Eternal Beauty of Chilean Patagonia and Antarctica

Start your adventure in style

Your trip starts with an overnight stay in Santiago, Chile’s energetic cultural center. Packed with museums, beautiful architecture, and restaurants, the city checks all of the boxes you’d expect of a South American capital. You’ll see that sites and attractions abound, so you’ll only be limited by time, not choice. If you have time, head to the Mercado Central fish market to sample the classic Chilean seafood stew, caldillo de congrio.

With so much on offer, if you feel you need more time to explore the capital of Chile, we recommend coming a few days early, and joining one of our optional Pre-Programmes. 

Island adventures

You’ll leave Santiago early in the morning and fly to Punta Arenas, the largest city in Chilean Patagonia. This is a place of old world, romantic charm, where discovery lies around every corner. It’s also one of the southernmost cities in the world.

Your expedition ship MS Maud awaits. A mandatory health and safety session will be held for everyone after boarding. Afterward, you will meet some of the crew and the Expedition Team, who will be your guides, hosts, and travel companions.

Be amazed by this natural wonder

Nothing can prepare you for this wild and remote wonderland. Admire the serenity of this maze of waterways, surrounded by islands, glaciers and steep mountains.  If weather and wildlife allow, we will attempt a landing in a tranquil glacial valley.

In a secluded corner of Glacier Alley, the enormous Pia glacier cascades out of the mountains toward the sea, creaking and cracking along the way. This colossal river of ice often calves into the ocean, so keep a lookout for enormous splashes and listen to the mysterious noises the glacier makes.

At the bottom of South America

If it’s a clear day as we pass through the Beagle Channel, you may be able to see towering Mount Darwin, part of the southernmost range of the Andes mountains.

At the tip of South America lies the legendary Cape Horn. It was a major milestone in the old clipper routes that connected Europe with the Far East and Oceania. Most are unaware of the true extent of its historical significance. This is where the open waters of the Atlantic and Pacific collide, creating powerful waves that are made even stronger by swirling westerly winds.

The notoriously turbulent waters make it impossible to guarantee a landing here. But if conditions are favorable on the day, and the weather is stable enough to dock on the island, you can be among a select few in the world to set foot on it.

From Cape Horn, it’s a clear shot to Antarctica across the Drake Passage. The Passage was named after the English sea captain and privateer Sir Francis Drake, who discovered it by chance in 1578 when heavy winds forced his ship south, proving (unintentionally) that open water existed below the southern tip of Chile.

The Drake Passage is famous for its high winds, large waves, and strong currents. As you can imagine, it was perilous for the old sailing ships who dared to cross it. Even though the waters of the Drake Passage are usually rough, they can also be incredibly still. This dual nature has won the Passage two nicknames: ‘The Drake Shake’ or ‘The Drake Lake’. No matter the state of the sea, our modern MS Maud was built for these conditions and worse, so you don’t have to worry about a thing.

Enjoy an experience like no other

Forget everything you’ve ever experienced before. No matter how high your expectations, Antarctica will exceed them. Holding 90% of the world’s ice in an area twice the size of Australia, it’s massive in every sense of the word. Enormous ice shelves the size of countries and icebergs tower over our ship. Glaciers cascade down through the mountains toward the shore, where they finally meet the sea, sometimes in spectacular displays of calving.

This white continent is home to an estimated 12 million penguins across seven species. Impressive statistics don’t do Antarctica justice, though. Numbers don’t capture its magnitude and magnificence, and words fail to describe the sensation of personally seeing a colony of several thousand penguins. It is a special place that you really have to see to believe.

It will be the height of summer when we arrive in Antarctica, which means towering icebergs glistening in the midnight sun and penguin colonies thronged with hatchlings. You’ll also see many seals, whales, and seabirds. Keep an eye out for skuas, shearwaters, and possibly even albatrosses.

Your Expedition Team will guide you on landings to get you closer to this incredible world of ice and wildlife. We’ll spend seven days exploring the frozen continent with no fixed itinerary, attempting landings at several possible sites. After sailing these waters for so many years, we know the best places to go and what to do. Working with or around the weather and sea ice, we’ll make the most of each day to create a truly authentic adventure.

Relax and reflect

After seven unforgettable days in Antarctica, MS Maud turns back north and takes you safely back across the Drake Passage. The Expedition Team will recap experiences from the frozen continent and prepare you for our last stop in Chilean Patagonia.

We’ll spend approximately two days crossing the Drake Passage, giving you plenty of time to relax and reflect on what you’ve seen and done. If you’re feeling invigorated after last week’s activities and landings, perhaps work out in the gym. It’s a perfect time to work up an appetite and try some more of the delicious dishes in the restaurants.

Cruising through paradise

Fresh from our Antarctic experience, and having completed the second Drake Passage crossing, we’ll spend one last day in the Chilean Fjords. Admire the serenity of this maze of waterways, surrounded by islands, glaciers, and steep mountains. If the sea and weather conditions allow, your Expedition Team will attempt a landing.

If not, enjoy the fjords from on deck. You might spot wildlife such as Magellanic penguins and maybe even elephant seals along the coastline. If you’re lucky, you can catch sight of dolphins and several whale species that are known to explore these waters.

Arrive back where we started

We arrive back in civilization at Punta Arenas in the morning. From here, you’ll catch a flight back to Santiago de Chile, taking with you fantastic memories from your unforgettable Antarctic adventure.

However, if you’re not ready to end your adventure just yet, we recommend signing up for one of our optional Post-Programs.