2020 South America/Antarctica: Ushuaia, Argentina

Destinations/Ports Series: 2020 South America/Antarctica Cruise

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We weren’t quite sure what to expect from the Southern most city in the world, but the port turned into one of the highlights of this cruise. We started the day by exploring on foot with the idea of finding a little café for authentic Argentine food. We found a little place called Andino that suited us perfectly. They served a fusion of Argentinian and Italian food, so I ordered the gnocchi with a beef ragout sauce.

We did a little souvenir shopping, as the main street in town is lined with all kinds of shops, some selling you regular gift shop types of tchotchkes and others selling more upscale outdoor apparel. During the Argentine winter, the town is a bustling ski resort and in the summer tourists come from around the world to take in the beauty of the Beagle Channel and the Tierra Del Fuego National Park.

The area was named “Land of Fire” by Spanish sailors who noticed the many camp fires of the native people who inhabited the area. Interestingly enough, despite the cold environment, those people, known as Yaghan, wore very little clothing. Folks can learn more about those people and the history of Ushuaia, including the building of the railroad and the prison located at the “End of the World” at the town’s Thematic Gallery which tells the history of Fuegians through dioramas depicting 36 scenes with 120 figures of characters from the history of Tierra del Fuego. We visited the gift shop of the museum and took pictures with some those characters in the out door display.

In the afternoon, we had a amazing experience with our Beagle Channel excursion cruise. This was a chance to not only take in the beautiful scenery of the area, but also to see the local wildlife in the form of sea lions and imperial cormorants. Later, we walked along the waterfront, which gave us further photographic opportunities.

The evening as the ship sailed out of Ushuaia was another extraordinary experience. We forwent dinner in the dining room and instead ordered room service so we could watch the late sunset from our balconies. We also had fun trying to identify the Antarctic expedition ships that were making their way in and out of the port to begin or end their extensive expedition style cruises to the southern continent.

Enjoy some more pictures from our visit to Ushuaia!

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Suzanne Klasen

Suzanne Klasen is the Owner / Travel Advisor of CruiseOne Suzanne Klasen. We have combined our love of cruising with computer skills to bring you a very informative and entertaining site that follows my cruising travels and thoughts. I hope that you will let me help plan your next vacation.