Remote Weddell Sea Explorer

South Georgia – South Sandwich Islands – Neuschwabenland - Vahsel Bay – Larsen Ice Shelf – Paulet and Devil Island – Elephant Island

This expansive voyage explores one of the most remote, scenic, wildlife-filled regions on Earth: the great Weddell Sea, discovered by James Weddell in 1823


Weddell Sea
OEX © Sandra Petrowitz

Duration: 28 days
Starts: Ushuaia
Ends: Ushuaia
Language: English speaking voyage


Included


PLEASE NOTE: All itineraries are for guidance only. Programs may vary depending on ice, weather, and wildlife conditions. Landings are subject to site availabilities, permissions, and environmental concerns per IAATO regulations. Official sailing plans and landing slots are scheduled with IAATO prior to the start of the season, but the expedition leader determines the final plan. Flexibility is paramount for expedition cruises. The average cruising speed for the vessel is 10.5 knots.

This adventurous expedition explores one of the least-visited areas on Earth, Antarctica’s amazing Weddell Sea. After visiting some of the same sites legendary explorer Ernest Shackleton’s charted in South Georgia, you’ll enjoy the Weddell’s exotic wildlife and colossal tabular icebergs.

Remote Weddell Sea Explorer:
Starting in South Georgia after leaving Ushuaia, you will be on the trail of famed polar explorer Ernest Shackleton and his ship Endurance, experiencing the Weddell Sea’s amazing wildlife and tabular icebergs before returning via Elephant Island.

The continental borders of the Weddell Sea are formed by huge floating sheets of ice. These ice shelves produce the massive tabular icebergs that are so abundant in the Weddell Sea. Scientists have declared the waters of the Weddell Sea to be the clearest water of any sea on Earth.

The tabular icebergs and other ice formations offer fantastic landscapes and unique photo opportunities. Especially on the east side of the Weddell, the chance of landings can be limited due to these ice formations. Zodiac cruises and possible ice landings are wonderful alternatives, if conditions allow.

The Weddell Sea is home to a large number of orcas, humpbacks, and minke whales as well as leopard, Weddell, and crabeater seals. Several penguin species can be seen there too.

On the ship, your structured educational program will complement other activities. You will have the chance to learn all about the area’s wildlife, landscape, history, political status, and more. You actively participate in citizen science projects, and you can also participate in such projects.

Itinerary

© Rinie van Meurs
© Sanneke van der Sanden
© Sara Jenner

Day 1-3: End of the world, start of a journey
Your voyage begins where the world drops off. Ushuaia, Argentina, reputed to be the southernmost city on the planet, is located on the far southern tip of South America. Starting in the afternoon, you embark from this small resort town on Tierra del Fuego, nicknamed “The End of the World,” and sail the mountain-fringed Beagle Channel for the remainder of the evening.

Enroute to South Georgia, you now cross the Antarctic Convergence. The temperature cools considerably within the space of a few hours, and nutritious water rises to the surface of the sea due to colliding water columns. This phenomenon attracts a multitude of seabirds near the ship, including several species of albatross, shearwaters, petrels, prions, and skuas.

Day 4 – 6: South Georgia journey
Entering the South Georgia Maritime Zone, one of the largest protected waters in the world, you sail past the Shag Rocks. These impressive rocks lay 240km (150 miles) west of South Georgia and are home to several thousand South Georgia shags. The area around the rocks is known for its abundance of larger marine mammals, which feed on this comparatively shallow area of the South Georgia Ridge.

After reaching South Georgia, you will have the chance to visit some of the following sites:

Prion Island – This location is closed during the early part of the wandering albatross breeding season (November 20 – January 7). From January on, the breeding adults have found their partners and are sitting on eggs or nursing their chicks. Enjoy witnessing the gentle nature of these animals, which possess the largest wingspan of any birds in the world.

