Luxury Shackleton Route and Antarctic Circle

Meet at Buenos Aires airport for flight to Ushuaia, the world's southern-most city and also the main town in Tierra del Fuego. 

Transfer to ship, board and set sail in the afternoon.  

Get used to life on board and spend time on deck watching for your first whale sightings and spotting the various seabirds following the ship.

Today, we plan to land at Grave Cove and New Island in the West Falklands. Here, amongst the rugged and beautiful scenery, you will have the opportunity to get close up with several species of penguin, black-browed albatross, petrels and other land and sea birds as well as colonies of fur seals.

As we sail south, listen to interesting expert lectures and keep a look out for whales and other sea mammals as well as spotting sea birds for the deck.

We hope to disembark at the splendid Fortuna Bay among the penguins and be allowed to approach the sea elephants lounging in the weak southern sunshine. This glacial expanse of Salisbury Plain, surrounded by high mountains is home to over 250,000 king penguins and the spectacle is truly amazing.

At Grytviken, we disembark and spend time looking at the ruins of this historic whaling station. Here, we will also pay our respects at the grave of the famous explorer, Ernest Shackleton and visit the museum, from where you can also send postcards home from one of the most remote places on earth.

Gold Harbor is home to not only king and gentoo penguins but also a large colony of elephant seals - walking amongst these leviathans is an amazing experience. This is also a great place for seein the beautiful light-mantled sooty albatross.

Cooper Bay is home to a large colony of macaroni penguins, distinctive because of their floppy bright yellow crests.

As we cross the Scotia Sea, there are lots of chances to see whales and seabirds. We hope to land at the renowned Elephant Island where Shackleton left his men whilst he embarked on the small boat 'James Caird' to South Georgia.

Our first planned call in Antarctica proper is at Astrolabe Island, known for its spectacular rock formation, the 'Dragon's Teeth' . It is also home to a large colony of chinstrap penguins.  

Neko Bay is without doubt one of most beautiful sites on the Antarctic Peninsula! It was discovered by the Belgian explorer Gerlache, during his Antarctic expedition from 1897-99. Mountains, snow, ice and nature in the wild combine to offer a unique landscape. The wildlife here is as abundant as it is exceptional, with gulls, Cape petrels and cormorants, as well as sea mammals such as seals, orcas and whales. Zodiac excursions bring you into the closest contact with the icebergs, or take you into the heart of the penguin colonies, or to observe a sea elephant lounging on the shore as the Antarctic terns wheel about overhead.

We have passed through the Gerlache Strait, renowned for its pointed blue icebergs, set amongst spectacular mountain scenery and today, we expect to have navigated the Grandidier Channel and cross the actual Polar Circle.

As we head back north along the coast of Graham Land, depending on conditions, we will call in at other sites, before again reaching the open sea and the Drake Passage. .

We navigate the Drake Passage named after the famous explorer, Sir Frances Drake, who sailed in these waters way back in 1578. Last opportunities to see marine mammals and watch albatrosses and petrels swooping around the ship.

Disembark and transfer to airport for flight to Buenos Aires