Classic Antarctica - Douglas Mawson

Arrive in Ushuaia (USH) where you will be met by a representative and transferred with your fellow expeditioners to your assigned pre-voyage hotel. If you are already in Ushuaia, we ask you to make your way to your hotel. Check-in is from 3 pm.

The remainder of your time is at leisure.

This morning, enjoy breakfast and check-out. Please ensure your cabin luggage is fitted with cabin tags clearly labelled with your name and cabin number. Take your cabin luggage to hotel reception, prior to, or at check-out. Your luggage will be stored and transferred directly to the port for clearance, to be placed in your cabin ahead of your arrival on board. Please keep any valuables or personal items with you throughout the day.

Your morning is at leisure to explore Ushuaia.

Those wishing to join the afternoon catamaran cruise, will meet back at the hotel lobby at 12.45 pm ready to transfer to the port at 1 pm. Here, you will board the catamaran and sail the Beagle Channel, towards the city's iconic Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse. Crossing the Bridges Archipelago we'll slow down to watch colonies of sea lions and imperial cormorants sun themselves on the rocky outcrops, while gulls, rock cormorants, skuas, petrels, albatrosses and cauquenes are often sighted. Our cruise offers panoramic views of the city and the surrounding mountain range, in addition to hearing tales of the people and communities of the region.

Alternatively, enjoy your day at leisure and meet at your hotel lobby at 3.45 pm to be transferred to the pier for embarkation.

Once onboard, you'll have time to settle into your cabin before our important mandatory briefings. As the ship pulls away from port, we'll gather on the deck to commence our adventure with spectacular views over Ushuaia and Tierra del Fuego.

This evening, get to know your fellow expeditioners and friendly expedition team and crew at a welcome dinner to celebrate the start of a thrilling adventure to Antarctica.

We head southbound towards the Antarctic Peninsula and across the Drake Passage. Join our Polar experts to learn about Antarctica's unique wildlife and history, talk to fellow passengers, staff and crew, and prepare for your landings with the environmental and safety briefings given on board.

Spirits soar as air and water temperatures fall, marking our crossing into the 'White Continent.' Possible landings as we approach the South Shetland Islands include Aitcho, Robert or Deception Islands.

An overnight passage along Gerlache Strait delivers us to the stunning Antarctic Peninsula, an ethereal wonderland of vast proportions. Aboard robust Zodiacs, we explore penguin rookeries, historic sites and scientific stations, and cruise up close to intricately shaped icebergs and seals basking on ice floes. Kayakers paddle through narrow waterways, in search of wildlife and serenity. Stepping ashore on the continent itself creates an everlasting memory. Landings are dependent on the ice and weather conditions, so our itinerary does need to be flexible. Landings do often change voyage-to-voyage, but our expert guides and Expedition staff will ensure that you have the best chance to capture the surprising wildlife displays and to enjoy any unexpected opportunities that come your way.

Over the next few days a host of choices are open to us, and depending on ice and weather conditions, the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula is ours to explore. Our experienced expedition team, who have made countless journeys to this area, will use their expertise to design our voyage from day to day. This allows us to make best use
of the prevailing weather, ice conditions and wildlife opportunities.

There will be plenty of time to enjoy the sheer beauty and breathtaking scenery of this magical land, with it's impressive glaciers and rugged snow-capped mountains. Walk on shore among hundreds of penguins as you stop off at gentoo, Adelie and chinstrap penguin rookeries, or explore the glacial scenery by Zodiac. Possible landing sites may include spectacular Paradise Harbour - a perfect nesting site for blue-eyed shags, terns and gulls; Hydrurga Rocks, where you can see a group of low-lying granite rocks, protruding from the sea and the wildlife-rich Half Moon Island, tucked away in a neat bay at the eastern end of Livingston Island. On a clear day, the glaciers and mountains of Livingston Island dominate the vista. There is a large chinstrap penguin colony tucked in between basaltic turrets coloured by yellow and orange lichens. Gulls nest on these turrets and there are often fur seals and elephant seals hauled out on the pebble beaches.

If ice conditions allow, the ship will cruise along the narrow Lemaire Channel, one of the many highlights of our voyage. Cliffs tower 700 metres straight out of the ocean, on either side of the ship. The water can sometimes be so still that perfect reflections are mirrored on the surface and it is clear to see why this Channel is often called Kodak Alley. Gigantic icebergs may clog the channel, creating navigational challenges for our Captain and crew; occasionally they may even obstruct our passage.

Located on Goudier Island, British Port Lockroy is an important site for both scientific research and visitors to the Antarctic continent. Designated a historic site in 1994 and opened to the Antarctic tourism industry in 1996, it was discovered in 1904 and used by the whaling industry in the first half of the 1900s. It was part of the British Operation
Tabarin during World War II, and was later used as a British Research Station. Today, Pork Lockroy is manned by the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust and operates as a museum, gift shop and post office for visitors from passing Antarctic expeditions. You can even send a post card home from the Penguin Post Office, the world's most southern Post
Office.
The Peninsula also has a remarkable history and during the voyage, we will learn more about the incredible expeditions to these remote areas and hopefully, you will enjoy the same sense of excitement as many of those early Explorers. Today, we have a final full day to enjoy the serenity of one of the last true wilderness areas on earth, before we head north again.

Today, our landings come to an end as we re-enter the Drake Passage for our return journey to Ushuaia. With lectures and film presentations to complete our Antarctic experience, there is still plenty of time to enjoy the magic of the Southern Ocean and the life that calls it home. There is time for reflection and discussion about what we have
seen and experienced, and the impact this voyage has had on our attitude to life.

As we approach the tip of South America, our Captain may sail close to legendary Cape Horn, weather and time permitting.

During the early morning, we cruise up the Beagle Channel, before quietly slipping into dock in Ushuaia. The trip ends after breakfast on board the ship. There are no activities planned today, so you are free to depart at any time after 12 pm. For those on morning flights, a transfer will take you directly to Ushuaia City Airport (USH). For those on later flights, you will be transferred to downtown Ushuaia and given time to explore the city, before continuing on to the airport in time for your flight.