Le Commandant Charcot takes you on a 15-day Antarctic expedition to the Bellingshausen Sea, in the footsteps of its namesake, Jean-Baptiste Charcot. Sail to the Drake Passage, where you can experience exceptional sailing moments before joining the naturalist guides on your ship’s exterior decks to look out for albatrosses, cape petrels, and other seabirds flying over the Drake Passage. Cross the imaginary line of the Antarctic Polar Circle, located at 66° 33’ south of the Equator. Witness the Gullet, an ice-like palace, its immaculate white walls reflected in the frozen mirror formed by the waters of the Southern Ocean, scattered with icebergs and gleaming blocks of ice. As you reach the Antarctic Peninsula, find yourself in the heart of a spectacular display in subtle shades of blue and white, surrounded by exceptional wildlife.

Highlights

Observe unique wildlife including Adelie penguins, leopard seals, and humpback whales
Experience glaciers and icebergs up close and personal
Explore the distant Charcot Island on the Bellingshausen Sea
Enjoy kayaking, hiking or snowshoeing, polar plunge without suit, and more

Activities

Places Visited

Activity Level: Moderate

Activities that provide a reasonable level of physical challenge and elevate the heart rate. Focused on more active pursuits including multisport tours. Travelers may be active 5-7 hours total each day. Recommended for travelers with active lifestyles.

Full Itinerary

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Day 1: Overnight stay in Santiago | Fly to Ushuaia

Hotels
1 Dinner

Light morning breakfast will be served before leaving for the airport for your Santiago/Ushuaia flight.

Day 2: Ushuaia | Embark

Ship
1 Breakfast, 1 Dinner

Capital of Argentina's Tierra del Fuego province, Ushuaia is considered the gateway to the White Continent and the South Pole. Nicknamed “El fin del mundo” by the Argentinian people, this city at the end of the world nestles in the shelter of mountains surrounded by fertile plains that the wildlife seem to have chosen as the ultimate sanctuary. With its exceptional site, where the Andes plunge straight into the sea, Ushuaia is one of the most fascinating places on earth, its very name evocative of journeys to the unlikely and the inaccessible…

Day 3-4: Crossing The Drake Passage

Ship
2 Breakfasts, 2 Lunches, 2 Dinners

Use your days spent in the Drake Passage to familiarise yourself with your ship and deepen your knowledge of the Antarctic. The Expedition Leader will first present the IAATO rules of conduct that must be observed during landings in the region and explain everything you need to know about the zodiac outings. Lectures about the history and wildlife of the Antarctic will be an opportunity for you to learn more about this magical region, where every cruise is a unique experience. You will experience exceptional sailing moments from the ship's bridge before joining the naturalist guides on your ship’s exterior decks to look out for albatrosses, cape petrels, and other seabirds flying over the Drake Passage.

Day 5: Crossing The Antarctic Circle

Ship
1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner

Weather permitting, we'll cross the mythic line of the Antarctic Polar Circle, located along 66°33’ south of the Equator. This iconic area demarcates the point from which it is possible to view the midnight sun during the December solstice. Within this circle, the sun remains above the horizon for 24 consecutive hours at least once a year. Crossing this line, an experience known to few people, is sure to be an unforgettable highlight of your cruise through the polar regions.

Day 6: The Gullet

Ship
1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner

The sumptuous landscapes of this narrow channel between Adelaide Island and Graham Land attract all visitors sailing towards Marguerite Bay. It is like an ice palace, its immaculate white walls reflected in the frozen mirror formed by the waters of the Southern Ocean, scattered with icebergs and gleaming blocks of ice. This passage was explored for the first time by the Jean-Baptiste Charcot expedition in 1909, which sketched its position. It was then surveyed in 1936 by the British expedition under John Rymill. It is here in this magical setting that some of the first subaquatic images of the Antarctic were shot during Philippe Cousteau’s four-month expedition to Antarctica between 1972 and 1973.

Day 7-8: Expedition To Charcot Island

Ship
2 Breakfasts, 2 Lunches, 2 Dinners

When he discovered this island surrounded by sea ice in 1910 from aboard the Pourquoi Pas ? as he mapped Alexander Island, Jean-Baptiste Charcot had not be able to get less than 40 miles away from it. Situated in a zone that experiences frequent low-pressure systems and regular cloud cover, the island remains in many ways an enigma. It is entirely covered in ice and sheer cliffs, with the exception of the rocky outcrops extending over a dozen kilometres in the far north-west. The ice in the narrowest part of Wilkins Sound has been cracking in recent times, thus officially detaching this island from its neighbour, Alexander Island, lying 50 km away. Very few people have landed on this largely untouched island, whose waters attract numerous seabirds, such as petrels, Antarctic terns and skuas.

