Want to visit the coldest, driest, windiest, highest, southernmost continent on earth but you don't want to cross the roughest seas on earth?

 

OK, so skip dreaded Drake Passage. Fly to Antarctica, cruise the Peninsula and then fly back. Done! One of the world's great travel experiences without the hassle.

 

What? you say. How? you ask.

 

The "First Air-Cruise to Antarctica", operated by Antarctica XXI, uses a BAE 146 high fixed-wing aircraft to catapult you in under 2 hours to King George Island, largest in the South Shetland Islands, and your gateway to the Antarctic Peninsula.

 

Once at King George, you board your expedition ship, a comfortable ice-strengthened ship for just 46 adventurers and spend five days cruising the Antarctic Peninsula, exploring the flora, fauna and marine widllife and viewing spectacular scenery.

 

Then six days later, they catapult you back over the dreaded Drake Passage to Punta Arenas where you overnight before making flight connections or continuing your travels in South America.

 

The two main reasons most often cited for not going to Antarctica?

 

Time and crossing the Drake Passage.

 

The "First Air-Cruise to Antarctica" saves you four days travel time so now you have the time to visit Patagonia, Samba in Rio, wine and dine more leisurely in Buenos Aires or visit awesome Iguazu Falls, "Great Waters" in the Guarani Indian language.

 

And you don't cross Drake Passage. Or rather you don't cruise across this some 500 mile wide stretch of water squeezed between the South American and Antarctica continents, with an unimpeded flow of water that is some 600 times that of the Amazon, creating the perfect locale for the legendary stormy seas.

 

The "First Air-Cruise to Antarctica" operates in November-December. Dates, itinerary, ship information are all available via the link below.