Beagle Channel Tour in Ushuaia

[jeana]

Hi Everyone,

 

I am planning to take a Beagle Channel cruise tour on my day in Ushuaia and I was hoping to do it on my own. I noticed that Princess offers the same cruise tour and was wondering if this means I will have a problem getting a spot on one of the tour boats if I don't take the ship's tour.

 

I have tried to contact some of the tour operators via e-mail, but have not gotten any response.

 

Has anyone done this?

 

Thanks,

Jeana

[dileep]

Hi Everyone,

 

I am planning to take a Beagle Channel cruise tour on my day in Ushuaia and I was hoping to do it on my own. I noticed that Princess offers the same cruise tour and was wondering if this means I will have a problem getting a spot on one of the tour boats if I don't take the ship's tour.

 

I have tried to contact some of the tour operators via e-mail, but have not gotten any response.

 

Has anyone done this?

 

Thanks,

Jeana

 

Yes, we found at least 3 tour operators at the dock.

 

We left the ship around 9 am and bought tickets (70 pesos per person) at the pier for a 3 hour Beagle Channel excursion on catamaran operated by Caneoro Catamaranes. We stopped on Bridges Island for 40 minutes for a panoramic view of Ushuaia and the mountains around it and to see the local flora and fauna. We saw cormorants and seals on little island and the Lighthouse.

[jeana]

Thanks Dileep. I believe the tour operator you used is one I attempted to contact. I am going to take the chance and hop off the ship early and catch one of those catamarans!

 

Thanks again,

Jeana

[jeana]

Hi Dileep,

 

Just wondering - do you recall if your ship offered the Beagle Channel cruise as one of its tours?

 

Thanks

Jeana

[dileep]

Hi Dileep,

 

Just wondering - do you recall if your ship offered the Beagle Channel cruise as one of its tours?

 

Thanks

Jeana

 

Yes, they did. It left earlier and I think may have had something else also included in it (possibly national park). The tour we took was not full and there were others. We had to go past the ship to th ticket booth to buy our teckets, and I think they took US$ cash.

[2552phxcrzr]

We were in Ushuaia December 29-31, so I'll give you our experience.

 

In a small square across from the port (outside the gates and to the right on the other side of the street; just a couple minutes from the gates) are kiosks that sell these boat tours - I would say at least 5-6, maybe more. Different companies, different size vessels.

 

We did this, sort of last minute, during our 3-day pre-cruise stay in Ushuaia, and had no problems doing the 3-hour afternoon tour. (Would have preferred the longer tour, but time was limited.) I don't recall that there were any big ships in port that day, but the day before there were 7, including the Nordnorge, and they were still selling tickets for the afternoon cruises; don't know about the morning cruises.

 

There are large catamarans, which seemed to have limited deck space when I saw them later on the island and were very crowded. (I would guess these would be the boats used by cruise ships, but I don't know for sure.) There were small sailing vessels as well. We opted for middle of the road, an old motorboat called Barracuda (claim to be the first boat to start offering tourist tours in the Beagle - search for Ushuaia and Barracuda and you'll probably get some info).

 

The downside of the Barracuda, all of the narration is in Spanish - but we did not really care.

 

The upside: the boat was only about half full (we had tickets 23 and 24 and were the last to board) and there was lots of space on the open deck on top. The bow on the main deck did get a bit crowded when the Captain nosed into one of the islands bow-first, but it wasn't a major problem as people moved around. Also open side deck space on that level.

 

There was a relatively large salon on the aft of the main deck, rimmed with benches along the edges, but I think you'd have to stand up to look outside (can't remember for sure as we did not spend anytime in there) and a little dining room with booth seating, serving snacks and drinks (highly recommend the hot chocolate Barracuda). Service was at a leisurely pace, which seems par for the course in Argentina. They circulated a guest book in the dining room as well as a photo album with pictures of the Monte Cervantes, which sank near the lighthouse we visited. Souvenirs were available from here as well.

 

The three stops - sea lion and cormorant rookeries (2 stops) and the lighthouse - were all on the outbound leg. On the return leg to town, the boat followed tha coastline for a closer view of that side of the bay. Our tour left at 3p, returning promptly at 6p. I believe the morning tours leave at 9a. (The longer tours are 5 hours and go out as far as Estancia Harberton.)

 

Despite the language barrier (they spoke in rapid-fire Spanish that we found difficult to follow with our limited Spanish) we don't regret choosing this boat. We had a terrific time. We spent most of the tour on the outside decks - the weather cooperated and it was warm even though it was overcast.

 

Have a terrific time.

[jeana]

Thank you both very much for all the information. I'm getting excited!

 

The best,

Jeana