Here’s some bad news: Argentina’s AVE (the electronic visa you can apply for with a U.S. visa) has gone up in price, now to $400 (due to exchange rates, the actual charge is about $300). A three-month visa now costs 2,100 yuan, three times what it cost around this time last year. I’m really starting to dislike Milei.

The early bird really does get the worm. Now, on to today’s topic.

First, if my previous two posts still haven’t convinced you to go to Antarctica, I recommend watching the first episode of BBC’s Seven Worlds, One Planet.

Listening to the voice of old Mr. David Attenborough, I’m once again itching to return to that white continent. A few readers have also asked: if you’re going to Antarctica, where do you depart from, when should you go, which route should you pick, and which ship should you choose?

Let me use 10 questions to help everyone plan the ultimate dream trip.

#1 Where do you depart from?

If we look at the map, we’ll see that five countries are very close to Antarctica: Argentina, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. Among them, Argentina and Chile are the closest, and they feel practically next door to that little spur of the Antarctic continent (the Antarctic Peninsula).

That’s why Ushuaia, the southernmost port city in Argentina, is the departure point for most Antarctic cruises. In addition, Chile has its own airport on King George Island, en route to the Antarctic Peninsula, so Punta Arenas in southern Chile is the departure point for flights to Antarctica.

Cruises departing from Hobart, Australia, or Invercargill, New Zealand, head to another part of Antarctica: the Ross Sea. These trips are longer, departures are fewer, and prices are higher (at least double the peninsula itinerary), so they’re best suited to hardcore fans who are doing Antarctica for the second, third, or Nth time.

A very small number of sailings depart from South Africa, usually when cruise ships are repositioning at the start of the season. A few days ago I saw a Swan Hellenic itinerary: sailing out of Cape Town and disembarking in Ushuaia, via South Georgia and the Peninsula, taking more than 20 days total. It looked pretty fun.

Quick takeaway: for your first Antarctica trip, depart from Ushuaia, Argentina.

#2 Which route should you choose?

Leaving aside special routes, we can divide Antarctica itineraries into three main categories: standard Peninsula, extended Peninsula, and the Three-Island route.

The standard Peninsula itinerary usually goes to the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula via the South Shetland Islands. The voyage takes 8-9 days total, with 4-5 days in the Antarctic region. It’s shorter and cheaper.

An extended Peninsula itinerary adds 1-2 more days on top of the standard Peninsula trip, either heading to the Weddell Sea on the eastern side of the Peninsula or going deeper across the Antarctic Circle at 66°34′ S.

The Three-Island itinerary includes the Peninsula plus two additional destinations: the Falkland Islands and South Georgia. The voyage takes 17-20 days, with 12-15 days in the core regions. Compared with a Peninsula trip, the biggest advantage of the Three-Island route is seeing a far more impressive variety and number of wildlife, such as the tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands, of king penguins on South Georgia.

Different expedition companies and travel agencies get very creative when designing products. Some even count the three days before arriving in Ushuaia as part of the itinerary. The key comparison metric is the number of days spent in the Antarctic region itself, and I personally prefer the longer, the better.

Which one to choose depends on each person’s time, budget, and interests. For example, last year I had plenty of time, and at the time the Three-Island itinerary was only $2,000 more expensive than the Peninsula trip (50%), so missing out on the Three-Island route was still pretty regretful. I can only blame myself for not having enough self-control. But some fellow travelers weren’t especially interested in nature, and by the end even found it a bit boring. For them, a Peninsula itinerary was obviously more suitable.

Quick takeaway: if you only go once in your life, choose the Three-Island route; if you just want to check Antarctica off the list, choose the Peninsula.

#3 When should you go?

The Antarctica travel season runs from late October through March of the following year.

Prices are lower at the start of the season (late October to early December) and at the end (late February to March). Prices are more stable in the middle of the season, and it’s harder to find cheap berths (though last year’s market wasn’t exactly predictable either).

