My Antarctica MS Expedition Cruise

Types of Girl about the Globe – Adventure GatG, Nature GatG, Wildlife GatG

Antarctica is a trip of a lifetime for most of us. If you've ever wanted to visit this icy continent, fellow solo traveller, Chantelle Choy, shares her experience of taking a G Adventures Antarctica trip onboard the MS Expedition.

I hope that her article inspires you to become an ocean adventurer and join an MS expedition cruise ship for this icy continent.

N.b. By booking an Antarctica trip through this MS Expedition review you are helping to improve the lives of vulnerable girls about the globe. Thanks for helping.

 

My G Adventures Antarctica Tour

A vacation in Antarctica wasn’t part of my original plan, but I met someone at the beginning of my trip who had worked out there and what he was describing to me sounded simply breathtaking. That was it; my mind was made up. I was going to take a trip to Antarctica.

Up until the point I had decided to take the plunge, I assumed that travelling to Antarctica wasn’t really accessible, let alone for a solo female traveller.

I also thought that Antarctica trips of a lifetime like this would book up months, if not years, in advance. So when I contacted my travel agent to see what my options were, I was very pleasantly surprised.

G Adventures, the tour company I had used a number of times on my trip this past year, ran a few different Antarctica cruises to the continent, and there was one place left on an expedition Antarctica cruise, leaving Ushuaia on the day my trip was meant to finish… it was fate!

The trip would set sail on the 21st of December and arrive back on the 3rd of January. What better way to celebrate Christmas and see in the New Year!

Hesitating for only a few seconds (to travel to Antarctica is quite understandably on the expensive side), I quickly decided that that was a problem for ‘future me’ to deal with and handed over my credit card details to my travel agent. I celebrated that night with my hostel roommates under the stars on a beach in Bali.

I spent the next 4 months working my way down South America, finally arriving in Ushuaia the day before we were due to set sail. I wandered the beautiful resort town, nicknamed the End of the World, getting more and more excited about Antarctica and what the next few weeks would bring.

Boarding For My Antarctica Trip

My Antarctic adventure began as we boarded the beautiful MS Expedition ship Antarctica the following afternoon and began to familiarise ourselves with our home for the next two weeks.

After a safety briefing, the captain welcomed us all on board with a glass of champagne and the G expedition Antarctica team and staff introduced themselves. We were kitted out with our complimentary wind and waterproof parkas, and we could all tell that this was the beginning of something very special.

The plan was to spend the next 2 days sailing the notorious Drake Passage – 500 miles of the world's roughest seas. We all prepared for the worst – passengers and crew alike swallowed enough seasickness medication to knock us out for the next 48 hours.

We’d use this time to attend lectures held by the plethora of wildlife and nature experts on board. Then the funniest thing happened…

Except for a couple of big waves that shook the ship, we had the smoothest and fastest Drake crossing that most of the crew had ever experienced. We were on course to do our first Zodiac landing a day early – on Christmas Eve.

My Antarctica Adventures

Crossing the final few miles of the Drake on Christmas Eve morning, we prepared for our afternoon landing by vacuuming clothes, bags and hats and disinfecting all walking boots and any equipment that we would take on land with us.

Antarctica, although remote and extreme is vulnerable to invasive species inadvertently transported upon gear and clothing. We needed to make sure that we would leave it in exactly the same state that we found it in.

Boarding the Zodiac cruiser for the first time that afternoon, we landed on Turret Point in the South Shetland Islands. We came face to face with three species of penguin… Adelies, Gentoos and Chinstraps, a number of young elephant seals and countless giant Petrels soaring through the Southern skies.

This was real – it was really happening. We celebrated the day with a wonderful dinner, Christmas caroling and a party in the Polar Bear Bar aboard the ship that evening.

An Antarctica Tour at Christmas

There were a few of us on board who were particularly excited for Christmas Day – because weather permitting, later that evening, we would be setting up camp on Leith Island in Paradise Bay to spend a night under the stars.

The day was spent exploring Danco Island in the southern end of the Errera Channel and the Almirante Brown Base, an Argentine base used for scientific research purposes during the Summer.

We also cruised around on the Zodiacs, spotting the animals in Antarctica: many seals, penguins and beautifully formed icebergs that make you realise what a powerful force Mother Nature really is and how beautiful Antarctica is. 

Camping Antarctica Adventures

Following a wonderful Christmas BBQ out on deck later that evening, the campers headed to Leith Island. We set up our tents and took in the views.

It was then that a few of us decided to make the most of it and sleep outside… which was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

How many people can say they have been to Antarctica, let alone spent time in Antarctica camping?! Summer in Antarctica means nearly 24 hours of sunlight.

Just after midnight, the sun dips only slightly, blessing us with an hour or so of twilight before it rises again. It was truly spectacular.

Boxing Day

Boxing Day morning, we packed up our camping equipment and headed back to the boat by Zodiac.

We sailed through the Lemaire Channel and all of its breathtaking scenery. The beautiful snow capped mountains which lined the G expedition ship either side of us, towered more than 3000 feet high and a 1000 feet below.

Afternoon Zodiac cruises around Petermann Island got us up close and personal with the most mind-blowing icebergs I could have ever imagined – nine tenths of which, are actually under the water's surface.

Crossing the Antarctic Circle

The name of the tour to Antarctica, the Quest for the Antarctic Circle, is exactly that – a quest.

The itinerary of the tour is not fixed because it is so heavily reliant on the weather and wildlife conditions. Ice conditions mean it might be impossible to cross certain channels, and migration patterns mean some animals won’t be around.

