Cruise ship tourism: Any experience?

[fritsch]

Hi guys,

what is your opinion about antarctic cruise ship tourism? Is it a way of visiting Antarctica? Are there other options?

Lothar

[Paul]

Hi Lothar,

For most people the cruise ship approach is the only option unless you have very deep pockets as you mentioned in an earlier post. Some private yachts do go to Antarctica each year, but it's not recommended unless you are exceptionally experienced - and even then you need to be careful!

If you're part of the yachting world or are prepared to become a part of it, this may be an option however.

Cruises vary an awful lot, they're not cheap, but are the cheapest option in terms of time and commitment. Our partner cruise company specializes in matching people to the right cruise. It doesn't have to be wall to wall food, drink, entertainment and lounging about which is what "cruise" so often means to many people, try here to see what they suggest.

There is always of course the possibility of working in Antarctica, if this interests you, try this page first.

The tourist and work routes cover pretty much 98%+ of people who go to Antarctica, apart from a few yachtsmen as I mentioned and the odd tale of someone getting a job as crew on a ship from the Falkland Islands, that sums up all the ways I've heard of.

Please let us know if you come up with any other route - Paul

[adorer]

Hi! i'm new here and love traveling especially by sea. I've been interested as of lately in planning a trip down and around the southern tip of Chile / Argentina and through the Drake Passage. Can anyone tell me what the best season might be to do so, or does it matter much as i am unfamiliar with weather and ocean patterns in the area.
Best,
A

[Paul]

Hi Adorer and welcome to the board.

The southern spring and summer are the best seasons to go, October to February/March. You don't want to be rounding Cape Horn in the winter months if you can avoid it!

Try contacting our travel partners using this form
http://www.coolantarctica.com/Travel...antarctica.htm filling in your destination and explaining in the comments box, what you want, they cover more than just Antarctica.

This is not just a plug as I do rate them very highly, but I admit it is a plug too :grin:

[Mike]

I've just returned from an expedition to the Ross Sea aboard the 'Kapitan Khlebnikov' with Quark Expeditions. Definitely the trip of a lifetime - the scenery, wildlife, historic huts etc are just awesome and we also visited several science stations. I can't recommend Quark too highly; their logistics are superb (ship, helicopters, zodiacs) and the expedition staff are fantastic!
If you can afford it (and it's not cheap), then a voyage on an icebreaker rather than just an ice-strengthened ship is the way to get to the places others can't, and the helicopters do add a whole extra dimension to the possible range of shore landings (plus sight-seeing flights as well).
The Lonely Planet 'Antarctica' guide has good info for trip planning, and a google search on 'antarctic tourism' will also point you to several useful sites.
Finally, take far more film / video tape etc than you think you could possibly need...! :grin:

[adorer]

Thanks!