How to Drive to Ushuaia From Brazil: 3 Routes

Ushuaia is the "southernmost city in the world", and driving there from Brazil is a dream that fits into a long vacation, a short sabbatical or a retirement with time. The good news: there's more than one path. And each path tells a different story.

We gathered the 3 routes most used by Brazilian overlanders, with the stops worth making, the stretches of pavement and the stretches of ripio (dirt road), and what to expect in terms of time and bureaucracy.

In short: you can go along the Argentine Atlantic coast (faster and paved), along the Cordillera via Ruta 40 (more scenic on the Argentine side) or mixing the Chilean Carretera Austral with Ruta 40 (the most beautiful and the longest). All end in the same place: the ferry crossing of the Strait of Magellan and the arrival in Tierra del Fuego.

What every route has in common

Regardless of the path, three things apply to all:

You cross at least 3 countries: Brazil, Uruguay (optional) or Argentina, and almost always Chile in the final stretch.

The crossing of the Strait of Magellan is mandatory. There's no bridge. It's a ferry that leaves from Punta Delgada (ARG) or Punta Arenas (CHI) and takes about 30 to 45 minutes. A reservation helps, but it's not always necessary.

Tierra del Fuego is entered through Chile, exited through Chile, even going to Ushuaia (Argentina). That means two customs posts on the same day. The car needs to have its documentation up to date and active Mercosur insurance.

And one thing no one tells you: the wind in Patagonia is a force of nature, not an exaggeration. Gusts of 80 to 100 km/h are routine. This affects fuel consumption, comfort and time. Planning short stretches near El Calafate and in Tierra del Fuego is smarter than trying to do 600 km in a day.

Route 1: Atlantic, the fastest, almost all paved

It leaves Brazil through Chuí (RS), crosses Uruguay (or enters Argentina directly via Paso de los Libres, depending on where you are), takes the Argentine Atlantic coast and goes down.

Path: Brazil → Uruguay (optional) → Buenos Aires → Mar del Plata → Bahía Blanca → Viedma → Puerto Madryn → Comodoro Rivadavia → Río Gallegos → ferry → Tierra del Fuego → Ushuaia.

Driving time: about 12 to 14 days at a comfortable pace (300 to 500 km/day) just for the way there. For a round trip without repeating the route, count on 30 to 40 days.

Important tip: this route also works very well as the return path for whoever went via Ruta 40 or the Carretera Austral. Since it's the fastest and paved, you save 1 to 2 weeks on the return and still cover regions you didn't see on the way there (Península Valdés, the Atlantic coast). For long crossings, doing route 2 or 3 on the way there and route 1 on the way back is the combo most used by those who've done it.

Stops worth making:

Mar del Plata to sleep, eat well and breathe the coast.

Península Valdés (near Puerto Madryn): right whale season from June to December, penguins, elephant seals. It charges an entrance fee and requires a vehicle to circulate inside the reserve.

Bosque Petrificado (Santa Cruz): a 150-million-year-old time capsule in the middle of nowhere.

Río Gallegos: the last big city before the crossing to the Strait of Magellan. It's where you restock everything: fuel at brand-name stations (YPF, Shell), a big supermarket to stock up on supplies that will last until Ushuaia (and in Tierra del Fuego prices skyrocket because of the isolation), a tire shop if any tire gave a sign on the way down and a real mechanic shop if something jammed. After Río Gallegos the cities become small villages with limited options until Río Grande, on the other side of the crossing.

Why this route: pavement almost all the way, reasonable gas stations, phone signal most of the time. It's the safest option for whoever is testing a long car trip for the first time.

It captures less of the essence of Patagonia. If you want the Cordillera and a glacier, this route doesn't deliver. It delivers the ocean.

Route 2: Cordillera via Ruta 40, the most scenic on the Argentine side

It enters Argentina through the northern passes (Paso de los Libres, Bernardo de Irigoyen or directly through Foz do Iguaçu), goes down toward Mendoza and joins Ruta 40, the longest road in Argentina, with 5,000 kilometers from north to south.

Path: Brazil → northern Argentina → Mendoza → San Carlos de Bariloche → El Bolsón → Esquel → Perito Moreno (town) → El Calafate → El Chaltén → Río Gallegos → ferry → Ushuaia.

Driving time: 18 to 22 days one way, with decent stops. A comfortable round trip: 45 to 60 days (and it drops to 35-45 if you return via the Atlantic route).

Stops worth making:

Mendoza: wineries, asado, a base to cross into Chile if you want to do a detour to Santiago.

