Map

City tour of Río Gallegos See map

It is convenient to do this walk on foot, not to miss any details. Begin the tour of the Costanera Avenue, where you can see the ria east by which the Gallegos river flows into the Atlantic Ocean and also to the north of the mouth is the Cape Buen Tiempo. On the opposite bank you can see the stepped plateau that rises to the west.

The Cathedral Church.

The waterfront and streets are landscaped and over Ramón Lista and Orkeke streets you can see modern homes in what is the main residential area. It is also interesting to observe shorebirds, cormorants, albatrosses and gulls, hovering on the margins, especially at low tide. 

On 50 Piedrabuena is the Balcón de Roca (National Historical Museum), who was the first Argentine president to visit Río Gallegos. From there, Julio A. Roca spoke to the people, around the famous "embrace of the Straits" of 1899 in Punta Arenas. It was a meeting between him and the Chilean President Federico Errazuriz Echaurren. Argentine President took this opportunity to invite the landowners and businessmen based in the strait to invest in Argentina.

Continue the tour through Cano and Alberdi streets to see the Pioneer Museum, housed in the "Casa Parisi." This house is a typical Patagonian building with furniture donated by pioneer families. It highlights a French manual carding of wool, the original plan (1886) of Río Gallegos, the complete office of Dr. Carro García with its couch, healing items and his diplomas, the old washing machine of the Hallifay family and two time bedrooms with furniture of the last century, and many other comfort elements of those times. The house, built around 1890, belonged to Dr. Victor Fenton and since 1915 to the family Parisi. It is a small museum but worth a visit.

Then, on Avenida Roca and Perito Moreno, you can visit the Regional Museum Manuel Molina, with samples of geology, paleontology, prehistoric, colonial and pioneer times, flora and fauna. It also has a library and an attractive exhibition of antique firearms.

Av Roca 658, the Artisan Center offers authentic crafts made by local craftsmen, in which highlight those parts of loom. This center, that depends on the state, gives a certificate of origin and authenticity to each item and the proceeds from the sale goes to the protection and dissemination in support of the craft.

Finally, it is advisable to visit the Cathedral which was completed in 1900 as headquarters of the Salesian congregation. Conducted by Salesian Juan Bernabé design, it is a typical example of the construction of wood and veneer. Roman eclectic style and a Latin cross, it was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1985.