Argentina - The Rough Guide to South America on a Budget

Travel Reference

In-Depth Information

ACCOMMODAT ION

Accommodation is generally of fairly poor quality and fills

up quickly in summer.

Camping ATSA 500m southwest of the bus terminal

on Ast urias, a t Yugoslavia T 02966 156 7758. Camping/

person AR$20

Colonial Urquiza, at Rivadavia T 02966 420020, E ines

_frey@hotmail.com. A warm and chatty dueña - a descen-

dant of one of the first settlers in Río Gallegos - runs this

rambling old house, in which lurks a hotchpotch of basic, but

very clean rooms; all have TVs and some are en suite. AR$200

Hospedaje Elcira Pje Zuccarino 431 T 02966 429856.

Handy for the bus station, this neat guesthouse is popular

with Argentines. It looks like grandma's house, has a TV

lounge and t he on ly kitchen open fo r guests to use in

town. Dorms AR$70 , doubles AR$180

Sehuén Rawson 160 T 02966 425683, W hotelsehuen

.com. An e ciently run little hotel with a range of decent

rooms; each has a TV, phone and boxy private bathroom, as

well as a bilingual l copy of the New Testament. Breakfast

included. AR$230

sea-going brown trout lure fly-fishing

enthusiasts from around the world.

1

WHAT TO SEE AND DO

Río Gallegos' city centre has a couple of

worthwhile museums and some nicely

restored historical wooden buildings.

Housed in an early settler home dating

from 1890, at Albedí & Elcano, the Museo

de los Pioneros (daily 10am-7pm; free;

T

02966 437763) is decked out with

period furniture and evocative old photos.

They also have periodic exhibitions of coins

or letters from the early twentieth century.

he Museo Regional Provincial Padre Jesús

Molina , Ramón y Cajal 51 (Mon-Fri

10am-5pm, Sat & Sun noon-7pm; free;

T 02966 426427), offers rolling contem-

porary art exhibitions, a motley collection

of stuffed regional fauna, dinosaur models

and artefacts from the indigenous

Tehuelche. If live animals interest you

more, consider a tour of the penguin

colony at Cabo Vírgenes, a nesting site for

around 180,000 Magellanic penguins,

140km southeast of the city; trips are on

offer between October and March.

EATING AND DRINKING

As with accommodation, restaurant prices are high in Río

Gallegos, but there are a couple of places worth stretching

the budget a bit for.

Belfast Alberdi 344. If you fancy a beer (from AR$15),

head over to Belfast , whose owners have made a decent

attempt at creating a pub-like atmosphere. Sun-Thurs

7pm-5am, Fri & Sat 7pm-6am.

British Club Kirchner 935 T 02966 432668, W britishclub

.com.ar. A port of call for Bruce Chatwin, this atmospheric

place has more than a hint of a gentleman's club about it.

The menu has some inventive lamb and seafood dishes,

though prices are on the high side, with few mains under

AR$70. An English high tea is served around 5pm. Daily

noon-midnight.

Freddo Kirchner 917 T 02966 423302, W freddo.com.ar.

This outpost of the famous Argentina chain serves the top

helado (ice cream) in Río Gallegos. The coffee is good too,

and each cup comes with a little taste of ice cream. Tues-

Sun 10am-10pm.

Ì Laguanacazul Gob Lista, at Sarmiento T 02966

444144. Genial chef Mirko Ionfrida uses locally sourced

ingredients (think guanaco and rhea) to cook up

memorable haute cuisine at this waterfront restaurant.

Lamb is his signature dish. Mains from around AR$60.

Tues-Sun noon-3pm & 8pm-midnight.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE

By plane Río Gallegos Airport is 7km west of the city. There

are no buses to the centre; taxis cost around AR$60-70.

Destinations Daily flights to Buenos Aires, El Calafate and

Trelew, and weekly ones to Ushuaia.

By bus The bus station ( T 02966 442585) is 2km west of

the city at the corner of Av Eva Perón and the RN3. Bus #A

runs downtown; a taxi costs AR$30-35.

Destinations El Calafate (4-5 daily; 4hr); Puerto Madryn

(7 daily; 18-19hr); Río Grande (3 daily; 9-10hr); Ushuaia

(2 daily; 12hr); and, in Chile, Punta Arenas (2 daily; 3hr

30min); Puerto Natales (2 weekly; 4hr).

INFORMAT ION AND TOURS

Tourist information Río Gallegos has two main tourist

o ces in the city centre, both helpful and e cient: one at

Beccar 126 (Mon-Fri 8am-8pm, Sat & Sun 8am-noon

& 4-8pm; T 02966 436920, W turismo.riogallegos.gov.ar)

and another in an old (formerly horse-drawn) wagon on the

corner of Av Kirchner and San Martín (Mon-Fri 8am-8pm,

Sat & Sun 8am-2pm & 4-8pm; closed during the winter;

T 02966 422365). There's also a booth in the bus terminal

(Mon-Fri 7am-8pm, Sat & Sun 4-8pm; T 02966 442159).

Tour operator Maca Tobiano (Av Kirchner 988; T 02966

422466, W macatobiano.com) runs day-trips to Cabo

Vírgenes.