Fortuna Bay – A beautiful outwash plain from Fortuna Glacier is home to a large number of king penguins and seals. Here you may also have the chance to follow the final leg of Shackleton’s route to the abandoned whaling village of Stromness. This path cuts across the mountain pass beyond Shackleton’s Waterfall, and as the terrain is partly swampy, be prepared to cross a few small streams.

Salisbury Plain, St. Andrews Bay, Gold Harbour – These sites not only house the three largest king penguin colonies in South Georgia, they’re also three of the world’s largest breeding beaches for Antarctic fur seals. Literarily millions breed on South Georgia during December and January. By February the young fur seals are curious and playful and fill the surf with life and fun and large elephant seals come to the beaches to moult.

Grytviken – In this abandoned whaling station, king penguins walk the streets and elephant seals lie around like they own the place – because they basically do. Here you might be able to see the South Georgia Museum as well as Shackleton’s grave.

In the afternoon of day 6 and depending on the conditions, you will start sailing southwards in the direction of the South Sandwich Islands.

Day 7-8: Sea Days
Like Shackleton in December 1914 on the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, also known as the Endurance Expedition, you leave South Georgia and aim for the South Sandwich Islands and the Weddell Sea.

There may be sea ice on this route, and at the edge of the ice some south polar skuas and snow petrels could join the other seabirds trailing the vessel south.

Day 9: South Sandwich Islands
While you are unable to land here, you may be able to make a Zodiac cruise among the amazing scenery of this active volcanic area. Passing between Thule and Cook Islands will be one of the trip’s many highlights and will make an everlasting impression.

There is a good chance you’ll encounter humpback and minke whales in this area. On and around the islands, you also have the chance to spot brown skuas, chinstrap or Adélie penguins, and several species of albatross: grey-headed, black-browed, and wandering.

Day 10-12: Southward bound
You next sail toward the Antarctic continent in the direction of Queen Maud Land and Neuschwabenland (New Swabia) on the northeast side of the Weddell Sea.

Day 13-14: Neuschwabenland / New Swabia
Your first destination in Antarctica is New Swabia, between 20°E and 10°W in Queen Maud Land. This area was explored by Germany during the third German Antarctic Expedition of 1938 – 1939, led by Alfred Ritscher. The purpose was to find an area in Antarctica for a German whaling station and scout a possible location for a naval base.

In an attempt to claim the region, Nazi flags were placed on the sea ice along the coast locations. Survey flights also airdropped aluminum arrows with swastikas.

Day 15-23: Deep inside the Weddell Sea - Filchner, Ronne and Larsen Ice shelves
Sailing deep into the Weddell Sea, chances are you can spot crabeater, leopard, or Weddell seals. If you are lucky, we might even see emperor penguins. Humpback, orca, and minke whales are also present in this area, along with various birdlife.

Ice conditions in the Weddell Sea vary seasonally. You will encounter a vast nautical wilderness of sea, and while heading to high latitudes (far south) will enjoy the raw beauty and power that makes Antarctica so special. It will become apparent why it took so long to discover the Great White Continent and how tough it must have been for Shackleton’s expedition.

You’ll make a circular route toward the Brunt Ice Shelf and along the Luitpold Coast, discovered and named during the second German Antarctic expedition (1911–1912) of Wilhelm Filchner. If conditions allow, you will have opportunities for a Zodiac cruise and possibly an ice floe landing.

You now head west toward the Filchner–Ronne Ice Shelf before changing course north, following the coast along the eastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula and Larsen Ice Shelf. This brings you close to the spot where Shackleton’s vessel Endurance was trapped in pack ice during his Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (1914-17), drifting toward the Antarctic Peninsula before ultimately sinking. In an exciting conclusion to this story, the wreck was discovered on March 5, 2022, the 100th anniversary of Shackleton’s burial, after 107 years below the Weddell Sea waves. While You can’t get close to the discovery site due to pack ice, you will be in the area where the ship was trapped and abandoned. There are colonies of 6,500 emperor penguins nearby, so you hope to see one or more in this area.

