Below is a sample itinerary of what you can expect on one of our cruises. Itineraries may change based on weather and scheduling contingencies.

Day 1: Depart from Los Angeles or Miami to Santiago, Chile.

Day 2: Morning arrival in Santiago and transfer to our downtown hotel. The afternoon is yours to relax or join a guided walking tour of the city.

Day 3: We fly south over the pampas and Argentine Patagonia to Ushuaia, the city at the end of the world. Your afternoon is free to explore the city on foot, or perhaps hike up the glacier which lies behind our hotel.

Day 4: We enjoy a full day excursion to the Parque Tierra del Fuego, before boarding our expedition ship in the afternoon and setting sail along the Beagle Channel for your adventure of a lifetime!

Day 5: As we cross the infamous Drake Passage, our lecturers will be out on deck to spot for whales and various seabirds as well as in the lecture hall to prepare us all with background information about the Last Continent.

Days 6-9: Land ahoy!! The weather will be our master as we spend the next several days cruising in and among the South Shetland Islands and the bays and channels of the Antarctic Peninsula. Our zodiacs will carry us to shore wherever possible, weaving safely among icebergs and ice floes. Our itinerary focuses on the areas with the greatest promise of wildlife, and we hope to land at King George, Half Moon and Paulet Islands for a look at the penguin rookeries and seal colonies. Weather permitting, we will enter the flooded volcanic caldera of Deception Island for a visit to an abandoned whaling station. At Paradise and Hope Bays, we will see some of the most dramatic scenery the Antarctic has to offer. One of the rarest species in the Antarctic is the human being; we will observe these at work in research stations maintained by several different nations.

Days 10-11: We leave this white continent, crossing the Drake Passage, and passing over the Antarctic Convergence. Here the cold waters of the Antarctic meet the warmer Atlantic Ocean, and the surface nutrients attract many species of seabirds and whales.

Day 12: The morning will find us Ushuaia, where we will disembark and transfer to the airport for the flight to Santiago, Chile.

Day 13: Free time to explore the plazas and museums of cosmopolitan Santiago on your own. A traditional feast marks the end of a sensational journey. Transfer to the airport for late night flight.

Day 14: Arrive home.

Optional Excursion: For those of you who have extra time and money, optional excursions will be offered at the end of the expedition, including one to Easter Island! Just ask for additional details.

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