Ushuaia Off The Beaten Path

Ushuaia is the departure point for ships going to Antartica.
There are Antartic expedition that do 8-11 day trips.
If you don't have to have luxury you might get on this Russian ship.
There are also last minute bookings to Antartica for as low as $1600. You have to be very flexible to luck out with one of these.

Anyone interested in the history of the islands Indian inhabitants and their extinction will want to visit Estancia Harberton, 85 km east of Ushuaia. It can be reached by land or by sea.
It was established in 1887 by Thomas and Mary Bridges, the first white missionaries to settle there.
You are taken on a tour of the building and the English gardens ending at the tea shop for snacks.

This is one of the sights of Ushuaia, and is located on one of the many promontories that jut out into the Beagle Channel. It forms the furthermost destination of most of the boat trips that take tourists on an exploration of the Channel. The tower is painted in red and white stripes, is 11 meters tall, and is equipped with a solar energy based lighting device.

This lighthouse is claimed by Argentina to be the most southerly in the world, though Chile has one about which a similar claim is made. I don’t know which is the real “southernmost lighthouse”, nor do I care especially – perhaps they are level with each other :)

It is apparently also, though mistakenly, called the Headlight of the End of the World, the name that Julius Verne used for the San Juan de Salvamento headlight, at Isla de los Estados. Maybe that is a mistake, but the name describes it very well as it certainly has to be one of the most remote spots for a lighthouse.

Photo taken by Chris

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Cape Horn is in a distance of not more than 150 km from Ushuaia. Mare Australis is one of the ships that offers landings at Cape Horn several times in the southern summer between September and April. They are doing 4 and 5-day cruises from Punto Arenas and will also stop in Ushuaia.
Cap Hoorn is the southern-most island of South America and it got its name by the dutch town of Hoorn, from where 2 ships had left in 1615 in order to find a direct way on the ocean from Europe to India.
read more about Cape Horn on my page about :
Isla Hornos
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a great travelagent in Ushuaia

Estancia Harberton

Located in the extreme South of Argentina, just above the Beagle Channel, on the smooth slopes of the fields, the Harberton ranch was built in 1886 by the first non aboriginal settler of Tierra del Fuego.

If you like nature, at this place you can see more than 500 varieties of birds, other animals (including penguins) and flowers... In the nearby mountains theres a very dense vegetation, with a great variety of fern and "fueguinas" orchid by the trees.

There are historical pictures and theres a very peaceful place to have some tea with cake.

its a nice option to spend the afternoon...

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The Tourist-office of Ushuaia is to be found in one of the most beautiful buildings in the centre of the village. It was built inside an old blockhouse that was built in 1926 at the crossing of San-Martino-Avenue and Juana-Fadul-Street, a house beautifully painted in red and white. In 1926 this house was built as Sarmiento Popular Library and in 1996, when the library needed a larger house the building was bought by the city of Ushuaia.
The touristoffice is open :
Monday-Friday : 8.00am till 10.00pm
weekends and Holidays
from 09.00am till 08.00pm

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Nuestra Señora de la Merced is the largest church in Ushuaia, founded by Salesianer-monks in 1898 and it was built by wood and sheet iron. You will find this church at the crossing of Av. San Martín und calle Don Bosco, just about 100 meters from Plaza Don Bosco or 800 meters west of the former prison. You will be able to enter the interior freely and without restrictions during the day, taking photographs is no problem at all !

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Dont miss to take a closer look at this lovely old house opposite of the entrance to the old prison-museum. When you enlarge my photographs you will see that lovely scenery with a cat chasing a mouse on the roof of the building and a whale beeing used as a wind-flag on top of the chimney. According to one of the sign-posts on the building this could be a bar nowadays, but everything was locked ans closed, so I am not sure wether it is still in operation.