Wanderlust and Trails: USHUAIA...the End of the World

Aptly called the End of the World, the Southernmost tip of South America and the gateway to
Antarctica. It's a resort town in Argentina, the Capital of Terra Del Fuego province. Ushuaia is regarded as the southernmost city in the world.
A very long 48.5 hour journey from Los Angeles, California took us to this beautiful resort town. Our journey included overnight stays in Houston, TX and Bogota, Colombia. From LAX, we flew to Houston for 3 hours, from Houston to Bogota 4.5 hours. Bogota served as our port of entry to South America. From Bogota we flew to Buenos Aires for 6.5 hours and ultimately to Ushuaia for 3.5 hours. Flying time and total travel time would vary depending on prices and choice of airlines and layovers. In our case, we flew with United Airlines and Aerolineas Argentinas Airlines. My friends and I were in El Carafate and El Chalten back in March of 2016 and back then we had to acquire a tourist visa to Argentina and paid $160 for 10 years of multiple entry. In recent months, visa requirements had been lifted and tourists with US passports can enter Argentina without a visa. I chose to carry my visa with me just in case and was never asked to show it to immigration.

En route from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia, 3.5 hour flight.

Arrival in Ushuaia was a convenient process. The airport in fact reminds me of Alaska, El Carafate or even Reykjavik. The architecture rustic and beautiful and transit was well organized. We wanted to exchange US dollars to Argentinian peso ($1 USD equals 15.30 Argentinian pesos, exchange varies by location, some stores and hotels' exchange rate could be from 13-15) unfortunately for us the country is celebrating their "Sovereignty Holiday" & banks are closed. Credit cards or even US dollars however are widely accepted especially in urban and tourist areas. From the airport we took a taxi for $10 USD about a 20 minute drive to the city center where our hotel Hotel Del Bosque is located.

Our hotel for one night. $110 double occupancy. Located up in a hill so can be a challenge for those with physical limitations.

Boats to Antarctica are docked here

Ramos General, where we had our first real meal. Love the interior's unique rustic decor

Located by the docks and across from the Visitor Center are various tour companies that can arrange for any tour including trips to Antarctica.

One of the many souvenir shops around town. Outdoor shops can also be found all over town.

Museums can also be found around town for those looking to learn about the town's or country's history. Tours range from guided tours to the National Park, penguin colonies, etc to self guided tours/walks or renting a car to explore Ushuaia and surrounding areas on your own. Commercial vans, coach buses and taxis are also available as options.

Traveling around Argentina is generally not cheap especially when it comes to food and shopping. Food cost would obviously depend on food preferences and budget. There are fast food places that sell pizza or empanadas for 210 pesos if looking to eat on a budget. Personally as a
meatlover coming to Argentina is a gastronomic trip since the country is known for its grass fed animals that account for some of the best lamb and steaks that you can't find anywhere else. So naturally I like to pamper myself in moderate to higher end restaurants that serve these delicious

meals. And besides it's almost a sin to have bad meat with the best dose of Argentinian Malbec.

Appetizer at Casimiro Bigua restaurant

An at least 5 hour process ensures one of the best lamb and steak dinners I've ever had.

Total dinner cost $100 USD , lamb and steak and a bottle of Malbec shared by 3 people. 10% tip is acceptable although depending on what country you're from (15-20% average in the US), tipping is at customer's discretion.