As a seasonal destination, knowing the right time of year to go to Antarctica is important. There are two other important questions: When to book your Antarctica Cruise and when to book the flights to join your Antarctica Cruise.
Cruises visit Antarctica between November and March each year (weather permitting). Interestingly though, within that four month window you have the opportunity to see different things depending on when you go.
This is spring time in Antarctica and when you will find some of the best priced cruise departures. The penguins are on their eggs at this time of year and the landscape is still pristine and snow covered.
During December the penguin eggs start to hatch and the Humpback whales return to the peninsula. This is the peak of the wildlife season in Antarctica.
Ross Sea Expeditions (the area south of New Zealand) start to depart.
This is the best whale watching period in the Peninsula. For photography enthusiasts the light is beautiful. In late February the Penguins start to moult.
The last Ross Sea Expeditions start.
Due to the short season you'll generally need to be booking at least a year in advance (generally only a deposit is required when booking that far in advance). So at the time of writing this article, we can provide advice and pricing for October 2020 to March 2021 itineraries.
It's also important to remember that Expedition Cruise ships are generally much smaller than traditional cruise ships. As only 100 people are allowed on the ice at one time, smaller ships are popular - but it also means that they are more likely to sell out.
On rare occasions special offers are available for those open to making last minute decisions - so for the October 2019 to March 2020 season select cruise lines have last minute special offers. When include such offers in our Cruise Holiday Sales Alerts.
For cruises departing from South America for the Antarctic Peninsula there are three main airline options for flights to South America:
Once you get to South America there will generally be a further "domestic" flight to the ultimate departure port (commonly Ushuaia).
These flights go on sale at various times of the year and we alert our clients to the sales as they are released via our Business Class and Premium Economy Sales Alerts. and include them on the Fine Travel South America Business Class and Premium Economy Specials page.
Given the length of the flights to South America, Premium Economy and Business Class are often preferred. Generally when these airfares go on sale there are also Economy Class specials which we can access.
Some cruise lines will offer a charter flight to the departure port (such as from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia) and often an overnight stopover will be required because of the connection times.
If the idea of crossing the Drake Passage doesn't appeal (or you're short on time), options are available to fly to Antarctica to join a cruise.
There is quite a remarkable variety of cruise lines that offer itineraries to Antarctica. From luxurious "soft expedition" options (Ponant's Expedition Fleet is one of the leading cruise lines in Antarctica) through to quite authentic "icebreaker" ships, and options in between. A description you will often see is "Small Ships". You can explore a selection of itineraries on the dedicated Fine Travel cruise website.
When it choosing the right cruise line, cruise ship and itinerary for you, Antarctica is a destination where we can help with our experience, including:
Many of our specialist partners have been to Antarctica so we can also arrange first hand answers from "on the ice".