Epic Ross Sea & Antarctica Semi-Circumnavigation

Your Antarctica, South Georgia and Falklands cruise begins in the vibrant Argentinean capital of Buenos Aires where, having arrived independently, you will join your included flight to Ushuaia at the very southern tip of Argentina. Upon arrival in Ushuaia, you will join your transfer to the port to board your fantastic expedition ship. Enjoy a welcome glass of champagne as you settle into your beautiful cabin and familiarise yourself with the luxury amenities onboard before enjoying your first delicious meal as we set sail out through the scenic Beagle Channel.

We recommend arriving in Buenos Aires a few days before your itinerary begins to allow you to sample some of the many wonders of this enchanting city. Multiple pre-cruise packages are available so please enquire if this is something which may be of interest to you.

We will now spend the day at sea sailing towards the majesty of Antarctica. Enjoy the many facilities onboard including 3 first-class restaurants, the Ocean Spa, swimming pool and the excellent interactive Ocean Academy centre. Your programme of presentations and multimedia lectures delivered by an experienced team of experts from various disciplines will entertain you throughout and offer fascinating insights into the areas you will visit on your journey. Make sure to spend some time on deck or in the wonderful observation spaces looking for sightings of unique seabirds and marine mammals.

Welcome to the magical world of Antarctica. Prepare for jaw-dropping scenery at every turn as we weave our way through snow covered mountains, towering basalt cliffs, rugged volcanic landscapes and a myriad of icebergs on a unique semi-circumnavigation of this magnificent continent. As with all Polar expeditions, weather and ice conditions may dictate certain routes taken during your time here, and your experienced captain and crew will chart the perfect course for thrilling icy adventures and wildlife opportunities. Throughout your time here you will enjoy exciting Zodiac cruises and land visits accompanied by your team of Antarctica experts, whilst searching for sightings of the penguins, seals and a huge variety of seabirds that make this region their home.

Your first area for exploration is likely to be around the beautiful flooded caldera of Deception Island in the South Shetlands island group where you can marvel at the extinct volcano all around you and the unique black volcanic beaches. As we move further south on to the Antarctic Peninsula the stark, snowy white backdrops will provide a surprising contrast as we venture to the massive glacial cliffs of Neko Harbour and the iceberg filled Paradise Bay. You will sail through the awe-inspiring, picture perfect shipping passage of the Lemaire Channel keeping an eye out all the time for gentoo and Adelie penguins. On Petermann Island we will also be on the lookout for the blue-eyed cormorants that have their breeding colonies here.

It is at this point of most Antarctica expeditions where many ships must turn back towards warmer climes, but we still have far to go on our adventure and will keep pushing forward towards the Antarctic Circle and celebrate crossing this imaginary line with a special toast. With the highest ice class for passenger ships, the HANSEATIC Inspiration can forge its way to the most beautiful and rarely visited regions such as Marguerite Bay and a British research station dating back to the 1960s, which has now been taken over by skuas and Antarctic terns.

These excitement-filled days at sea will be spent sailing through the Bellingshausen Sea, Amundsen Sea and Ross Sea, following in the wake of the legendary explorers after which they are named. Incredible scenery will enchant you each day, and as you sail in ultimate comfort towards one of the least explored places on earth, your programme of fascinating lectures and presentations will be sure to keep you entertained. During this time at sea, we will lose a day as we cross the International Date Line.

The pinnacle of your adventure has arrived as we reach the incredible Ross Sea region and hope for the perfect conditions for in-depth exploration. Every element of the journey will have been timed to absolute perfection to allow us the best possible chance of reaching these wildly remote areas, yet as with all Polar expeditions, nothing can be guaranteed.

Areas we hope (and expect) to visit in this region include the magnificent Ross Island, legendary Cape Royds where Sir Ernest Shackleton built a base camp for his South Pole expedition in 1908, and Cape Evans which set the scene for the fateful Terra Nova expedition led by Robert Falcon Scott, who never returned from his attempt to beat Roald Amundsen to the South Pole. For even more Polar history, we will hope to be granted access to the American McMurdo Station and the Discovery hut built by Scott in 1902. There are also good chances of spotting emperor penguins and whales in this historically significant region.

Another indescribable highlight awaits as you cruise in front of the fantastic backdrop of the Ross Ice Shelf, a gigantic wall of ice as tall as houses that stretches for hundreds of kilometres. Other areas we expect to visit include Terra Nova Bay, Victoria Land, and Cape Adare which is home to the largest colony of Adelie penguins in Antarctica, with over 250,000 breeding pairs.

After 3 weeks of unforgettable adventures, today’s relaxing day at sea will be richly deserved. Put your feet up and enjoy the supreme comforts of your first-class expedition vessel.

Leaving the Ross Sea region in our wake, we continue our epic journey by sailing on towards New Zealand, hoping to anchor off some legendary islands for more exploration and wildlife delights. Should we be granted permission, we hope to stop at the largely glaciated Balleny Islands which lie around 2000kms south of New Zealand.

Relax at sea as we make our way towards the Subantarctic Macquarie Island.

As we arrive along the coast of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Macquarie Island we will enjoy a cruise along the island to discover its geological significance whilst looking out for the fur seals and king and royal penguins that are often spotted here.

We continue our exploration of New Zealand’s Subantarctic islands over the next couple of days. Authority permission and weather will dictate which islands we manage to visit, but during our time here we will hope to experience Campbell Island and the world’s largest breeding colony of southern royal albatrosses. On the Auckland Islands we may experience the archipelago’s lush flora and their resident yellow-eyed penguin and New Zealand sea lion colonies, whilst on Snares Island we will hope for encounters with the endemic Snares penguin alongside Cape petrels and albatrosses.

After a final day at sea, you will arrive into the port at Lyttelton in Christchurch where your epic and unforgettable Antarctica, Ross Sea & Subantarctic Islands expedition will reach its conclusion. Various packages are available for extending your stay here or making your way homewards so please enquire and we will be more than happy to arrange these for you.