Piazzolla Tango tickets

What you're booking

This is admission to Piazzolla Tango, a stage show inside the Galería Güemes in central Buenos Aires. A sextet plays live, dancers perform and Argentine singers take part. The music is based on the work of Astor Piazzolla and other Argentine composers. The performance runs a little over an hour. You meet at the venue rather than being collected: transport isn't part of the ticket, and neither are tips. The building opened in 1915, and the theatre sits below street level.

Show only, drinks or dinner?

Three options sit under one booking. Plain admission gets you the show and nothing else, which suits you if you have already eaten and want a short evening. The drinks package adds two drinks, a middle choice if you want something in your hand without committing to a meal. The dinner option adds a three-course dinner with unlimited drinks before the performance. The show is the same under all three, so the choice is only about how you spend the hours around it.

• Show only: admission, nothing else
• Show and drinks: admission plus two drinks
• Dinner and show: three courses and unlimited drinks, served before the performance

What dinner adds, and what it asks of your evening

Dinner comes before the performance, so choosing it makes the evening longer and starts it earlier than the other two options. The dinner has vegetarian, vegan and coeliac versions, so say so when you book rather than at the table. This guide doesn't list the dishes, because menus change, and the venue publishes its own. The venue's site also lists a tango class with its dinner packages, but a class isn't part of the inclusions for this booking, so don't count on one.

Why this guide gives no start time

The venue's own site and the booking calendar don't present times the same way. The venue lists a different entry time for each of its options, with the show later in the evening, and any of these can change. The booking calendar shows the time for your option and date, and your confirmation repeats it, so go by those. The venue's site also says it runs every day except 24 December, with a separate gala programme on 24 and 31 December.

Seats and the room

Seats can't be chosen on this booking, so you're given a place when you book. The venue describes its Astor Piazzolla room as a Belle Époque theatre with a central catwalk and private boxes. Its own site also sells a VIP sector with some packages, which is the route to ask for a better position. If where you sit matters to you, that is the honest reason to look at booking direct. If it doesn't, the three options here differ only in what surrounds the show.

Booking here or booking direct

The venue sells its own tickets too, and its site lists more packages than this booking page: VIP-sector options, an executive dinner, a private tango class and gala dinners on 24 and 31 December. It advertises a discount for buying online on its own site. Booking through GetYourGuide gives you reserve now and pay later, plus free cancellation up to 24 hours before. If you book direct, the change and cancellation terms are the venue's own, so read them before you pay. Compare the same date and option on both.

One address, several names

The same address goes by more than one name, which muddles searches. The venue's website is titled Palacio Tango, the theatre is the Teatro Astor Piazzolla, and the show is sold as Piazzolla Tango. The Galería Güemes holds two century-old halls, the Teatro Astor Piazzolla and the Teatro Carlos Gardel. This booking is for Piazzolla Tango, with the meeting point at the Piazzolla entrance. If you see a ticket labelled Palacio Tango, check which hall and which option it is for.

Piazzolla Tango or another tango night?

Buenos Aires gives you several ways to see tango, and the city's tourism board separates them. Shows are performances you watch, often with live music and a meal. Milongas are social dances where local amateurs dance, and many hold a class before the dancing starts. The board also lists traditional venues and historic cafés for atmosphere, and the International Tango Festival and World Cup every August has free shows, classes and milongas. A dinner show gives you a polished evening to watch. A milonga or a class is how you dance.

Read next: Astor Piazzolla and tango nuevo, briefly

Before you pay: a short checklist

The dress code is smart casual. Vegetarian, vegan and coeliac dinner options are available, so mention any dietary need when you book. The booking page lists wheelchair access, and because the theatre is below street level, ask the venue how step-free access works for your group. Add a phone number that works in Argentina so you can be reached if plans change. Keep your confirmation handy: it shows your start time and your meeting point.

How far ahead to book

Nobody publishes which nights fill first, so be wary of any claim about it, including ours. What you can rely on is the booking terms: cancellation is free up to 24 hours before, and you can reserve now and pay later, so booking once your dates are fixed costs you little flexibility. If your date shows no availability, try the nights either side, or look at the venue's own site, which lists the same show with its own packages. Because seats can't be chosen, there's no seat to hold out for.

Who this isn't for

If you want to dance, this is a show, not a milonga, so a class or a social dance suits you better. If you want to pick your own seat on this booking, you can't, so look at the venue's own VIP sector instead. If your evening is tight, check the start time for your date before you commit, because the dinner option starts earlier than the others. And if you want to follow every word, expect to follow the music and the dance: nothing in the booking mentions subtitles or a guide.