Classic Antarctic Peninsula: Penguins, Whales & Ice

This morning is yours to explore Ushuaia or visit the beautiful Tierra del Fuego National Park before you embark your expedition ship in the afternoon. After settling into your cabin and meeting the crew and expedition team, the ship casts off and sails east down the historic Beagle Channel, named for the ship that carried Charles Darwin through these waters. Snow-capped mountains rise on either side as cormorants, petrels and perhaps dolphins escort you towards the open sea. Over a welcome dinner you meet your fellow expeditioners and expedition leader, who outlines the adventure ahead. As Tierra del Fuego slips astern and the ship turns south into the Drake Passage, excitement builds for the legendary crossing to Antarctica. Rest well as the voyage begins.

Today you sail south across the legendary Drake Passage, the wild stretch of ocean between South America and Antarctica where the world's great oceans meet. The expedition team fills the day with a rich programme of lectures on the penguins, whales, seabirds, ice and heroic history that lie ahead, while out on deck and from the bridge you watch wandering albatrosses, giant petrels and cape petrels wheel effortlessly around the ship. Whether the Drake is calm or lively, there is a real sense of adventure as you cross this famous sea, following in the wake of the great polar explorers. The ship's naturalists point out seabirds and answer questions, and the air grows steadily colder and crisper. Rest well as you sail ever deeper into the Southern Ocean.

As you continue south the temperature drops, the light changes and the first icebergs appear, glowing on the horizon, an unforgettable moment as the White Continent draws near. By late today you approach the South Shetland Islands, the outer ramparts of Antarctica, and conditions permitting you make your first Zodiac cruise or landing. You might step ashore among your first penguins, cruise past dramatic ice cliffs, or explore the flooded volcanic caldera of Deception Island. The expedition team briefs you thoroughly on biosecurity, Zodiac safety and how to move among wildlife, and issues your expedition boots. The thrill of that first landing on Antarctic shores, surrounded by penguins, seals and ice, is indescribable. As the long polar day fades, savour your arrival in one of Earth's last great wildernesses.

Today you begin exploring the spectacular Antarctic Peninsula in earnest, with the expedition leader choosing the finest landings and Zodiac cruises the ice and weather allow. You might land at a bustling gentoo penguin colony, cruise among stranded icebergs in a sheltered bay, or watch humpback whales feeding at the surface. Each outing brings you face to face with the wildlife and grandeur of Antarctica, penguins tending their chicks, seals hauled out on floes, seabirds overhead and glaciers calving into the sea with a thunderous crack. Between outings, warm up with hot drinks aboard and enjoy talks by the naturalists. The scenery of black peaks, blue ice and endless white is overwhelming. As another long day of wonder ends, rest well, deep in the beauty of the Peninsula.

Today, ice permitting, you sail through the breathtaking Lemaire Channel, a narrow, mile-wide passage between towering cliffs and glaciers so beautiful it is nicknamed Kodak Gap, where the ship glides through mirror-still water reflecting the peaks. You explore Paradise Harbour, perhaps the most beautiful spot on the Peninsula, cruising by Zodiac beneath immense glacier walls and past icebergs sculpted into fantastic shapes, with the chance to make a landing on the continent itself. Leopard seals may patrol the floes and whales surface nearby. This is Antarctica at its most sublime, a wonderland of ice and reflection. The expedition team helps you make the most of every moment, ashore and afloat. As the day ends amid this overwhelming beauty, savour the profound silence of the polar wilderness.

You have a further full day to explore the wonders of the Antarctic Peninsula, with the flexible, weather-led itinerary shaped around the best opportunities. You might land at a historic site such as Port Lockroy, a former British base now a museum and post office, cruise among the spectacular icebergs of Cierva Cove or Wilhelmina Bay, famous for feeding whales, or climb a snowy ridge for a sweeping view over the frozen sea. Adelie, gentoo and chinstrap penguins, Weddell and crabeater seals, and humpback and minke whales are your constant companions. Each landing and cruise is different, and the expedition team's expertise ensures you experience the very best of the Peninsula. As this magnificent day among the ice draws to a close, rest well aboard your ship.

Today you make the most of your final explorations in Antarctica before turning north. The expedition team seizes every last opportunity for a landing or Zodiac cruise, perhaps a final penguin colony, a last cruise among the icebergs, or, for the brave, the chance of a bracing polar plunge into the icy sea. You drink in the scenery and wildlife one more time, committing to memory the penguins, whales, seals and endless ice of this pristine continent. By late afternoon the ship turns her bow northward and begins the voyage back across the Drake Passage, and you gather on deck to watch the mountains and icebergs of Antarctica slip slowly astern. As the White Continent fades into the polar light, savour the profound experience you have had at the ends of the earth. Rest well.

Today you sail north across the Drake Passage towards South America, retracing your route through the great Southern Ocean. Once again albatrosses and petrels escort the ship, and the expedition team continues its programme of lectures, reflecting on the wildlife, ice and history you have experienced and looking back over the voyage. There is time to relax, sort through your photographs, enjoy the ship's facilities and share stories with the friends you have made. The naturalists recap the whales, seals and penguins encountered, and the mood is one of contentment and quiet wonder at what you have seen. Keep an eye out for seabirds and the occasional whale as the ship rolls gently northward. As Antarctica recedes behind you, rest well, carrying its beauty with you.

Your final full day at sea takes you back across the Drake Passage towards the legendary Cape Horn and the tip of South America. Conditions permitting, you may sail close to Cape Horn itself, the fabled southern extremity of the Americas, where the great sailing ships of old battled the wildest seas on Earth, a fitting climax to your polar adventure. The expedition team hosts a final round of lectures and a farewell recap of the voyage, and this evening you enjoy a captain's farewell dinner, toasting the extraordinary journey you have shared. Land comes into view as the ship approaches the Beagle Channel once more. As your last night aboard the expedition ship arrives, reflect on the penguins, whales, icebergs and silence of Antarctica. Rest well ahead of disembarkation tomorrow.

This morning your expedition ship returns to Ushuaia and, after a final breakfast aboard, you bid farewell to the crew, the expedition team and your fellow travellers before disembarking. You are transferred to the airport for your onward flight, carrying with you memories that will last a lifetime. You leave having achieved something few ever do, a genuine expedition to Antarctica, the White Continent, where you crossed the legendary Drake Passage, walked among thousands of penguins, cruised by Zodiac amid icebergs and whales, sailed through the sublime Lemaire Channel, and stood in the overwhelming silence of one of Earth's last great wildernesses. The images stay vivid long after you land, the penguin colonies, the breaching whales, the electric-blue ice and the profound polar silence. You depart already dreaming of a return to the ends of the earth.