Antarctica, Falklands & South Georgia cruise
| country: | Antarctica, Falkland Islands |
| departures: | 2010: 16 Nov, 25 Nov, 14 Dec, 22 Dec, 29 Dec 2011: 23 Jan, 24 Jan, 8 Feb, 19 Feb |
| price: | From £4840 (20 days) excluding flights. We can arrange flights from the UK |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
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introduction to Antarctica, Falklands & South Georgia cruise
This voyage is our most complete and varied Antarctic adventure. It promises an in-depth and unforgettable experience to the 'bottom of the world', travelling to the extraordinary Falkland Islands and diverse sub-Antarctic islands before sailing further south to the remarkable Antarctic Peninsula area.
Our first stop is the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. This far-flung group of islands lies north of the Antarctic Convergence and enjoys a relatively warmer climate than our other destinations. As a result the mainly uninhabited Falklands support unique wildlife not found further south, including sixty species of migratory birds as well as the rare rockhopper penguin. Our journey continues south-east, crossing the Antarctic Convergence to the remote and hauntingly beautiful island of South Georgia. Here, amongst the soaring snow-clad mountains and massive glaciers, we find huge king penguin rookeries, thousands of sub-Antarctic fur seals, the comical macaroni penguins and spectacular wilderness that is perhaps unequalled on earth. We also discover its remarkable history, reminding us that we are following the footsteps of some of the world’s most legendary explorers, from Captain James Cook to Sir Ernest Shackleton.
We then set course to the off-shore islands of the Antarctic Peninsula, hoping to land at the remote and often mist-shrouded South Orkney Islands, before continuing to the South Shetland archipelago and stopping at various islands whose waters are often inhabited with feeding humpback whales. On approaching the mainland, the splendours of Antarctic nature will be on display. Thousands of differently shaped icebergs dot the sea, penguins are seen 'porpoising' through the waters and various seals, including the predatory leopard seal, use the ice floes as a resting place. The Antarctic Peninsula itself boasts a profusion of wildlife including five species of seal, massive penguin rookeries with gentoos, Adélies and chinstraps as well as a variety of whale species and seabirds, including albatross, petrels, shearwaters and skuas. Extraordinary scenery and somewhat forbidding landscape awaits us on land. A sweeping ice sheet rises above the shore line, binding together an entire continent that is close in size to Africa. One can only marvel at the resolve of the early explorers in their quests to conquer Antarctica.
Note: Weather, ice and other mitigating factors may result in changes to our itinerary and alteration to certain shore excursions.
Our first stop is the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. This far-flung group of islands lies north of the Antarctic Convergence and enjoys a relatively warmer climate than our other destinations. As a result the mainly uninhabited Falklands support unique wildlife not found further south, including sixty species of migratory birds as well as the rare rockhopper penguin. Our journey continues south-east, crossing the Antarctic Convergence to the remote and hauntingly beautiful island of South Georgia. Here, amongst the soaring snow-clad mountains and massive glaciers, we find huge king penguin rookeries, thousands of sub-Antarctic fur seals, the comical macaroni penguins and spectacular wilderness that is perhaps unequalled on earth. We also discover its remarkable history, reminding us that we are following the footsteps of some of the world’s most legendary explorers, from Captain James Cook to Sir Ernest Shackleton.
We then set course to the off-shore islands of the Antarctic Peninsula, hoping to land at the remote and often mist-shrouded South Orkney Islands, before continuing to the South Shetland archipelago and stopping at various islands whose waters are often inhabited with feeding humpback whales. On approaching the mainland, the splendours of Antarctic nature will be on display. Thousands of differently shaped icebergs dot the sea, penguins are seen 'porpoising' through the waters and various seals, including the predatory leopard seal, use the ice floes as a resting place. The Antarctic Peninsula itself boasts a profusion of wildlife including five species of seal, massive penguin rookeries with gentoos, Adélies and chinstraps as well as a variety of whale species and seabirds, including albatross, petrels, shearwaters and skuas. Extraordinary scenery and somewhat forbidding landscape awaits us on land. A sweeping ice sheet rises above the shore line, binding together an entire continent that is close in size to Africa. One can only marvel at the resolve of the early explorers in their quests to conquer Antarctica.
Note: Weather, ice and other mitigating factors may result in changes to our itinerary and alteration to certain shore excursions.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1 - 5: | Ushuaia, the Beagle Channel and the Falkland Islands. |
| Day 6 - 8: | Sailing towards South Georgia. |
| Day 9 - 11: | South Georgia. |
| Day 12 - 17: | South Orkney Islands, Shetland Islands, and the Antarctic Peninsula. |
| Day 18 - 20: | Sailing north towards South America. |
traveller reviews for Antarctica, Falklands & South Georgia cruise
Seeing the first iceberg was the most memorable part. (more)
highly commended
This tourism business was Highly Commended in our 2007 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards - the largest awards of their kind in the world, and organised by responsibletravel.com in association with The Times, World Travel Market and Geographical Magazine, of the Royal Geographical Society.Since 2004, the Awards has recognised individuals, companies and organisations in travel making a big commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and helping to conserve biodiversity.
how this holiday makes a difference
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The operator is a full member of the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO) and, as such, abides by some of the tourism world's most conscientious codes of conduct. These go beyond the best practice guidelines for operating in Antarctic waters, as set by IAATO and the Australian Antarctic Division. A large part of that responsibility to minimise environmental impact and raise awareness involves educating their passengers on ways to minimise their personal impact, while still fully enjoying the wonders of Antarctica. This begins with the pre-departure information that includes a 'Guidelines for Low Impact Travel' booklet, as well as a comprehensive briefing document. On board there is a comprehensive educational programme that informs passengers about environmental issues affecting Antarctica, such as how to minimise personal impact on the environment to information on approaching wildlife and caring for fragile landscapes.
They are also involved in a number of environmental initiatives in Antarctica, including partnering Birds Australia and supporting a range of scientific research endeavours. They have carried researchers from the University of Tasmania to support their study of tourism impact on Antarctica, as well as under-going oceanographic and biological research on board their ship and transporting scientific personnel of many nationalities to and from their respective Antarctic bases. Their ships are some of the newest in the business and, as such, have state- of-the-art waste management systems and run cleaner and more efficiently than older vessels. They believe that by taking passengers to Antarctica, allowing them to experience its wonder and educating and informing them on the local and global issues affecting the polar regions, they are helping to create ambassadors for protecting the fragile polar wilderness. Get The Albatross Off The Hook:The Antarctic summer of 2001-2002 saw the start of a 'Get the Albatross Off the Hook' initiative, which involved sponsoring research on the threatened grey-headed albatross. Data is beamed back to Australia from radio transmitters attached to the birds during their foraging flights over the Southern Ocean. The information will pinpoint where the birds are at risk and, in doing so, help to halt the current devastating and unsustainable attrition of albatross populations due to long-line fisheries. BirdLife's ‘Save the Albatross Campaign’ is trying to stop the needless slaughter of these magnificent birds by ensuring that relevant international agreements are implemented that will benefit both the birds and the legal fishing industry. Contact us to find out about the problems, the solutions, BirdLife's campaign, how you can help and how you can sign the new online ‘Save the Albatross’ petition, being organised by Forest and Bird, BirdLife's New Zealand partner. You can also view photographs of the threatened species. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |
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