Antarctica Beyond the Polar Circle

Voyage overview

This Polar Circle and Antarctic Peninsula cruise passes through waters traveled by Humpback, Minke and Fin whales. Anchoring in various spots around the region, the expedition offers the chance to dive in the iceberg-heavy waters.

During this voyage, there is a good chance of witnessing the spectacular aurora australis (southern lights). While sightings can never be guaranteed, the combination of long nights, potential clear skies, and limited moonlight during this period creates favorable conditions for this rare and magical phenomenon.

Expedition route

A late-season voyage travelling south along the Antarctic Peninsula with the aim of crossing the Antarctic Circle, combining whale-watching opportunities, dramatic ice, remote anchorages and flexible expedition landings.

Who is this voyage best for? Best for travellers who have already considered the classic Peninsula and want to venture farther south.

Featured departures and published fares

Voyage	Ship	Dates	Duration	Published fare
OTL32-28	Ortelius	Mar 11–23, 2028	13 days	USD 12,000

Fares are from prices in USD per person, based on twin occupancy. Dates, itineraries, promotional fares and cabin availability are subject to change and confirmation.

Voyage highlights

• Antarctic Circle crossing attempt
• Late-season whale observation
• Remote Peninsula scenery
• Voyage aboard Ortelius

Planning notes

Final routes and landings are determined by the expedition leader and depend on weather, sea ice and wildlife conditions. Comprehensive travel insurance, including emergency evacuation and repatriation cover, is strongly recommended.

Fares generally include

• Voyage aboard the designated expedition ship
• Meals, snacks, coffee and tea aboard
• Zodiac shore excursions and activities
• Lectures and experienced expedition staff
• Use of rubber boots and snowshoes
• Port charges, taxes and pre-departure material

Not included

• International or domestic airfare
• Pre- and post-voyage hotels and most transfers
• Visas and personal expenses
• Travel and emergency evacuation insurance
• Gratuities and excess baggage

Ask Scantours to check cabins and current pricing

Tell us your preferred travel dates, route, party size and cabin level. We will verify the latest availability and fare before you commit.

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Itinerary

Your voyage begins where the world drops off. Ushuaia, Argentina, reputed to be the southernmost city on the planet, is located on the far southern tip of South America. Starting in the afternoon, you embark from this small resort town on Tierra del Fuego, nicknamed “The End of the World,” and sail the mountain-fringed Beagle Channel for the remainder of the evening.

Over the next two days on the Drake Passage, you enjoy some of the same experiences encountered by the great polar explorers who first charted these regions: cool salt breezes, rolling seas, maybe even a fin whale spouting up sea spray. After passing the Antarctic Convergence – Antarctica’s natural boundary, formed when north-flowing cold waters collide with warmer sub-Antarctic seas – you are in the circum-Antarctic upwelling zone. Not only does the marine life change, the avian life changes too. Wandering albatrosses, grey-headed albatrosses, black-browed albatrosses, light-mantled sooty albatrosses, cape pigeons, southern fulmars, Wilson’s storm petrels, blue petrels, and Antarctic petrels are a few of the birds you might see.

Options for Antarctic Peninsula activities are many, and no less great during the late summer. Humpback whales are prolific in this region, gorging themselves on krill before their migration north. The penguin chicks are also fledging, stirring up activity on the beaches while sleek leopard seals lie in wait, poised to attack the less fortunate ones.

Sites for your Antarctic adventures may include:

Livingston Island – Here you find a wide variety of gentoo and chinstrap penguins on Hannah Point, as well as southern giant petrels and elephant seals hauling out onto the beach.

Deception Island – Actually a subducted crater, this island opens into the sea and creates a natural harbor for the ship. An abandoned whaling station, and multiple bird species – cape petrels, kelp gulls, brown and south polar skuas, and Antarctic terns – can be seen here. Wilson’s storm petrels and black-bellied storm petrels also nest in the ruins of the whaling station in Whalers Bay.

Cuverville Island – A small precipitous island nestled between the mountains of the Antarctic Peninsula and Rongé Island, Cuverville houses a large colony of gentoo penguins and breeding pairs of brown skuas.

Neko Harbour – An epic landscape of mammoth glaciers and endless wind-carved snow, Neko Harbour offers opportunities for a Zodiac cruise and landing that afford the closest views of the surrounding alpine peaks. You might also be able to set foot on the continent here.

Paradise Bay – You could take a Zodiac cruise in these sprawling, ice-flecked waters, where you have a good chance of seeing humpback and minke whales.

Pléneau & Petermann Islands – If the ice allows it, you may sail through the Lemaire Channel in search of Adélie penguins and blue-eyed shags. There’s also a good chance you’ll encounter humpback and minke whales as well as leopard seals.

Crystal Sound – Your journey takes you south along the Argentine Islands to this ice-packed body of water, and from here across the Polar Circle in the morning.

Detaille Island – You may make a landing at an abandoned British research station here, taking in the island’s lofty mountains and imposing glaciers.

Fish Islands – Further north you encounter one of the southernmost Adélie penguin and blue-eyed shag colonies in the Antarctic Peninsula.

Melchior Islands – These islands offer a beautiful landscape rich with icebergs. Leopard seals, crabeater seals, and whales are found here, and there are excellent opportunities for kayaking and diving.

Conditions on the Drake Passage determine the exact time of departure.

Your return voyage is far from lonely. While crossing the Drake, you’re again greeted by the vast array of seabirds remembered from the passage south. But they seem a little more familiar to you now, and you to them.

Every adventure, no matter how grand, must eventually come to an end. It’s now time to disembark in Ushuaia, but with memories that will accompany you wherever your next adventure lies.

Notes