SOUTH SHETLAND ISLANDS AND THE ANTARCTIC PENINSULA
The South Shetland Islands form a long chain in the ocean. The legendary Elephant Island is where Shackleton’s team held out for months. Jagged crags loom fiercely on the horizon and the evening sun casts a delicate pink glow over the snowfields. Only small expedition ships are able to sail into the flooded caldera of Deception Island. Accompanied by the creaking of the ice, venture onwards to the Antarctic Peninsula. Majestic glaciers and gigantic icebergs glint in Paradise Bay. Another impressive sight awaits in the Lemaire Channel, where mountains up to 1,000 m (3,281 ft) high line the spectacular shipping passage. Look forward to some thrilling moments.

WEDDELL SEA
A mystical icy world lies in the Antarctic Sound and at the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. There are new scenes to feast your eyes on and catch on camera every day from the deck and Zodiacs. The numerous tabular icebergs are particularly spectacular and will astound you with their size, shape and colour. In one of the world’s most remote and most challenging expedition areas, the tuya volcano (flat-topped volcano) Brown Bluff makes an amazing sight in clear weather, for example. Its brown tuff cliffs towering over 700 m (2,297 ft) tall are a formidable sight rising between two mighty glaciers.

SOUTH ORKNEY ISLANDS
The South Orkney Islands are a lonely, glaciated world of icy wilderness in the Scotia Sea. They are home to chinstrap and Adelie penguins, which can be spotted here. Find out how the polar researchers at the Argentinian Orcadas Station live when you visit by Zodiac, weather permitting (subject to authorisation). With luck, you’ll spot icebergs drifting off the rugged coast of Signy Island.

As soon as this subantarctic animal paradise comes into view, mighty glaciers and fjords will captivate you. Bustling colonies of king penguins carpet the coasts and steep slopes. Hundreds of thousands of animals share the island with elephant seals and fur seals. After landing on one of the black shores of South Georgia, your adventures will be filled with bellowing fur seals and squabbling penguins. You’ll keep returning to the footsteps of Sir Ernest Shackleton, who found his final resting place on South Georgia in 1922.

A dream destination for birdwatchers. The British Overseas Territory is home to over 60 bird species such as the endemic Falkland pipit, as well as striated caracaras, Cape petrels and king cormorants. Black-browed albatrosses and wandering albatrosses make skilful use of the wind to sail through the air without flapping their wings. Aside from the birdlife, there are also impressive traces of an eventful history to see.