World's Southernmost City Opens New Ski Lift

A new chairlift just opened in one of the furthest corners of the world.

The world’s southernmost city, Ushuaia, Argentina, which sits right on the border of Chile, now has a fixed-grip 4-seater lift that brings skiers from the valley to the mountains. The new lift spans 1.4 kilometers (nearly 1 mile) and takes 11 minutes to reach the mountain station.

Nicknamed “the City at the End of the World,” Ushuaia’s local ski hill, Cerro Martial Ski Center, is just seven kilometers from the town center. The new lift will help to provide more reliable access to the ski area for visitors. In its first phase, the lift has 126 chairs installed, giving it a transport capacity of 1,450 passengers per hour. Expansion plans for the lift include increasing the chair count to 139 and increasing transport capacity to 1,600 passengers per hour.

Swiss ropeway company Bartholet was commissioned for the project, which posed a significant logistical aspect. Travel from Switzerland to Ushuaia takes roughly 30 hours, which was no small consideration for the project team.

Additionally, the transfer of parts and materials from Switzerland took eight weeks, and parts of the construction site were only accessible using off-road vehicles.

The lift officially opened to the public on June 19, 2026, which was also the start of Cerro Martial’s winter season. Prior to the opening of the new lift, Cerro Martial’s lift was inoperative since 2011. The project was initially given the green light in 2018, but the COVID-19 pandemic put yet another pause on it.

Following the approval of an environmental impact plan, construction of the new lift finally started in November 2024.

During the period of non-operation, the Martial glacier was only accessible on foot, creating a significant barrier for tourism in the area. The construction of the new lift will not only make Cerro Martial’s year-round resort more accessible for tourism but also create jobs and support the local economy.

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