Historical center
The historic centre or "Microcentro" (in this guide) groups together the old districts located in a rectangle between Colón Street, Brasil Street, the Bay and Ygatimi/Dr Francia Avenue. These districts are Brasil, San Roque, Catedral and Encarnación. It is the most lively and touristic area of the city with large squares, the port and the Costanera beach. There are many hotels, cafes, restaurants, museums and monuments. Everything can be done on foot and the area is safe. However, you should not go into the Chacarita district, a semi-district with winding streets, very close to tourist sites and a stone's throw from the Congress! The streets in the centre are one-way and change name at the Independancia Nacional street (in front of Plaza de la Democracia). Thus, Mariscal Estigarribia street becomes Palma, 25 de Mayo becomes Estrella, Cerro Corá becomes Oliva... If you arrive on a Sunday, you might be surprised. The city centre is completely deserted, except on the Costanera side.
Villa Morra - Nuevo Centro
Recoleta, Villa Morra, Santo Domingo, Las Lomas and Manorá are residential areas where many shops and services have been established. There are modern shopping malls, chic restaurants, trendy clubs and large hotels, mostly for business tourism. A well-served area, between the Microcentro (15 minutes by car) and the airport (25 minutes). Everything here is a little more expensive than in the historic centre. Escaping from the main avenues, you soon find yourself in stone-paved streets with beautiful houses, surrounded by wooded gardens.
Western neighborhoods
Apart from the historic centre, which is treated separately, there are relatively few tourist establishments or sites in these very heterogeneous neighbourhoods, located to the west of the Avenida del General Santos. In some old barrios, such as Sajonia, on the banks of the Río Paraguay, people live more in the street, getting to know each other among neighbours. It can be pleasant to walk there during the day. Other neighbourhoods are very commercial, like Silvio Pettirossi, where the famous Mercado 4 is located. Still others are very poor, like the Bañado Sur, which are obviously not touristic places.
Eastern neighbourhoods
This name for this guide includes all the neighborhoods east of Avenida Gal. Máximo Santos, with the exception of the "Zone Villa Morra - Nuevo Centro", which is treated in a separate section, but is of course part of the eastern neighborhoods. It is mostly residential areas, very quiet as soon as you leave the main avenues. Stony streets, beautiful trees, birds, it's almost like being in the country!
Orientation
To locate the main axes of the capital, simply place your left hand on a map of Asunción, with your palm on the historic centre: your fingers will naturally land on the 5 main historic avenues of the city. These avenues are, from north to south :
The Avenida Artigas, which leads from the centre to the Botanical Gardens and then to the Ruta Transchaco and Ruta 3.
The AvenidaEspaña, the most beautiful avenue, with its mansions and embassies. It changes its name after crossing Avenida San Martín to Aviadores del Chaco and then to Autopista. It passes Paseo Carmelitas, Shopping del Sol and Paseo Las Galerías. The avenue leads to the airport and to Luque, passing in front of the Ñu Guazú Park.
The Avenida Mariscal López passes in front of La Recoleta Cemetery, Shopping Villa Morra, and leads to Fernando de la Mora and San Lorenzo (where the junction of routes 1 and 2 is located).
Avenida Eusobio Ayala (not to be confused with Calle Eligio Ayala), starts at Mercado 4 and passes numerous car dealerships, mechanical workshops and the Shopping Multiplaza. It takes the name of Ruta Mariscal Estigarribia on arriving at Fernando de la Mora. The road then continues to San Lorenzo and the Ruta 2 which crosses the country to Ciudad del Este.
The Avenida Fernando de la Mora, which also leaves from Mercado 4, passes in front of the bus terminal and joins the southern suburbs (Villa Elisa, Ñemby). The route takes the name of "Accesso Sur" and then catches up with Ruta 1 after the town of Itá.
These 5 axes are crossed by other major avenues which change their name from north to south: Perú; Uruguay/Gal Santos/Perón; Brasilia/Kubistchek/Guggiari; Sacramento/Chóferes del Chaco/Medicos del Chaco; Julio Correa/San Martín/República Argentina; Madame Linch/Defensores del Chaco. The latter is often called "Calle Última", as it marks the separation between Asunción and the neighbouring towns (Luque, San Lorenzo, Fernando de la Mora, Villa Elisa).
Finally, the recent Avenida José Asunción Flores, better known as Costanera, runs along the bay of Asunción to the north of the city.
Reading addresses
The colonial checkerboard model with its cuadras (linear from 100 to 150 meters) and manzanas (rectangular block) that can be found in almost every city in the country makes orientation very simple. The local writing of the local addresses has been preserved in this guide. Here is a small lexicon:
c/: means casi ("quasi", "almost") and not Calle ("street") as in Spain.
esq: esquina ("at the corner")
y: replace esq.
e/... y: between the street ... and the street ..
Avda or Av: Avenida ("avenue").
Ruta 1, km 123: the address is on roadno. 1 at km 123 (km 0 is in front of the Pantheon, in the centre of Asunción.
Examples: Cerro Corá 851 c/Tacuary. Means Cerro Corá streetno. 851, next to Tacuary street (which is perpendicular to it). Estrella y Alberdi, means at the corner of Estrella y Alberdi streets. Tacuary 745 e/Herrera y Moreno, means atNo 745 Tacuary Street, between Herrera and Moreno streets.
