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Ushuaia guide

View on Ushuaia from the Beagle Channel
View on Ushuaia from the Beagle Channel.
Most cruise ships that sail to Antarctica leave from Ushuaia, Argentina's southernmost city situated on the Beagle Channel. Having visited the city and its surroundings a couple of times myself, I have summarized the most interesting things to see and some other practical information on these pages. Ushuaia and its surroundings are worth spending a couple of days extra. It is a very safe place where the people are very friendly and helpful. The information I am providing here is just 'as is' and the aim was never to be complete. It reflects my personal opinions and impressions.

Feedback and suggestions are always welcome; just send your feedback to LEXsample.

How to get to Ushuaia?

Ushuaia is over 3000 km from Buenos Aires, so most visitors take the plane to get there. The flight will take some 4 hours and usually stops at Rio Grande or Trelew. Flying south along the coastline, you may fly over Peninsula Valdéz. The Patagonian landscape is empty and flat, but the final descend to Ushuaia airport over the last tip of the Andes mountains and the Beagle Channel is always spectacular.

Aerolineas Argentinas are not known for their accurate timings, so make sure you take sufficient time between transfers, especially when you are transferring between an intercontinental and a domestic flight.

Aerolineas Argentinas

Getting around in Ushuaia

You can download a city map in PDF format (with searchable street names) from this link.

The centre of Ushuaia is not very extended and everything is within walking distance. Taxis are safe and not very expensive if you need one to get further away from the centre, such as higher up the hills. Never keep your eyes off the pavement when you are walking around in Ushuaia: there are weird steps and holes or no pavement at all. The city government does not seem to be responsible for its maintenance.

Where to sleep?

Ushuaia can be noisy during the night: dogs start barking, cars beep their horn when approaching a crossing. Bringing ear plugs may be a good idea. There are a lot of hotels, B&B's, hostels and other sorts of accomodations. Here are a few I have stayed:

Cabo San Diego
Just off the main street, a short but steep climb up the hill. But you'll be rewarded with meeting the owners (Diego, Alicia and Alberto) - the finest people you can meet. 280 pesos per 2 persons per night. Includes wifi (good connection) and cooking facilities. The breakfast is just a tray of crackers and a cookie, but there is a bakery at 100m down the same street.

Hostel César
Right in the middle of the main street. The beds are way too soft and smoking is allowed in the rooms, so there is a smell of tobacco every once in a while. The art on the wall hurts your eyes. There is no wifi in the rooms, but their restaurant, Café Del Angel offers a very good connection.

Internet cafés, telephone boots & wifi

There are many internet cafés and places where you can call your friends and family on San Martín and the streets around. If you have a notebook computer, there are good wireless internet connections (wifi) available at the café/bakery 'Ramos Generales' (Maipú). The former grocery shop not only has a lovely old atmosphere but also tasty dishes. The place is popular with Antarctic guides because it is near to the pier where the cruise ships moor. Another good wifi spot is Café Del Angel (part of Hostel César, San Martín. Closed on Sunday).

Shopping

Ushuaia is a big town and growing, so there are shops of all sorts. Most shops are in or around the main street, San Martín and are open from Mon-Sat from 10:00 until 22:00 but typically closed between 12:00-16:00. There are various outdoor gear shops (clothes, equipment). There are many electronics and photo camera shops too, but they are not as cheap as food, for example.

The biggest supermarkets are La Anónima, open Mon-Say from 09:00-22:00 and on Sundays from 09:30-14:00). You can find them here:

There are many smaller supermarkets and bakeries (panerías) all around the city center. The bakeries sell some sweet pastry (facturas) but all these sweet things start to taste the same after a while. If you are looking for delicious fresh brown bread, go to Ramos Generales (nice olive and wallnut bread). Bookshop
Boutique del Libro has two shops: a general one in San Martín and another one, run by Mariano, specialized in Antarctic books on 25 de Mayo nr. 62. Post office
The post office is located at San Martín. Open from Mon-Fri 10:00-18:00 and on Saturdays from 10:00-13:00. A stamp on a postcard (consider ordering LEXsample postcards!) costs 5 pesos.

Where to eat?

Dinner time in Argentina starts around 21:00. There are many restaurants in San Martín. I know from others that the steaks are tasteful in Ushuaia, but being vegetarian myself I cannot confirm this.

Why there are so many pizzeria's in Ushuaia, I do not know. They all sell the same sort of pizza's and empanadas. Most of the pizza's are based on muzarella, not the real cheese but a greasy, industrial alternative. The worst pizza I ever ate (could not even finish it) was from take-away 'Peron 230' (Gobernador Paz 636, tel. 444999). The cheapest pizzas and empanadas (but still OK) are available from 'Dieguito' delivery (Magallanes 967, tel. 430013). The best pizzas I ate were from '137' (formerly known as Tante Sara)

A Korean couple runs 'Bamboo' (up Piedrabuena Street) which is a tasteful vegetarian take-away. Useful if you have a microwave or oven at hostel/hotel room.

Where to drink? And what?

The cosy interior of Ramos Generales
The cosy interior of Ramos Generales.
On a cold day, try a 'submarino' (hot milk with a chocolate in the shape of a submarine). On a hot day, taste one of the many flavours of ice cream at Gadget, at the west side of San Martín. You will be looking in vain for places to sit outside.

Ramos Generales
My favourite place is Ramos Generales (Maipú), with its nice dishes, atmosphere and wifi. Their website tells the history of the place and gives an idea of the real restaurant.

Tante Sara café
Most people will hang out in Tante Sara café, in the middle of San Martín. Its big windows give a view on the tourists walking up and down the shopping street.

Kuar
Outside Ushuaia, about 1.5 km east of the city, is a nice place called Kuar ('Resto.bar.ushuaia' Avenida Perito Moreno 2232). Its big windows offer a great view on the Beagle Channel. Open 12:00-15:00 and 18:00 until midnight.

Invisible
At the east end of San Martín (number 19) there is a cosy bar called Invisible. Try a glass of Fernet, a strong drink that the Italians brought to Argentina. There are a couple of live bands and tango classes, playing late in the evening (actually, more during the night). Open every day from 08:00-04:00.

Money

There are a few ATM's in San Martín and a few more just off San Martín. I use the ones marked LINK (a green circle with the word LINK in yellow). The ATM's are in Spanish and English. Last time I was in Ushuaia (early 2009) the maximum withdrawal was 350 pesos per transaction, but you could effect multiple transactions on a day.

Electricity

Electricity in Argentina is 220 V and 50 Hz. The power plugs use 2 or 3 legs. European 2-leg plugs may or may just fit (but often not!) in an Argentine wall socket, but you can buy simple adapters in electronic stores if you need to. For a picture of the plugs used in Argentina, check this website.

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