Rojo Tango tickets: show or dinner

What you're booking

This is an evening package, not a bare ticket. The provider, Azul Latina Travel, collects you from your hotel in a private vehicle, takes you to El Cabaret inside the Faena Hotel in Puerto Madero, and drives you back after the show. In between you see Rojo Tango, a produced tango show with dancers, singers and the Rojo Tango Quintet playing live. You choose one of two options when you book: the show on its own, or a three-course dinner followed by the show. Drinks, alcoholic and non-alcoholic, come with both. The ticket is mobile, so you show it on your phone.

Show only or dinner and show?

Pick dinner and show if you want one plan for the whole evening and don't want to find a restaurant first. The three-course menu comes with Argentine wines and cocktails, and the show's own site describes the cooking as a contemporary take on Argentine flavours. Pick the show only if you've already eaten, you're watching your budget, or you'd rather eat elsewhere in the city. You still get drinks and the full performance. The show is the same either way. Only the start of your evening and the food differ.

• Show only: hotel transfer, drinks and the full show
• Dinner and show: the same, plus three courses with Argentine wines
• Dinner guests start their evening earlier than show-only guests

What's included, and what isn't

Both options include your place at the show, drinks, and hotel pickup and drop-off in a private vehicle. Dinner is included only if you choose that option. Tips are up to you. The show itself runs a little over an hour; with dinner first, plan on a longer night. Pickup details depend on where you're staying, so check them when you choose your date. If your hotel or apartment is outside the central districts, confirm that the address is covered before you pay.

• Both options: show, drinks, private transfer both ways
• Dinner option only: a three-course dinner
• Tips: up to you
• Mobile ticket, so there's nothing to print

Why this guide gives no start time

Rojo Tango runs every night as a single evening in one room, with dinner first and the show after it. The exact times aren't printed the same way everywhere: the hotel, the show's own site and the booking page each give slightly different times, and they can change. So go by the booking calendar and your confirmation, which show the time for your date. Your pickup time is set from that. Dinner guests start earlier than show-only guests, and the night ends after the show, when your driver takes you back.

Booking here or booking direct

You can also book through the show itself. Rojo Tango's own site takes bookings and lists phone numbers and an email address, and the Faena takes table reservations for El Cabaret. Booking direct suits you if you have a special request to discuss with the venue first. Booking through GetYourGuide suits you if you want to see the total in your own currency, reserve now and pay later, and cancel for free up to 24 hours before. If you book direct, the changes and cancellation terms are the show's own, so read them before you pay.

Seats and the room

El Cabaret holds a maximum of 100 guests, which makes it a small room by theatre standards. You book a place for the evening, not a seat category: there are no front-row or premium tables to choose from, here or on the show's own site. Philippe Starck designed the room to evoke the cabarets of the 1920s, with red velvet walls and soft lighting. If sitting close to the dancers matters to you, say so when you book or when you arrive. It's a request, not a guarantee.

How far ahead to book

A room of 100 has a hard limit, so book once your dates are fixed rather than leaving it to the week itself. Because cancellation is free up to 24 hours before, booking early costs you little flexibility, and with reserve now, pay later you don't pay on the day you book. If your date shows no availability, try the nights either side, or check the show's own site. Nobody publishes which nights fill first, so treat any such claim with care.

Rojo Tango or another tango night?

Buenos Aires gives you several ways to see tango, and the city's official tourism site lists Rojo Tango at the Faena among its fancy options. More traditional show venues include El Viejo Almacén and historic cafés such as Café Tortoni and El Querandí, worth a visit for their period rooms alone. A milonga is different again: a social dance where amateurs dance into the early hours, in places from grand halls to neighbourhood clubs. Many hold a class before the dancing starts. Every August the city also hosts its International Tango Festival and World Cup, with free shows, classes and milongas.

• Rojo Tango: a small luxury room, with transfer and drinks included
• Traditional venues: historic rooms with period decoration
• A milonga: watch local dancers, or take a class and join in
• The August festival: free shows, classes and milongas

Read next: Rojo Tango vs. a San Telmo milonga: what's actually different

Before you pay: a short checklist

A few minutes of checking prevents most problems on the night. Enter your hotel name and address exactly, because your pickup is based on them. Add a phone number that works in Argentina, on roaming or a local SIM, so the driver can reach you. If anyone in your group has a dietary need, mention it when you book the dinner option rather than at the table. Then keep the confirmation handy: it holds your start time and your pickup details.

Who this isn't for

If you want to dance yourself, this isn't it: a class or a milonga gives you that. If you'd rather sit in a historic café than a five-star hotel, one of the traditional venues will suit you better. If your budget is tight, remember the city's tourism board puts Rojo Tango among the fancy options, so compare it with a simpler show first. And if you need a fixed start time to plan your day around, wait for your confirmation before booking anything else that evening.