SOUTH GEORGIA & ANTARCTICA
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SOUTH GEORGIA & ANTARCTICA
ITINERARY SUMMARY
Day Place Highlights
Day 1 Ushuaia Set sail, meet the expedition team
Day 2-4 At Sea Enjoy the facilities onboard, fine dining options, welcome cocktail party
Day 5-7 South Georgia Glaciers, King and Macaroni Penguins, Wandering Albatross
Day 8-9 At Sea Onboard lectures, photography workshops, spa treatments, exquisite dining experiences
Day 10 Elephant Island Chinstrap penguins, elephant seals, macaroni penguins, Weddell seals
Day 11 Antarctic Sound Hope Bay, Paulet Island
Day 12 Antarctic Peninsula Iceberg sculptures, carving glaciers, marine mammals, penguins
Day 13 Antarctica and South Shetland Islands Chinstrap, Adelie, Gentoo and Macaroni Penguins
Day 14-15 Drake Passage Cross the Drake Passage bound for Ushuaia
Day 16 Ushuaia Farewell your expedition team and fellow travellers
SHIP OFFERING THIS ITINERARY
SILVER CLOUD
Spacious yet intimate, the yacht-like Silver Cloud carries 240 guests in incomparable comfort and style combining spacious ocean-view suites and private verandas with excellent dining and entertainment options. Silver Cloud epitomizes a vision of world-class cruise accommodations, cuisine, service and amenities. The Silver Cloud is equipped with a fleet of zodiacs and expert guides to escort you on excursions from the ship.
Day 1 Ushuaia
At 55 degrees latitude south, on the Southern most tip of Argentina, Ushuaia is closer to the South Pole than to Argentina’s northern border with Bolivia. It is the capital and tourism base for Tierra del Fuego National Park.
Today embark on your voyage to Antarctica via the Falkland Islands. After you settle in to your cabin you will have a safety drill and meet your fellow travellers.
Days 2-4 At Sea
Taking advantage of the day at sea, the Expedition Team will present talks about South Georgia that will prepare you for the exciting adventures ahead. Birders out on deck want to keep an eye out for Black-browed Albatross, Southern Giant Petrels and Cape Petrels.
Days 5-7 South Georgia
South Georgia is a breathtaking destination of towering snow-covered mountains, mighty glaciers, and low-lying grasslands that attract an astounding concentration of wildlife. It is possible to find Southern fur seals, Southern elephant seals and a variety of albatross species including Black-browed, Light-mantled Sooty, Grey-headed and the spectacular Wandering Albatross, plus thousands of King and Macaroni Penguins. South Georgia is filled with history from early Antarctic explorers.
Days 8-9 At Sea
While you’re at sea, enjoy wine tastings, designer boutiques, language and dance classes. Take in a matinee movie, check the market or your e-mail in the Internet Point, slip away with a novel from the library to a sunny chaise or with a movie to your suite. Or just take in the sun pool side. The choice is yours.
Days 10 Elephant Island
Awesome glaciers greet us as we approach Elephant Island – so named for its former abundance of elephant seals. In 1916, when Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance was crushed in pack ice in the Weddell Sea, the crew was stranded here for 105 days. Elephant Island is home to several Chinstrap Penguin rookeries, as well as old moss colonies. Weddell seals and Macaroni Penguins can also be found on the spit of land Shackleton’s men named Point Wild. A solitary statue can be seen there, honouring the Chilean pilot Luis Pardo, who took the cutter Yelcho across the Drake Passage to rescue Shackleton’s men.
Days 11 Antarctic Sound
The Antarctic Sound is a stretch of water named after the first ship to have passed through this body of water from the Bransfield Strait to the Weddell Sea in 1902. The Antarctic eventually sank and crew and scientists had to spend quite some time in this area before they could be rescued. Sites that have to do with this story – like Hope Bay or Paulet Island – are sometimes visited. At Paulet, Hope Bay and Brown Bluff Adelie and Gentoo Penguins breed, as do Kelp Gulls and Cape Petrels, Snow Petrels and Skuas.
Days 12 Antarctic Peninsula
Remote and otherworldly, Antarctica is irresistible for its spectacular iceberg sculptures and calving glaciers, and for the possibility of up-close encounters with marine mammals and the iconic penguins. The Antarctic Peninsula – the main peninsula closest to South America – has a human history of almost 200 years, with explorers, sealers, whalers, and scientists who have come to work, and eventually intrepid visitors coming to enjoy this pristine and remote wilderness.
Days 13 Antarctica South Shetland Islands
Some 770 kilometers (478 miles) south of Cape Horn, the South Shetland Islands are usually the first land seen in Antarctica. Separated from the Antarctic Peninsula by the Bransfield Strait, nine major islands make up the group. The region was the first to be exploited by sealers in the early 19th century, and because of its proximity to South America, it still is the most visited by scientists and tourists. Chinstrap, Adelie, Gentoo and Macaroni Penguins all breed here.
Days 14-15 Drake Passage
As you venture back to Ushuaia via the Drake Passage you can enjoy the onboard facilities as well as swapping photos with your fellow travellers. Continue to look out for Black-browed Albatross, Sooty Shearwaters, and White-chinned Petrels. There will continue to be presentations offered by the Expedition Team.
Day 16 Ushuaia, Argentina
After breakfast, disembark Silver Cloud and transfer to Ushuaia International Airport for your return flight to Buenos Aires.
Expedition highlights and wildlife listed here are possible experiences only and cannot be guaranteed. Your Expedition Leader and Captain will work together to ensure opportunities for adventure and exploration are the best possible, taking into account the prevailing weather, wildlife activity and ice conditions. Expedition Team members scheduled for this voyage are subject to change or cancellation.
A flexible itinerary allows us to take advantage of favourable sea and weather conditions. In the true spirit of expedition cruising, each day the Expedition Leader and Captain will determine our best course depending on weather, ice conditions and wildlife we may encounter.