Travel Scandinavia Baltic Tours Antarctica Expedition Cruises

Categories Antarctica Cruises Adventure & Eco Travel Cruises

his unique voyage combines Christmas Eve at Elephant Island and New Year’s Eve on the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula. In addition to both sides of the Peninsula, you get two holiday experiences in one extraordinary voyage. Please note: The itinerary below should be used as a guidance only.

Itinerary

Enjoy the Argentinean leather markets and succulent lamb dishes that make Patagonia famous as you explore the southernmost town in the world. Highlights of Ushuaia include an award-winning museum and trips to nearby Tierra del Fuego National Park and its popular “Train at the End of the World”.

Arriving at the ship in the afternoon, you will be greeted by our Expedition Team and ship's officers at a safety and orientation briefing followed by the Captain's welcome dinner. After dinner, relax and take in the mountainous scenery on our early evening sail down the Beagle Channel past Magellanic Penguin, Rock Cormorant, and Sea Lion colonies.

Our journey through the Drake Passage starts with the presentations, with informative and entertaining lectures on the wildlife, history, and geology of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. On our way south we might spot the albatrosses, prions, and petrels that frequently follow the ship. Our Expedition Team will be out on deck as well, looking for the whales and dolphins that may also be seen in the area.

We will try to see as much of the diversity of the Antarctic Peninsula as possible and our Expedition Leader and Captain will do their best to create a flexible itinerary based on weather, ice and opportunity.

We hope to begin at Elephant Island, where 22 bedraggled members of the Endurance expedition lived under two upturned lifeboats for 135 days awaiting the return of their leader, Sir Ernest Shackleton. Weather permitting, we will attempt a landing at historic Cape Wild, now home to chinstrap penguins and a memorial bust.

As we navigate farther south in the astounding ice of the Weddell Sea it is likely that we encounter the majestic emperor penguin.

Huge tabular icebergs calved from the ice shelves of the east coast of the Antarctic Peninsula will challenge the limits of your appreciation for nature.

We plan to visit penguin rookeries, seal wallows, bird colonies and whale feeding areas as well as sites of historic and scientific interest, active scientific bases such as Poland’s Arctowksi or Ukraine’s Vernadskiy. We’ll be fascinated by the views of picturesque harbors and sheltered bays, struck by the stillness of Lemaire Channel and the wildlife of Penola Channel or the majestic Neumayer Channel.

New Year’s Eve will be celebrated during our last night among the icebergs as we say good bye to the Deep South.

We continue our lecture series and wildlife spotting as we sail back to Ushuaia and reflect on beautiful Antarctica and its fragile future.

We disembark in the morning saying our goodbyes to the Expedition Team and our travel-mates.