ANTARCTICA
Antarctica - the adventurous traveller’s final frontier! The most isolated continent on earth is as fascinating as it gets. Amazing wildlife – breaching humpback whales; enormous penguin colonies; sunbathing elephant seals and albatrosses following boats – thriving in this frigid, perilous grandeur. Waters studded with innumerable blue-white icebergs, some the size of highrises; groaning glaciers calving into the sea; soaring volcanoes rising majestically from the icy waters. Extreme and pristine, savage and serene, the end of the world is the mind-blowing adventure to beat all others.
A sample of our Antarctic Experiences:
Antarctic Explorer - 10 Nights
Antarctica,
the Falkland Islands & South Georgia -19 Nights
Ice Factory of the Weddell Sea - 11 Nights
Extended
Antarctic Sailing Adventure -22 Nights
Enquire here about more Expedition Cruises
About our ships
Contact Vancouver Travel Consultant Christine Boecker for more Expeditions!
This journey takes us to one of the
world’s most awe inspiring destinations. With visits along
the way through the South Shetland Islands we arrive on the mainland,
on the Antarctic Peninsula and are dazzled by perhaps the most dramatic
scenery to be found anywhere on earth.
Sailing aboard our well-appointed
expedition vessel, we see Antarctic nature in all its glory. These
areas boast an extraordinary abundance of wildlife, including five seal
species and massive penguin rookeries of gentoo, Adelies and chinstraps
as well as a profusion of seabirds from albatross to skuas. A wildlife
highlight may well be watching a variety of magnificent whale species
in close proximity as they crest the surface of the waves.
On the White Continent, we also see
remarkable landscapes of ice. At Paradise Harbour or Hope Bay we find
many icebergs dotting the waters, including some that are colossal in
size, containing natural caves shrouded in an eerie translucent light.
On land, there is a sweeping ice sheet, masking mountains and filling
trenches binding together an entire continent that is about the size of
Africa. We’ll even have the chance to camp ashore on this
expanse of ice if conditions are suitable.
Even in the company of our experienced
expedition crew, some of whom have travelled to Antarctica over 100
times, it still seems astonishing to think of the early explorers
attempting to conquer this beautiful, yet formidable land.
Note: Weather, ice, or other
conditions may necessitate changes to our itinerary and alteration to
certain shore excursions.
Itinerary
Day 1 Board the ship. Sail the Beagle
Channel.
Days 2 - 3 Cross the Drake Passage.
Days 4 - 8 Explore the Antarctic Peninsula.
Days 9 - 10 Sail back through the Drake
Passage.
Day 11 Arrive in Ushuaia, where your
voyage ends. You are transferred to your hotel, or to the airport for
your onward flight.
* Beginning of season has
a pristine beauty we don't see later in the season.
* Landing sites generally still have lots of snow (end of season
snow-free and often muddy)
* All penguins in full breeding plumage and very healthy and robust.
(they are more ragged near end of season).
* Overnight kayaking trip.
* Lots of sunlight (basically 24 hours).
* Better opportunity for camping with more light.
Top
From Ushuaia we sail the Beagle Channel in an easterly direction to the
Falkland Islands. We’ll explore West Point Island where
rockhopper and Magellanic penguins and black-browed albatross nest
among tufts of tussock grass. At Volunteer Point we’ll meet
brightly-coloured king penguins. History buffs will be keen to explore
Port Stanley – the smallest and most isolated capital city in
the world.
In the company of the great wandering
albatross we navigate eastward until the spectacular ice-crowned
mountains of South Georgia appear on the horizon. Our first landfall is
the abandoned whaling station at Grytviken, where we visit the grave of
Sir Ernest Shackleton, one of the greatest Antarctic explorers.
In the following days we thread our way
through the magical fjords and bays of this South Atlantic
‘Ark’. As the only speck of land for many hundreds
of miles, South Georgia is one of the planet’s most
astonishing wildlife havens. A sea of 100,000 colourful king penguins
crowds the beaches at Salisbury Plain against a backdrop of towering
snow-covered mountains. Another 75,000 nest at the Bay of Isles. South
Georgia is also home to mind-boggling numbers of elephant and fur
seals, macaroni penguins and important populations of albatross.
We continue our journey to the South
Orkney Islands, where huge breeding grounds of Weddell seals have
recently been discovered. Crossing the Scotia Sea we enter a magical
world of icebergs and ice-covered mountains as we reach the South
Shetlands and the bays and channels of the Antarctic Peninsula. On
frequent excursions ashore and by inflatable Zodiac boat,
we’ll view Adelie, chinstrap and gentoo penguins, as well as
humpback and minke whales and several species of seal.
Note: Weather, ice, or other
conditions may necessitate changes to our itinerary and alteration to
certain shore excursions.
