Antarctica is not the easy-to-reach destination, but now this exotic place has been attracting an increase of tourist every year. Most of the expedition cruises and Antarctica travel adventure are well-organized by the seasoned seamen and ice experts to ensure your safety.
Brief Glance at Antarctica Tourism
No indigenous people live in Antarctica. In fact, this continent is predominantly visited by the scientists and tourists. The number of visitors may range from 1,000 in winter to more than 50,000 in summer. A huge number of the high-budget travelers has explored the coldest continent with the everlasting memory.
Geographically, Antarctica surrounds the South Pole, and its closest landmass is South American. The continent itself has no indigenous government. The management now is done via the legal base of the Antarctic Treaty in 1959. The major economic resources of the destination are offshore fishing and tourism. The Antarctica tourism mainly offers the ship journey. There are round 20 vessels, which can carry from 45 to 280 passengers each.
In most situations, the travel Antarctica lasts 10 days to 2 weeks from port to port. However, sometimes, the trips can be shorter or longer due to the weather condition or the tourists’ demand. Today, you can enjoy the Fly-Cruise Journey to the frozen continent. For example, you fly to Frei Station in Chine on the King George Island, and then, embark the ship to reach the Antarctic Peninsula. The fly-cruise combination is advantageous for people who feel ill on ships. Besides, this is the time-saving channel, which can save you up to 4 days by avoiding the sailing across the Drakes Passage.
So, how much does the trip cost? The general cost for a place in a twin cabin is USD$6,000. Of course, people can pay more to rest in the best cabins on the luxurious vessels. For the 10-14 day Cruise to Antarctica, the average cost should be USD$10,000 – USD$12,000.
Click here to have more information on scheduled cruises to Antarctia.
The Best Time to Travel Antarctica
Due to the time you go, you can visit the Antarctic Peninsula or the Ross Sea by ship with a different level of satisfaction. The true adventurers mostly visit Antarctic from November to March. The five-month period encourages them to come to witness the 20+ hours of daylight. Please note that the temperature in winter season can drop to as low as -900C or 1300F; therefore, the tourists should think ahead carefully if they can endure such the coldness. If not, it’s best to go in the summer time from November to March, when the temperature range is from -60C to +100C or 200F to 500F.
Particularly, in the period between November and early December, the continent welcomes many penguins and seabirds, the spring wildflowers in the South Georgia and Falklands, and the winter pack ice begins melting or breaking up. The whole scenery is white and primeval with giant icebergs.
Then, the warmest months in Antarctica are from mid-December to January. The longer daylight provides the fabulous photos, even at midnight while the receding ice stimulates more exploration than ever. What’s more, the period between February and March allows for the best sightseeing of whales, the blooming snow algae, more fur seals, and the more receding pack ice to get further exploration to the south.
