up and put down. It is necessary for life,” goes a quote often attributed to Oscar Wilde. In Villa Crespo, that idea becomes practice.

With over 40 years of experience, Gustavo Ibarra runs a drawing and sculpture workshop that, in his words, “is a constant engine. You teach and learn all the time.”

The journey starts with the essentials: still life drawing, studies based on copies of great works—like Michelangelo’s head—and classical forms. Then comes live model work, and once those tools are in place, sculpture and carving in different materials.

Some arrive with no experience and find their language in clay—and surprise themselves. The workshop is a refuge in the middle of the city’s pace: music, conversation, mate, coffee. A place to slow down. Techniques include charcoal drawing, sometimes even with eyes closed, to loosen the hand and enter a different rhythm. “They walk in and everything changes,” Gustavo says.

What emerges isn’t just technique, but something deeper: concentration, discovery, personal time. Many return to something they had put on hold. “Some people once gave up what they wanted to do when they were young—and life goes by… Here they find a way to recover that time,” he says.

The impact is tangible: people who never drew discover they can; older students—like an 83-year-old engineer—show unexpected clarity; those who’ve had a stroke manage to create works that surprise those around them.

More than learning to draw or sculpt, the workshop offers something simple and powerful: doing again. And in that gesture, finding yourself again.

Good to know: artistic activities like drawing and sculpture stimulate neuroplasticity—the brain’s ability to create new connections even in adulthood.

Where: Camargo 706, Villa Crespo.

At the Asociación Española de Socorros Mutuos de Belgrano, Elena Kalasakis leads a space designed for those who want to stay active but need a careful approach. Classes work the whole body, and the chair isn’t a limitation—it’s the starting point. Exercising from a seated position allows people with lower stability or difficulty standing to participate without leaving anything out. Everyone can move, strengthen and, over time, gain confidence that extends far beyond the exercise itself. The focus is on what’s possible. The work activates legs, arms, core and coordination, always respecting each person’s pace.

The group—mostly women—also finds more than exercise: a space for connection, consistency and enjoyment. Elena sums it up simply: it’s deeply rewarding to see people progress, regain confidence and feel capable again. Because it’s not just about physical activity—it’s about getting out, maintaining a routine and finding a place that benefits both body and mind.

Good to know: chair-based exercise stimulates memory and concentration, supports neuroplasticity and keeps the connection between mind and movement active.

Where: Ciudad de la Paz 1760, Belgrano.

Behind the “Decime un Libro” club is Rosario Pozo Gowland, who turned her passion for reading into something far beyond a traditional book club.

You join for the book, but the conversation goes further: literature intersects with philosophy, sociology and current affairs. Questions that go beyond the plot and touch something personal. No prior experience needed—just the desire to read, think and share.

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With participants of different ages and from different places, it works as a meeting point where reading activates the mind but also creates something deeper: connection, emotion and community. Because it’s not just about reading—it’s about sustaining a personal space to keep thinking and feeling.

The format is flexible and self-paced. Each month brings a new book that opens the door to an experience that goes beyond the page—a shared journey inviting you to go further. What happens inside is hard to summarize. You have to experience it.

Good to know: through a monthly membership, Decime un Libro offers access to curated cultural content including author interviews, classes, profiles, recommendations and over 50 editions to explore.

“Ninety and Counting” isn’t just another podcast—it’s people aged 90+ telling their life stories like no one else. Memory, relationships, loneliness and everything in between. Because time stays the same—we’re the ones who change.

The project gained momentum through a viral call featuring Alberto Chab, a 97-year-old psychoanalyst. People began sharing their experiences, and from there the initiative kept growing, as its creator and producer Guadalupe Camurati explains.

It aims to foster intergenerational connection while preserving the memory of a generation that witnessed major transformations. It also gives a voice to older adults—a group often underrepresented in media and social platforms—building a different narrative that values listening.

Today, with over 300,000 Instagram followers, the platform gathers conversations with nonagenarians about their lives and a wide range of topics: the role of women, religion, money, friendship, memory, vegetarianism and even sex in later life.

Episodes are released every Sunday at 6pm on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts, in both audio and video formats. The idea is for it to become a shared moment—almost a family ritual.

Good to know: with weekly episodes and two seasons, the project has gained international recognition, participated in events like Mexico’s Festival of Ideas and continues expanding with new initiatives, including a book in development, in-person and virtual events, and spin-off materials like e-books.

Marcela Lavorato has been teaching tango for over 20 years in Villa Crespo, at a cultural space called Sendas del Sol. Her groups are open to all ages, but those over 70 often surprise the most. “I don’t connect with ages but with the emotions of bodies that want and seek connection,” she says.

The most common prejudices she hears: “I’m too old to dance,” “I won’t be able to learn,” “no one will want to dance with me.” She disproves them class after class.

Her approach is rooted in mindfulness: not judging yourself or your partner. In her workshop, tango brings sociability, physical balance, role exchange, and something hard to find elsewhere: the art of listening to your own body and another’s within a close embrace.

One story that deeply marked her is Johan’s—a Norwegian student over 70 with Parkinson’s who traveled each year to attend her classes. When he danced, his tremors would sometimes disappear.

There’s also something quieter but just as powerful: for some students, the only hug of the week happens in that class. “When we dance tango, we do it with the other person’s story,” Marcela says.

Good to know: for a more personalized approach, Marcela offers private lessons with tailored programs. Group classes take place on Thursdays.

Where: Lambaré 990, Almagro.

The City of Buenos Aires runs a free program for people over 60, held weekly in parks and public spaces across the city. The offering is wide: adapted physical activities, games, walks, stretching, art workshops, theatre and awareness talks. It also includes health check-ups and vaccination programs.

The only requirement is to be over 60 and show up. The rest is taken care of by the city.