As you reach the northern section of the Antarctic Peninsula, you enter the area of Erebus and Terror Gulf. Far-wandering emperor penguins often perch on Snow Hill Island’s numerous ice floes, possibly offering you another opportunity to spot these emblematic creatures. If conditions allow, we may attempt a landing on James Ross Island.

Day 24: Brown Bluff and Kinnes Cove
This morning you hope to land at one of the most scenic locations in the northern Antarctic Continent, with a large Adélie penguin rookery, gentoo penguins, and nesting snow petrels also to be found. Sheer canyon walls, fallen boulders, and beautiful volcanic creations capped with ice make Brown Bluff a truly unforgettable location.

Across the Antarctic Sound is Kinnes Cove, where you can see the nearby Madder Cliffs with their subtle red coloration as well as possible gentoo penguins.

Day 25: Legendary Elephant Island
This is the starting point from which Shackleton left to find help for his stranded crew. Using only a small lifeboat, the James Caird, he and five of his men sailed to South Georgia, then walked 36 hours to Stromness. It’s hard not to marvel at how they accomplished that herculean feat.

Twenty-two members of his Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, also known as the Endurance Expedition, were stranded on Elephant Island after their vessel Endurance sank in the Weddell Sea. It took four and a half months to complete the legendary rescue.

Conditions on Elephant Island are severe. The coastline is mostly made up of vertical rock and ice cliffs highly exposed to the elements. If possible, you will take the Zodiacs to Point Wild, where the marooned members of Shackleton’s expedition miraculously managed to survive.

Day 26 – 27: Familiar seas, familiar friends
Your return voyage is far from lonely. While crossing the Drake, you’re again greeted by the vast array of seabirds remembered from the passage south. But they seem a little more familiar to you now, and you to them.

Day 28: There and back again
Every adventure, no matter how grand, must eventually come to an end. It’s now time to disembark in Ushuaia, but with memories that will accompany you wherever your next adventure lies.

Itinerary

Day 1-3: End of the world, start of a journey
Your voyage begins where the world drops off. Ushuaia, Argentina, reputed to be the southernmost city on the planet, is located on the far southern tip of South America. Starting in the afternoon, you embark from this small resort town on Tierra del Fuego, nicknamed “The End of the World,” and sail the mountain-fringed Beagle Channel for the remainder of the evening.

Enroute to South Georgia, you now cross the Antarctic Convergence. The temperature cools considerably within the space of a few hours, and nutritious water rises to the surface of the sea due to colliding water columns. This phenomenon attracts a multitude of seabirds near the ship, including several species of albatross, shearwaters, petrels, prions, and skuas.

Day 4 – 6: South Georgia journey
Entering the South Georgia Maritime Zone, one of the largest protected waters in the world, you sail past the Shag Rocks. These impressive rocks lay 240km (150 miles) west of South Georgia and are home to several thousand South Georgia shags. The area around the rocks is known for its abundance of larger marine mammals, which feed on this comparatively shallow area of the South Georgia Ridge.

After reaching South Georgia, you will have the chance to visit some of the following sites:

Prion Island – This location is closed during the early part of the wandering albatross breeding season (November 20 – January 7). From January on, the breeding adults have found their partners and are sitting on eggs or nursing their chicks. Enjoy witnessing the gentle nature of these animals, which possess the largest wingspan of any birds in the world.

Fortuna Bay – A beautiful outwash plain from Fortuna Glacier is home to a large number of king penguins and seals. Here you may also have the chance to follow the final leg of Shackleton’s route to the abandoned whaling village of Stromness. This path cuts across the mountain pass beyond Shackleton’s Waterfall, and as the terrain is partly swampy, be prepared to cross a few small streams.

Salisbury Plain, St. Andrews Bay, Gold Harbour – These sites not only house the three largest king penguin colonies in South Georgia, they’re also three of the world’s largest breeding beaches for Antarctic fur seals. Literarily millions breed on South Georgia during December and January. By February the young fur seals are curious and playful and fill the surf with life and fun and large elephant seals come to the beaches to moult.

