Antarctica Peninsula With South Shetland Islands

The Trip

Day 1: Ushuaia – Set sail along the Beagle Channel
Day 2-3: At Sea – Cross the Drake Passage
Day 4-7: Antarctic – Explore the Antarctic Peninsula
Day 8: South Shetland – Deception Island
Day 8-9: At Sea – Cross the Drake Passage
Day 10: Ushuaia – Disembark

Day 1

Arrive in Ushuaia and board the boat. In the afternoon set sail along the scenic waterways of the Beagle Channel.

Day 2

The next couple of days will be spent crossing the Drake Passage, following the path pf the polar explorers. There will be a series of on board lectures and presentations by Antarctic experts to help you learn about the geology and wildlife of the white continent. Up on deck you will have the opportunity to see many sea birds that follow the wake of the boat.

Day 4-7

The next four days will be spent exploring the Antarctic Peninsula and the South Shetland Islands. Sail directly into the ‘High Antarctic’ passing Melchoir Island and the Schollaert Channel. Arrive on Cuverville Island to view a huge colony of Gentoo penguins and breeding pairs of brown skuas. An exact itinerary depends on weather conditions but you are likely to visit Orne Island where plenty more penguin species can be seen as well as Weddell and Crabeater seals. When you arrive in Neko Habour you will have the opportunity to make your first landing on the white continent where you can view the spectacular landscape surrounded by glaciers. Take daily zodiac cruises to view icebergs, wildlife and even humpback and Minke whales. Sail through the Lemaire Channel to Pleneau and Petermann Island. Here you will find Adelie penguins and blue-eyed shags as well as other whale species. It may be possible to visit the former British research station and post office at Port Lockroy.

Day 8

The volcanic islands of the South Shetlands are windswept and often cloaked in mist, but they do offer subtle pleasures: There’s a wide variety of flora (mosses, lichens, flowering grasses) and no small amount of fauna (gentoo penguins, chinstrap penguins, southern giant petrels). In Deception Island, the ship plunges through Neptune’s Bellows and into the flooded caldera. Here you find hot springs, an abandoned whaling station, and thousands of cape petrels – along with kelp gulls, brown and south polar skuas, and Antarctic terns. A good hike is a possibility in this fascinating and desolate volcanic landscape.

As an alternative, you may be able to engage in activities near Half Moon Island. Here chinstrap penguins and Weddell seals often haul out onto the beach near Cámara Base, an Argentine scientific research station. Conditions on the Drake Passage determine the exact time of departure.

Day 9 -10

Leave the Antarctic behind and cross back over the Drake Passage. Spend time with your fellow guests sharing stories of the things you’ve seen. Go back on deck to watch for wildlife and attend lectures and presentations given by Polar experts.

Day 11

Disembark at Ushuaia.

Prices in Euros and are per person. Prices in other currencies on request.