Just being here, on the expedition was a dream come true. Crossing the Drake in record time, having such spectacular wildlife viewing was all a huge plus. But that morning, when our expedition leader announced we were on course to cross the Antarctic Circle around 08:45, my heart exploded.

Straight after breakfast, I grabbed my jacket and headed out to the bow of the ship. Like all others, when the announcement was made, we cheered and hugged, and some of us cried – a huge item ticked off the bucket list. Something I never thought was possible was happening right at that very moment.

The moment we crossed the Antarctic Circle

Port Lockroy

I was also very much looking forward to our Antarctica visit to Port Lockroy, where a small post office and museum is operated by the United Kingdom Antarctic Heritage Trust. It is currently manned by four very inspirational women.

The museum is the abandoned British Base, Bransfield House, with many of the original artefacts on display. It was truly amazing to be in and around the belongings of those who stationed out in such extreme conditions.

Neko Harbour

Following our museum visit, we jumped back in a Zodiac to land on Neko Harbour, where we saw perfectly formed old whale bones and watched the wondrous Gentoo penguins waddle and toboggan their way through the penguin highways.

My Incredible Antarctica Tour

Next, we sailed past the beautiful tabular icebergs of the Antarctic Sound towards Kinnes Cove. Disembarking from the Zodiacs, we were greeted by what looked like thousands of Adelie penguins along the shoreline and up the hills as far as the eye could see.

We were also lucky enough to see hundreds of grey chicks being shielded from the wind, nested between their parents' feet. Scores of petrels, terns and blue-eyed shags carried by the wind above us.

Following lunch that day, we sailed southwest to Brown Bluff, a volcano with a pebble beach and surrounding reddish-brown rocks. I took a moment to appreciate the contrast of the mornings landscape in comparison. I had assumed this was a land covered in ice and snow – little did I realise how extreme the change in landscape could be.

I attempted a steep hike up a cliff scattered with loose soil that just about covered the sheer ice underneath. I quickly lost count of how many times I fell over, scrambling upwards with my bare hands. I decided to call it quits a few steep meters from the top, dug my heels into the soil to keep balance and sat to enjoy the view.

The next day was our final day of landings in Antarctica and also the last day of the year. We dropped anchor near Half Moon Bay Island, where the Zodiacs dropped us off to explore.

The island, home to thousands of Chinstrap penguins and their adorable grey chicks, also housed a lone Macaroni penguin which I was lucky enough to spot with the help of a wildlife telescope. The view around us and this Antarctica land was just phenomenal.

Deception Island

Later that afternoon, we headed to Deception Island – our final landing sight. Deception Island is the sight of an abandoned whaling station and the caldera of an active volcano.

Steam was rising along the shoreline, and despite temperatures below zero, puddles of water rising to the surface on the bay was warm. We all prayed this was not going to be the ‘bang’ we were promised we were going to see the new year in with.

Remains of an abandoned whaling station, Whalers Bay

Reluctantly clambering back onto the Zodiac for the final time, we headed back to the ship to get ready to toast our wonderful journey and see in the new year.

At midnight, our Captain let off flares to see in the New Year while crew and passengers gathered to sing along and cheer on deck. It was the perfect end to my perfect Antarctica adventures.

Sailing The Drake Passage

We spent the next two days sailing the Drake Passage, back to Ushuaia. Unbelievably, once again, we had calm waters, which all of us with a hangover were thankful for. We attended more wonderful lectures held by the expedition staff to learn about the women in Antarctica and more about the wildlife.

Due to the calm waters and kind winds, we were making good time on our journey back. Our Captain decided we would make a detour, and attempt to round Cape Horn – the waters of which are extremely hazardous, due to the strong winds and currents, large waves and icebergs. It’s also known as “The Sailors’ Graveyard”.

It would also mean, we would cross from the Southern Ocean into the Pacific and then the Atlantic. Three oceans! Again, all on board cheered. Another huge milestone for this already monumental journey.

Despite our detour, we managed to drop anchor back in Ushuaia, twelve hours ahead of schedule. Devastated to be back, we couldn’t bear to look out the windows at the colourful town past the marina.

Words cannot express how truly spectacular this journey was. It is the very definition of the experience of a lifetime, which I was lucky enough to share with some incredible people on board, who I now call my friends – the memories of which we will talk about forever.

G Adventures Arctic Tour

To travel to Antarctica and cruise Antarctic peninsula is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and G Adventures run several small group trips to Antarctica. One of their favourite cheapest tours in Antarctica is the G Adventures Antarctica Classic, which takes 11 days and costs £4899.

Their Quest for the Antarctic Circle tours is a 14 day tour, starting and ending in Ushuaia, with their Ushuaia to Antarctica cruise costing £7199.

Twelve of these nights are spent aboard the G Adventures Antarctica ship in cabins with a porthole view and one in a hotel in Ushuaia on a twin-share basis. You spend seven full days exploring the peninsula and searching for minke whales and birdlife.

* Check prices, itineraries and dates for all Antarctica G Adventures tours 

About the Author

Chantelle Choy is a travel junkie, who loves nature, wildlife, photography and food. Her favourite word (and feeling) is “Resfeber” – the restless race of the traveller's heart before the journey begins. Chantelle experienced her expedition to Antarctica with G Adventures in December 2017. G Adventures offer some of the best Antarctica tours and is one of the Antarctica tour companies that are great for solos. Chantelle is open to sharing her experiences from this past year to anyone who might be interested or have any questions. Find her on Instagram at Travelling Choy.