The Peninsula Expedition

The Antarctic Peninsula by private ship — icebergs, whales and the great white silence.

Antarctica is the last true wilderness, a continent with no residents and no crowds, where a private expedition places the great white silence entirely at your own unhurried pace.

When to go

Travel November through March, when the Antarctic summer opens the ice and daylight barely fades; December and January bring peak wildlife, while November delivers pristine snow and March offers the finest whale watching. Your advisor times it to the light, the crowds and your own calendar.

The experiences

A sense of what this journey can hold — each one arranged privately and shaped to you:

• Cruise silent channels aboard the finest expedition vessels while your private polar guide reads the ice and points out the whales spouting off the bow.
• Slip into a private zodiac at dawn to weave among stranded blue bergs before the rest of the ship has stirred.
• Step ashore at a gentoo rookery and stand quietly as the birds waddle past your boots on their well-worn penguin highways.
• Kayak a mirror-still cove with a dedicated instructor, the only sound the drip of your paddle and the distant crack of a calving glacier.

A sense of the rhythm

Days follow the weather and the wildlife rather than a fixed clock, with two shore landings or cruises woven around unhurried meals and long views from the deck. Evenings bring quiet briefings and the slow theatre of a sun that never quite sets. The pace is contemplative, punctuated by moments of genuine awe.

Cross the Drake or fly?

The classic sea crossing from Ushuaia rewards you with albatross at the stern and a real sense of arrival, but it costs two days each way and can be rough. If time or sea legs are a concern, a fly-in option trades the passage for more hours among the ice; purists will always choose the crossing.

How to do it well

The counsel our advisors give travelers planning this journey:

• Book eighteen to twenty-four months ahead, as the smallest and best-guided vessels sell out first.
• Choose late December or January for the warmest light and the most active penguin colonies with chicks.
• Allow at least ten days door to door so a single storm cannot unravel the whole itinerary.
• Resist over-scheduling the Ushuaia end; a rushed connection to the port is the most common and most avoidable mistake.

What only your advisor can open

The difference between a good trip and an unrepeatable one is access — and access is a relationship, not a booking. Every guide, room and moment is chosen and sequenced for you.

Who it's for

Travelers who value privacy, time and doing it once — beautifully — and who would rather have one trusted advisor orchestrate every detail than assemble it themselves.

Estimated investment

From US$20,000 per traveler, based on double occupancy — scaled to your dates, party size and level of privacy. A starting point, not a final quote; confirmed once your advisor tailors the itinerary.

Designed entirely around you

Nothing here is a package. A Forest Travel advisor shapes the whole journey and stays one message away before and throughout your trip.

Your Virtuoso privileges

As a Virtuoso member, Forest Travel includes benefits reserved for Virtuoso guests at the finest luxury hotels, at no added cost: a room upgrade on arrival when available, daily breakfast for two, a property credit toward dining or spa, and early check-in with late check-out when the hotel allows.

Continue exploring Antarctica

Part of our Antarctica travel guide. Related private journeys:

• South Georgia & the Wildlife
• Fly the Drake
• The Emperors

Begin the conversation

Tell a Forest Travel advisor how you like to travel and they will design The Peninsula Expedition around you — privately, every Virtuoso privilege included. Request your private consultation →