Not so visited and often taken only as a stop-over city to get to Tierra del Fuego or Punta Arenas, there are many things to do in Río Gallegos, which we will tell you about below.
Río Gallegos sits on the estuary, which after a few kilometres flows into the Argentinean sea at Punta Loyola. Its adverse climate during most of the year, with cold and strong winds, makes it a mere stop-over town for many tourists.
However, the capital of Santa Cruz province has great attractions in and around the city centre. Bird watching, marine fauna, museums and natural wonders are some of the places to see in Rio Gallegos. Let’s discover them.
🔎 Check out this article on the must-see places to visit in Patagonia Argentina.
Table of Contents
1) A walk along the Gallegos estuary
The waterfront of Río Gallegos extends for about four kilometres and is a nice promenade and meeting point for the locals. It used to be the site of the port, now Punta Loyola, where the first immigrants arrived and forged the development of the city, and which was used for the export of coal from Río Turbio.
On the tour along the edge of the estuary, there are places to stop, such as the monument to the pilots of the Argentine Air Force who died in combat during the Malvinas War (Río Gallegos was the place where most of the planes took off for the islands) and the Galpón del Borde Costero, where handicrafts and local products fairs are held on weekends. If you take the tour with children, there are children’s games for stops.
One of the places to visit in Rio Gallegos and associated to the estuary is the Environmental Interpretation Centre, where information about the estuary and wetlands, and the process of migratory birds that have a preponderance in the estuary with the arrival of a great number of specimens every year, is exhibited.
2) Pioneers Museum
In the confluence of Alberdi and ElCano Streets, the Pioneers Museum is located in the first house of Río Gallegos, which was inhabited in its beginnings by Thomas Greenshils, one of the first settlers. Later on, it served as a shelter for the first doctor of Rio Gallegos, and when the government house was destroyed, it housed those dependencies for a while. It was built with pine wood and tin roofs.
Inside, furniture and objects from the time of the first settlers are exhibited. There are guided tours to tell the history of the house and its first inhabitants, which are free of charge.
3) Malvinas Argentinas War Museum
Rio Gallegos was the most important centre of operations in the country during the Malvinas War due to its proximity to the archipelago. The memory of the war is still alive in the city with monuments and museums paying homage to the fallen and the soldiers who fought.
The Malvinas Argentinas war museum exhibits photos, objects, weapons and models of Argentine planes, ships and submarines that operated during the war, which were made by a Malvinas war veteran.
4) Eduardo Minicelli Art Museum
The only art museum in the province is housed in a beautiful mansion. It offers exhibitions of paintings, sculptures and temporary exhibitions. It is located next to the San Martín Square and the Río Gallegos City Hall, right in the centre of the city.
5) Blue Lagoon, a geological phenomenon
Four kilometres from Route 3 and 60 kilometres south of Rio Gallegos, the Azul Lagoon is located inside a geological reserve. In fact, this small lagoon with a deep blue water colour due to the lack of suspended material, occupies the interior of the crater of a volcano that has been inactive for thousands of years.
The water mirror can be seen from the upper part of the crater and even be carefully descended to the shore. There are many mysteries and legends about the lagoon that speak of strange beings that inhabit the depths, which can reach up to 55 metres, or that it has energising powers.
6) Punta Loyola, the junction of the river and the sea
About 40 kilometres from Río Gallegos, along route 40, Punta Loyola is the confluence of the Gallegos Estuary with the Atlantic Ocean, a desolate but charming place. It is a desolate but charming place, where the port for fishing vessels operates and is an ideal place for fishing.
About five kilometres from the port and along a gravel road, you will find the skeleton of the old Norwegian ship Marjory Glen, which suffered a fire at the beginning of the 20th century and was moved to the seashore, where it remains to this day. During the Malvinas War, the skeleton of the ship served as a test target for the pilots of the Argentinean Air Force, which is why its hull can be seen full of holes from aircraft ammunition.
7) Cabo Vírgenes, the southernmost point of mainland Argentina
At 125 kilometres south of Río Gallegos, and accessible by the inhospitable gravel Provincial route 1, Cabo Vírgenes is the last stamp of continental Argentina and the beginning of kilometre 0 of route 40 (there is a sign indicating this) that crosses the country from south to north in its 5080 kilometres of extension.
In Cabo Vírgenes you will find the southernmost lighthouse in Argentina, where there is a small museum that exhibits cartography of the ancient navigators, objects and information about those who inhabited such an inhospitable place. A few kilometres further on, you will come across the Provincial Fauna Reserve, a protected park where you can see large numbers of Magellanic penguins between september and march.
📝 Travel tip: Provincial Route 1 is completely gravel and is not in good condition. It is recommended to go in a four-wheel drive vehicle; if you do it in a vehicle without four-wheel drive, you have to be very careful. There is only one place to sleep all the way, about five kilometres before reaching the lighthouse, in a beautiful ranch called Monte Dinero, where you can sleep and eat in the restaurant.
Useful information for travel to Río Gallegos
How to get to Río Gallegos
Travel by car to Río Gallegos: from Buenos Aires it is 2500 kilometres, impossible to do in just one day. We recommend making the trip in several days and stopping in different coastal cities such as Las Grutas, Puerto Madryn, Comodoro Rivadavia or Puerto San Julián. From El Calafate it is 300 kilometres along the fully paved route 5.
Travel by bus to Río Gallegos: Given the distance, it is not advisable to travel by bus from Buenos Aires. The company Marga Taqsa makes the four-hour trip from El Calafate to Río Gallegos and the twelve-hour trip from Río Gallegos to Ushuaia, passing through Chile and including the ferry across the Strait of Magellan.
Travel by plane to Río Gallegos: there are daily flights from Buenos Aires operated by Aerolíneas Argentinas. Rio Gallegos airport also has non-daily flights to Rio Grande, El Calafate, Ushuaia and Comodoro Rivadavia by LADE.
✈️ Check here for cheap flights to Río Gallegos.
Where to eat in Rio Gallegos
We recommend these two places with different styles to eat in Rio Gallegos:
Puerto Macá: good place to eat fish and seafood in Río Gallegos overlooking the estuary. It also has musical shows on weekends.
Cerveza Patagonia: a classic in Patagonia Argentina, also in Rio Gallegos. Ideal for sampling a variety of craft beers and eating hamburgers, pizzas, empanadas and other meat and pasta dishes.
Where to stay in Río Gallegos
- Apart Hotel Austral: very good value for money, located in the city centre. Good breakfast and comfort.
- Hotel Patagonia: modern, elegant and excellent facilities with spa, gym and restaurant. Buffet breakfast and spacious rooms.
- El Buen Descanso: flats surrounded by garden on route 3 at the entrance to the city. Absolute tranquillity.
🏨 Look here where to stay in Río Gallegos and get your ideal accommodation.
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Horacio_Fernandez, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons