Getting to Ushuaia

My flight departs NYC on Friday, March 14th and arrives in Buenos Aires approximately 11 hours later.  After passing through customs I will hopefully be on my way to Ushuaia where I will spend the night before the ship departs on March 16th.

Arriving in Buenos Aires

The Airport(s)
There are actually 2 primary airports in Buenos Aires: Aeroparque Jorge Newbury (domestic) and Ministro Pistarini (international).  Thanks to my colleague, I knew ahead of time to be careful when booking my flights.  Flights from New York land at EZE, the international airport, and most of the connecting flights leave from AEP requiring the traveler to get from one airport to another.  While the travel time is listed as approximately 40 minutes, this time can double or even triple due to poor traffic and road conditions.  Additionally, customs can often take an hour or more depending on the line.  Suddenly a 3-4 hour layover is not enough time to make a connecting flight.  Fortunately both of my flights connect at the international airport so as long as the airline does not make changes (which is actually quite common) I should have no problem making my flight to Ushuaia.  Should the flight get delayed I still have over 24 hours to get myself to Ushuaia.


Seemingly short distance between the domestic and international airports; traffic can double or triple the travel time and put you at risk of missing your connecting flights.  I selected one of the few flights that connects at the same airport (EZE) but all I can do is hope there are no changes!

Customs and Bag Transfers
There is no visa requirement.  Instead you must register and prepay a tax, currently $160, and present the receipt in customs.  I've read that in addition to the dual airport problem, travelers also run into issues with their luggage not transferring between flights.  I think in many cases, the traveler is responsible for retrieving his/her own bags and insuring that they get on the connecting flight - add that time to what I listed above and you're probably pushing it with even a 4-5 hour layover.  For this reason I forced myself to pack efficiently so as to only have carry on items. 

I might have been a little less stressed about these potential issues if this were a normal trip, but the ship will depart March 16th regardless of my presence! Lastly I was also a bit more stressed given the recent stresses on the Argentinian financial system and stresses on the state-owned airline that has experienced strikes in the past.  I chose my flight because the price was over $1,000 less than the private carriers but if I end up having to book a last minute flight to Ushuaia because of any issues I'll probably wish I just paid the price upfront.  Hopefully everything goes as smoothly as possible!

Getting to Ushuaia
My connecting flight to Ushuaia is approximately 3.5 hours.  I think my total travel time including layover will be about 20 hours which sounds grueling, but I'll have plenty of time to rest and sleep on the ship as we make our way to the peninsula. 

 



Ushuaia is located at the souther tip of Argentina and is a common departure point for voyages to the Polar Circle.