The animals and weather you’ll see also vary by time of year.

Late October to early December: on the Peninsula, penguins are nesting, mating, and incubating eggs; on the Three-Island route, king penguin chicks have just been born; there aren’t many whales or seabirds yet. The weather is generally unstable, and there are fewer places where landings are possible. The image below shows the kind of weather you might encounter in November.

December: penguins are incubating eggs, and chicks are hatching. The odds of good weather are higher, and glaciers and snowfields are at their most spectacular after the ice has settled in. There are also fewer people around.

January to early February: the peak season is full of life, and this is when the animals are most active. Penguins and seabirds are busy raising their young, and whale sightings become more common. Good weather shows up more consistently. There are also more tourists.

Late February to March: the chicks molt and begin migrating north, but this is the best season for whale watching. After a full summer travel season, the scenery is still magnificent, but not quite as dramatic as earlier.

Quick takeaway: December offers the best value; if your budget allows, go in peak season.

#4 How big of a ship should you choose?

IAATO (the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators) stipulates that no more than 100 people may land at the same site at one time. Based on passenger capacity, Antarctic cruise ships are divided into four categories:

Cruise Only: over 500 passengers. These are large cruise ships, usually bundled with itineraries covering multiple South American countries. They cannot land in Antarctica and can only do Zodiac cruising. In my opinion, they’re only suitable for travelers who are already in South America and have a limited budget. Spending a few hundred dollars to take a cruise of more than ten days can be a nice add-on, but it’s not really worth going all the way to South America just to take a big cruise ship.

C1: 13-200 passengers. This is the mainstay of traditional Antarctic expedition cruises. There are also smaller subcategories here: some ships were built earlier and, although all have been refurbished, their hardware is definitely not as good (one was built in 1911, which honestly shocked me). The other group consists of newer ships built and launched in the past two or three years, with conditions similar to a five-star hotel. If you want to maximize your landing and cruising experience in Antarctica, this is the preferred class.

C2: 201-500 passengers. There are quite a few ships in this category as well, and in my opinion they’re okay, but not necessary. First, they’re not especially cost-effective. Second, I think the practical upper limit for an Antarctic trip is around 200 people, or even 160-170. Beyond that, things like waiting time and time spent ashore will inevitably be affected.

Yacht: sailing yachts with fewer than 12 passengers. Conditions are quite harsh, and this is for true adventurers. In Ushuaia, I met two fellow Wenzhou locals who had gone by sailboat, and after watching his videos, it really was rough enough to feel like the Age of Sail. One crew member came back and immediately quit, haha. I’m sure none of my readers are looking to try that yet.

Quick takeaway: the best choice is a C1-class cruise ship with fewer than 200 passengers.

#5 Which company’s ship should you choose?

This is one of the most important questions. There are so many companies operating Antarctica trips that it’s almost overwhelming. Although after coming back from Antarctica I told others that every ship was already more than impressive enough, it’s still a once-in-a-lifetime trip, so it’s worth choosing carefully.

You can narrow it down using two key dimensions: the expedition company’s level of professionalism and the cruise ship’s hardware and facilities.
I personally care more about the former. The expedition company's professionalism determines your experience of Antarctic landings, hikes, cruises, and other activities; whether they can quickly come up with backup plans in emergencies; and whether someone on the trip can spend more time sharing the wildlife, terrain, and culture of Antarctica.

You can tell how professional a company is by the number and résumés of its expedition team members. From talking with other travelers, the company's professionalism has a pretty big impact on the overall trip experience.

But there's another kind of experience: the ship's facilities. Some people prefer ships with better hardware. Big TVs and fridges, saunas and pools, fast Wi-Fi, Michelin-level dining, and so on. Likewise, the difference between old and new ships is also pretty obvious to me.

As a comparison, here's the base cabin, public areas, and pool on the MS Seaventure I sailed on (an older ship, left) and Swan Hellenic's SH Diana (a newer ship, right).

