HIGHLIGHTS
- Sail
across the legendary Drake Passage
- Enjoy
some of the same experiences encountered by the great polar explorers
who first charted these regions
- Places
you visit might include Livingston Island, Deception Island, Cuverville
Island, Neko Harbour, Paradise Bay, Pléneau &
Petermann Islands, Crystal Sound, Detaille Island, Fish Islands, and
the Melchior Islands
- Enjoy
the sight of beautiful landscape rich with icebergs
- Watch
leopard seals, crabeater seals, and whales
- Avail
excellent opportunities for diving
DATES / RATES
Rates are listed per person in USD
|
| Start Date | End Date | Quad Porthole | Triple Porthole | Twin Porthole | Twin Window | Twin Deluxe | Superior |
|---|
| Mar 10, 2025 | Mar 21, 2025 | 7,700 | 9,450 | 9,450 | 10,000 | 10,600 | 19,040 |
Rates are listed per person in USD
|
| Start Date | End Date | (Starting from)
Quad Porthole | (Mid-range)
Twin Window | (High-end)
Superior |
|---|
| Mar 10, 2025 | Mar 21, 2025 | 7,700 | 10,000 | 19,040 |
ITINERARY
Day
1: End of the world, start of a journey
Your
voyage begins where the world drops off. Ushuaia, Argentina, reputed to
be the southernmost city on the planet, is located on the far southern
tip of South America. Starting in the afternoon, you embark from this
small resort town on Tierra del Fuego, nicknamed “The End of
the World,” and sail the mountain-fringed Beagle Channel for
the remainder of the evening.
Day
2 - 3: Path of the polar explorers
Over
the next two days on the Drake Passage, you enjoy some of the same
experiences encountered by the great polar explorers who first charted
these regions: cool salt breezes, rolling seas, maybe even a fin whale
spouting up sea spray. After passing the Antarctic Convergence
– Antarctica’s natural boundary, formed when
north-flowing cold waters collide with warmer sub-Antarctic seas
– you are in the circum-Antarctic upwelling zone. Not only
does the marine life change, the avian life changes too. Wandering
albatrosses, grey-headed albatrosses, black-browed albatrosses,
light-mantled sooty albatrosses, cape pigeons, southern fulmars,
Wilson’s storm petrels, blue petrels, and Antarctic petrels
are a few of the birds you might see.
Day
4 - 9: Sights of late summer Antarctica
Options
for Antarctic Peninsula activities are many, and no less great during
the late summer. Humpback whales are prolific in this region, gorging
themselves on krill before their migration north. The penguin chicks
are also fledging, stirring up activity on the beaches while sleek
leopard seals lie in wait, poised to attack the less fortunate ones.
Sites
for your Antarctic adventures may include:
Livingston Island
– Here you find a wide variety of gentoo and chinstrap
penguins on Hannah Point, as well as southern giant petrels and
elephant seals hauling out onto the beach.
Deception Island
– Actually a subducted crater, this island opens into the sea
and creates a natural harbor for the ship. An abandoned whaling
station, and multiple bird species – cape petrels, kelp
gulls, brown and south polar skuas, and Antarctic terns – can
be seen here. Wilson’s storm petrels and black-bellied storm
petrels also nest in the ruins of the whaling station in Whalers Bay.
Cuverville Island
– A small precipitous island nestled between the mountains of
the Antarctic Peninsula and Rongé Island, Cuverville houses
a large colony of gentoo penguins and breeding pairs of brown skuas.
Neko Harbour
– An epic landscape of mammoth glaciers and endless
wind-carved snow, Neko Harbour offers opportunities for a Zodiac cruise
and landing that afford the closest views of the surrounding alpine
peaks. You might also be able to set foot on the continent here.
Paradise Bay
– You could take a Zodiac cruise in these sprawling,
ice-flecked waters, where you have a good chance of seeing humpback and
minke whales.
Pléneau &
Petermann Islands – If the ice allows it, you
may sail through the Lemaire Channel in search of Adélie
penguins and blue-eyed shags. There’s also a good chance
you’ll encounter humpback and minke whales as well as leopard
seals.
Crystal Sound
– Your journey takes you south along the Argentine Islands to
this ice-packed body of water, and from here across the Polar Circle in
the morning.
Detaille Island
– You may make a landing at an abandoned British research
station here, taking in the island’s lofty mountains and
imposing glaciers.
Fish Islands
– Further north you encounter one of the southernmost
Adélie penguin and blue-eyed shag colonies in the Antarctic
Peninsula.
Melchior Islands
– These islands offer a beautiful landscape rich with
icebergs. Leopard seals, crabeater seals, and whales are found here,
and there are excellent opportunities for diving.
Conditions
on the Drake Passage determine the exact time of departure.
Day
10 - 11: Familiar seas, familiar friends
Your
return voyage is far from lonely. While crossing the Drake,
you’re again greeted by the vast array of seabirds remembered
from the passage south. But they seem a little more familiar to you
now, and you to them.
Day
12: There and back again
Every
adventure, no matter how grand, must eventually come to an end.
It’s now time to disembark in Ushuaia, but with memories that
will accompany you wherever your next adventure lies.
Ortelius (Expedition, 108-guests)
Ortelius offers a comfortable hotel standard, with a u-shaped, a bar and a lecture room. Our voyages are primarily developed to offer our passengers a quality exploratory wildlife program, trying to spend as much time ashore as possible. As the number of passengers is limited to approximately 116 on the Ortelius, flexibility assures maximum wildlife opportunities. Ortelius carries 10 zodiacs
(Click image to view Ship details)
WHAT'S INCLUDED
- Voyage
aboard the indicated vessel as indicated in the itinerary
- All
meals throughout the voyage aboard the ship including snacks, coffee
and tea.
- All
shore excursions and activities throughout the voyage by Zodiac.
- Program
of lectures by noted naturalists and leadership by experienced
expedition staff.
- Free
use of rubber boots and snowshoes.
- Luggage
transfer from pick-up point to the vessel on the day of embarkation, in
Ushuaia.
- Pre-scheduled
group transfer from the vessel to the airport in Ushuaia (directly
after disembarkation).
- All
miscellaneous service taxes and port charges throughout the programme.
- Comprehensive
pre-departure material.
Excluded
from this voyage
- Any
airfare, whether on scheduled or charter flights
- Pre-
and post- land arrangements.
- Passport
and visa expenses.
- Government
arrival and departure taxes.
- Meals
ashore.
- Baggage,
cancellation and personal insurance (which is strongly recommended).
- Excess
baggage charges and all items of a personal nature such as laundry,
bar, beverage charges and telecommunication charges.
- The
customary gratuity at the end of the voyages for stewards and other
service personnel aboard (guidelines will be provided).
OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES
ADVENTURE OPTIONS - Polar Diving
- Zodiac Cruising
- Shore Programs
- Bird Watching
