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Sample

Antarctic Peninsula Voyage

Eleven days from Ushuaia to the white continent: two landings a day, a kayak on the water before breakfast and a midnight sun that refuses to set.

Icebergs floating in cold water off a polar coastline

Route overview

South from Ushuaia across the Drake Passage, up the spine of the Antarctic Peninsula and back. It is the classic voyage for a reason: nowhere else puts you within a zodiac ride of a quarter of a million breeding penguins.

The ship

Ice-strengthened, sixteen zodiacs and an open bridge. The lecture hall is the busiest room on board and the observation lounge aft is the quietest.

Best bits

The first morning you step off the boat onto a beach you can hear from ten feet away, and the night the ship sits still in the Gerlache while the sun skims the water at twelve.

Practicalities

Fly into Ushuaia the day before boarding. Boots and anoraks are issued, park fees are in the fare, and the ship carries a doctor and a small clinic.

Day by day

The schedule below is the summer programme. Landings are always weather calls, and the guides would rather find a second site than cancel one.

  1. Days 1 to 3

    Ushuaia to the Drake

    Two days of open water, a crossing that is calm more often than the stories suggest, and the first lectures of the voyage.

    Stay At sea aboard the ship

    Travel Sail from Ushuaia, Argentina

  2. Days 4 to 5

    The South Shetlands

    Chinstrap colonies on King George Island and a landing inside the flooded caldera of Deception Island, where the water runs warm.

    Stay At sea

    Travel Zodiac landings, two a day

  3. Days 6 to 8

    The Peninsula

    Nineteen landing sites between the gentoos of Cuverville and the working post office at Port Lockroy.

    Stay At sea

    Travel Zodiac, with kayaks for those who want them

  4. Days 9 to 10

    The Lemaire and the Gerlache

    A transit of the Lemaire Channel between six-hundred-metre walls, then an anchorage in the Gerlache under the midnight sun.

    Stay At sea

    Travel Ship transit; decks open all night

  5. Day 11

    Ushuaia and home

    A final count of the whales you have seen after breakfast, then disembarkation and the flight north.

    Stay Ushuaia

    Travel Disembark and fly via Buenos Aires

Questions

How bad is the Drake Passage?

Better than its reputation. Most crossings take two days with one rougher stretch, and the ship is built for it. Fly-cruise options exist but cost more and often mean waiting for a weather window anyway.

Do I need insurance?

Yes, with medical evacuation cover. Ship-side care is good but the nearest full hospital is thousands of miles away.

Can I kayak if I have never done it?

The guides take beginners in calm water with a heel float and a support boat. You need to be comfortable getting in and out of a zodiac.

Last updated 30 October 2026

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