Awe Inspiring Antarctica

from 

AU$22,715

per person
 
Duration: 10 Nights
Destination: Antarctica
Region: Antarctica
Deal Code: PAY7P7K

 

 

Description

Board Silver Explorer right in the heart of Antarctica, and get ready to discover the many facets of the frozen frontier at the end of the earth. Your Antarctic adventure begins as soon as you arrive in Punta Arenas. Enjoy meeting your fellow explorers during an evening briefing and welcome dinner before travelling the next day by private BAE146 aircraft to King George Island, where Silver Explorer and your life changing voyage await.

Your Holiday Package Includes:

  • $1,500 air credit per person
  • 3 Nights accommodation in Santiago including breakfast
  • Maipo Vineyards Full Day Tour with Lunch
  • 1 Night accommodation in Punta Arenas before your cruise
  • Welcome reception & Bon Voyage dinner in Punta Arenas
  • Return flights from Punta Arenas to King George Island
  • 6 Day Antarctica cruise onboard the Silver Explorer
  • 1 Night accommodation in Punta Arenas after your cruise
  • Gourmet dining in multiple restaurants, beverages in suite & throughout the ship, butler service, free wi-fi & more.
  • Shore excursions, guided zodiacs & expedition gear
  • Enrichment lectures by a highly qualified Expeditions Team
  • Private transfers throughout
  • Port charges & prepaid gratuities onboard your cruise

***Rate is based on twin share for travel 26 November - 4 December 2023***

Date

Destination

Arrive

Depart

27NOV23

King George Island

 

6pm

28NOV23

Antarctic Sound

 

 

29NOV23 – 1DEC23

Antarctic Peninsula

 

 

2DEC23

South Shetland Islands

 

 

3DEC23

King George Island

5:30am

 

Maipo Vineyards Full-Day Tour – 2 Wineries with Lunch
Taste the best versions of Maipo valley wines by visiting two remarkable wineries in the region. Explore award winning wines set between beautiful landscapes of the Andean mountains and the central mountains. Visit wine cellars and discover the process of wine making, guided by local experts who will share the secrets of the production. A 3 course lunch will please your senses and will combine delicious traditional meals with the best local wines. Each vineyard has its own character and different settings, which guarantees that each vineyard you visit will provide beautiful memories.

King George Island
As the largest of all the South Shetland Island, King George is considered the gateway to Antarctica. At just 120 kilometres from the Antarctic Peninsula and the only airport in the South Shetlands, it is the connection between “real life” and “Antarctic life”. More than 10 different nations have year-round or summer-only scientific research stations on the island (90% of the island is covered by snow and ice). There is even a Russian Orthodox church, with a permanent on-site priest. The island might be home to a few international scientists, but they are very much outnumbered by the diverse wildlife that considers King George Island rightfully theirs. Adelie, Chinstrap and Gentoo Penguins all commute to and from the Antarctic peninsula from the island, while Weddell and leopard seals are regular visitors and can be spotted either in the water or on the shore. Naturally, this brings a huge amount of birdlife: skuas and southern giant petrels are regular summer residents, attracted by the warm climate (warm being a relative term, average temperature is between 1.5 and -6.5˚C). The island was named after King George III after British explorer discovered it in 1819. Since then the island has been claimed by both Chile (1940) and Argentina (1943), but remains part of British Antarctic Territory.

Antarctic Sound
Few voyages ignite the imagination like a journey down to one of the planet’s most remote, extreme and enchanting wilderness, Antarctica. An adventure in its purest form, only a handful of people will ever be lucky enough to experience the majestic beauty of these monochrome landscapes first-hand. The Antarctic Sound will be one of your first encounters of this whitewash kingdom, located at the northerly tip of the Antarctic Peninsula - which sprawls up like a tentacle towards Tierra del Fuego, South America’s most southerly point, otherwise known as the ‘End of the World’. Taking its name from the first ship to brave the passageway between the peninsular and the Joinville Island groups back in 1902, the Sound is a raw, sensory assault of imposing iceberg slabs, broken away from the disintegrating Larsen Ice Shelf. Come face-to-face with stadium-sized islands of ice and meet the extraordinary birdlife that call this whitewash kingdom home. Watch on, as colonies of Gentoo penguins hop around, and cape petrels sweep overhead, as the continent’s unique wildlife thrives around you. If you’re planning your first venture into Antarctica, you’ll want to brush up on your photography skills in advance, to capture this unforgiving continent in all of its unrestrained glory.

Antarctic Peninsula
The Antarctic Peninsula unravels upwards towards South America. Stretching up from the heart of the world’s southernmost continent, the Antarctic Peninsula lies a mere 620 mile from Tierra del Fuego and, for many, offers a spectacular first taste of the snow-blanketed landscapes and colossal ice sculptures, which make up Earth’s least-explored continent. Unseen by humans until 1820 - this is an adventure sure to make your hairs stand on end, as you experience the thrill of the truly unknown and extraordinary. The vast peninsula is sprinkled with research bases, which are at the frontline of human scientific endeavour, pushing to study and understand this unique landscape, its exceptional wildlife, and the impact that humans are having on this pristine continent. Witness cathedral-sized icebergs up close, and blue-hued glaciers, slowly slipping from imposing locations like Hope Bay. Blanched mountain peaks cover the peninsula, and you’ll find thousands of adorable Adelie penguin pairs thriving undisturbed in this peninsula’s unique setting.

South Shetland Islands
The ice-coated Antarctic Peninsula forms perhaps the most accessible region of mainland Antarctica, lying a mere 480-miles away from South America, across the fabled waters of Drakes Passage. Lying close to the northwestern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, separated by the Bransfield Strait, the South Shetland Islands fall under the jurisdiction of the Antarctic Treaty, suspending claims on their sovereignty. Several countries maintain research bases here, and with plump elephant seals, and crowds of Gentoo, Chinstrap and Adelie Penguins also calling the islands home, it can even feel a little crowded at times. Don’t be fooled though, these islands offer extraordinary adventure in one of the most remote locations on earth. The triple peaks of Mount Foster tower above the archipelago, and you’ll feel your heart pumping a little quicker, as you sail into the core of Deception Island’s magnificent collapsed volcano caldera. Hike the luna landscapes within, and even dip into the improbably warm, geothermally-heated waters of Pendulum Cove. Elephant Island, meanwhile, is written deep into the annals of Antarctic expedition legend, as the site where Ernest Shackleton and the stricken crew of the Endurance miraculously survived a harsh Antarctic winter, in 1916.

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Terms & Conditions

Prices listed are per person in Australian/New Zealand Dollars, based on twin occupancy, including all discounts unless otherwise stated. The offer is subject to availability at time of booking and shown on the lowest suite category available at the time. Fares are capacity controlled and are subject to change at any time without notice. Prices/Offers are correct as at 2 November 2021 and can be withdrawn without notice. Cabin categories include prepaid government fees and port taxes unless otherwise stated.  Hotels may charge resort fees not included in this package, payable direct upon check in. Visas are not included.  Air credit is applicable on airline of choice, subject to availability and subject to the carriers’ flight schedules and conditions. Payments made by credit card will incur a surcharge.