It’s been a while since my last trips to Antarctica in 2016 and 2018, and I’ve always wanted to return to that magical place. For those who may not know, it was our family trip to Antarctica during Christmas 2016 that sparked my career change from a seasoned software developer to the owner of a travel agency specializing in polar voyages. Antarctica holds a very special place in my heart.
In September 2023, I had the opportunity to join a short ship tour on the Magellan Explorer, traveling between Punta Arenas and Ushuaia. I was really impressed by its efficiency in getting everyone off the ship quickly—especially with only 76 passengers onboard. The ship was designed for expedition trips to Antarctica!
Stay tuned for live updates as I embark on the exciting 7-Night Classic Antarctica Air Cruise from February 20-27, 2025!
Feb 20 2025 (Thursday)
As the plane landed smoothly at the airport, I returned to Punta Arenas, the hub of Patagonia at the southern tip of Chile, after a year and a half. The last time I visited was for the 20th anniversary celebration of the polar cruise operator Antarctica21, where I boarded the Magellan Explorer for a trip to Ushuaia. This time, I'll fly across the Drake Passage and board the Magellan Explorer again for a tour of the Antarctic Peninsula.
It was a sunny day in Punta Arenas, with the temperature reaching a high of 52°F (13°C), but it didn’t feel cold at all. After picking up my luggage at the airport, the Antarctica21 staff were already waiting for me in the lobby, holding a sign with everyone's names on it. Just 20 minutes later, the group arrived at the Hotel Cabo De Hornos. After checking in, I walked couple blocks to Explorer House, to pick up my boots and went through biosecurity check for my outerwear and backpack for the Antarctic journey.
Explorer House is a pre-trip experience center specially built by Antarctica21 for guests. As soon as you enter, you see a zodiac in display used for polar exploration. The first floor houses the restaurant and library, while the second floor has the bar and auditorium. The interior was still under construction when I visited last time, but now it’s fully operational.
The mandatory briefing took place in the auditorium on the second floor. Afterward, everyone took a short break in the bar before heading to the restaurant on the first floor for dinner. During the dinner, A21 staff announced some good news with the group: the weather in Antarctica is expected to be cooperative tomorrow morning. We’ll leave for the airport at 7 a.m. and fly to Antarctica!
Feb 21 2025 (Friday)
At 5:15 in the morning, the wake-up call from the hotel front desk roused me from my dream. By 7 o’clock, everyone boarded two buses to the airport. The charter flight took off on time at 9:00. Just two hours later, we finally set foot on the land of Antarctica!
This was my first time seeing Antarctica from the air. In the final five minutes of landing, I had a clear view of glaciers, lakes, and the scientific research stations on King George Island. After disembarking, two buses took us to the shore, where the Magellan Explorer was waiting for us not far away.
Behind us, we could see the southernmost Orthodox church in the world. This wooden structure, located near the Russian scientific research station, was built in the mid-1990s. To welcome us, seven or eight gentoo penguins curiously watched from just off the shore.
After the safety briefing, the Magellan Explorer set sail, leaving King George Island and heading for the Antarctic Peninsula via the Bransfield Strait. The weather was perfect that day—calm, with no wind, though the sun had mysteriously hidden itself for a while. In the distance, we could just make out an iceberg on the horizon. A group of Gentoo penguins leaped forward in the water, and not far off, a seal poked its head above the surface before disappearing beneath the waves.
Around 4:00 p.m., a towering snow peak suddenly appeared on the horizon to the right of the ship. I checked the map on my phone and discovered it was Great Needle Peak, rising to 5,512 feet. Later, expedition members Marcelos and Rodrigo gave a fantastic lecture on penguins and wildlife photography. But the lecture was briefly interrupted when a beautiful iceberg appeared on the ship’s port side. The sky had cleared, and with the bright blue sky and the sun shining down, the iceberg gleamed in various shades of blue—a sight that was truly mesmerizing. Just as everyone was snapping photos on deck, I spotted two humpback whales waving their tails in unison near the glacier, quickly filling everyone’s camera memory cards!
I thought I was incredibly lucky, but little did I know, better things were still to come. I wandered to the library on the 4th floor and gazed aimlessly through the floor to ceiling windows. Suddenly, a humpback whale breached just behind the port side of the ship, splashing back into the water with a mighty crash. Then it repeated twice in quick succession. I was so stunned that I couldn’t react in time. I desperately wished I had my phone to capture it, but the moment is now etched deeply in my mind.
At dinner, I asked a few other passengers about the sighting. It seemed no one else had witnessed it. As the sun set, a crescent moon rose above the snow-capped mountains. Could this be a sign of more pleasant surprises to come tomorrow?
Feb 22 2025 (Friday)
This morning, we landed on a small island called Rocas Hydrurga—our first landing of the trip. As we boarded the zodiac, snow was falling in a flurry. From a distance, we could already spot a chinstrap penguin colony on a hill along the shoreline.
I carefully stepped over the slippery rocks covered in snow and made my way up the hill. Not long after, I was stopped by two chinstrap penguins trying to cross in front of me. One was perfectly clean, while the other had a dirty belly. They seemed as unsteady on the slippery ground as I was, stumbling and falling a few times.
It’s molting season for the penguins, and during this time, they don't eat or drink as they wait for their new waterproof feathers to grow in, leaving them particularly vulnerable. To protect themselves from fur seal attacks, they build their nests on higher ground. The nesting sites of Antarctica Shags and penguins often overlap. Skuas flew overhead, hoping to snatch a penguin chick. Whenever a skua approached, the adult penguins would stretch their necks and call out loudly, trying to chase the birds away.
On the shore and in the water, a few fur seals were playing. A Weddell seal lay motionless on the ground, its body relaxed as it slept.
At one point, an Adélie penguin appeared. Its white eye patches were stark against its black back and white belly. It seemed lost, as though it couldn’t find its colony.
At lunch, the dining room buzzed with discussions about our morning excursions. Just then, a humpback whale leapt high out of the water nearby, almost as if to join in our celebration.
In the afternoon, we had planned to head to Graham Passage, but strong winds forced expedition leader Kristi to change course. Instead, we embarked on a zodiac cruise to Sikorsky Glacier, across the bay.
We passed large and small icebergs, their varying shades of blue reflecting beautifully in the water, reminding me of the glaciers of Scoby Sound and Ilulissat, Greenland. Crabeater and leopard seals rested on the icebergs. We were fortunate to witness gentoo penguins swimming beneath our zodiac before leaping out of the water in graceful arcs.
Around six o’clock, a PA announcement informed us that a group of humpback whales was nearby. They had appeared in front of the ship and were hunting. Everyone rushed to the top deck. We spotted them on all sides of the bow, with water mist rising from the surface as the whales exhaled loudly, arched their backs, flicked their tails, and created bubbles visible from the water’s surface. For a moment, it was chaos as we tried to take it all in.
By then, the ship had turned off its engine, and the whales were less than 20 meters from the side of the ship. The spectacular display lasted for 25 minutes, and according to the captain, at least 16 humpback whales were involved.
I had known that February and March were peak whale-watching months in Antarctica, but witnessing it firsthand was far more awe-inspiring than I ever imagined. During dinner, the excitement continued as whales surfaced occasionally on both sides of the ship, causing waves of exclamations in the dining room.
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