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USA to Antarctica

Antarctic Cruises and Adventure Travel With Cool Antarctica and Antarctica Travels

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Regions: Antarctic Peninsula | South Georgia | South Shetland Islands | Falkland Islands | Arctic

 

  Travelling to the Antarctic Peninsula

Antarctica can be reached from the USA via Tierra del Fuego at the tip of South America or from New Zealand (less frequently Australia). There are many more South American departures, the distance is closer, shorter trips are available and you can fly or sail, New Zealand departures are to the deep South.

Most trips to Antarctica are cruises or fly-cruise trips that leave from the port of Ushuaia in Argentina or the airport at Punta Arenas in Chile visiting the Antarctic Peninsula and the islands of the (largely undersea) Scotia Arc (fig 2). This stretches east from the southernmost tip of Tierra del Fuego (South America), through South Georgia, the South Shetland Islands and back to the west again through the South Orkney Islands before joining the northernmost tip of the Peninsula.

A smaller number of trips leave from Australia or New Zealand and visit the eastern region of Antarctica, sailing time is about 6-7 days there and the same back again. These trips are longer and therefore more expensive, they usually leave from Invercargill, New Zealand or less frequently from Hobart, Australia, sometimes leaving from one and returning to the other on alternate trips.

trips to antarctica from usa

Fig 1. Trips to the Antarctic leaving from the USA most commonly leave from the southern most tip of South America and visit the Antarctic Peninsula and nearby islands.

1 - New York, USA    2 - Dallas Tx, USA
3 - Miami Fl, USA    4 - Ushuaia, Argentina
5 - Antarctic Peninsula

Distances miles / km
1 New York - 4 Ushuaia, Argentina 6,615 / 10,646
2 Dallas - 4 Ushuaia, Argentina 6,290 / 10,124
3 Miami - 4 Ushuaia, Argentina 5,617 / 9,040
1 New York - Hobart, Australia 10,335 / 16,633
1 New York - Invercargill, NZ 9,382 / 15,099


1 - Ushuaia, Argentina, 2 - Punta Arenas, Chile
3 - Falkland Islands, 4 - South Georgia
5 - South Shetland Islands, 6 - Antarctic Peninsula

Fig 2. Trips to the Peninsula region of Antarctica. The majority of trips visit the Peninsula 6 and nearby islands such as the South Shetlands 5. Longer trips may also take in the Falkland Islands 3 and / or South Georgia 4 and possibly some other landings en route.

Cruises most commonly go down the western side of the Peninsula as they are less likely to encounter problematic sea ice that is more likely found on the Eastern side in the Weddell Sea.

Distances miles / km
1 Ushuaia - 3 Falklands 480 / 770
1 Ushuaia - 4 South Georgia 1,255 / 2,020
1 Ushuaia - 5 South Shetlands 610  / 980
1 Ushuaia - Peninsula tip 724 / 1,165
2 Punta Arenas - Peninsula tip 870 / 1,395
Peninsula top to bottom 765 / 1,230
Peninsula top to Antarctic Circle 280 / 450

  Travel to the Ross Sea / Commonwealth Bay Region - Eastern Antarctica


R - Ross Ice Shelf, 1 - Hobart - Australia
2 - Invercargill / Port of Bluff - New Zealand
3 - Macquarie Island, 4 - Commonwealth Bay
5 - Cape Adare, 6 - McMurdo / Scott bases


Fig 3. Trips to the more remote Eastern side of Antarctica usually leave from Australia and New Zealand often Invercargill / Port of Bluff in New Zealand 2, Invercargill has the airport, Bluff, 30km away by road has a deep-water port. Less commonly trips may leave/return from Hobart, Australia 1, and Dunedin, New Zealand (about 180 km / 110 miles from Invercargill).

The trip may depart and return to the same port or leave from one and return to another in either direction. It takes about seven days sailing to reach Antarctica from Australia or New Zealand, the journey there and back is usually broken up with visits to the wildlife rich Macquarie Island 3 and others such as Snares, Auckland and Campbell Islands that lie between Macquarie and New Zealand.