Itinerary
Day 1 Board the vessel. Sail the Beagle
Channel
Day 2 Sail east towards the Falkland
Islands
Days 3 - 4 The Falkland Islands
Days 5 - 7 Sailing towards South Georgia
Days 8 - 10 South Georgia
Day 11 Sailing to the South Orkney islands
Day 12 South Orkney Islands(ice conditions
permitting)
Day 13 Sailing south to Antarctica
Days 14 - 17 Antarctica Peninsula
Days 18 - 19 Sailing north towards South
America
Day 20 Arrive in Ushuaia, where our voyage
ends. You are transferred to your hotel, or to the airport for your
onward flight.
Top
The ice factory that is the Weddell Sea has become synonymous with the
torturous northerly drift of Shackleton’s Endurance
expedition. Images of massed pack ice and human hardship add to the
legendary status of this inaccessible sea. This is a true exploratory
voyage, heading into rarely-visited regions, our course determined by
the weather and ice.
We’ll make landfall at the South
Shetland Islands at the northern tip of the peninsula, before testing
the limits of the sea ice as we push south into the Weddell Sea. Along
the way, we’ll celebrate a true ‘white’
Christmas – but with a little more luxury than Shackleton
experienced!
We aim to visit Snow Hill Island, base for
the Heroic Age Nordenskjold expedition, and Seymour Island, where
scientists are still finding fossils of giant penguins. We’ll
head south among the islands of the western shore of the Weddell Sea,
in search of an emperor penguin colony, as we virtually back-track
along the route the Endurance drifted.
Heading north, we hope to visit Paulet
Island, site of one of the Peninsula’s largest penguin
rookeries, and we’ll attempt the notoriously difficult
landing on Elephant Island, home for many months to the Endurance
sailors.
Note: Weather, ice, or other
conditions may necessitate changes to our itinerary and alteration to
certain shore excursions.
Itinerary
Day 1 Board the ship in Ushuaia. Sail the
Beagle Channel
Days 2 - 3 Cross the Drake Passage to the
South Shetland Islands.
Days 4 - 5 South Shetland Islands
& Antarctic Sound
Days 6 - 8 Weddell Sea
Day 9 Paulet Island, Elephant Island
Days 10 - 11 At sea
Day 12 Arrive Ushuaia, where our voyage
ends. You are transferred to your hotel, or to the airport for your
onward flight.
Top
Contact Vancouver Travel Consultant Christine Boecker for dates & rates
This journey takes us to one of the world’s most awe
inspiring destinations and provides the opportunity to travel on both
an expedition vessel and thoroughbred sailing yacht. Join the Akademik
Ioffe on January 2nd in Ushuaia and voyage across the Drake Passage in
the comfort of the well-appointed, ice-strengthened ship. With visits
through the South Shetland Islands we arrive on the mainland, on the
Antarctic Peninsula and are dazzled by perhaps the most dramatic
scenery to be found anywhere on earth.
We see Antarctic nature in all its glory,
as these areas boast an extraordinary abundance of wildlife, including
five seal species, massive penguin rookeries and a profusion of
seabirds. A wildlife highlight may well be watching a variety of
magnificent whale species in close proximity as they crest the surface
of the waves. On the White Continent, we also see remarkable landscapes
of ice. At Paradise Harbour or Hope Bay we find many icebergs dotting
the waters, including some that are colossal in size, containing
natural caves shrouded in an eerie translucent light. We’ll
even have the chance to camp ashore on this expanse of ice if
conditions are suitable.
Then, we rendezvous with Spirit of Sydney
in the calm waters of the Antarctic Peninsula for an extraordinary
‘hands on’ adventure exploring hidden bays and
islands of the spectacular Graham Land region. Sailors or non-sailors
of any skill level are welcome to participate in this unforgettable
experience where we can revel in the privilege of being virtually alone
amid an awesome display of nature.
After eight wondrous days sailing, we’ll once again board the
Akademik Ioffe for more exploration before the return trip across the
Drake Passage to Ushuaia.
Note: Weather, ice, or other conditions may necessitate changes to our
itinerary and alteration to certain shore excursions.
Itinerary
Day 1: Board the ship in Ushuaia. Sail the
Beagle Channel
Days 2 - 3: Cross the Drake Passage to the
South Shetland Islands.
Days 4 - 7: South Shetland Islands
& Antarctic Sound
Days 8-15: Sailing onboard the Spirit of Sydney
Day 16: Reboard the expedition vessel, Akademik Ioffe
Days 17-20: At sea onboard the Akademic Ioffe
Days 21-22: Crossing the Drake Passage
Day 23: Arrive in Ushuaia, where our voyage
ends. You are transferred to your hotel, or to the airport for your
onward flight.
Top
Contact Vancouver Travel Consultant Christine Boecker for more Expeditions!
