This trip allows you to visit the three most touristic developed destinations of the southernmost region of the Argentinean Patagonia: Puerto Madryn, Ushuaia and El Calafate. Each city possesses a different set of activities, complementing themselves, which is why the trip provides the tourist with unique experiences in each place. The journey guarantees the sighting of fascinating sea fauna, the views of millennial glaciers and the possibility of reaching the southernmost point of the continent, surrounded by mountains and dreamlike sceneries.
Puerto Madryn
The city possesses an undisputable touristic attractive being the largest service center of the Patagonian coast and entry to the Valdes Peninsula, World Heritage Site of the UNESCO since 1999. This is the scenery chosen by the Southern right whale each year to mate and give birth to its offspring. This natural show can be witnessed between June and mid-December in the town of Puerto Pirámides.The sighting lasts for approximately an hour, depending on the proximity of the specimens. The small boats get to a safe distance from the whales, at which point it is them that do the actual sighting, sometimes even going underneath the boats where they can be seen and photograph thanks to the complete transparency of the water. Whales, penguins, sea elephants, Sea lions and dolphins, as well as a great variety of birds and land fauna make up the greatest attraction of Valdes Peninsula. The surrounding landscape of the coast and the steppe, the farms and the adventure, make up a destination which welcomes visitors all year round. Daily trips from Puerto Madryn to nearby areas let the travelers see other sea species, such as dolphins, Commerson’s dolphins and the largest continental colony of Magellanic penguins. The latter of which is located in Punta Tombo, with approximately 175000 couples which may be seen between September and April. Another of the attractions of the area is the Welsh town of Gaiman where it’s possible to visit a historic tour, museums, Welsh chapels, agricultural tourism farms and the Paleontological Park, teahouses; as well as enjoying accommodation and gastronomic services. If the travelers are interested in palaeontology, then one of the must see locations is the Egidio Feruglio Museum of Palaeontology, located in the city of Trelew, where there’s a permanent exhibit that takes visitors in a trip to the past, from the first humans, to the beginning of life on the planet, passing of course through the species of dinosaurs that inhabited the area. Puerto Madryn has for its visitors a varied and modern infrastructure: accommodation, restaurants, travel agencies, beach clubs, shopping centres, handicrafts and shows. Beaches, dunes, the sea and the plateau are the perfect background for outdoor activities such as scuba diving, kayaking, mountain biking, trekking, and sea trips to enjoy nature as much as possible.
Ushuaia
While being in Patagonia, it is also possible to visit “The End of the World”. Each of the seasons gives you a different reason to know the southernmost city in the entire world. The almost remote feeling of it thick forests, mountains, valleys and lakes draws tourist to admire the scenery and invades the mind of each visitor. There are many options offered by this city, one of them is the Tierra del Fuego National Park, located 11 km from the city, the only Argentinean national park with a seacoast (Beagle Channel) bathing the forest. The Train of the End of the World provides a chance to go back in time to the era in which prisoners were taken by train to provide firewood for the population of the city. Nowadays, the Train of the End of the World has become a tourist attraction which covers the same journey that convicts travelled into the national park. Sailing on the channels of the province is an unforgettable experience and an opportunity to see the natural sights of Ushuaia from a different point of view. Beautiful bays, islets and fiords full of birds and sea mammals dazzle the sight all through the trip on the blue waters of the mythical Beagle Channel. During the winter, Ushuaia dresses in white, and the snow gives way to other options to enjoy the city. The ski enthusiast will find one of the most modern ski centres in the country; furthermore, fun is assured with trips on dog driven sleds, snowmobiles, trips on the snow with snowshoes and much more. Museums are a great choice if the travelers wish to know more about the history and culture of the city and province. The most famous are the Museum of the End of the World, the Yamana Museum, the Sea Museum and the Prison which has been restored and is now a museum. In the latter, it is possible to see the different cell blocks, some of them recreated, and a special relic: the historic building, which is in the exact same state as it was when the Prison was closed in 1947. It is possible to get a completely different view of the city from the air, tourist flights give clear sight if Ushuaia and its surroundings, with unforgettable images. We recommend that the weather be checked previously, since it may change rapidly in the region. For those who wish to continue the adventure, Ushuaia has another surprise in store for them, the chance to get to Antarctica. The tourist season begins in October and ends by the end of March. During the summer months in the southern hemisphere various ships, mostly cruise ships but also sailboats, give the chance of visiting the white continent. The length of the trips as well as the destinations visited varies, from 10 days to over 3 weeks.
El Calafate
Known as the National Capital of Glaciers, El Calafate is at the shores of Lago Argentino, el largest lake on Argentine soil. It is the starting point to enter the Los Glaciares National Park, declared World Heritage Site by the UNESCO in 1981. The park has close to 350 glaciers, among them the Perito Moreno Glacier, as well as the Upsala, the Viedma, the Spegazzini and the Onelli. There are many alternatives to know and enjoy the glaciers, from brief boat rides to daily ones, even the possibility to do trekking on the ice or to combine any of the two options with visits to the different farms in the area. Over the years, the town has been developed greatly and currently, and besides the classic visits to the Perito Moreno Glacier and the boat rides to visit the treasures of the National Park, a great amount of activities can be enjoyed by the visitors.Nowadays it is also possible to ascend mountains in 4 wheel drive vehicles, visits to farms and archeologically rich locations, horseback riding and an ever growing amount of museum and interpretation centres. Furthermore, El Calafate has a very attractive shopping centre, and wide range of high quality gastronomic options and an urban reservation (Bird Municipal Reserve Laguna Nimes) very close to the town centre. El Calafate may be visited at any time of the year; during the winter, due to its low temperatures, snowfalls usually occur, which change the landscape drastically and give a beautiful new look to the area (we recommend travelers to check the availability of the tours since some of them cannot be done during the winter for security reasons). Some of the locations around El Calafate are solely dedicated to adventure tourism. Travelers may choose to do a full day trip to El Chaltén (known as National Capital of Trekking) which is 220 km away from El Calafate. During the trip, they may do boat rides, walks on the Viedma Glacier, visit a cascade of over 40 meters high and get bedazzled with the beautiful landscape, crowned by Mount Fitz Roy.In order to complete this trip in the recommended length, connections will have to be done via plane. In case of having fewer days than recommended, two destinations could be chosen. We suggest that all air routes are checked since they may not be available all year round. Due to the different characteristics of the destinations, travelers may enjoy many diverse activities and attractions depending of the time of the year. Because of this, we recommend travelers that they look for those that accommodate better for their expectations.
