We suggest that you consider travelling to Buenos Aires one day earlier, if flights permit. This will give you an opportunity to rest, after the long overnight flight, and perhaps explore Buenos Aires on your own.

THE FALKLAND ISLANDS, SOUTH GEORGIA & ANTARCTICA
Itinerary
(Breakfast - B, Lunch - L, Dinner - D)


Day 1                         
Departure from North America
We depart on our flight from North America to Buenos Aires, Argentina, the gateway to Tierra del Fuego and the Port of Ushuaia.

Please note that the international flight to Buenos Aires is not included in the cost of the tour, however Quest Nature Tours will be able to assist you in booking this flight.

Day 2                         
Arrival in Buenos Aires
Upon arrival we will be met and transferred directly to our comfortable hotel in the heart of Buenos Aires.  We will get together for a welcome dinner at the hotel this evening.
o/nHotelReconquistaGarden (D)

Day 3                                    
Fly to Ushuaia
After breakfast, we’ll fly south to Patagonia and the frontier town of Ushuaia, nestled in the shelter of the snow-capped Andes Mountains.  We’ll have lunch followed by a city tour including a visit to the End of the World Museum.  We’ll have dinner together in the evening.
o/n Hotel (TBA), Ushuaia (B, L, D)

Day 4                                    
Tierra del Fuego NP / Board Vessel
We will enjoy a morning scenic drive into the mountains of Tierra del Fuego NP, followed by lunch.  In the late afternoon, we will board our expedition ship, the the R/V Akademik Ioffe and enjoy a welcome cocktail with our friendly expedition staff before we set sail along the Beagle Channel on the first part of our journey to the Falkland Islands.
o/n the R/V Akademik Ioffe (B, L, D)

Day 5
At Sea
As we enter the South Atlantic Ocean, we’ll start a series of presentations on the various features of Falkland Islands wildlife and its fascinating history, by our on-board staff of lecturers.  We will also spend time on the observation decks looking for marine mammals and seabirds – during this section of the voyage, we hope to encounter whales and dolphins, and many seabirds, including 4 to 5 species of albatross.
o/ n R/V Akademik Ioffe (B, L, D)

Days 6 - 7
Falkland Islands
After arriving at Port Stanley and going ashore, we’ll weigh anchor and sail through the Narrows and steer a course to the islands of the West Falkland Archipelago.  This is a great time of year to visit this region as the long hours of daylight will give us plenty of opportunity to enjoy the scenery.

On the day after leaving port, we expect to make our first shore excursion, perhaps landing on West Point, Steeple or Saunders Islands, all rich in marine and bird life.  The breathtaking cliffs at West Point Island are home to busy rookeries of Rockhopper Penguins and nesting Black-browed Albatross while Steeple Island has one of the largest colonies of Thin-billed Prions in the southern seas.  Saunders Island will, hopefully, have large numbers of nesting King Penguins and, while cruising in our Zodiacs, we may have close-up sightings of dolphins.

Late on the second day, after completing our schedule of landings in the Falklands, we’ll head out immediately in the direction of South Georgia Island.
o/n R/V Akademik Ioffe (B, L, D)

Days 8 - 9
At Sea
As we continue our voyage through southern waters, we’ll continue the series of presentations on South Georgia and Antarctica wildlife, the Shackleton Expedition and the impact of whaling in this region, by our on-board staff of lecturers.  We will also have time to spend on the observation decks looking for marine mammals and seabirds. We usually see lots of Humpback and Minke Whales in this area.
o/n R/V Akademik Ioffe ( B, L, D)

Days 10 - 13
South Georgia Island / King Penguins / Grytviken
As we approach South Georgia, huge, towering, snow-covered mountains and glaciers will appear on the horizon.  This island is the most mountainous of all of the many islands in the Southern Ocean and, after two days at sea, always presents us with a spectacular image.  We will cruise along the more protected east coast and look for suitable landing spots as the wind and tide conditions permit.  We plan to go ashore, weather permitting, at Salisbury Plain where the uniquely coloured, and very elegant, King Penguins crowd the beach in numbers that will leave us spellbound.  The vast beach is literally covered in a sea of hundreds of thousands of birds.  Another 250,000 pairs of King Penguins nest at St. Andrews Bay and everywhere, albatross, terns and petrels wheel overhead, while huge numbers of Antarctic Fur Seals frolic in the waters and take over large stretches of the shoreline. We’ll also visit the old whaling station and museum at Grytviken, awash in whaling lore, and see the grave of Sir Ernest Shackleton, undoubtedly one of the greatest of the Antarctic explorers.
o/n R/V Akademik Ioffe  (B, L, D)

