Your epic journey commences this morning in the southern Chilean city of Punta Arenas. Meet at a central location before transferring to the airport for your scheduled flight to Stanley in the Falkland Islands. (This flight is included in the price of your voyage). After a short 90-minute journey, meet your guides on arrival and transfer to the pier.

Stanley is currently home to just over 2,000 residents and is reminiscent of a rural town in coastal Britain. It is charming with brightly colored houses, pretty flower-filled gardens, a quaint cathedral, and several local pubs. There is time to explore the town before you make your way to the Akademik Sergey Vavilov for embarkation. After settling in to your cabin and exploring the ship, meet your expedition team and fellow passengers. Excitement is in the air as you enjoy a welcome cocktail, dinner and cast off, bound for Antarctica – and the adventure of a lifetime.

Chart a southerly course for Antarctica. This stretch of the South Atlantic is rich in marine life and showcases an abundance of wildlife. Hundreds of seabirds join the ship, including the wandering albatross. Giant petrels and smaller Cape petrels are also constant companions as you make your way south. Photographing these magnificent birds from the deck of the ship takes patience and skill and your photography expert is on hand to show you the best techniques. Join the ship’s Captain on the bridge and learn about the operations of the modern research vessel. Throughout the day your on board experts educate you with a series of presentations about the environment, the wildlife and history, and the locations you may visit in the coming days.

This morning the ship is in position at the northern end of King George Island – the largest in the South Shetlands group. There are two potential landing sites here and a visit depends on the prevailing weather conditions. Penguin Island and nearby Turret Point offer good opportunities for shore landings to view Adelie, chinstrap, and gentoo penguins. Southern giant petrels, kelp gulls, and Antarctic terns are also known to nest here. This afternoon continue your journey south making your way ever closer to the Antarctic coastline. Large icebergs are present from this point on and make for striking photographs in the evening light. By morning, the towering mountain peaks of the Antarctic continent loom into view and the ship should make landfall around Wilhelmina Bay. Navigate under the towering cliffs of Spigot Peak and into the Errera Channel, hoping for a shore landing at Cuverville Island – home to a rookery of Gentoo penguins. It’s a fantastic location for a zodiac cruise or a paddle in the sea kayaks.

Spend time on the outer decks soaking up the scenery as the Vavilov navigates south. Pass through the ice strewn waters making your way towards the ultimate objective, the Antarctic Circle. Given favorable ice conditions, the first goal is to sail south of the Antarctic Circle and into Crystal Sound. A favored landing site here is Detaille Island, home to an abandoned British science hut from the 1950’s. This vicinity marks the southern-most point and from now on, return in a northerly direction exploring the dramatic coastline of the Antarctic Peninsula. If the conditions are right, an overnight camping program may be offered to all adventurers somewhere in this vicinity. All the gear is supplied on board and an experienced team make this a night to remember! (Note: Mid season ice conditions may block the journey to the Circle. In the event this happens there are a dozen other great landing sites to go and explore along the Peninsula).

Petermann Island is home to an Adelie penguin rookery. Adelies - the smallest of the Antarctic penguins, nest here and share the location with Gentoo penguins and Imperial cormorants. The view to the north of Mount Shackleton and Mount Scott is impressive. These towering granite sentinels mark the southern entrance to the nearby Lemaire Channel. Pleneau Island offers more opportunities for shore landings. Just off shore, massive icebergs run a round in the shallows. Constant wind and wave action sculpt these gargantuan chunks of ice into fantastic shapes, revealing more shades of blue than you can possibly imagine. For many, a zodiac cruise here may well be a highlight of the voyage.

Cruise north towards Paradise Harbour. This may be the first opportunity to step foot on the continent of Antarctica itself. Nearby Neko Harbour offers another continental landing. Both locations offer terrific hiking opportunities up to panoramic view points. For the sea kayakers, the paddling opportunities here are endless. Expect to be in full sensory overload by this time of the voyage!

By morning arrive in the South Shetland Islands. Whalers Bay at Deception Island is a very dramatic place and history is all around us as you explore the old whaling station, with the rusted boilers and dilapidated wooden huts. At the far end of the beach is an old aircraft hangar. This is where Australian explorer and pioneer aviator, Sir Hubert Wilkins made the very first flight in Antarctica in 1928. There is also an outstanding hike, high up onto the rim of the crater.

This morning anchor off King George Island. Say farewell to many of your fellow passengers as they disembark, transfer to the airstrip and board their charter flight back to South America. There is an opportunity to go ashore, or you may wish to relax on board, update your diary, or visit the multi-media room to download and back up your images. New guests are welcomed aboard the ship and you are soon underway – for the second leg of your epic adventure.