Grytviken – In this abandoned whaling station, king penguins walk the streets and elephant seals lie around like they own the place – because they basically do. Here you might be able to see the South Georgia Museum as well as Shackleton’s grave.

In the afternoon of day 6 and depending on the conditions, you will start sailing southwards in the direction of the South Sandwich Islands.

Day 7-8: Sea Days
Like Shackleton in December 1914 on the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, also known as the Endurance Expedition, you leave South Georgia and aim for the South Sandwich Islands and the Weddell Sea.

There may be sea ice on this route, and at the edge of the ice some south polar skuas and snow petrels could join the other seabirds trailing the vessel south.

Day 9: South Sandwich Islands
While you are unable to land here, you may be able to make a Zodiac cruise among the amazing scenery of this active volcanic area. Passing between Thule and Cook Islands will be one of the trip’s many highlights and will make an everlasting impression.

There is a good chance you’ll encounter humpback and minke whales in this area. On and around the islands, you also have the chance to spot brown skuas, chinstrap or Adélie penguins, and several species of albatross: grey-headed, black-browed, and wandering.

Day 10-12: Southward bound
You next sail toward the Antarctic continent in the direction of Queen Maud Land and Neuschwabenland (New Swabia) on the northeast side of the Weddell Sea.

Day 13-14: Neuschwabenland / New Swabia
Your first destination in Antarctica is New Swabia, between 20°E and 10°W in Queen Maud Land. This area was explored by Germany during the third German Antarctic Expedition of 1938 – 1939, led by Alfred Ritscher. The purpose was to find an area in Antarctica for a German whaling station and scout a possible location for a naval base.

In an attempt to claim the region, Nazi flags were placed on the sea ice along the coast locations. Survey flights also airdropped aluminum arrows with swastikas.

Day 15-23: Deep inside the Weddell Sea - Filchner, Ronne and Larsen Ice shelves
Sailing deep into the Weddell Sea, chances are you can spot crabeater, leopard, or Weddell seals. If you are lucky, we might even see emperor penguins. Humpback, orca, and minke whales are also present in this area, along with various birdlife.

Ice conditions in the Weddell Sea vary seasonally. You will encounter a vast nautical wilderness of sea, and while heading to high latitudes (far south) will enjoy the raw beauty and power that makes Antarctica so special. It will become apparent why it took so long to discover the Great White Continent and how tough it must have been for Shackleton’s expedition.

You’ll make a circular route toward the Brunt Ice Shelf and along the Luitpold Coast, discovered and named during the second German Antarctic expedition (1911–1912) of Wilhelm Filchner. If conditions allow, you will have opportunities for a Zodiac cruise and possibly an ice floe landing.

You now head west toward the Filchner–Ronne Ice Shelf before changing course north, following the coast along the eastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula and Larsen Ice Shelf. This brings you close to the spot where Shackleton’s vessel Endurance was trapped in pack ice during his Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (1914-17), drifting toward the Antarctic Peninsula before ultimately sinking. In an exciting conclusion to this story, the wreck was discovered on March 5, 2022, the 100th anniversary of Shackleton’s burial, after 107 years below the Weddell Sea waves. While You can’t get close to the discovery site due to pack ice, you will be in the area where the ship was trapped and abandoned. There are colonies of 6,500 emperor penguins nearby, so you hope to see one or more in this area.

As you reach the northern section of the Antarctic Peninsula, you enter the area of Erebus and Terror Gulf. Far-wandering emperor penguins often perch on Snow Hill Island’s numerous ice floes, possibly offering you another opportunity to spot these emblematic creatures. If conditions allow, we may attempt a landing on James Ross Island.

Day 24: Brown Bluff and Kinnes Cove
This morning you hope to land at one of the most scenic locations in the northern Antarctic Continent, with a large Adélie penguin rookery, gentoo penguins, and nesting snow petrels also to be found. Sheer canyon walls, fallen boulders, and beautiful volcanic creations capped with ice make Brown Bluff a truly unforgettable location.

