City South America
Ushuaia
Ushuaia is a city at the very south of Argentina. It sits between the mountains and the sea.
Ushuaia is a city in Argentina, on the island of Tierra del Fuego, between the Andes mountains and the Beagle Channel. Larousse calls it the southernmost urban area in the world. The census of 18 May 2022 counted 79,409 people in the city's households.
Ushuaia, a city of Argentina on Tierra del Fuego, is the world's southernmost urban agglomeration according to Larousse, which also notes tourism. The city's tourism office says the town began to grow after a government post was set up on 12 October 1884. Census 18 May 2022: 79,409 in private households (City Population, INDEC agglomeration definition).
Photo: Deensel, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Discover Ushuaia
Ushuaia is a city in Argentina. It is very far south.
On one side are mountains. On the other side is the sea.
Ushuaia lies at the southern tip of Argentina, on the island of Tierra del Fuego. The city's tourism office says it is surrounded by the sea and the mountains, with the Andes on one side and the Beagle Channel on the other. Larousse calls it the southernmost urban area in the world.
The census of 18 May 2022 counted 79,409 people living in the city's households. The photo shows Ushuaia from the air at dusk in February 2018, with mountains behind and the channel at the right.
Larousse: city of Argentina on Tierra del Fuego, 'the southernmost agglomeration in the world'; tourism. Ushuaia tourism office: at the end of southern Patagonia, the southern end of Argentina, between the Andes and the Beagle Channel. City Population (INDEC; agglomerations as defined in 2022; the 2022 figures count people in private households only): 29,166 (1991), 45,430 (2001), 56,593 (2010), 79,409 (census 18 May 2022). Wikidata gives 82,615 for 2022.
- Country
- Argentina, on Tierra del Fuego (Larousse)
- People in private households (census, 18 May 2022)
- 79,409
- Setting
- between the Andes and the Beagle Channel (Ushuaia tourism office)
- Known for
- the world's southernmost urban area; tourism (Larousse)
A bay, a main street and a lighthouse
Ushuaia has a little bay where birds make their nests.
Boats take people out to see a lighthouse.
Along the seafront, the tourism office points to Bahía Encerrada, a small bay that is an urban nature reserve where birds nest. Across from it, old houses have become museums. On the main street, San Martín, are most of the city's shops and restaurants, and on or near it some old houses are protected as historic monuments.
Boat trips on the Beagle Channel go to Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse, about 20 kilometers from the city.
Ushuaia tourism office: the seafront walk starts at the Bahía Encerrada urban nature reserve (natural, historic and cultural space; bird nesting), across from which old houses now serve as museums and exhibition spaces; San Martín street concentrates shops, restaurants and agencies, including a four-block open-air gallery; houses with original fronts declared historic monuments. Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse: about 20 km from the city (Wikidata points: 16.07 km ESE), often confused with the more distant lighthouse on Isla de los Estados.
- Bahía Encerrada
- an urban nature reserve where birds nest (tourism office)
- Main street
- San Martín, with most of the city's shops (tourism office)
- Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse
- about 20 km from the city, on the Beagle Channel (tourism office)
Canoes, then a town
Long ago, people paddled canoes on the water near Ushuaia.
Later a small town began, and it grew into a city.
Long before the town, Tierra del Fuego was home to the Selk'nam (also called Onas), Haush, Alakaluf and Yámana peoples, says the city's tourism office. The Yámana moved from place to place in canoes on the Beagle Channel and the southern islands.
On 12 October 1884 a government post was set up there, and from then on the town began to grow, says the tourism office. It has grown a lot: from 29,166 people in 1991 to 79,409 in 2022.
Ushuaia tourism office: Tierra del Fuego was inhabited by the Selk'nam or Onas, Haush, Alakaluf and Yámana; the nomadic Yámana travelled by canoe on the Beagle Channel and the southern islands. A sub-prefecture (government post) was created at Ushuaia on 12 October 1884 (Wikidata gives the same date); from then on, through various actions including the penal colony, the town grew in people and infrastructure. City Population: 29,166 (1991), 45,430 (2001), 56,593 (2010), 79,409 (2022).
- First peoples
- the Selk'nam (Onas), Haush, Alakaluf and Yámana (tourism office)
- Government post
- a government post set up on 12 October 1884 (tourism office)
- Census 1991 to 2022
- 29,166 to 79,409 people (City Population)
Walking the seafront and sailing the channel
People walk and ride bikes along the water. Boats sail out on the channel.
