Antarctic Cruises

For those taking Antarctica cruises from Argentina, Ushuaia is the gateway to the White Continent. Located in Argentina's Patagonia region the city is found at the southernmost tip of South America and is often described as “the End of the World”. The city’s mountain backdrop rises above the harbour and entrance to the Beagle Channel. In 1832, Captain Robert Fitzroy stopped here with a young Charles Darwin on board the HMS Beagle. It was during this time that Darwin spent time in the Tierra del Fuego and began to develop his theories that would ultimately surface in his seminal work The Origin of the Species. The town itself is easily walkable, has a couple of small museums, a handful of upmarket hotels and plenty of pubs, restaurants and cafes. This is a good place to try local fresh fish and Patagonian lamb cooked over open fire pits. Visitors can indulge in some last-minute shopping for outdoor gear or camera equipment, or spotting penguins, rock cormorants and sea lions in the Beagle Channel. For the landlubber Ushuaia is a springboard to the hiking trails of Tierra del Fuego National Park and the Martial Glacier. In and around Patagonia there are opportunities for horse riding, whale watching, overnighting on a ranch (estancia) and observing a glacier at Parque Nacional Los Glaciares. Unless you are planning on day trips to the nearby parks, one or two nights in Ushuaia to recover from your flight and to acclimatise pre- and/or post-cruise is more than enough.

The sleepy port city of Punta Arenas (another city at the end of the world) sits at the tip of Chile's southernmost Patagonia region. Cruise passengers embark at Punta Arenas for cruises through the archipelago’s scenic fjords to Cape Horn, or to Magdalena Island for penguins and Marta Island for sea lions, while hikers can take excursions to the national park Torres del Paine and to the Magallanes National Park, both recognised for their spectacular wilderness. The Strait of Magellan connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and separates the South American mainland from the Tierra del Fuego archipelago. Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan sailed through the Strait of Magellan on his circumnavigation of the globe in the early 16th century, and you can learn more at the Museo Nao Victoria featuring a life-size replica of one of his galleons. The city’s history is a fascinating mix of indigenous culture and inland sheep farming, interwoven with maritime history and espionage as its strategic location made it the perfect base for spies to observe the comings-and-goings of the world’s navies.

At the centre of Argentina’s cosmopolitan capital known as "The Paris of South America" is the Plaza de Mayo, a tree-lined public square bordered by stately 19th-century buildings including the pink Casa Rosada presidential palace. But this growing metropolis is as much about its neighbourhoods (barrios) and cafe culture as it is about European architecture and grand boulevards. Each district has its own character - none more so than lively La Boca, where tango dancers perform their improvised steps in the streets, especially in the tiny El Caminito. Ships dock into the regenerated Puerto Madero barrio, a waterfront development with upmarket restaurants in former dockland buildings alongside sleek, modern constructions. Be sure to visit the handsome district of Recoleta, famous for its cemetery (Eva “Evita” Peron is buried here), and home to exclusive shops and restaurants. Other classic Buenos Aires experiences include dining at a parilla (steakhouse) with a glass of Argentinian Malbec in hand or shopping for leather gaucho belts.

Coming to the Falklands is a real adventure, and you are sure to be captivated by the islands’ unique character and abundant birdlife. Beaches filled with the cacophony of rockhopper, gentoo and king penguin colonies are a treat for any visitor on shore. While at sea you might spot dolphins leaping and the occasional spout of a pilot whale, as well as elephant seals lounging on Sea Lion Island. This rugged and remote archipelago in the South Atlantic comprises two main islands, East Falkland and West Falkland, and more than 776 smaller islands, including Sea Lion, Carcass and Saunders Islands. A British overseas territory, with foreign affairs handled by the British Government, the self-governing Falklands relies on tourism alongside its traditional industries of sheep farming and commercial fishing.

Anyone familiar with Britain’s trademark red post boxes and manicured gardens might spot a resemblance in this British outpost. Stanley, on East Falkland, is the tiny capital of the Falkland Islands and is small enough to get around on foot. Near the sheltered harbourside, you can visit The Historic Dockyard Museum with galleries devoted to maritime history and exploration including the 1982 Falklands War and Antarctic heritage or pop into the post office for a first-day cover stamp collection. Magellanic penguins gather in hordes at nearby Gypsy Cove, and sea lions and dolphins frolic in the harbour.

From the Falklands (or from Ushuaia) the ship crosses the Antarctic Convergence to South Georgia. With only a few semi-permanent residents (a handful of scientists and museum staff), the island is part of the British Overseas territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (a chain of smaller islands) in the southern Atlantic Ocean. Often called the “Galapagos of the Poles”, there are a number of landing sites on the island where you will spot phenomenal wildlife including Antarctic fur seals, seabirds including albatross and cape and snow petrels, and get up close (within the recommended guidelines) to colonies of breeding king, chinstrap, Adélie and macaroni penguins. If you are lucky you will also be able to see and hear harrumphing elephant seals - from a distance! Mountains, glaciers and fjords dotted with ice make up the scenery.

