Where is Ushuaia located?
Ushuaia has a strategic location that makes it unique, it is located on the shores of the Beagle Channel, which receives waters from both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. It is also the main gateway to Antarctica, is the only city in Argentina that is “behind” the Andes Mountains and is the southernmost city in the world.
Because of this and much more, year after year many visitors come to visit us and also more and more tourists want to travel.
Here is a quick guide for you to plan in which season you would like to visit us and what to take into account for each of them.
Travel to Ushuaia in Summer
The long days between December and February stand out, with sunrise at approximately 4:00 am and sunset at 10:11 pm at night.
The average temperature in summer is 10 degrees, there may be some warm days of 15 or 18 degrees sporadically and also very cold days, and it may even snow. The truth is that the summer weather is very changeable, with sun, rain and sun again in just one hour.
The summer weather is dry, it rains little and there is a lot of dust in suspension on the dirt roads, so we recommend our Tierra del Fuego National Park excursion.
This is the best time to see Magellanic Penguins and Papuas.
Travel to Ushuaia in Fall
In mid-March, the penguins begin to migrate with the colder weather, and the most beautiful time at the end of the world begins: autumn, where the colors invade the forest.
The lenga and the ñire, typical trees of Tierra del Fuego, before losing their leaves, change color, going through orange, red, yellow, ocher and then fall. The Guindo tree completes the landscape with its intense green, the only tree that keeps its leaves all year round.
At this time of the year it rains more, and there are usually many cap mushrooms on the trails.
We recommend traveling in early autumn, between late March and April, to appreciate the range of colors in the forest. Late fall, May and June, are considered low season, and low prices and promotions are highlighted.
In early June, depending on the year if there is snowfall or not, you can start enjoying winter activities.
Travel to Ushuaia in Winter
The days at this time are quite short. July 21 is the longest night, the sunrise on that day is at approximately 9:30 am and the sunset at 5:30 pm, from this date, the days begin to extend more and more until the longest day on December 21.
The temperature during the winter season is the lowest of the year, the average is 0 degrees. There are very cold days with temperatures below zero that can reach -10 or -15 degrees, but they are polar cold waves that arrive momentarily, there are also warmer days of between 5 and 10 degrees. The truth is that when the wind is not blowing the temperature is more pleasant, because the wind lowers the wind chill. In this season we recommend our Ushuaia City Tour.
In the months of July and August, we have the most intense snowfalls, and ski mountaineering at Cerro Castor is very enjoyable. The winter centers in the valley are also the great protagonists of the winter, in the different centers, such as Tierra Mayor, Llanos del Castor, Las Cotorras, Siberianos de Fuego, and Haruwen, activities such as cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, husky sledding, trekking and snowshoeing are developed.
September is the month with the longest and sunniest days of the whole winter. The ski season usually lasts until early October, well into spring, and this year Cerro Castor has announced that it will close on October 3.
September is the month that we recommend special attention with sunny days, due to the hole in the ozone layer, which affects the south of Tierra del Fuego. It is called hole to the thinning of the ozone gas layer that protects us from the sun, and having more reflection with the snow on the ground makes the rays more powerful and harmful to our health. A lot of sunscreen and sunglasses are recommended, this is also valid for the whole year.
Travel to Ushuaia in Spring
In the spring the thaw begins and temperatures start to be higher, but not as high as in other places on the planet, they can range between 8 and 12 degrees. At the beginning of October and November there is a lot of mud, mainly in the trekking, due to the thaw.
By mid-November and early December, everything is drier and the mud turns to dust, the days are getting longer and the city is flooded with ornamental flowers such as lupine and broom.
In conclusion, Ushuaia has a very changeable climate all year round and one should not trust the weather forecasts. The cold is what prevails and when there are sunny days you have to take advantage of them and enjoy them.
What to pack for your trip to Ushuaia?
When packing to travel to the end of the world, remember that the weather all year round is mainly cold, therefore, it is important to have the necessary warm clothes to enjoy your stay.
In winter, during the months of June until the beginning of October there is snow, so it is essential to have waterproof and warm clothing especially for this time of the year, such as: pants, gloves, jackets and snow boots. The important thing is not to get wet, so if your clothes are waterproof, you will be able to spend more time enjoying and in contact with the snow.