The seafront is a quiet path for walking and cycling, says the tourism office, and city tours go by vehicle or on foot. A footpath links the center with the city's shopping mall, about 15 blocks away.
On the Beagle Channel, catamarans, yachts and sailboats take visitors to islands and the lighthouse, and some people paddle kayaks or canoes. Along the coast, 75 kilometers from the city, is Puerto Almanza, a fishing village.
Ushuaia tourism office: the seafront (costanera) is a quiet walk for walking and cycling; city tours by vehicle or on foot; the open-air gallery on San Martín has traffic but no parking; the city's only shopping mall, about 15 blocks from the center, can be reached by car or by a footpath from Maipú and Yaganes streets. Beagle Channel trips by catamaran, yacht or sailboat; kayak and canoe outings; Puerto Almanza, 75 km away, a village of fishers of king crab and shellfish, faces Puerto Williams across the channel.
- Seafront
- a quiet path for walking and cycling (tourism office)
- On the channel
- catamarans, yachts, sailboats, kayaks and canoes (tourism office)
- Puerto Almanza
- a fishing village 75 km away on the channel (tourism office)
Cool all year, never very hot
Ushuaia is cool all year. Even in summer it is not hot.
In winter it is cold, near freezing.
Ushuaia is south of the equator, so its summer comes in December to February. The World Meteorological Organization's averages for 1981 to 2010 show January days of only about 14.5 °C. In June, days average about 4 °C and nights just below freezing.
Rain falls all through the year, about 537 millimeters in all. Every month gets between about 35 and 56 millimeters, on 13 to 17 days.
WMO World Weather Information Service, Ushuaia (Servicio Meteorológico Nacional; period 1981–2010 as given in the data): mean daily maximum 4.2 °C (Jun) to 14.5 °C (Jan); mean daily minimum −1.2 °C (Jun) to 5.6 °C (Jan, Feb); below 0 °C from June to August. Precipitation 34.5 mm (Sep) to 56.4 mm (Jun); sum of the months 537.0 mm; days with at least 0.1 mm: 13.3 (Sep) to 17.1 (Jan).
- January, average daily high and low (WMO, Ushuaia, 1981–2010)
- 14.5 °C and 5.6 °C
- June, average daily high and low (same table)
- 4.2 °C and −1.2 °C
- Precipitation in a year (twelve months added up)
- about 537 mm
Penguins, king crab and shops on San Martín
Boats from Ushuaia visit islands with penguins, sea lions and seabirds!
Many visitors take a boat on the Beagle Channel, whose Yámana name, Onashaga, means 'channel of hunters' or 'channel of the Onas'. Some of its islands are home to cormorants, penguins and sea lions.
Divers in special cold-water suits find sea urchins, starfish, octopus and king crab among kelp forests, says the tourism office. Back in town, San Martín street is full of shops, restaurants and souvenir stores.
Ushuaia tourism office: the Beagle Channel, also called Onashaga in the Yámana language ('channel of hunters' or 'channel of the Onas'), holds great biodiversity; boat trips visit islands, some with cormorants, penguins and sea lions; diving all year in cold-water suits among kelp forests with sea urchins, starfish, octopus and king crab; Puerto Almanza fishers work king crab and shellfish. Larousse lists tourism among the city's activities.
- Island wildlife
- cormorants, penguins and sea lions (tourism office)
- Under the water
- sea urchins, starfish, octopus and king crab in kelp forests (tourism office)
- Channel name in Yámana
- Onashaga, 'channel of hunters' or 'channel of the Onas' (tourism office)
Ushuaia on the map
Find the bottom tip of South America on the globe. Ushuaia is there, by the sea.
Ushuaia lies at about 54.8° south and 68.3° west, on the Beagle Channel at the southern tip of Argentina.
Measured from the city's center point on Wikidata, Bahía Encerrada is about 1.1 kilometers south-southwest, and Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse about 16 kilometers east-southeast. The tourism office puts the lighthouse about 20 kilometers from the city, and the fishing village of Puerto Almanza 75 kilometers away along the channel.
Ushuaia lies at about 54.81° S, 68.31° W (Wikidata point Q44254; the Natural Earth/sheet point is 1.92 km N of it). From the Wikidata point: Encerrada Bay (Q138492558) 1.09 km SSW; Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse (Q3378140) 16.07 km ESE (the tourism office says about 20 km from the city).
