Walking among penguins
An hour ashore.
Liam Quinn from Canada — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Liam Quinn from Canada — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Liam Quinn from Canada — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Cayetano Roso — CC BY 3.0 · Martin Cígler — CC BY-SA 3.0
Isla Martillo is a small island of about 32 hectares in the Beagle Channel east of Ushuaia, home to a colony of Magellanic penguins and orange-billed gentoo penguins that breed on its shingle beaches and among its grasses in the southern summer, against a backdrop of snow-capped mountains. The island is a biological reserve, and landing is allowed for one licensed company only, with at most eighty visitors a day in groups of no more than twenty; each group stays one hour, walking marked paths among the penguins. Other boat trips from Ushuaia circle the island and watch the colony from the water without landing. Penguin season runs from about October to April. Book the walking visit well ahead as places are few, and the Estancia Harberton entry fee is paid separately.
An hour ashore.
Orange bills.
Snowy peaks.
Beagle Channel, near Estancia Harberton, east of Ushuaia
Yes, with the one licensed company, up to eighty visitors a day; other boat trips watch from the water only.