In the Wake of Shackleton – Discover the Wonders of the Antarctic Peninsula, South Georgia & the Falklands

Fly by scheduled flight.

Arrive and transfer to our centrally located hotel for an overnight stay. This afternoon is free to relax in the hotel or maybe join an orientation tour of the city including the Plaza de Mayo, the Cathedral and the Cabildo (Old City Hall) before we continue towards the most traditional neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, San Telmo which is characterised by its old colonial houses and the cobblestoned streets. Our tour will end in La Boca to look around the colourful zinc houses which used to be the refuge and home for the first immigrants and popular artists. The evening is free for independent exploration.

After breakfast in the hotel we will transfer to the airport for our scheduled flight to Ushuaia. On arrival transfer to the MS Island Sky and embark. This evening we will cruise down the Beagle Channel.

Our voyage begins with two leisurely days on board. Attend some lectures, look for wildlife or simply relax as we make our way across the Drake Passage towards Antarctica. Named after the 16th century English seaman, Sir Francis Drake, the Drake Passage separates the southernmost tip of South America from Antarctica. This is a particularly good area to spot many species of seabirds including the royal albatross, cape petrel, Antarctic prion and we will also be on the lookout for whales.

We have six days of exploration around the Peninsula which will include many of the best places to see the vast biodiversity of Antarctic species and iconic icy environments from glaciers to enormous tabular icebergs. Whilst we arrive with a planned itinerary the final schedule will be determined by our Captain and the Expedition Leader based on sea, weather and ice conditions. Using our Zodiacs we hope to make daily landings with the opportunity to see gentoo, chinstrap and possibly Adelie penguins, as well as elephant seals, Antarctic fur seals, crabeater seals, Weddell seals and hopefully the iconic predator leopard seals. We may visit the collapsed volcanic cone of Deception Island for a chance to visit Whalers Bay, Half Moon Island with its rookery of chinstrap penguins, the glaciers of Cierva Cove, see the leopard seals at Pleneau Island and the stunning mountain lined Neumayer Channel. We have requested permission to visit a working Antarctic research station and hopefully send off a postcard from the UK base of Port Lockroy. We also hope to sail through the breathtaking Antarctic Sound, known as ‘iceberg alley’, where massive icebergs drift north from the continent.

The waters between the Antarctic Peninsula and South Georgia are rich with fin whales, where in good conditions we have seen dozens in a day. If not whale watching, lookout for Antarctic petrel and one of the most beautiful birds of the Southern Ocean, the snow petrel. The icebergs will also be plentiful. During our time at sea you can join the lecture programme to learn more about the wildlife and history of the region.

We have four days of expedition cruising in and around South Georgia, a paradise island with snow-clad mountain peaks rising 9000 feet and with 165 glaciers tumbling down towards the sea. We arrive in the middle of the season when parts of the island will still be covered by a thin layer of snow. For anyone interested in wildlife, South Georgia is a true oasis. The beaches will be covered by elephant seal bulls and females with weaning pups. They share the beach with a myriad of nesting king penguins. Most of the other seabirds will have arrived and begun nesting whilst thousands of Antarctic fur seals return to the beaches to breed. During our time here we hope to visit Salisbury Plain where we will find enormous elephant seals which crowd the beaches alongside thousands of pairs of king penguins. The colony has had an extraordinary population increase over the last century as only 350 breeding pairs were counted at this site in 1912. In Fortuna Bay we hope to see nesting light mantled sooty albatrosses, whilst in Grytviken we will visit the old whaling station and of course pay our respect at the grave of ‘the boss’ – Ernest Shackleton.

As we cruise towards the Falkland Islands the richness of these waters will be evident in the marine mammal life, especially the fur seals on fishing forays. We will have a good chance of spotting whales such as fins and humpback whilst the birds circling our stern will be outstanding, especially the large albatrosses and numerous breeds of petrels. Days 20 to 22 Falkland Islands. The Falkland Islands are isolated and windswept, a haven for wildlife. During our three days exploring we hope to include stops at Grave Cove, home to the largest colony of gentoo penguins in the Falkland Islands and see the rockhopper penguin colony and blackbrowed albatross on West Point Island. We will use our Zodiacs to find a suitable location to land and take walks ashore for a closer look with our expedition team. We also plan to call at Stanley, the charming capital of the Falkland Islands, and discover some of the many historic sites on the island.

During our final day at sea, our lecture programme will continue in the lounge whilst our naturalists continue to spot wildlife as we return to Ushuaia.

Disembark after breakfast and transfer to the airport for our scheduled flight to Buenos Aires. On arrival transfer to our hotel for an overnight stay. The evening is free for independent arrangements.

After breakfast in the hotel we will transfer to the airport for our scheduled flight to London.

Arrive this morning.

Please note that flexibility is key to a successful expedition in Antarctica. Although we have outlined an itinerary below, this is only a preliminary plan, our exact route will depend on ice, weather conditions and the wildlife we encounter.