Explore Antarctica with Girls LOVE Travel and Oceanwide Expeditions 🇦🇶🐧

Join us for a 13-day, 12-nights expedition to the 7th continent, where you can ring in the new year with penguins! Your adventure begins in Ushuaia, Argentina, aboard the m/v Ortelius, an ice-strengthened vessel equipped for polar exploration. With a capacity of just 108 passengers, the Ortelius offers an intimate experience as you discover the vast beauty of Antarctica and all it has to offer.

Click here to learn more about the expedition and our ship!

GLT first partnered with Oceanwide in 2018, beginning our journey to Antarctica with 1/2 of the ship's 115 passengers being GLTers!!  Since then, we’ve sent over 150 GLT members and their families on incredible adventures with Oceanwide. 

Oceanwide not only delivers excellent service to ensure a seamless experience throughout your journey, but they also offer great value, now featuring FREE Wi-Fi and complimentary excursions* as part of your package! On other vessels, each activity may cost you between $300-2000 depending on the activity. It's complimentary when you book with Oceanwide!

CAMPING

For those craving a truly immersive polar adventure, the open-air camping activity gives you the chance to experience the Antarctic wilderness as few travelers have. You'll camp out under the Antarctic night sky and wake up the next morning to enjoy some of the cleanest air in the world.

OEX will provide the necessary camping gear, including breathable bivouac bags that are wind and waterproof and a lightweight alternative to tents. Their polar sleeping bags will keep you warm, dry, and comfortable during the enchanting Antarctic night.

All campers will be assisted and supervised by experienced expedition guides.

Click here to learn more about camping on your expedition.

KAYAKING

Polar kayaking is a great way to tour the blue-and-white beauty of the polar seas up close, visiting stunning ice formations and waterways too small for the big ships to enter. You do not need to have experience sea kayaking, however depending on conditions, staff may require more experience for the excursion. On basecamp trips, we aim for each guest to kayak once.

Click here to learn more about kayaking on your expedition

SNOWSHOEING

If you goal is to physically set foot on Antartica and explore this beautiful landscape, you'll have the opportunity to explore your way inland from the Polar shorelines with a wide variety of snowshoeing expeditions built for everyone. The snowshoe activities last usually somewhere between 2 and 6 hours. Keep in mind that there are no paths and that you will be travelling over fairly rugged terrain and will be taking on some hills on longer excursions. 

Click here to learn more about snowshoeing on your expedition

HIKING

Another opportunity to feel the frozen ground beneath your feet and explore some of our planet's most stunningly beautiful environments by foot with our hiking expedition. OEX usually offer one to three different types of walks per landing site, ranging from a casual stroll to a challenging hike. 

Click here to learn more about hiking on your expedition

PHOTO WORKSHOP

It is impossible to fully describe the experience of visiting the polar regions. Fortunately, OEX's photography workshops will help you add incredible photos to your poetic descriptions. This workshop consists of two parts: part one of the photo workshop takes place on the vessel and the second takes place in the field, where our guide-photographers will help you practice your photo skills in real polar conditions. You must have your own photography equipment.

Click here to learn more about the photo workshop on your expedition

*All activities are complimentary as part of our Basecamp package but are weather permitting.  This will ONLY be available and allowed if the staff onboard the ship find that it is safe to add this to the trip. No refunds will be given if activity is not able to be completed due to the staff deeming the activity unsafe.

However that being said - it is the goal of the leaders on the ship to get you all on as many excursions and activities when it is safe and possible. 

The staff on board the ship have final say about the itinerary.  Girls LOVE Travel is not responsible for changes or alterations made by the staff as a result of things such as but not limited to: weather, ice, wildlife, and/or safety of the passengers on board.  All activities are complimentary and will be done in addition to the voyage when they are safely available.  

Verbiage direct from Oceanwide Expeditions: 

During this voyage, Oceanwide Expeditions will attempt landings that have rarely if ever been offered by Oceanwide Expeditions – or any other Antarctic cruise operator.  Flexibility is key during these thrilling expeditions. Since information about most of the landing sites is limited or unknown, this target itinerary can only mention scheduled landings and general information. All itineraries are for guidance only. Programs may vary depending on local ice, weather, and wildlife conditions. 

The on-board expedition leader will determine the final schedule and itinerary. Flexibility is paramount for expedition cruises. 

- Arrivals: You MUST be in Ushuaia no later than one day before departure.  This is written into the agreement from Oceanwide Expeditions. Overnight accommodation for this night is not included in the trip. If you are able to come a day or two earlier I would encourage it. Reason being is that there are limited flights to / from Ushuaia. Last fall there were unexpected air strikes with Aerolinas Aregntinas Airlines which caused a lot of delays and delays = stress. We had one GLTer miss the trip entirely at the last minute due to flight cancelations. No one wants that! Also there tends to be some more discounts and options to use a lot less frequent flyer miles if you come a little early or stay a day or two after.  

- Departures: Oceanwide Expeditions encourages choosing departure flights on the last day no earlier than 1pm.  The ship will arrive back in Ushuaia and all will exit the boat after breakfast. If you have a flight out that same day, you can take the courtesy bus supplied by Oceanwide Expeditions to the airport. Since this is Antartica, there is a chance that weather might cause delays - which is why the company encourages that after-lunch flight time just in case.  

We have collected your non-refundable deposit to hold your spot. Payment plans are automatically set up for you already, however if you have any concerns regarding the plan, please let GLT know and we can work out an alternative plan that works for you.  