It's basically the difference between a state-run old three-star hotel and a new five-star hotel. And the even worse ones? Those are basically college dorms.

So first figure out what matters most to you, then compare the secondary factors. For example, choose the ship with the better hardware among a few established expedition companies, or choose the more experienced company among the new-ship options.

Price actually matters less. Sure, a difference of $500 or $1,000 is still a lot, but you can always make it back by working a few days when you return, so treat price as a second-tier factor.

As a Chinese traveler, another key point is whether there is Chinese-language service on board. If you really don't have basic English skills, this honestly should be your first consideration. Some companies cater to the Chinese market and have Chinese expedition staff and service personnel on board, but on some ships people even speak German and French, which is a bit frustrating.

Well-known long-established expedition companies include: Lindblad Expeditions (the National Geographic partner, unquestionably professional), Quark Expedition (great jackets), G Adventure (supposedly very hardcore), Polar Latitude, OceanWide (free activities of all kinds), Antarctica21, Poseidon, and others;

Companies with excellent hardware include: Ponant (its major backer is LVMH), Hapag-Lloyd, Swan Hellenic, and others;

In addition, the ultra-luxury Antarctic travel companies include Scenic Eclipse, Seabourn Venture, Crystal Endeavor, and Silversea, which are the kind that require serious spending power.

The above list is neither exhaustive nor absolute, and some of the established companies have launched their own new ships in recent years. I'll keep researching and write a dedicated post for everyone later.

Class-rep summary: If you want adventure, choose a professional company; if you want comfort, choose a new ship; if adults want both? Pay up!

#6 Which cabin should you choose?

The easiest question.

Once, the expedition company owner asked me what I thought of the room, and I told him that honestly I realized I didn't even need a bed—just set up a tent for me on the back deck.

If you're a nature lover too, trust me, you won't spend much time in your room. You'll want to sit on the deck and enjoy everything around you all the time.

You only need a comfortable bed, and you'll sleep for a few hours. Balcony? Suite? Spend the money on a better itinerary, paid activities, a nicer ship, or king crab in Ushuaia.

Some people say higher decks reduce seasickness. In those vast oceans and stormy seas, does being 5 meters higher really make that much difference?
High rollers, do whatever you want.

Class-rep summary: Do we really need a summary here?

#7 Group tour or independent travel?

This is an interesting question, and there is no standard answer.

The main difference between a group tour and going independently is price. From what I understand, Antarctica trips sold by Chinese travel agencies are around RMB 100,000-120,000. Doing it yourself can be done for RMB 60,000-70,000, and if you're lucky, even RMB 50,000.

There are two kinds of group tours. One is a charter for Chinese travelers. For example, last year several sailings on Ponant's Le Commandant Charcot were chartered by domestic travel agencies, and there were also packages that sold well on Fliggy before.

The advantage of a charter is that once you get to Antarctica it feels like you're still in China—lively and bustling, with the most suitable language, activities, and dining. The downside is also that once you get to Antarctica it feels like you're still in China; you're always afraid someone will pull out a sign that says “I miss you so much in Antarctica.” This is more suitable for older travelers.

In the past, some Chinese charters offered a "stripped-down" Antarctica itinerary, but as long as you look into the factors above, I believe you won't step on any landmines.

Another option is a small tour group organized by a travel agency. The price isn't much different, and there will be a Chinese-speaking guide/leader, which is suitable for travelers who don't speak English.

Going independent means contacting a ticket agent in China or locally in Argentina to buy your passage, handling your own visa, planning your itinerary, etc. The obvious advantages are better value and more flexibility in choice; I haven't really thought of any drawbacks yet.

It feels like if you have English at around CET-4 level or above, you can DIY it. Whether you speak Spanish makes a difference for travel in South America, but it's basically useless for Antarctica.

Class-rep summary: My trip, my call—go for it yourself!

#8 Cold? Seasick? Fly? Is the food good?

Not cold, can get seasick, can fly.

