US$10–25

Eight kilometers west of Ushuaia on the Lapataia road, the Camping Municipal has free but limited facilities (fire pits and pit toilets only). A stiff climb to the northwest of downtown, La Pista del Andino (Alem 2873, tel. 02901/43-5890 or 02901/15-56-8626, www.lapistadelandino.com.ar, US$6 pp) has slightly sloping sites at its ski area; the first transfer from downtown or the airport is free. Guests with sleeping bags can crash in the refugio above its bar-restaurant but shouldn’t expect to get to sleep early.

US$25–50

Perched at downtown’s western edge, with spectacular Beagle Channel views, HI affiliate Torre al Sur Youth Hostel (Gobernador Paz 1437, tel. 02901/43-0745, www.torrealsur.com.ar, US$14–15 pp dorm) has been one of Argentina’s finest backpacker facilities, but overcrowding and noise have meant mixed reviews recently. Rooms have two or four beds as well as lockers; there’s hot water, Internet access, and free luggage storage.

The HI affiliate Albergue Los Cormoranes (Kamshen 788, tel. 02902/42-3459, www.loscormoranes.com, US$13–16 pp dorm, US$53–66 d with private bath, with breakfast) has attractive common areas, including a wind-sheltered garden, and better sleeping facilities than Torre al Sur. Most easily reached by climbing Don Bosco to its end and then taking a left, it’s about eight steep blocks north of the waterfront (arrival transfers are free).

The more central Albergue Cruz del Sur (Deloqui 636, tel. 02901/43-4099, www.xdelsur.com.ar, US$16 pp dorm) is an independent hostel with four-, six-, or eight-bed rooms; there are also cable TV, Internet access, two kitchens, and a free initial pickup. Guests also get a series of discounts and specials at various services around town.

Half a block from the Lider bus terminal, the fast-expanding Freestyle Backpackers Hostel (Gobernador Paz 866, tel. 02901/43-2874, www.ushuaiafreestyle.com, US$16–19 pp dorm) is a gleaming purpose-built hostel with youthful energy, a spacious lounge and kitchen facilities, and secondary amenities including laundry service and parking.

US$50–100

On the hillside, the contemporary Martín Fierro B&B (9 de Julio 175, tel. 02901/43-0525, www.martinfierrobyb.com.ar, US$37 s, US$53 d) has two bunks in each of several small but well-designed rooms with shared baths. Host Javier Jury has created tasteful common areas that are simultaneously spacious and cozy, and the breakfast is varied and filling; the tiny shower stalls, though, make bathing with a friend impossible without being really intimate. Two downstairs “apart-hotel” rooms (US$53 s, US$74 d), with separate kitchens, sleep up to four people each.

Only a short walk from downtown, in an oasis neighborhood of sheltered gardens, Galeazzi-Basily B&B (Gobernador Valdés 323, tel. 2901/42-3213, www.avesdelsur.com.ar, US$37 s, US$52 d, with shared bath; US$69 s or d with private bath) is a comfortable family house that also has exterior cabañas. The hosts speak English fluently and are a great source of information on the rest of the island, including Estancia Harberton.

Pueblo Viejo (Deloqui 242, tel. 02901/43-2098, www.puebloviejo.info, US$60 d with shared bath) is a B&B built on the foundations of an early Ushuaia house; replicating the traditional Magellanic style, it has added innovative contemporary touches. The street level rooms are more luminous than their semi-basement counterparts.

Responsive Hostería América (Gobernador Paz 1665, tel. 02901/42-3358, www.hosteriaamerica.com.ar, US$79 s, US$92 d) is a decent choice in a fine location above the Parque Paseo del Centenario.

Hostal Malvinas (Gobernador Deloqui 615, tel./fax 02901/42-2626, www.hostalmalvinas.net, US$70 s, US$80 d) provides simple but quiet and immaculate rooms with large baths and no frills—not even TV—but croissants and coffee are free all day.

Rehabbed Hotel César (Avenida San Martín 753, tel. 02901/42-1460, www.hotelcesarhostal.com.ar, US$58 s, US$87 d) has become one of the better values in a congested central area.