- Latitude
- about 54.8° south
- Longitude
- about 68.3° west
- Water
- the Beagle Channel (tourism office)
Amazing facts
-
Ushuaia is the southernmost city in the world, says one encyclopedia!
Larousse calls Ushuaia the southernmost urban area in the world.
Larousse: 'C'est l'agglomération la plus australe du monde' (the world's southernmost agglomeration).
-
The water near Ushuaia has a name that means channel of hunters!
In the Yámana language, the Beagle Channel is called Onashaga, which means 'channel of hunters' or 'channel of the Onas', says the tourism office.
Ushuaia tourism office: Onashaga, the Yámana name of the Beagle Channel, means 'canal de cazadores' or 'canal de onas'.
-
In Ushuaia, even January is cool!
The averages for 1981 to 2010 give Ushuaia January highs of only 14.5 °C, though January is its warmest month.
WMO normals (1981–2010): highest mean maximum 14.5 °C (January), lowest 4.2 °C (June).
Words to know
- channel
- a narrow stretch of sea between two pieces of land
- lighthouse
- a tower with a bright light that guides ships
- nature reserve
- a place where plants and animals are protected
- kelp
- a large brown seaweed that can grow like an underwater forest
- nomad
- a person who moves from place to place instead of living in one spot
- census
- an official count of all the people in a country
Discovery challenge
-
Ushuaia is a city in which country?
Ushuaia lies at the southern tip of which country?
Ushuaia, on Tierra del Fuego, is a city of which country?
- Argentina
- Norway
- Japan
Show the answer
Argentina
Argentina!
Argentina.
Argentina.
-
Which water is next to Ushuaia?
Which channel lies along Ushuaia?
Which channel is called Onashaga in the Yámana language?
- The Beagle Channel
- The English Channel
- The Panama Canal
Show the answer
The Beagle Channel
The Beagle Channel!
The Beagle Channel.
The Beagle Channel.
-
Which animals live on islands near Ushuaia?
According to the tourism office, which animals live on some Beagle Channel islands?
Which animals does the tourism office list on some Beagle Channel islands?
- Penguins, sea lions and cormorants
- Camels, lions and zebras
- Pandas, tigers and parrots
Show the answer
Penguins, sea lions and cormorants
Penguins, sea lions and cormorants!
Penguins, sea lions and cormorants.
Cormorants, penguins and sea lions.
-
In which month is Ushuaia warmest?
In the 1981–2010 averages, which month has Ushuaia's highest average high?
Which month has the highest mean daily maximum in the WMO 1981–2010 normals for Ushuaia?
- January
- June
- July
Show the answer
January
January! It is summer there.
January, with 14.5 °C.
January, 14.5 °C.
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For parents & teachers
What children will learn
- Locate Ushuaia on Tierra del Fuego at the southern tip of South America.
- Explain why January is summer south of the equator.
- Describe how the first peoples of Tierra del Fuego travelled by canoe.
- Read a climate table where every month has a similar amount of rain.
Recommended ages: 3 to 17 · About 15 minutes
Talk about it
- Why might a town between mountains and sea grow long and narrow?
- Why do visitors travel so far to see a place at the end of a continent?
- How could you stay warm while diving in very cold water?
Try at home or in class
- Globe hunt: find Ushuaia and a city at the same distance north of the equator.
- Rain bars: draw Ushuaia's monthly rain and see how even the bars are.
- Kelp forest: make a tall seaweed forest from paper strips in a jar of water.
Key vocabulary: channel, lighthouse, nature reserve, kelp, nomad, census
Where these facts come from
- Wikidata , Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)
- Natural Earth vector data , Natural Earth (NACIS) (Public domain)
- Ushuaia , Larousse encyclopédie
- Ciudad de Ushuaia , Secretaría de Turismo Ushuaia
- Canal Beagle , Secretaría de Turismo Ushuaia
- Argentina: Urban Agglomerations , City Population (Thomas Brinkhoff), from INDEC
- Ushuaia: climatological information (1981–2010) , World Meteorological Organization, World Weather Information Service
- File:Ushuaia aerial panorama.jpg (Deensel) , Wikimedia Commons
- Wikimedia Commons , Wikimedia Foundation (Per file (public domain, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA); see each media record)
Checked, not yet human-reviewed. Last updated November 1, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.