Days 14 – 15
At Sea
We’ll continue our voyage as we cross the Scotia Sea towards the South Orkney Islands.  This remote series of islands is linked to the Antarctic Peninsula by a massive range of submarine mountains.  We may visit the Argentinean meteorological station located on Laurie Island, perhaps a beach where great numbers of Weddell Seals are known to breed, or land on Coronation Island, known for its extensive moss beds, penguin rookeries and nesting Snow Petrels.
o/n R/V Akademik Ioffe (B, L, D)

Days 16 - 19
South Shetland Islands / Antarctic Mainland
As we sail closer towards the South Shetland Islands, we may try and land at Elephant Island depending on the ship’s progress and the weather conditions.  This is the island from which, in 1916, Sir Ernest Shackleton set out in a small boat to attempt to sail to South Georgia for help, undertaking one of the most remarkable and heroic sailing feats of all time.  He returned to Elephant Island 132 days later to successfully rescue his stranded men.

When we reach the South Shetland Islands, we’ll cruise among the islands of the archipelago and make landings at some of the more interesting places.  During these shore excursions, we’ll experience superb encounters with Adelie, Chinstrap and Gentoo Penguins in their rookeries and several species of seals hauled up on deserted beaches.  The scenery in this region is quite stunning and on sunny days with little wind, the snow-covered mountains and huge glaciers will carve indelible impressions in our memories.  If we are able to enter the flooded caldera of Deception Island, we’ll be treated to some exceptional hiking, a swim in thermally heated waters, and visits to an abandoned whaling station and Antarctic Survey Base, which are now historical sites.

Paradise Bay and Neko Harbour, on the Antarctic mainland, are where we will witness some of the most dramatic scenery in the world with accompanying wildlife and calving glaciers.  If the weather is kind to us, we’ll most likely set foot on the continent of Antarctica in one of these locations.
o/n R/V Akademik Ioffe(B, L, D)

Days 20 – 21
Drake Passage / Cape Horn
As we leave the South Shetland Islands to begin our crossing of the Drake Passage, we will be filled with bittersweet emotions for we will have almost completed one of the most ambitious expedition cruises available in the world.  The next event to look forward to is the rounding of Cape Horn from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean.  We’ll do this, weather permitting, on our last afternoon of sailing when we have the southern tip of South America in sight.  It’s fair to say that, whether we are avid sailors or not, this will be a momentous event for all of us as we join the adventurers and seafarers who, over the centuries, have “Rounded the Horn” in some of the most dangerous conditions imaginable.  During our final night on board ship, we’ll sail up the Beagle Channel to our final port of Ushuaia.
o/n R/V Akademik Ioffe (B, L, D)

Day 22
Ushuaia / Flights Home
After picking up our Argentinean pilot, and travelling up the Beagle Channel during the night, we will arrive in Ushuaia, the port that marks the end of our Antarctic adventure, at 7:00am.

Farewells completed, we’ll be taken to the Ushuaia airport for our flight to Buenos Aires. On our arrival, we’ll be transferred to the hotel.  We’ll have dinner this evening at the hotel.
o/nHotelReconquistaGarden (B, D)

Day 23                       
Buenos Aires / Departure
This morning, we’ll have a half day Buenos Aires city tour followed by lunch.  In the afternoon, we’ll be transferred to the airport for our international flight.
(B, L)

Day 24
Arrive North America

 
Please Note: The voyage itinerary listed is an example only.  Due to the nature of this expedition, weather, ice or other conditions may require changes to be made to the itinerary and/or cancellation of certain shore excursions.