Antarctica is the world’s last true wilderness: a vast, alien landscape of glittering icebergs and colossal unclimbed peaks, which captivated and bewitched the greatest names of the Heroic Age of Exploration. But today, more than 100 years after the epic exploits of Scott, Shackleton and Amundsen, there’s a far more comfortable way to enjoy its frozen splendour — namely, an ultra-luxury adventure voyage.
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Tourism to the Great White Continent focuses largely on the Antarctic Peninsula: a great white arm reaching for the distant tail of South America. And the best way to explore this icebound limb in all its glory is from the ocean, ideally from the comfort of a state-of-the-art Seabourn vessel.
Despite being part of the wildest, windiest and most remote landmass on the planet, the Antarctic Peninsula is crammed with wildlife — from chubby Weddell seals snorting and sneezing on ice floes, to chittering chinstrap penguins, squabbling over circular pebble nests. The beauty of a Seabourn voyage is that you get to see all of them up close in their untainted natural habitat, via a series of Zodiac landings. If, that is, you can tear your attention away from the hundreds of white mountains rising into infinity.
The adventure doesn’t stop there; picture hiking across pristine snow meadows under the near-permanent sunlight of the Antarctic summer, kayaking down shining corridors of electric blue icebergs, and even exploring below the water in one of Seabourn’s custom-built mini submarines.
The latter is something particularly special — not just because no other operator offers this James Bond-style opportunity, but also because you’ll be sharing the depths with an impressive menagerie of other marine wildlife.
During his infamous Endurance expedition of 1914-17, Ernest Shackleton and his 27 men were forced to survive on tinned dog-food rations and raw seal blubber in their desperate — and ultimately successful — battle for survival on the Antarctic Peninsula. On a Seabourn voyage, you’ll be treated to rather more appetising fare from the dedicated team of chefs (think filet mignon, lobster and caviar). You can also enjoy unlimited complimentary cocktails after a hard day of exploring with the onboard team of marine biologists, historians and glaciologists (each ship features a 26-strong unit of experienced expedition leaders, consisting of academics, naturalists and scientists specialising in the polar regions).
Forget the sodden reindeer-skin sleeping bags and upturned wooden lifeboats of 1914 too. On Seabourn’s purpose-built expedition ships, you’ll be able to retreat to your comfortable, well-appointed oceanfront suite after dinner and climb into your queen-sized bed as the Southern Ocean lulls you to sleep (after pulling the blackout curtains to counter the 24-hour sunlight, of course).
The phrase “trip of a lifetime” is frequently thrown about in the travel industry, but this is an adventure that is truly worthy of the title. Your journey will begin in Argentina — starting in Buenos Aires, before you’re flown down to Ushuaia, a town on the southern tip of South America, often referred to as “The End of the World”. From there, you’ll board your state-of-the-art Seabourn expedition ship for the two-day crossing to Antarctica — via the legendary Drake Passage.
The Antarctic summer lasts from November to February, and during this window there are five separate Seabourn itineraries to choose from, ranging from the classic 11-Night Great White Continent to the 21-night Ultimate Holiday Antarctica — a luxurious tour de force adding the rugged Falkland Islands and remote South Georgia (where Shackleton and his crew were finally rescued).
Roald Amundsen, the first man to reach the South Pole, famously said of Antarctica: “In the light of the sun, the land looks like a fairy tale.” It certainly cast a spell over his friend and contemporary Ernest Shackleton, who undertook four perilous journeys to the region. And the good news, from first-hand experience, is that this chillingly perfect paradise remains just as magical and uniquely enchanting today.
Start planning your adventure here or call 0344 3388615.