For the next three days enjoy a varied itinerary exploring the Gerlache coastline. This whole region is one large polar ‘playground’ with a great variety of landing sites. As always the weather and ice dictate the route. Planned visits could include Port Charcot, Orne Harbour, or Andvord Bay. All three locations offer excellent hiking opportunities, or a cruise through the Errera Channel to land on Danco Island – a large dome shaped island affording terrific views of the whole region from its summit. Wilhelmina Bay is another favorite location you could stop at for a second visit, as pods of humpback whales are frequently encountered in this area. If the channel south of Brooklyn island is ice-free, perhaps ship cruise through here while pushing north into the broad expanse of the Gerlache Strait. Cierva Cove and Mikkelsen Harbour are also possible locations you could visit – both providing good zodiac cruising opportunities.

The Vavilov is now on its way towards Antarctic Sound – the gateway into the icy Weddell Sea. On your port side are the South Shetland Islands. It won’t be the first time you have cruised these waters, but there are some terrific sites here which you may go and explore. Half Moon Island is nearby and is home to a sizable chinstrap penguin rookery. Across the MacFarlane Strait is Yankee Harbour – with its broad pebble beach – a known location for Weddell seals. If the weather is good a second visit to Deception Island is also a possibility. It’s always a thrill to navigate the ship into ‘Neptune’s Bellows’ – and to explore inside the submerged volcanic caldera by ship and zodiac.

At about 25 nautical miles long and about 10 nautical miles wide, the Antarctic Sound separates Joinville Island from the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. As you sail into the sound, witness for the first time the vast sweep of the Antarctic icecap. It is an awe-inspiring sight. Heading into the Weddell Sea notice a significant increase in the number of huge tabular icebergs and the presence of sea ice. These massive icebergs break from the huge ice shelves to the south and drift north on the currents. This always makes for exciting navigation – and stunning photographic opportunities in the soft Antarctic twilight. This is wild and remote Antarctica and has a distinctly different feel from locations visited so far.

The Weddell Sea region is home to Adelie penguin rookeries of staggering size – some contain more than 100,000 nesting birds. Such colonies dwarf the rookeries visited so far. Weather permitting, excursions may include Hope Bay, Paulet Island and Brown Bluff. All eyes are trained on the ice floes through which the ship navigates. Successful sightings of emperor penguins have been enjoyed in this area in recent years. Based on the size and plumage, naturalists believe them to be juveniles out exploring and fishing – and possible residents of the known emperor colony on the southern side of Snow Hill Island.

The history of exploration in this region is incredibly rich. Remnants of Nordenskjöld’s Swedish expedition of 1901-1904 are found in several locations in this area. The epic century-old story of Shackleton and the HMS Endurance expedition has strong links to the region. It was here that he and his men drifted north on the ice after their ship had been lost in the ice months earlier. As you head north and out of the Weddell Sea, the lavender pink sunset off the port quarter of the ship makes you pause to consider the bravery (or foolhardiness) of those early explorers who traveled these waters a hundred years before.

Approach Elephant Island from the south. Point Lookout, on the southern tip of the island, is home to an impressive chinstrap penguin colony. Macaroni penguins also breed here and are a species you have yet to encounter to date. Both southern elephant seals and Antarctic fur seals are hauled out on the beaches in large numbers. If conditions permit, visit the fabled location of Point Wild on the north coast of Elephant Island. It is here that Shackleton and his men were encamped under their upturned life boats, before five men set off on a rescue mission to South Georgia in their tiny lifeboat.

While sailing north to the Falkland Islands, on board polar experts recap on your Weddell Sea adventures and prepare you for the final days ahead. The spectacular seabirds, including several albatross and petrel species, once again are your constant companions as they soar above the ship. Your on board educational program continues and experts entertain with presentations and lively discussions.

Arriving into the Falkland Islands overnight, explore the islands of West Point and Saunders, both in the West Falkland archipelago. West Point is known for its rockhopper penguin rookeries and large nesting black browed albatross colony. The opportunity to observe these spectacular birds in close proximity on the nest is an immense privilege and an experience not easy forgotten. One final highlight awaits – a visit to the wildlife-rich Saunders Island. Along the white sand beaches and in the tussock grass hope to encounter no less than four penguin species living in close quarters including gentoo, magellanic and rockhopper - and your ultimate goal during the Falkland Island visit, observing the impressive king penguin. Saunders is a fitting end to an epic Antarctic adventure. Charting a course for the port of Stanley in early evening light, enjoy a special dinner attended by the Captain of the ship and reflect on one of life’s great travel experiences.

In the early morning, navigate through the narrows and into port. Stanley is currently home to just over 2,000 residents and is reminiscent of a rural town in coastal England or Scotland. It is charming with brightly colored houses, pretty flower-filled gardens, a quaint cathedral and several local pubs. There is time to explore the town before making your way to the airport for your return flight to Punta Arenas in southern Chile (this flight is included in the price of your voyage). It is possible to connect to flights through to Santiago or other destinations in Chile. If you are staying in Punta Arenas, a transfer is provided to several downtown locations.