- ALL payments must be paid in FULL no later than 75 days before the mandatory date of arrival. 

Important Dates: 

At time of booking: 20% non-refundable deposit to hold your spot  

Now-100 days before departure - will allow refund of any amount paid over the non-refundable deposit. 

99-76 days before departure - 50% of the package price will be able to be refunded. 

75 days-day of departure - package price is non-refundable in its entirety. No refunds will be given.

If you need to cancel for any reason at any time, please contact GLTtrips@gmail.com right away! Unfortunately the deposit is non-refundable and non-transferable.

If the payment was made with a credit card, the refund amount issued will be the total original purchase price minus any credit card processing fees incurred by the company at the time of the transaction. These fees may include transaction fees, chargeback fees, or other related charges from the payment processor.

Additionally please note that no refunds will be given for weather cancelations of any of the complimentary free add-on activities. 

This is Antarctica and part of this experience is the unpredictable weather. The staff on the ship are dedicated to do everything in their power and abilities so that you have a safe, and enjoyable experience!   You might get sea sick.  You might not camp or kayak or be able to get off the boat on certain days  - this is all a gamble due to the inconsistencies of Antarctica.   

Girls LOVE Travel and Oceanwide Expeditions are not responsible for the activities you are able to do, nor are we responsible for the weather conditions you might encounter. 

While we strive to ensure this trip goes as planned, unforeseen complications may arise, particularly due to inclement weather or unexpected circumstances like COVID-19.

Currently, there are no vaccination requirements from Girls LOVE Travel or Oceanwide Expeditions (OEX). However, to prioritize the safety of all attendees and staff, Girls LOVE Travel may require a negative COVID-19 test prior to joining the group.

Please note that Girls LOVE Travel will not provide refunds for cancellations due to illness, missed flights, or other reasons. We highly recommend purchasing travel insurance to cover such instances.

The tour is offered as a package, with no price adjustments for those who choose to “opt-out” of included activities. Additionally, no refunds or adjustments will be made if on-board staff decide to cancel an activity or landing due to adverse weather conditions.

Your voyage begins where the world drops off. Ushuaia, Argentina, reputed to be the southernmost city on the planet, is located on the far southern tip of South America. Starting in the afternoon, you embark from this small resort town on Tierra del Fuego, nicknamed “The End of the World,” and sail the mountain-fringed Beagle Channel for the remainder of the evening. 

Over the next two days on the Drake Passage, you enjoy some of the same experiences encountered by the great polar explorers who first charted these regions: cool salt breezes, rolling seas, maybe even a fin whale spouting up sea spray. After passing the Antarctic Convergence – Antarctica’s natural boundary, formed when north-flowing cold waters collide with warmer sub-Antarctic seas – you are in the circum-Antarctic upwelling zone. 

Not only does the marine life change, the avian life changes too. Wandering albatrosses, grey-headed albatrosses, black-browed albatrosses, light-mantled sooty albatrosses, cape pigeons, southern fulmars, Wilson’s storm petrels, blue petrels, and Antarctic petrels are a few of the birds you might see.

Gray stone peaks sketched with snow, towers of broken blue-white ice, and dramatically different wildlife below and above. You first pass the snow-capped Melchior Islands and Schollaert Channel, sailing between Brabant and Anvers Islands. 

Places you might visit include (weather-permitting):

Neumayer Channel – The vessel may position itself here, launching its multiple basecamp activities from the protected waters around Wiencke Island. You can enjoy the splendors of this alpine environment at sea with Zodiac and kayaking trips, or if you’re in the mood for a walk, there are possible snowshoe hikes and soft-climb mountaineering options farther inland. Naturally, favorable weather conditions determine the possible activities.

Port Lockroy – After sailing through the Neumayer Channel, you may get a chance to visit the former British research station – now a museum and post office – of Port Lockroy on Goudier Island. You may also be able to partake in activities around Jougla Point, meeting gentoo penguins and blue-eyed shags. At the nearby sites, such as Damoy Point there may be the opportunity for snowshoeing to the old ski-way, this is also one of our favourite camping sites.

Pléneau & Petermann Islands – If the ice allows it, you can sail through the Lemaire Channel in search of Adélie penguins and blue-eyed shags. There’s also a good chance you’ll encounter humpback and minke whales here, as well as leopard seals. Kayaking, glacier walks, and more ambitious mountaineering trips are the potential activities of this location. 

Neko Harbour – An epic landscape of mammoth glaciers and endless wind-carved snow, Neko Harbour offers opportunities for a Zodiac cruise and landing that afford the closest views of the surrounding alpine peaks.

Paradise Bay – You have the chance to make camp here like a true polar explorer, enjoying a supreme overnight Antarctic adventure.

Errera Channel – Possible sites in this area include Danco Island and Cuverville Island, but also the lesser known (though equally picturesque) Orne Island and Georges Point on Rongé Island.  

On your last day of near-shore activities, you pass the Melchior Islands toward the open sea. Keep a sharp lookout for humpback whales in Dallmann Bay. You might also shoot for Half Moon Island, in the South Shetlands, with further chances for activities. 

Conditions on the Drake Passage determine the exact time of departure.

Your return voyage is far from lonely. While crossing the Drake, you’re again greeted by the vast array of seabirds remembered from the passage south. But they seem a little more familiar to you now, and you to them.

Every adventure, no matter how grand, must eventually come to an end. It’s now time to disembark in Ushuaia, but with memories that will accompany you wherever your next adventure lies.