Day 9: Bellingshausen Sea

Ship
1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner

Stretching from the west of the Antarctic Peninsula to the Amundsen Sea, the Bellingshausen Sea was named after the Russian admiral and explorer who has been attributed the first confirmed sighting of mainland Antarctica, in 1820. Among others, its waters surround two of the Antarctic’s largest islands: Alexander Island and Thurston Island. You will explore this sea amid ice floe, blocks of sea ice and majestic icebergs. The coastal areas along the Bellingshausen Sea are also renowned as the home of colonies of emperor penguins. Depending on the month of the southern summer, you will perhaps be lucky enough to observe isolated adults, adolescents seeking emancipation or recently independent new adults.

Day 10: Marguerite Bay

Ship
1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner

The icebergs are each more majestic than the next and scattered around the deep and intense blue waters of Marguerite Bay, one of the most beautiful regions in the Antarctic. It is delimited in the north by the mountainous Adelaide Island, in the south by George VI Sound and Alexander Island, and in the east by the Fallières Coast. Charcot named it after his wife during his second expedition to the Antarctic between 1908 and 1910. In 1909, in the southern summer when the skies are at their clearest, he led an important scientific mission to map and study this region. The bay is home to a number of cetaceans and you may get the chance to observe leopard seals or Adelie penguins.

Day 11: Pourquoi Pas Island

Ship
1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner

em>Le Commandant Charcot will land on the coast of Pourquoi Pas Island, so named in the 1930s by John Riddoch Rymill in honour of Jean-Baptiste Charcot, who discovered it from aboard his ship Le Pourquoi Pas ? during his second expedition to Antarctica between 1908 and 1910. This mountainous island, situated in the north of Marguerite Bay between Graham Land and Adelaide Island, is 28 km long and 14 km large. It is scattered with narrow fjords and snow-covered mountains. You will go to shore in a zodiac dinghy with your expedition team and you could get the chance to observe Adelie penguins going about their business on the island’s rocky shores.

Day 12-13: Antarctic Peninsula

Ship
2 Breakfasts, 2 Lunches, 2 Dinners

Succumb to the magic of a place unlike any other. To this day, the mythical Antarctic Peninsula still holds real fascination and promises its visitors unforgettable moments. Throughout your adventure in this icy realm, you will find yourself in the heart of a spectacular decor in subtle shades of blue and white, surrounded by exceptional wildlife. Penguins, humpback whales, seals and giant petrels are at home here, as are elephant seals, fur seals, Antarctic minke whales, and orcas. Depending on which sites you will be lucky enough to visit, you may get the chance to observe them and share with them the beauty of these extreme parts.
Each day, based on ice conditions, the Captain and the Expedition Leader will suggest zodiac outings or landings to discover the infinite riches of the Antarctic Peninsula. Glaciers, ice floe, tabletop icebergs, mountain peaks that plunge straight into the sea, volcanic beaches, research stations, enchanting bays, and vestiges of the whaling industry: these are the faces of the Antarctic that will likely reveal themselves to you, in a hushed and surreal atmosphere. You will sail in the wake of Jean-Baptiste Charcot, Adrien de Gerlache and Sir Ernest Shackleton, great Antarctic explorers who, from the 19th century, set out to conquer these remote and uninhabited lands.

Day 14-15: Crossing The Drake Passage

Ship
2 Breakfasts, 2 Lunches, 2 Dinners

If there is one place, one sea, one waterway dreaded by tourists, researchers and hardened seafarers alike, it is undoubtedly Drake Passage. Situated at the latitude of the infamous Furious Fifties winds, between Cape Horn and the South Shetland Islands, it is the shortest route to connect Antarctica to South America. Seasoned navigators will tell you that you must earn your visit to the White Continent! As the Antarctic convergence zone where cold currents rising up from the South Pole meet warmer equatorial water masses, Drake Passage harbours a very diverse marine fauna. Don't forget to look to the sky to catch a glimpse of elegant albatross and Cape petrels, playfully floating about in the wind around your ship.

Day 16: Ushuaia | Disembark | Fly to Santiago

1 Breakfast

Ship/Hotel

Le Commandant Charcot

The polar explorer ship Le Commandant Charcot travels to remote regions of the Arctic and Antarctic. This expedition ship is unique because of its revolutionary and environmentally friendly design.

Chile - Hotels

Dates & Prices

Per person starting at

$26,090

Rates are dynamic and fluctuate based on capacity. Contact us for a specific quote.

