Four Antarctic expedition routes
Fly & Sail · 14 days in supplied programme
Expedition route
Punta Arenas - flight to King George Island - Antarctic Peninsula - Drake Passage - Ushuaia
Programme duration: 14 days
The route and actual sailing details are confirmed directly with the organiser. Landings depend on weather, ice and the captain's decisions.
Expedition programme
From traveller to seasoned sailor
📍 Duration: 14 days
Group: up to 17 participants
Route: Punta Arenas (Chile) – flight to the South Shetland Islands – Antarctic Peninsula – Ushuaia (Argentina)
Our expedition begins in Punta Arenas, a city on the Strait of Magellan in Chile. At the appointed time we gather at the airport and board a polar aircraft. There are no accidental travellers here: everyone on the plane will soon join one of the sailing vessels.
After a flight of two to three hours, we land on King George Island, home to the Russian Bellingshausen research station.
Even in winter, temperatures on the South Shetland Islands rarely fall below −10°C.
History: The island was discovered by the expedition of Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev in 1821. Bellingshausen Station was founded on 22 February 1968 by the Soviet Antarctic Expedition. The island also has one of the southernmost permanently operating churches in the world, the Holy Trinity Orthodox Church, built in 2004.
Yankee Harbour is a sheltered bay with a glacier, home to nesting gentoo penguins. From above, Half Moon Island resembles a crescent moon; elephant seals and seals live along its pebble beaches.
History: American whalers and British explorers visited Yankee Harbour from the 1820s. Half Moon Island was first recorded by early nineteenth-century whaling expeditions.
Deception Island is an active volcano whose flooded caldera can even be entered by a large vessel. Its inner harbour offers shelter from bad weather, but reaching it through a narrow passage is challenging and impossible in strong winds. Remains of early twentieth-century whaling facilities and research stations survive on the shore. Outside the island, at Bailey Head, is an enormous colony of chinstrap penguins.
History: British and American expeditions explored the island in 1820. The Hektor whaling station operated here from 1905 to 1931.
We are at Trinity Island, close to the Antarctic mainland. This island is surrounded by icebergs. We usually stay aboard and explore the glaciers by dinghy. Seals and even leopard seals can be found in the bays. Farther south, the Argentine Primavera Station offers the possibility of a first mainland landing.
History: The island served as a landmark for early expeditions to the Antarctic mainland in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Enterprise Island retains relics from early twentieth-century whaling. We moor overnight near the wreck of the Gouvernøren. By day we can walk up a snowy path, travel by dinghy among icebergs and watch humpback whales.
History: Norwegian and British whalers were active in the island's bays in the early twentieth century.
In good weather the schooner will drift in the deep waters of Orne Harbour while we climb a winding path to one of the area's highest penguin colonies. These are chinstrap penguins, and we have a rare chance to get close to them. The summit reveals breathtaking views of strangely shaped icebergs and mountain slopes all around.
The shores of nearby Cuverville Island shelter a large gentoo penguin colony. In Neko Harbour we may watch great blocks of ice calve from the glacier and crash into the water.
History: Orne Harbour was discovered by Adrien de Gerlache's Belgian expedition in 1898; Cuverville Island was explored by Jean-Baptiste Charcot in the early twentieth century.
Lemaire Channel is one of the must-see places on the Antarctic Peninsula. It is a spectacular narrow waterway between sheer cliffs. We hope for clear weather as we sail towards the Yalour Islands, where a dinghy excursion among icebergs and Adélie penguin nesting sites awaits.
History: The Lemaire Channel was first noted during a German expedition in 1873–74 and navigated by the Belgian vessel Belgica in 1898. The Yalour Islands were explored by a Belgian expedition during the same period.
Port Lockroy is a museum of polar life, a shop and one of the world's southernmost operating post offices. You can send a postcard and buy souvenirs.
History: Established as a British Antarctic base in 1944, the station was used for reconnaissance during the Second World War and later became a scientific station. Volunteers now welcome visitors and study their impact on penguins. A whale skeleton on a nearby shore recalls the whaling era.
💌 Fact: Port Lockroy was established in 1943–44 as part of Britain's Operation Tabarin, intended in part to reinforce British presence and keep hostile forces away from the peninsula.
Near the entrance to Drake Passage lie the Melchior Islands. There is a closed Argentine station and a refuge hut for travellers in distress. Late in the season, fur seals gather here in great numbers. We take in the snowy panorama from the island summit before preparing for the return passage.
It is time to go home, and the Drake Passage awaits: another test of our spirit. We find our sea legs, stand our watches and discover a little inner calm. On the last day, before entering the quieter Beagle Channel, we hold the Golden Drake film festival – a unique celebration of cinema and expedition life in some of the world's roughest waters. Art, laughter and team spirit push aside the last traces of seasickness. We have made it across the Drake under sail.
Ushuaia welcomes us back. There is a barbecue at the yacht club, Argentine wine, conversations with the crew and the feeling of having achieved something extraordinary.
Before departure
Clothing, documents, medical insurance, flights and what to pack - all in one practical guide.
