Building Boom in Patagonia
If it’s been more than two years since you last visited the southernmost cities in the world, Punta Arenas, Chile and Ushuaia, Argentina, you are in for a big surprise. Due to the increase in the number of ships both cities have experienced an economic boom.
The sleepy city of Punta Arenas, Chile, located on the Strait of Magellan is becoming a destination unto itself. In addition to the new shopping mall and the established Zona Franca (Free Zone), the city is rapidly developing its port area. A new cruise terminal is planned on the site of the existing downtown pier; across the street in front of what will be the new port gates old brownstone warehouses are being transformed into new shopping arcades. The tree-lined, double-lane Avenida de la Independencia is being broadened and repaved; many of the streets around the Plaza de Armas have been turned into pedestrian only thoroughfares. And most surprising is the Dreams Hotel, a chic five-star hotel and casino on the waterfront. This 80 room hotel has a deluxe spa and pool, elegant restaurants, roof top bar and convention and meetings facilities. There is a five dollar charge to enter the casino; I did not ask if that applied to hotel guests as well. I asked who comes to this hotel and I was told that people from all over the world are booking the hotel as their base for exploring Patagonia; Chileans from places like Santiago were also taking advantage of off-season prices for an exotic, weekend getaway.
Over on the island of Tierra del Fuego, Ushuaia, Argentina is also benefiting from the increase in cruise traffic. The port area is expanding with a maze of new shops and stalls for excursion vendors. In town the construction is complete on new sidewalks and wheelchair ramps. Many of the old tried and true mainstays of the town have succumbed to progress; the charming “café on the corner” with its swinging leaded glass doors is gone. In its place is another superstore of outdoor wear and extreme sports gear. Hotel space has always been lacking in Ushuaia, and now that many of the smaller expeditionary ships use the city as a turn-around hub, more rooms for incoming/outgoing passengers are needed. In response, construction of new hotels is also is the planning.