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Categories Antarctica Cruises Adventure & Eco Travel Cruises

In Antarctica the silence is so perfect that every blink of an eye or every breath taken seem so loud. You will become a part of it – whether you wish it or not – with its own conditions and rules. A whale doesn’t care you have only “whale-watching” in your program when you are close enough to get a “whale shower”, leaving you bathed in fish-scented mist. A penguin leaves no chance to keep the demanded 5-meter distance, climbing up your boot. A huge piece of ice splitting off a glacier with crash and thunder breaks a silence and waves our Zodiacs. Orcas interrupt a lecture on wildlife coming right close by the ship. In the course of our exploration of the Antarctic Peninsula and its surrounding islands we will see penguin rookeries, old whaling stations, operational research stations, and elephant seal colonies. We are going to encounter the humpback and minke whales, adelie penguins, whirling Antarctic petrels and many others in their true, natural habitat.

This voyage features the abundant wildlife and spectacular scenery of the Antarctic Peninsula, including the classic sites of historic and scientific interest.

Please note: The itinerary below should be used as a guidance only.

Itinerary

Arrive into Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world. Make your way to your hotel and enjoy the evening at leisure.

You can visit the Argentinean leather markets and succulent lamb dishes that make Patagonia famous as you explore the southernmost town in the world. Highlights of Ushuaia include an award-winning museum and trips to nearby Tierra del Fuego National Park and its popular “Train at the End of the World”.

Arriving at the ship in the afternoon, you will be greeted by our Expedition Team and ship's officers at a safety and orientation briefing followed by the Captain's welcome dinner. After dinner, relax and take in the mountainous scenery on our early evening sail down the Beagle Channel past Magellanic Penguin, Rock Cormorant, and Sea Lion colonies.

The sea and weather conditions are hard to predict – the Drake Passage might be a real challenge most of the time. These first days we are going to spend chatting with other travellers and listening to the presentations given by our Expedition Team. As we are getting closer to the continent our excitement reaches its peak.

We will experience some of the most unique wildlife viewing and inspiring scenery in the world – gentoo, chinstrap and adelie penguin rookeries. Weddell, crabeater and leopard seals, and orca, humpback and minke whales in the cold Antarctic waters are likely to be encountered. Landing sites vary depending on weather conditions. We will have plenty of time to explore the amazing scenery, a pristine wilderness of snow, ice, mountains and waterways, and an incredibly wide variety of wildlife. We are sure that we are going to see many animals, historically significant sites and fascinating landscapes.

In fact watching penguins swimming and ambling over pebbled beaches, taking a Zodiac cruise around oddly artistically shaped icebergs, or witnessing a leopard seal hunt in the frigid Antarctic waters are going to be our main occupations in the South Shetland Islands and Antarctic Peninsula.

In Antarctica we don’t have to seek out the excitement, it is all around!

The journey back across the Drake Passage provides us with final opportunities for spotting seabirds and looking for whales. The Expedition Team run their last lectures and presentations, recapping the great Antarctic adventure that we have gone through.

The time to say goodbye has arrived. After breakfast, we will say goodbye to our Expedition Team, after which we will have our transfers to the airport.