Bariloche and the Ruta de los Siete Lagos: a tourist classic, but it deserves it. Autumn (April/May) has absurd colors.

Cueva de las Manos (Santa Cruz): 9,000-year-old cave paintings, a UNESCO Heritage site, in a canyon in the middle of nowhere.

Perito Moreno Glacier (Los Glaciares National Park): one of the few glaciers in the world that still advances. Go on a sunny day and stay to watch the blocks falling.

El Chaltén: the national trekking capital, the base of Cerro Fitz Roy. Even if you don't hike, it's worth driving there.

Why this route: it gives you the entire Argentine Patagonia, with glaciers, mountains and steppe. It's the "classic itinerary" that shows up in the photos.

Careful: stretches of Ruta 40 south of Perito Moreno (town) have heavy ripio and gas stations spaced 200+ km apart, many of them with no fuel available at the end of the day or closed outside business hours. Phone signal disappears for long intervals. Fill the tank whenever a full station appears, even if you still have a third. Waiting to refuel 50 km ahead is how you end up stranded. And calculate your range conservatively: the Patagonian wind easily cuts consumption by 30%, what looked like 600 km on a full tank becomes 420.

Route 3: Carretera Austral plus Ruta 40, the most beautiful and the longest

This one is for whoever has 60 to 90 days and wants to drive the wildest scenery on the continent. It combines the Chilean side of Patagonia (Carretera Austral) with the Argentine side (Ruta 40), because the Carretera Austral ends in Villa O'Higgins and has no road continuity to the south. You have to go back and cross into Argentina.

Path: Brazil → Argentina → cross into Chile (Bariloche → Puerto Montt) → Carretera Austral (Puerto Montt → Chaitén → Coyhaique → Villa O'Higgins) → back north and cross into Argentina at some pass (Río Mayo, Coyhaique-Perito Moreno) → southern Ruta 40 → El Chaltén → El Calafate → Río Gallegos → ferry → Ushuaia.

Driving time: 30 to 40 days one way with honest stops. Round trip: 70 to 90 days (and it drops to 55-70 with a return via the Atlantic).

Stops worth making:

Parque Pumalín: Valdivian forest, volcanoes, fjords. A donation from Doug Tompkins, today a Chilean heritage.

Parque Queulat: the Ventisquero Colgante (a glacier hanging from a cliff) is a movie scene.

Capillas de Mármol (Marble Caves): marble caves sculpted by the water of Lago General Carrera. Only by boat. Another movie scene.

Villa O'Higgins: the end of the road. Literally. From here on, to continue south you have to take a ferry and trek without the car (pedestrians cross to El Chaltén, cars don't).

Lago O'Higgins: the point where the Carretera Austral ends.

Why this route: no one who does it regrets it. The combination of fjords, glaciers, temperate forests and steppe is unique in the world.

Double the caution: Chilean ferries on the Carretera Austral require an advance reservation (weeks, in high season). Fuel is even rarer than on Ruta 40. And leaving Villa O'Higgins by car means going back the same way until you can cross into Argentina.

Documentation and bureaucracy, the minimum so you don't get a scare

For any of the 3 routes, have:

A passport (an ID card works only for Mercosur, but a passport simplifies things).

An international driver's license or a valid Brazilian license plus a translation (good practice).

The car's original CRLV (a copy isn't accepted at some posts).

A country-exit authorization with a notarized signature, if the car isn't in your name.

Mercosur insurance (Green Card), mandatory.

A warning triangle, reflective vest, fire extinguisher and safety cones. Argentina and Chile enforce this at checkpoints.

Crossing the border is easy most of the time: 30 minutes to 2 hours, depending on the post and the time. The small Cordillera passes are much faster than Paso Cristo Redentor or Chuí, which have a historic line.

Which to choose?

If your window is 3 to 4 weeks: route 1 (Atlantic). You arrive, see the essentials and go back.

If your window is 6 to 8 weeks and you want the "postcard" Patagonia: route 2 (Ruta 40) on the way there, Atlantic on the way back. A glacier, El Chaltén, Bariloche.

If your window is 2 to 3 months and you want scenery few people see: route 3 (combined Carretera Austral) on the way there, Atlantic on the way back. It's the most tiring, the most expensive in fuel and ferries, and also the most unforgettable.

Planning yours? GT Overlander helps you build the itinerary, with community-validated waypoints along the way: gas stations, campgrounds, mechanic shops and everything you need to make your trip even more unforgettable.