If you do not have this clothing equipment and do not want to incur in major expenses, you have the option of renting per day in the clothing rentals downtown, we recommend Popper’s Rental Ushuaia at 802 San Martin Ave.
For the rest of the year when there is no snow, but there are cold days, a waterproof jacket is enough. Anyway, for the whole year we recommend to apply the layering system, using three layers of clothing on top and two layers on the bottom.
For example: first layer, long sleeve cotton t-shirt, second layer, polar fleece sweatshirt and third layer waterproof jacket, for the lower part we recommend a thermal underwear under the pants if the day is very cold.
The footwear is another factor that we cannot fail, especially if you want to do trekking in summer. We recommend shoes with high cane, waterproof boots.
Top attractions to visit
No matter what time of the year you visit us, there are 3 main attractions to visit.
1. National Park. The national park can be visited all year round, in the summer season there are many sites and trails to enjoy. In the winter season you must access with vehicles that have studded tires and / or chains and some places within the park are closed because they are impassable due to ice or snow.
2. Escondido and Fagnano Lakes. Both lakes are visited all year round, in summer the green and reddish colors predominate in the valley bottom, and in winter everything is dressed in white to make way for cross-country skiing, sledding and motorcycle tracks.
3. Beagle Channel Navigation: In summer there is a longer option to go penguin watching at Martillo Island and all year round there is a short navigation of 3 hours to the Faro del Fin del Mundo, the island of the sea lions and the island of the birds.
Where to eat in Ushuaia?
Three typical dishes to enjoy all year round
Fuegian lamb: Typically cooked to the stake, it is characteristic to see the grills of Ushuaia exhibiting the rotisseries with this delicious meat cooking slowly. We recommend trying this dish at a winter resort in the valley such as Tierra Mayor or Las Cotorras. Also in the center, one of the best grills to try is the restaurant La Estancia.
Centolla Fueguina: this crustacean is caught in the Beagle Channel and served in the principal seafood restaurants downtown, just like the lamb, local restaurants display their fish tanks with spider crabs ready to cook. The best places to try this delicacy are: Volver Restaurant, Fredy’s Cantina and Viejo Marino Restaurant.
Patagonian toothfish: it is a large fish found in deep waters, its meat is white, delicious, buttery and delicate, some say it is more delicious than salmon. In all restaurants that serve seafood you can find this delicacy.
How do I travel to Ushuaia?
There are three ways to get to the island: by boat, by plane and by land.
- By boat: Arriving by boat is not possible today, but in summer, before the pandemic, tourists from all over the world used to arrive aboard large cruise ships, some of them ocean liners. These ships usually stay for a few hours in each port they visit. Usually the companies depart from Rio de Janeiro and call at a series of ports along the Atlantic coast, such as the Port of Montevideo in Uruguay and Puerto Madryn and Ushuaia in Argentina. They pass from one ocean to the other through the Beagle Channel and continue their itinerary to the north through Chile, mooring in different ports of that country, and then make the whole itinerary in reverse.
- By land: Even though we are on an island, it is possible to reach Ushuaia by car. In this case we must use a raft that is in Chile to cross the Strait of Magellan at the first narrowing, a crossing of only 20 minutes with good weather, the raft is usually canceled by strong winds. If you do not have a car, it is possible to buy bus tickets from anywhere in the country, with many connections. The closest connection is in the city of Rio Gallegos, which is the closest city to the island crossing.
- By plane: Undoubtedly the most comfortable and fastest way to get to Ushuaia is to get on a plane and arrive in just three and a half hours, currently there are two airlines that operate this route. In this note you have more detailed information about Aerolineas Argentinas and Jetsmart Lowcost airline.
How to get around Ushuaia
Ushuaia is a very quiet city where there is no insecurity, you will be able to move safely to any place at any time.
If you are staying in the center or surroundings, you will be able to walk everywhere, or for more comfort you can take a taxi or reserve a Remis. If you are staying outside the center walking is not an option, as the distances are long.
In addition to taxis and remises there are three urban lines that run from end to end of the city, there is a service app to see the stops and times that the bus will pass, SUBE card is used.
On the other side, you can contact our Travel Agency in Ushuaia to request a regular or private transfer service to the winter centers and Cerro Castor. The only excursion that does not include transfers is the Navigation.
