Falklands South Georgia and Antarctica Explorers and Kings

The Gateway to Antarctica

Arrive at any time today, but it’s always a good idea to arrive a day or two early to enjoy more of this lively adventure hub. Ushuaia is the most southerly city in the world and the capital of Tierra del Fuego (“Land of Fire”). Here, travelers, coming and going, vibrate with anticipation and exhilaration. This is where the Andes meet the famed Beagle Channel. 

Poke around the vibrant artisan markets or slide into a cafe for your first authentic alfajore (an irresistible Argentinian dulce de leche cookie). It won’t be your last! There are several museums including one housed in a former prison (Museo Marítimo y del Presidio de Ushuaia). Learn about sailing, whaling and natural history in a museum hop or aimlessly wander the streets and absorb the town’s dramatic setting in a pocket of snow-blanketed mountains purring with travelers ready to embark on their dream. Make sure to try the king crab and local lamb; they won’t disappoint!

Accommodations

Albatros Hotel (2024 departure)

All Aboard the Ocean Explorer

In the morning, your luggage will be collected from the lobby of your hotel, safely transferred to the ship and stored in your cabin for your arrival. 

Ship embarkation usually occurs around 4 p.m. Meet your fellow Wild Women and jittery shipmates at a designated location near the pier to board the waiting buses for transfer to the ship. Detailed information about embarkation will be posted in your Ushuaia hotel and discussed in highly organized form during the (optional) pre-departure meeting on Day 1.

After the goosebump-inducing ship horn blast, our vessel, the mighty Ocean Explorer, begins her hotly anticipated sail down the historic Beagle Channel, which transects the Tierra del Fuego archipelago in the extreme south of South America. Anticipation will be at an all time high as the thrill and magic of the seventh continent’s secrets are slowly unveiled. This is the world’s most southern continent!

Included Meals

All on-board meals 

Accommodations

Your cabin on the Ocean Explorer

Immersive Learning

This day at sea is filled with engaging presentations and safety procedures for the upcoming Zodiac excursions and shore landings, led by the ship’s energetic expert Expedition Team. Expect dynamic crash courses in photography, wildlife behavior, marine biology, ornithology, geology, glaciology and history. In between the juicy presentations, you’re encouraged to spend time on deck searching for wildlife. Or, swap travel stories with the Wild Women gals over a drink at the bar. It seems appropriate to sample the fine reds of Argentina to fully slip into the proper continental groove.

Included Meals

All on-board meals 

Accommodations

Your cabin on the Ocean Explorer

Birds and Brits

Have your camera charged and your body caffeinated as we approach the raw and rugged Falklands archipelago’s landscape with its abundance of wildlife and birds at every turn. The archipelago contains two main islands, East Falkland and West Falkland, and the isles are home to Magellanic, gentoo and southern rockhopper penguins. If we’re lucky, we may even spot king penguins here as well! 

Over the next two days, we explore East and West islands by Zodiac and on foot with daily shore landings. As “Floating U” students, we learn about the controversial history of the Falkland Islands in the capital of Stanley (also referred to as Port Stanley), with its British outpost vibes, rolling green hills and startlingly white beaches. While Magellanic penguins like to hang out at Gypsy Cove, many of the ship’s passengers like to create their own noisy colony at the famous fish and chip stop or nurse a pint at one of the local British pubs.

Near the town, we may see Southern giant petrels, endemic Falkland steamer ducks, kelp gulls and dolphin gulls. The endemic Cobb’s wren is as elusive, but this trip is full of surprises. Be on high alert for black-browed albatross, black-crowned night herons, red-backed hawks, peregrine falcons and turkey vultures circling overhead too!

There will be ample free time to design your perfect itinerary in Stanley—grab a pint, visit the cathedral or museum or all of the above!

Included Meals

All on-board meals 

Accommodations

Your cabin on the Ocean Explorer

Layer Up and Look Around 

We experience an abrupt dip in temperature as we cross the Antarctic Convergence, the invisible biological boundary encircling the continent, before entering the bracing waters of the Antarctic Ocean. Here, the unforgiving north-flowing polar region waters mix and mingle with the warmer south-flows of the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Seabirds, whales and other species are magnetically drawn to the nutrient and krill-rich waters.

Pull on an extra layer (this is why polar fleece was invented!) and head to the outdoor observation deck to look for the mighty albatross. They have the longest wingspan of any bird on the planet, so you should be able to spot them! If you need to give your craning neck a rest, scan the moody waters for breaching minke whales and bobbing icebergs. Chinstrap, Adélie and gentoo penguins are also found here, along with Weddell, fur, crabeater and leopard seals.

