Argentina boosts winter tourism with new ski lift and upgraded airport

The Instituto Fueguino de Turismo (INFUETUR) unveiled its 2026 winter season plan, highlighting the inauguration of a new quadruple chairlift at Cerro Martial in Tierra del Fuego on 19 June. The lift extends the skiable area, adds snow‑shoe trails and winter‑sports schools, and coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Tierra Mayor winter centre and a nationally promoted Fiesta Nacional del Invierno scheduled for 3‑11 July.

In Neuquén Province, the renovated Chapelco airport in San Martín de los Andes opened after a investment of more than 5 billion pesos. The upgrade added over 1,000 m² of covered space, modern commercial areas, expanded waiting zones, LED runway lighting and equipment for snow‑season operations. Passenger capacity has risen from about 80 000 annually in 2016 to over 300 000 today, supporting the growing ski tourism sector and creating roughly 90 direct construction jobs. Both projects are financed in part by revenues from the Vaca Muerta energy fields, aiming to diversify the regional economy through tourism.