Antarctic Explorer: Discovering the Peninsula

Arrive to Ushuaia, Argentina and transfer to your hotel. Overnight.

After embarkation in the late afternoon, you will sail down the Beagle Channel. Keep watch on deck for seabirds, penguins and rainbows.

Prepare for rough water, but do not be disappointed if your crossing is smooth sailing. The Drake is always changing.

Many factors play a role in shaping the expedition’s progress. We attempt to leave the ship to explore in a range of activity levels at least twice a day. Perhaps, you’ll feel salt spray on your face as the Zodiac weaves in and around grounded icebergs in Pleneau Bay. You could scramble to the top of a craggy hill for an unforgettable view of an icy chasm near Port Lockroy. You could sit quietly on a pebbled beach and wait for a curious penguin chick to approach or plunge into the frigid Antarctic waters.

Explore the highlights of the Antarctic Peninsula with other adventurers! Over the course of the austral spring and summer, the sun lingers longer and longer, melting snow and ice. Wildlife abounds: chicks hatch and fledge, and pods of whales breach in a deep bay where a calving iceberg has churned up krill, the local delicacy.

The natural cycle of life ensures that every expedition is different. And that every expedition is full of surprises! In Antarctica, silence is so complete that interruptions become indelible memories: noisy penguins squabbling over prized pebbles, the boom and crack of a calving glacier near Petermann Island. As you sail from island to shore to bay during four days in the Peninsula, the Expedition Team provides opportunities for contemplation, to test your endurance and engage your curiosity.

Activities during the return voyage depend on the conditions of the Drake. A smooth crossing is a busy crossing. You will be transferred to the airport from the ship when you disembark in Ushuaia.