Buenos Aires, Argentina

Buenos Aires can feel like Europe with a Latin pulse. The architecture is French, Italian, Spanish; the cuisine has stayed beef-centric for two centuries; the conversation runs late and is loud. Cafe culture is unbroken from the 1800s and the bookshops are the deepest per-capita anywhere in the Americas.

The economy makes the city a paradox. Argentine peso inflation means locals' wages buy less every quarter, but foreign currency stretches. Restaurants are full; bookshops have late hours; nightlife starts at midnight. It is a place that has been 'about to collapse' for decades and somehow keeps thriving culturally.

Good for: foodies, late-night people, anyone who wants Spanish immersion with European bones.