Included Meals

All on-board meals 

Accommodations

Your cabin on the Ocean Explorer

Penguin Pandemonium

South Georgia captivates every traveler that steps foot on its shores. Over 30 million breeding birds, thousands of seals, four breeding species of penguin and the largest colony of king penguins on the planet all live semi-harmoniously in this community. Like the Galápagos Islands, there are no terrestrial predators and human presence does not pose a threat, permitting us to observe wildlife up close without disturbing their natural behavior.

We spend several days exploring this remote island and its fascinating history. South Georgia was an intrinsic part of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ill-fated Endurance expedition. We visit Grytviken, the first whaling station in sub-Antarctic waters and the site of Shackleton’s grave. Our Expedition Team will revisit South Georgia of yesteryear with captivating tall tales.

Each day is a total surprise, as our landing sites vary and wholly depend on the weather. Nature doesn’t follow a predictable path, but our itinerary definitely involves standing in awe of the colonies of hundreds of thousands of penguins and visiting beaches populated by sun-loving seals.

Included Meals

All on-board meals 

Accommodations

Your cabin on the Ocean Explorer

Cruising with Experts

As we push onward to Antarctica, we watch the royal king penguins become silhouettes and blur into the startling landscape. Our days at sea are filled with immersive presentations, workshops and a myriad of social activities led by the Expedition Team. If conditions are favorable, we may attempt landfall on the South Orkney Islands, our first official stop in Antarctica!

Included Meals

All on-board meals 

Accommodations

Your cabin on the Ocean Explorer

Embrace a Chilly Challenge

The most common reaction upon reaching the White Continent is a sense of reverence and awe. The experience settles the mind. It startles the senses. Few places are as untouched, pure and silent as Antarctica. It’s a land of extremes, isolation and transformative moments. From the unexpected rush of witnessing a calving glacier to the innocent encounter with a penguin inspecting your shoelaces. During our Zodiac cruises, we’re busy scanning for Antarctic whales, penguins and seals. Make sure your camera batteries are fully charged.

Want to truly be one with the Antarctic Ocean? Take the plunge! The polar plunge is scheduled once during each voyage, with an optimal location chosen and carefully monitored by our Expedition Leader and Captain. The Polar Plunge sometimes takes place onshore or, in many cases, from the gangway or Zodiac. Safety is paramount on the Ocean Explorer; the onboard physician always attends the Polar Plunge, and guides in survival gear circle the area in Zodiacs as fearless guests take their turn jumping or cannon-balling into the polar waters.

For those who would prefer to dip a kayak paddle into the ocean, we can kit up for a paddling excursion (for an additional fee)!

Included Meals

All on-board meals 

Accommodations

Your cabin on the Ocean Explorer

Completing Our Antarctic Adventure

After more than two weeks of endless wildlife encounters, our journey home begins. Named after the legendary English explorer Sir Frances Drake, the Passage splits the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula from the southernmost tip of South America. As Melissa Etheridge sang, “the only thing that stays the same is change.” The Passage is famously unpredictable—it can be rough and turbulent or as calm as a curled-up cat in a sunny spot—so be prepared!

Be sure to absorb these final, precious moments celebrating with your fellow Wild Women. Savor the silence of the sea and the indelible experience of the seventh continent below your feet.

Included Meals

All on-board meals

Accommodations

Your cabin on the Ocean Explorer

Farewell, Friends

After breakfast on the ship, we arrive in Ushuaia starry-eyed from all that we’ve seen and felt on the sea. The ship is scheduled to arrive at the pier between 7 and 8 a.m. It can take up to one hour to disembark.

We encourage you to continue your adventure: explore the city a little more or discover the wilds of Tierra del Fuego National Park, the most southerly national park of South America. This bountiful park offers several hiking trails (from an easy stroll to a strenuous climb) that wind around peat bogs, lagoons, woodland, rugged coastline, glaciers, pounding waterfalls and still lakes. Birders will go bonkers for the airshow of austral parakeets, Andean condor, Magellanic oystercatchers, kelp geese and torrent ducks.

Or, tightly embrace your Wild Women mates, decide where you’ll go next and head to the airport for a reflective flight home!

Airport transfers will be provided or you can opt for a transfer to town, depending on your post-trip plans.

Included Meals

Breakfast