Just uphill from Martín Fierro, Hotel Austral (9 de Julio 250, tel. 02901/42-2223, www.hotel austral.com.ar, US$84 s, US$95 d) is a 10-room hotel with soaring, light-filled common areas that offer panoramic views of the Beagle Channel (at least until new constructions block them some years from now). Painted in pastels, the rooms themselves are spacious and comfortable.

US$100–200

Hillside Hotel Ushuaia (Lasserre 933, tel. 02901/43-0671, www.ushuaiahotel.com.ar, US$90 s, US$120 d, with breakfast) is a good value in its price range.

Only its busy location detracts from the bright and cheerful Hotel Cap Polonio (San Martín 746, tel. 02901/42-2131, www.hotelcappolonio.com.ar, US$120 s or d, with breakfast). All rooms are carpeted and have cable TV; the private baths have tubs as well as showers, and there’s a good restaurant confitería.

Though it’s not really a view hotel, the 30-room Mil 810 Ushuaia Hotel (25 de Mayo 245, tel. 02901/43-7710, www.hotel1810.com, US$101–149 s or d) is a central boutique hotel that occupies a prominent hillside site just a couple of blocks from the waterfront, close enough to walk everywhere but just beyond the congested center.

From its cul-de-sac perch, Hotel Posada Fueguina (Lasserre 438, tel. 02901/42-3467, www.posadafueguina.com.ar, US$116–182 s, US$182–234 d) offers awesome views along with cable TV and similar amenities. It has added cabañas to handle any overflow.

The spacious, rejuvenated Hotel Albatros (Avenida Maipú 505, tel. 02901/43-3446, www.albatroshotel.com.ar, US$195 s or d) is the pick of the waterfront accommodations.

In dense woods about 1.5 kilometers northeast of downtown, Patagonia Villa Lodge (Bahía Buen Suceso 563, tel. 02901/43-5937, www.patagoniavilla.com, US$200–240 s, US$260–300 d) has just five rooms in luminous semidetached cabins with a magnificently rustic architecture and comforts such as whirlpool tubs (in some, at least) and Wi-Fi. There is one double (US$110 s, US$130 d) that lacks significant natural light but suffers only by comparison with the others; elsewhere, it would count among the best in town. Owner Luciana Lupotti, a former Florida exchange student, speaks fluent English. Rates include airport pickup and drop-off.

Over US$200

Downtown’s nearly new Lennox Hotel (San Martín 776, tel./fax 02901/43-6430, www.lennoxhotel.com.ar, US$228 s or d) has midsized rooms with either Beagle Channel or mountain views, but even with amenities such as whirlpool baths and Wi-Fi it’s hard to think it’s worth more than double the price of, say, Hotel César. It also follows the dubious practice of charging foreigners more than Argentines.

The interior is more impressive than the surprisingly plain exterior at the luxury Hotel del Glaciar (Luis Martial 2355, tel. 02901/43-0640, www.hoteldelglaciar.com, US$209–219 s or d). At Km 3.5 on the road to the Martial Glacier, each room has either a mountain view or an ocean view (which is slightly more expensive), but it’s questionable whether staffing is sufficient for a hotel of its category—and price.

About four kilometers west of downtown, in a still-developing neighborhood that’s mostly residential, family-run Hostería Tierra de Leyendas (Tierra de Vientos 2448, tel. 02901/44-3565, www.tierradeleyendas.com.ar, US$189–229 s or d) is a new five-room boutique hotel with expansive views of the Beagle Channel. There are plans to add no more than two additional rooms. Owner Sebastián García Cosoleto, who cooked for eight years at the Buenos Aires Marriott Plaza Hotel, is also chef of its French-influenced restaurant (open for dinner only, reservations obligatory for nonguests).

At Km 3 on the glacier road, the Hotel y Resort Las Hayas (Luis Martial 1650, tel. 02901/43-0710, www.lashayas.com.ar, US$264–356 s or d) enjoys nearly all conceivable luxuries, including an elaborate buffet breakfast, a gym, a sauna, a hot tub, and a heated indoor pool; it picks up guests at the airport and offers a regular shuttle to and from downtown. Behind its surprisingly utilitarian exterior, some of its 93 rooms and suites suffer from hideous decor—the wallpaper is to cringe at—but all are comfortable, and its staff members are highly professional.

© Wayne Bernhardson from Moon Argentina, 3rd edition