Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
402
about 12 hours.
Tecni Austral
(
&
2901/431408
in U shuaia, or 61/613423 in P unta
Arenas) leaves Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays at 5:30am; tickets are sold in Ush-
uaia from the Tolkar office, at Roca 157, and in Punta Arenas, at Lautaro Navarro 975.
Pacheco,
S an M artín 1267 (
&
2901/437727;
www.busespacheco.com), has trips to
Punta Arenas via Río Grande, leaving on Monday, Thursday, and Sunday at 9am; it costs
$54 (£36). To go to Río Grande, try
Lider LTD,
Transporte Montiel,
or
Tecni Austral.
They offer eight daily departures, and the $18 (£12) trip takes ar ound 4 hours.
BY BOAT
The company
Crucero Australis
operates a cr uise to U shuaia from Punta
Arenas and vice v ersa, aboard its ships the M/V
Mare Australis
and M/V
Via Australis;
departures ar e S aturday fr om P unta Ar enas and Wednesday fr om U shuaia, fr om late
September to April. See “Cruising from Punta Arenas to Ushuaia,” below.
What is unique about this cr uise is the intimacy of a smaller ship and its solitar y
route that takes passengers to places in Tierra del F uego that fe w have a chance to
see. Passengers are shuttled to shore via zodiacs (motorized inflatable boats) for two
daily excursions that can include visits to glaciers or a sea elephant rookery, walks to
view elaborate beaver dams, or horseback rides. There are several excellent bilingual
guides who give daily talks about the region's flora, fauna, history, and geology. Ser-
vice is stiff but pr ofessional, and the food is quite good. The accommodations ar e
comfortable, ranging fr om suites to simple cabins. All-inclusiv e, per-person prices
(excluding cocktails) range fr om $1,930 to $4,390 (£1,301-£2,960) one-way fr om
Punta Arenas and $1,440 to $3,290 (£971-£2,220) one-way fr om Ushuaia. It's not
really worth it to pay extra for an upper deck; second-floor ber ths are the most sta-
ble, quiet, and comfor table. This cruise operates fr om early O ctober to late A pril.
For reservations or information, contact their U.S. offices in M iami at 4014 Chase
Ave., Ste. 215 (
&
877/678-3772
).
Getting Around
BY C AR
Everything in and ar ound U shuaia is easily accessible via bus, taxi, or an
inexpensive shuttle or tour service. Ushuaia's taxi drivers must be the nation's friendliest,
and they 're fonts of information concerning the r egion. The multitude of ex cursion
options obviates the need for a car , though if y ou are staying at a hotel outside do wn-
town, a car will cer tainly fr ee y ou up for dining and exploring options.
Hertz,
San
Martín 245, has an office in town right next to the Crucero Australis office and another
at the airport (
&
2901/437529;
www.hertz.com).
Avis,
Godoy 46, drops its prices for
multiday rentals (
&
2901/436665;
www.avis.com);
Cardos Rent A C ar
is at A v. San
Martín 845 (
&
2901/436388
). Rates star t at $75 (£51) a day in high season. M ost of
them rent 4×4 jeeps with unlimited mileage. If you wish to cross into Chile at San Sebas-
tian, you will need a special-permission document costing $50 (£34).
13
Visitor Information
The
Subsecretaría de Turismo
has two v ery helpful and w ell-stocked offices on S an
Martín 674 (
&
2901/432001;
fax 2901/434550) and another on the tourism P ier,
Maipú 505 (
&
2901/437666;
fax 2901/430694; www.e-ushuaia.com). They also have
a counter at the airpor t. The offices ar e open M onday thr ough F riday fr om 8am to
10pm, Saturdays and Sundays from 9am to 8pm.The national park administration office
is on Av. San Martín 1395 (
&
2901/421315;
Mon-Fri 9am-3pm).