South Georgia’s main settlement is the historic whaling station Grytviken where the main attraction is the graveyard and granite column marking the burial site of legendary British explorer, Ernest Shackleton. Shackleton’s adventures in Antarctica are well documented. Shackleton (1874-1922) attempted to cross the South Pole during the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914-1917 on board his ship, The Endurance. The epic story of their adventures has become one of the best-known stories in Antarctic exploration history. Becoming trapped in the ice-packed Weddell Sea in 1915, the ship eventually sank and the crew set off spending months in makeshift camps and lifeboats making it to Elephant Island and eventually South Georgia with little loss of life. The tiny town surrounded by mountains was also the base for Norwegian whalers, and you can find out about commercial whaling, and its far-reaching consequences, at the South Georgia Museum. A Lutheran church also remains. Look out for the king penguins that waddle about the abandoned buildings.

Most Antarctica cruises begin and end with a journey across the notorious Drake Passage, commonly referred to as “the Drake.” Stretching 600 miles between Cape Horn and Antarctica's South Shetland Islands, the Drake will stir emotions amongst even the most seasoned of travellers. Infamously unpredictable, it is the changeable nature of the crossing which brings the most trepidation. Drake Lake or Drake Shake? Come prepared for both. For many, crossing the Drake is a rite of passage that contributes a great deal to the authentic “expedition ship” experience. And if you are made of stronger stuff these two sea days can be put to good use at informative talks led by our knowledgeable expedition leaders and polar guides or by getting to know your fellow travellers and familiarising yourself with our luxurious boutique ship, and all the time accompanied by huge wandering albatrosses.

While the South Shetland Islands’ proximity to Antarctica makes the ice-bound sea impassable during winter (April to November), these are the first islands to see snow melt in the southern spring (March) and the slightly warmer temperature means that the fauna is also different to what you will see in Antarctica proper. The South Shetlands include King George Island, Deception Island, Low Island (the nearest to the Antarctic Peninsula) and Elephant Island, and have been part of the British Antarctic Territory since 1962. The islands are home to several historic sites and monuments and this is also where you might catch sight of your first penguins.

After crossing the Drake Passage, your ship will anchor off King George Island, the largest of the South Shetlands. From this point onwards, all excursions from our elegant ice-class ship are by soft & rigid-hulled Zodiac boat. It is a welcome stop for travellers after the two-day journey across the Drake Passage - a chance to stretch the legs and look out for birds that you have never seen before, including the iconic giant petrel. Don’t think that because you’re not yet in Antarctica proper there’s not much to see in terms of flora and fauna. As well as gentoo, Adélie and chinstrap penguins toddling up and down the beaches you should also look out for minke and Southern right whales, leopard seals and the south polar skua. And notice the ferns, grasses, lichens and native flora that have more in common with Patagonia and the Falkland Islands than they do with Antarctica. King George Island is the main departure point for scientists and those who decide to fly to Antarctica rather than cross the Drake Passage by sea. Charter flights from Punta Arenas in Chile on small planes must be organised and paid for separately. Flight time to King George Island is between two to three hours.

Expedition ships sail into the flooded caldera of this ring-shaped island via a narrow entrance called Neptune’s Bellows. The southernmost island in the South Shetland archipelago, Deception Island is an active volcanic island. Inside, the geothermal waters at Whalers Bay provide a warm spot for birdlife to bathe and breed on the cliffs, including storm petrels, Antarctic tern, gulls, skuas and cape pigeons. Hiking is sometimes possible from here. On the outer edge of the island, penguins dot the black lava sands at Bailey Head, where one of the largest colonies of breeding chinstrap penguins in the world has set up home in the rugged cliffs overlooking the beach. The volcano’s most recent eruption in 1970 destroyed many of the island’s scientific observatories, whose derelict buildings remain on the lava-covered landscape alongside dilapidated whale hunting artifacts.

Mountainous and ice covered, the Antarctic Peninsula is like nowhere you have visited before. Here, among captivating glaciers, majestic icebergs and snowy islands is where most visitors to the White Continent will live out their Antarctic dream. With any luck, as you sail quietly past house-sized, free-floating tabular icebergs and pancake ice, you may be able to hear the sounds of creaking and popping as huge chunks of ice break off and crash into Weddell Sea. Get your camera at the ready as you take in the magnitude of this vast frozen wilderness that changes colour from glassy white to turquoise and green - a landscape that is often broken up by the tail of a fluking minke, humpback or orca (killer whales), and leopard seals resting on an ice floe, all who come here to feed on abundant Antarctic krill, the small cold-water crustacean that bring bird- and wildlife to these waters. Coming ashore by Zodiac, you will be at a loss for words when you first catch a glimpse of the seabirds and penguin rookeries - although you may smell these first! There are plenty of landing points on the Peninsula - Port Lockroy research station with its post office, from where you can send postcards, Neko Harbour, the Gerlache Strait or Elephant Point. Our expert team of expedition leaders and naturalists will have you exploring Antarctica in no time.