Travel to Antarctica
from the UK and Europe

Fig 1. Trips to Antarctica leaving from the UK most commonly leave from Ushuaia, Argentina at the tip of South America and visit the Antarctic Peninsula and nearby islands.

There are a smaller number of trips that leave from Hobart, Australia or Invercargill, New Zealand (frequently leaving from one port and returning to another) that visit the more remote Eastern part of Antarctica.

1 - London UK    2 - Ushuaia, Argentina
3 - Antarctic Peninsula

Fig 2. Trips to the Peninsula region of Antarctica. Shorter trips visit the Peninsula 6 only and some nearby islands such as the South Shetlands 5. Longer trips may also take in the Falkland Islands 3 and / or South Georgia 4 and possibly some other landings en route.

Cruises most commonly go down the western side of the Peninsula as they are less likely to encounter problematic sea ice that is more likely found on the Eastern side in the Weddell Sea.

1 - Ushuaia, Argentina, 2 - Punta Arenas, Chile
3 - Falkland Islands / Islas Malvinas, 4 - South Georgia
5 - South Shetland Islands, 6 - Antarctic Peninsula

Fig 3. Trips to the more remote Eastern side of Antarctica usually leave from Australia and New Zealand often Invercargill / Port of Bluff in New Zealand 2, Invercargill has the airport, Bluff, 30km away by road has a deep-water port. Less commonly trips may leave/return from Hobart, Australia 1, and Dunedin, New Zealand (about 180 km / 110 miles from Invercargill).

The trip may depart and return to the same port or leave from one and return to another in either direction. It takes about six to seven days sailing to reach Antarctica from Australia or New Zealand, the journey there and back is usually broken up with visits to the wildlife rich Macquarie Island 3 and others such as Snares, Auckland and Campbell Islands that lie between Macquarie and New Zealand.

Once having reached Antarctica trips usually spend their time either in the Commonwealth Bay area 4 or the Ross Sea region between Cape Adare 5 and McMurdo 6 with possibly a short trip along the front of the Ross Ice Shelf R

R - Ross Ice Shelf, 1 - Hobart - Australia
2 - Invercargill / Port of Bluff - New Zealand
3 - Macquarie Island, 4 - Commonwealth Bay
5 - Cape Adare, 6 - McMurdo / Scott bases

• Remoteness - You will see few if any other ships and get a greater feeling of isolation and being at the end of the world, this is a little visited part of the planet. You are going where the world's biggest icebergs are and the most extreme weather conditions.
  
  
• Greater chance of rough seas due to longer spent crossing the open ocean which can take 6-7 days in each direction, no flights available.
  
  
• See Emperor Penguins, the birds of the deep south that rear their young in the depths of the Antarctic winter, the largest of all penguin species.
  
  
• See Mount Erebus, the world's southernmost active volcano and the Ross Ice Shelf, a 600km long wall of ice between 15m and 50m high.
  
  
• Visit the huts of Scott, Shackleton, Mawson and other Heroic Age explorers depending on where your cruise goes. This is the area where much of the early exploratory history of Antarctica was played out and where historical remains still stand.
  
  
• Exclusivity - of the people who go to Antarctica, only a small proportion visit regions other than the Peninsula, there are relatively few trips here and they are often fully booked up well in advance.
  
  
• Trip length of 26-30 days, sometimes there may be the possibility of a semi-circumnavigation over a similar time period from the Ross Sea to the Peninsula.

• It takes 2 days to cross the Drake Passage to reach the Antarctic Peninsula, rough seas are possible though short-lived, you can also fly across it in 2 hours on a fly-cruise trip.
  
  
• Varied mountainous scenery with glaciers and icebergs, some of the most beautiful scenery on earth.
  
  
• The most wildlife rich area, with huge penguin colonies, and many other breeding birds, seals are common and whales may be seen. The sub-Antarctic islands you may visit en route are particularly wildlife rich, especially South Georgia.
  
  
• Historic preserved British Base, now a working Post Office at Port Lockroy, you may also visit other currently active research bases and historic sites.
  
  
• Easier to reach, The closeness of the peninsula to the tip of South America  means that travel time to reach Antarctica here is much less than in the East. It also means that a greater portion of the trip is spent in Antarctica rather than travelling there and back.
  
  
• A larger number and variety of trips available, duration from 6-24 days, a wide range of ships and choice of travel dates and itineraries.