Martillo Island Penguin Colony Boat Tour: Beagle Channel

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/22

Duration5h

GroupUp to 120

LanguagesEN · PT +1

Mobile ticketAccepted

A catamaran ride to one of the world's largest penguin colonies, with cormorants and sea lions along the way

A 5-hour boat tour from Ushuaia navigates the Beagle Channel to Martillo Island, where you watch a Magellanic penguin colony from the catamaran, accompanied by a professional local guide. The route also passes Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse, sea lion colonies, and bird islands, with views of the city's mountain backdrop and the channel's landscape. A live guide in English, Spanish or Portuguese is included; you choose morning or afternoon departure at checkout.

Step-by-step itinerary

The Experience

The catamaran departs from the Touristic Port of Ushuaia, where you board at the Canoeros box office. As the boat moves into the Beagle Channel, the city recedes and the landscape opens—Montes Olivia and the Cinco Hermanos peaks rise above the water, with the Encajonado River visible from the channel. The guide points out the geography and the estancias that shaped this corner of Patagonia.

The route passes two smaller islands first. At Isla de los Pájaros, you watch for Skuas, Black-browed Albatrosses, Steam Ducks and seagulls; at Isla de los Lobos, sea lions with one and two hairs haul out on the rocks. Then the catamaran reaches Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse, where Imperial and Rocky Cormorants nest on the rocks, and the guide shares the story of the SS Monte Cervantes, a ship that wrecked here in 1930. From this point, you can see across the channel to Puerto Williams on the Chilean coast and Puerto Almanza on the Argentine side.

The final stretch heads east toward Martillo Island, where a colony of Magellanic penguins nests during the summer season. You observe them from the catamaran—the guide explains their behavior and social structure, and you get as close as the boat allows without landing on the island. The return journey gives you a final view of Ushuaia's mountain range and the channel's scale before you dock back at the port.

What’s included

A professional local guide in your choice of English, Spanish or Portuguese.
5 hours of catamaran navigation on the Beagle Channel.
boarding tax fee.
and an air-conditioned cabin for the journey.

Good to know

Easy physical levelInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Tangol

Is this one for you?Choose the morning departure if you want the penguin colony and lighthouse before the afternoon light shifts, or the afternoon option if you prefer to start your day elsewhere in Ushuaia. Either way, the fixed schedule and included guide mean the route, timing and stops are arranged—you show up at the port and the day unfolds without you building it.