Select a Date

Prestige Stateroom Deck 6

20m² and a 5m² private balcony, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with shower, dressing table with hairdryer, flat-screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe

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Prestige Stateroom Deck 7

20m² and a 5m² private balcony, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with shower, dressing table with hairdryer, flat screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe

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Prestige Stateroom Deck 8

20m² and a 5m² private balcony, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with shower, dressing table with hairdryer, flat screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe

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Deluxe Suite Deck 6

28m² and a 5m² private balcony, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with shower, dressing table with hairdryer, flat-screen tv, wifi, minibar, and safe

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Deluxe Suite Deck 7

28m² and a 5m² private balcony, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with shower, dressing table with hairdryer, flat-screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe.

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Deluxe Suite Deck 8

28m² and a 5m² private balcony, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with shower, dressing table with hairdryer, flat-screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe.

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Prestige Suite Deck 7

40m² and a 10m² private balcony, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with two showers, dressing table with hairdryer, flat screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe

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Prestige Suite Deck 8

40m² and a 10m² private balcony, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with two showers, dressing table with hairdryer, flat screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe

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Grand Prestige Suite

42m² and a 12.5m² private balcony, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with shower and Balneo bathtub, dressing table with hairdryer, butler service, flat screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe

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Privilege Suite

48m² and a 12.5m² private balcony, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with shower and Balneo bathtub, dressing table with hairdryer, butler service, flat screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe

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Suite Duplex

48m² and a 26m² private balcony with jacuzzi, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with shower and Balneo bathtub, dressing table with hairdryer, butler service, flat screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe

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Owner's Suite

114m² and a 186m² private balcony with jacuzzi, king-sized bed or two twin beds, private bathroom with shower and Balneo bathtub, dressing table with hairdryer, butler service, flat screen tv, wifi, minibar and safe

Notes

Please note:
Fares are based on double occupancy and are capacity controlled. Rates may increase at any time as the ship sells out and are subject to change without notice.

Payment Details

Terms & Conditions

Operated by Ponant

Included

15 Breakfasts, 13 Lunches, 15 Dinners
15 Nights Accommodations
Accommodations as listed
Ground transportation as listed
Activities as listed
Meals as listed
Access to a 24-7 Emergency line while traveling
Ponant Activities: A variety of excursions and activities will be offered during your cruise, weather dependent, and can be reserved on board
Port Fees
Unlimited Wifi
Onboard Entertainment
Captain’s Welcome Cocktail and Gala Dinner
Gratuities to Onboard Crew
“Open Bar” (pouring wines, house champagne, alcohol except premium brands...list available upon request)
24h Room Service (special selection)
English-Speaking Lecturer
Highly experienced and bilingual (French-English) expedition staff
Park Entry Fees into Protected Areas
Water sports activities (except scuba diving) using the ship’s equipment, when permitted by local authorities and confirmed by ship Master according to safety and sea conditions onsite.
Arrival & Departure Transfers
Roundtrip flight Santiago/Ushuaia - Ushuaia/Santiago in economy class.
1-night accommodation in a 5* hotel the night before embarkation.
Use of rubber boots for landings, and a polar parka

Excluded

Travel Insurance
Personal Expenses
Flight costs (please request a quote)
Fuel and transportation surcharges (when applicable)
Visa Fees
Optional Excursions - Ponant allows you to pre-book your excursions approximately six to two months prior to the cruise* departure. Please note that this is subject to change. Please contact us for more details.
Any ground services before and/or after the cruise other than the ones mentioned
Luggage Handling
Laundry Services, Hair Salon, and à La Carte Spa Treatments
Pre or post cruise programs, overland programs or shore excursions
Beverages other than the ones mentioned in inclusions
CDP recommends that every Traveler has full and adequate travel insurance covering the risks of cancellation, assistance being required, repatriation, damages to and loss of baggage, and medical expenses

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Our guide and driver were very good with their knowledge and were very helpful with our questions. It was a very pleasant visit that would have been impossible to do on our own. Hotels and restaurants were fantastic. The special places we got to go to, like the kitchens, were great. Enjoyed the entire trip!

Meyer Smolen

In the Wake of Jean-Baptiste Charcot

Full Itinerary

Day 1: Overnight stay in Santiago | Fly to Ushuaia

Day 2: Ushuaia | Embark

Day 3-4: Crossing The Drake Passage

Day 5: Crossing The Antarctic Circle

Day 6: The Gullet

Day 7-8: Expedition To Charcot Island

Day 9: Bellingshausen Sea

Day 10: Marguerite Bay

Day 11: Pourquoi Pas Island

Day 12-13: Antarctic Peninsula

Day 14-15: Crossing The Drake Passage

Day 16: Ushuaia | Disembark | Fly to Santiago

Ship/Hotel

Le Commandant Charcot