Once having reached Antarctica trips usually spend their time either in the Commonwealth Bay area 4 or the Ross Sea region between Cape Adare 5 and McMurdo 6 with possibly a short trip along the front of the Ross Ice Shelf R

Distances km / miles
1 Hobart - 4 Commonwealth Bay 2640 / 1640
2 Invercargill - 4 Commonwealth Bay 2760 / 1720
1 Hobart - 3 Macquarie Island 1500 / 940
2 Invercargill - 3 Macquarie Island 1110 / 690
4 Commonwealth Bay - 5 Cape Adare 1300 / 805
5 Cape Adare - 6 McMurdo 760 / 470

Antarctic Peninsula
Sample Cruises - 2024 / 2025

Trip Highlights Prices USD*
Classic Antarctic Peninsula Expedition

10 - 12 days
South Shetland Islands, Antarctic Peninsula, Penguin Rookeries, Lemaire Channel. $4,860 -
$32,695

typically
$10K-12K
Antarctica Peninsula Basecamp

13 days
Antarctic Peninsula trip with inclusive activities on offer such as hiking, snowshoeing, kayaking, mountaineering, and camping out under the South Polar skies. $9,100 -
$11,750
Crossing the Circle

11 - 23 days
typically 12 - 14

Sail down the Antarctic Peninsula and cross the Antarctic Circle, South Shetland Islands, Wildlife, Scenery. $7,700 - $66,367
Fly-Cruise to Antarctica

Air-Cruise, Fly the Drake
Sample Cruises - 2024 / 2025

Trip Highlights Prices USD*
Antarctic Peninsula, South Shetland Islands. Fly across the Drake Passage

6 - 14 days
typically 8
Fly across the Drake Passage in 2 hours to join your ship, cruise the South Shetland Islands and western Antarctic Peninsula. Spectacular scenery, glaciers, icebergs, penguins, seals and whale sightings. Limited number of sail one way, fly the other trips. $4,995 - $36,495

typically
$12K-14K
South Georgia with the Falkland Islands and / or the Antarctic Peninsula

South Georgia with the Falkland Islands and / or Antarctic Peninsula
Sample Cruises - 2024 / 2025

Trip Highlights Prices USD*
South Georgia, Antarctic Peninsula and Falkland Islands

17 - 23 days

Sub-Antarctic South Georgia has some of the most unique and abundant wildlife on earth including the world's biggest King Penguin colony, one of the world's largest concentration of Southern Elephant Seals, and many other  penguins, whales, seabirds and seals all with a background of the Alps dropped in mid-ocean.

Falklands Islands - a British colony in the South Atlantic with wild places and diverse abundant wildlife.

The Antarctic Peninsula is Antarctica proper with icebergs, glaciers and wildlife.
$11,556 - $48,191
South Georgia and Falkland Islands

17 or 21 days

$9,995 - $25,990
South Georgia and Antarctic Peninsula

15 or 20 days
$13,200 - $37,116
Notes

* Prices are per person. the lowest price is usually for triple occupancy in a basic cabin, the highest for double occupancy in the best available suite.

Options such as kayaking are usually booked when the cruise is booked, they may be at additional cost and have limited availability - it may be too late once the cruise has started.

Contact me about my trip to Antarctica!

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Departures from late October to late March

Our partner company, Antarctica Travels, passionately help people to reach their ultimate destination.

All enquiries will be answered from our office in Patagonia, Argentina.

Dozens of trips - unique combinations of ship + itinerary

Choice of ships - 67 to 199 passenger capacity

Prices from $5,900 per person

6 to 28 days

Please note - we cannot help directly to find employment in Antarctica, please do not use this form to request any other information than for Antarctic tourist trips

ice berg, antarctica
gentoo penguins


Picture credit: Top banner - Cuverville island, courtesy of Grant C. used under CC BY-SA 2.0 licence