Across the Antarctic Sound is Kinnes Cove, where you can see the nearby Madder Cliffs with their subtle red coloration as well as possible gentoo penguins.

Day 25: Legendary Elephant Island
This is the starting point from which Shackleton left to find help for his stranded crew. Using only a small lifeboat, the James Caird, he and five of his men sailed to South Georgia, then walked 36 hours to Stromness. It’s hard not to marvel at how they accomplished that herculean feat.

Twenty-two members of his Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, also known as the Endurance Expedition, were stranded on Elephant Island after their vessel Endurance sank in the Weddell Sea. It took four and a half months to complete the legendary rescue.

Conditions on Elephant Island are severe. The coastline is mostly made up of vertical rock and ice cliffs highly exposed to the elements. If possible, you will take the Zodiacs to Point Wild, where the marooned members of Shackleton’s expedition miraculously managed to survive.

Day 26 – 27: Familiar seas, familiar friends
Your return voyage is far from lonely. While crossing the Drake, you’re again greeted by the vast array of seabirds remembered from the passage south. But they seem a little more familiar to you now, and you to them.

Day 28: There and back again
Every adventure, no matter how grand, must eventually come to an end. It’s now time to disembark in Ushuaia, but with memories that will accompany you wherever your next adventure lies.


© Rinie van Meurs
© Sanneke van der Sanden
© Sara Jenner


INCLUSIONS

• Voyage aboard the indicated vessel as indicated in the itinerary
• All meals throughout the voyage aboard the ship including snacks, coffee and tea.
• All shore excursions and activities throughout the voyage by Zodiac.
• Program of lectures by noted naturalists and leadership by experienced expedition staff.
• Free use of rubber boots and snowshoes.
• Luggage transfer from pick-up point to the vessel on the day of embarkation, in Ushuaia.
• Pre-scheduled group transfer from the vessel to the airport in Ushuaia (directly after disembarkation).
• All miscellaneous service taxes and port charges throughout the programme.
• Comprehensive pre-departure material.

EXCLUSIONS

• Any airfare, whether on scheduled or charter flights
• Pre- and post- land arrangements.
• Passport and visa expenses.
• Government arrival and departure taxes.
• Meals ashore.
• Baggage, cancellation and personal insurance (which is strongly recommended).
• Excess baggage charges and all items of a personal nature such as laundry, bar, beverage charges and telecommunication charges.
• The customary gratuity at the end of the voyages for stewards and other service personnel aboard (guidelines will be provided).


Dates & Rates


Ship: Ortelius | Date: 11 Feb 2025 - 10 Mar 2025 (2316)
Quad Porthole
$24,700
Triple Porthole
$31,100
Twin Porthole
$31,100
Twin Window
$32,300
Twin Deluxe
$33,850
Superior
$35,600
Ship: Ortelius | Date: 22 Jan 2026 - 18 Feb 2026 (2924)
Quad Porthole
$26,500
Triple Porthole
$33,000
Twin Porthole
$33,000
Twin Window
$34,600
Twin Deluxe
$37,000
Superior
$39,000
Ship: Ortelius | Date: 18 Feb 2026 - 17 Mar 2026 (2925)
Quad Porthole
$26,500
Triple Porthole
$33,000
Twin Porthole
$33,000
Twin Window
$34,600
Twin Deluxe
$37,000
Superior
$39,000

* The prices are per person in US Dollars, unless expressly specified in a different currency. In that case, payment will be in US dollars at the exchange rate of the day.
** All prices will be re-confirmed by email at the time of booking.
NOTE: Embracing the unexpected is part of the legacy—and excitement—of expedition travel. When traveling in extremely remote regions, your expedition staff must allow the sea, the ice and the weather to guide route and itinerary details. This itinerary is a tentative outline of what you’ll experience on this voyage; please be aware that no specific itinerary can be guaranteed.

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