It's really not cold; most of the time it's fairly warm. For landings, put on a shell jacket and pants, thermal underwear underneath, plus a sweatshirt, and wear a hat and gloves—that's enough. Not a problem.

You very likely can get seasick. The Drake Passage truly lives up to its reputation. On our round trip it was relatively calm, and I personally didn't feel much, but quite a few people on board reacted strongly; you can imagine the misery of monster waves. But seasickness isn't a deal-breaker—after all, it's only one day of being sick, and then it's all fun and games.

Crossing the Southern Ocean is part of the ritual too, and I personally was even looking forward to an especially nasty Drake Passage.

Unless seasickness poses a life-threatening risk, or you start vomiting nonstop the moment you step on the ship, Antarctica is probably not for you.

Yes, you can fly. If you're really short on time, there are a few itineraries from Punta Arenas, Chile, where you can fly over the Drake Passage and save a day and a half one way. There are one-way and round-trip options.

The risk is that bad weather makes the schedule uncertain, such as getting stuck in Chile on departure (miserable) or getting stuck on King George Island on the way back (awesome).

The food is excellent. Taking our ship, which wasn't among the best in terms of hardware, as an example: breakfast was a buffet; lunch was a buffet on the lower deck and a daily made-to-order stir-fry station upstairs. The stir-fry was delicious, with dishes like fried seafood rice and Singapore-style fried vermicelli; dinner was Western food, and I once had three main courses in a single meal. Everything was very good. By comparison, the Western-style breakfast was the least appealing; I could only power through with plain rice porridge and fermented tofu.

Alcohol and snacks were free, and every day when we got back we had one drink to toast ourselves and one to toast nature.

Could you imagine how incredible 24-hour room service on a more luxurious cruise must have been?

TL;DR: I got my money’s worth—what about you?

#9 How do I get a visa?

Since I chose to depart from Ushuaia, I had to get an Argentine visa. Milei raised the price of the AVE, which effectively pushed us to apply for the regular 10-year visa. One unexpected upside is that we can focus on waiting for last-minute cheap cruise tickets and make a spontaneous trip happen.

Applying for an Argentine visa is relatively cumbersome, and you need to go to the consulate or embassy for an in-person interview. Right now, Argentina has consulates in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou.

Requirements also vary by consular district. For example, in Beijing and Guangzhou, you only need to email your application materials for pre-application screening, but in Shanghai you have to submit the materials in person. South American processes change so quickly that when the time comes, you can refer to the latest application experiences people post on Xiaohongshu.

Also, if you're going to Antarctica and want to spend some time in South America and Central America too, a U.S. visa is very convenient: Chile, Peru, Colombia, and a bunch of small countries in Central America are visa-free; Bolivia offers local visa processing or visa on arrival; Brazil can be handled locally or in China; Ecuador is temporarily out of the picture.

TL;DR bonus from the class rep: my personal South America top nine—Iguazu Falls, Patagonia, the Amazon Rainforest, Machu Picchu, Easter Island, Salar de Uyuni, Potosí Mountain, the Galápagos Islands, and Buenos Aires.

#10 Are last-minute tickets real?

A lot of cruise-ticket agents will tell you that last-minute tickets are basically impossible to book now, but based on last year’s experience (and my guess is it’s the same this year), discounted last-minute tickets do exist.

Take a look at the email I received four days before one ship’s departure.

And last year, big discounts from Swan Expeditions and Atlas’s low-priced tickets helped a lot of people make their Antarctica dream come true.

What you need to do is do your homework early, pick the itineraries that interest you, keep in touch with ticket agents, and patiently wait for the dream to become reality!

I’ll tell you exactly how to buy them in the next post!

Wrap-up

I’ve tried to keep this Q&A as fair and objective as possible (after all, I’m not getting paid for it), and I hope it helps you plan your Antarctica trip better. If you still have more detailed questions, feel free to leave me a comment.

Antarctica series