Ushuaia Things to Do

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This museum presents the history of Ushuaia and Tierra del Fuego including the history of the indigenous tribes, the maritime activity and its European settlers such as Thomas Bridge, who established the first successful missionary to the province. When I visited there was a special exhibition on Felix Mariano Paz, the first governor of Tierra del Fuego, and the museum was celebrating the 125th anniversary of his arrival.

One of the museums is housed in an old government house where you can see some of the rooms reconstructed to how they were in the 19th Century (See Antigua Casa de Gobierno Page).

I personally feel it is not worth the 30 ARP (February 2011) for the entry fee considering that it is not a big museum (housed in two small buildings). I think, however, it's an important and interesting museum that gives an insight into the region's history and to those who have shaped Ushuaia.

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"The train at the end of the world" is a museum-train that uses a part of the original track of the former prisoner-train, BUT it uses locomotives and also wagons that were never used by the prisoners. The locomotive on my main picture was built in 1938 in Germany.
You will find this museum-train in a distance of about 10 km from Ushuaia and you will go through a part of the National Park, you will pass by the "cemetery of the trees" and go to Macarena Waterfalls, where a short stop of 10-15 minutes will give you enough time to step up to the waterfalls.

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A superb musical show, telling the storie about Charles Darwin and capt. Fitz Roy trip along Beagle Channel.

“La Aventura del Beagle” is a dazzling multimedia historical show of international level that combines variety of artistic resources (like actors, puppets, black theater, movies, shadow
and special effects).
We will be part of History seated in glaciers, mountains and at a live size replica of HMS Beagle.
A Must.

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A great option is definately sailing along the Beagle Channel. There are several catamarans & boats doing this excursion. It´s a 3 hours trip where you can enjoy of a magnificent view of the Andes hiding in depths of the the sea, as well as all the local wildlife (different birds, seals...). You will also get to see "les Eclaireurs" lighthouse.
The Beagle is really calm (though its really windy & cold even in summer). A place to enjoy the silence.
These excursions are between $60-$160 (pesos). Three times a week there are some sailing on a day-trip to Hurberton but you may also get there by bus leaving daily from downtown Ushuaia.
Try booking in advance!!!!!!!!!!

To link the prison to a timber area, the convicts built the world's southernmost railroad. Today the Train to the End of the World offers daily steam-driven excursions in replicas of English passenger wagons. During the journey, a bilingual guide (Spanish-English), recount the history of the "Convict Train".
The train goes through the Pipo River across the Quemadon Bridge and makes its first stop at the De la Macarena Cascade. Here you can either go down the steps to the Indian campsite reconstruction of one of the four native tribes that lived in Ushuaia, or go up the steps to see the Macarena Waterfall whose source is in the Le Martial mountain range.
After fifteen minutes, the train continus on its journey to a sub-Antarctic forest. It crosses different sites where the prisoners worked every day for 50 years cutting down trees.
After skirting the "Turbal", a raised sphagnum moss bog typical of Tierra del Fuego, the train arrives at the "Estacion del Parque".
There is a bar and toilet.
From here you can either return by train to the Estacion del Fin del Mundo or continue your excursion deeper into the Tierra del Fuego National Park.To do that you have to pre-book a tour bus.
The cost is 17 USD return and 16 USD one way.
In season, first train at 9:00 last at 17:00

In 1896 the first group of convicts arrived in Ushuaia to begin the reincidents jail (it was a group of houses made of wood and tin); in 1902, the Military Prison, which was situated at Isla de los Estados, was moved to Ushuaia for humanitarian reasons. The same year began the construction of the National Prison; at the time, Ushuaia had only 40 houses. The building was done by the prisoners, and it was finished in 1920. It had five pavilions, and 380 single cells (but sometimes were there more than 600 convicts).
The prisoners had the posibility of primary education and paid jobs.
The jail worked until 1947.
Inside the cells, you will find the history and the stories of the jail and the prisoners.

En 1896 el primer grupo de prisioneros llegó a Ushuaia para comenzar la cárcel de reincidentes (era un conjunto de casas de madera y chapa); en 1902, la Prisión Militar, que estaba ubicada en la Isla de los Estados, fue trasladada a Ushuaia por razones humanitarias. El mismo año comenzó la construcción del Presidio Nacional; por ese tiempo, Ushuaia tenía 40 casas. La construcción fue llevada a cabo por los propios convictos, y fue concluida en 1920. Tenía cinco pabellones y 380 celdas individuales (aunque llegó a alojar a más de 600 prisioneros).
Los reclusos tenían la posibilidad de recibir educación primaria y de trabajos remunerados.
La cárcel funcionó hasta 1947.
En cada celda encontrarán la historia y las historias del presidio y los prisioneros.

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The highlight of my stay in Ushuaia was doing a cruise on the Beagle Channel.

There are number of companies that do various tours and you can book this via your accommodation at from the Muelle Turistico at Ushuaia's pier. The standard tour, which I took, includes Isla de Los Lobes, Isla de Los Pajaros, Faro Les Eclaireurs and Isla Bridges. The longer tours would include the Magellanic Penguin Rookery and Estancia Harberton.

I chose the company, Tango/Navegando El Fin Del Mundo, to do the cruise. I also chose to go on a smaller boat than a catamaran where there were about eight of us plus the two man crew/guide. It cost me 180 ARP (February 2011) plus 7 ARP Passenger Tax. The cruise took approximately 4 hours and this included hot drinks and snacks as well as getting close to the Islands. We saw sea lions and cormorants on the Islands and we also got off at Isla Bridges where we learnt about the Yamanas and how they incorporated nature in their lives by the Beagle Channel.

This Old House of Government today houses the Museo Del Fin Del Mundo. It is worth having a wander in its gardens which are free of charge and of course there is the museum to visit where some of the rooms have been restored to how they were when first built.

The history of the house beings in 1891 which was the residence of the governor for Tierra Del Fuego. The fire in 1920 destroyed the house so both the governor's residence and government house was merged to become one.

A local delegation, "Provincia Patagonia" occupied the building from 1955 to 1957 where it came to be the house of government for the previous National Territory of Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica and South Atlantic Islands.

In 1983, the house was renovated and became the headquarters of the Territorial Legislature and was declared as a National Historial Monument. In 2002 it because a historical culture centre which is currently managed by the province.