Antarctica

Collette proudly offers an active, immersive adventure exploring Antarctica in an authentic expedition style aboard the National Geographic Explorer. See more of the legendary landscapes and inhabitants – encounter iconic penguins, leopard seals, and marine mammals; kayak among icebergs and Zodiac cruise past resting leopard seals; and hike on the continent with the best ice team on Earth. Through the efforts of an undersea specialist, you will also experience the seldom-seen Antarctic undersea. Your adventure begins with an overnight flight to Buenos Aires.
Hotel Name: Alvear Art Hotel

Arrive in cosmopolitan Buenos Aires, birthplace of the tango and the “Paris of South America.” Stretching along the banks of the Rio de la Plata, the city is a mosaic of European-style architecture and South American spirit. After brunch, enjoy a panoramic city tour highlighting its Beaux-Arts palaces, grand boulevards, and the famous balcony forever associated with Eva Peron. In the early evening, gather for an informal reception at the hotel.

Breakfast Included
Hotel Name: National Geographic Explorer

Visit Area: Buenos Aires
The capital and largest city in Argentina has been an autonomous district since 1880. Buenos Aires is a top tourist destination, known for its European-style architecture and rich cultural life. The city currently has the highest concentration of theaters in the world. Buenos Aires is a cosmopolitan center of the nation and offers a large cultural diversity due to the waves of immigration during the years. It is known as the land of the portenos (people of the port) — which is what the people from Buenos Aires are referred to as — and traditions, but the land is also large in industrial and commercial activities. Although Buenos Aires is a large cosmopolitan area, it also offers a very historical background, reflected in the French and Italian architecture, and numerous museums and cultural centers.

This morning we fly* over Patagonia before landing in Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world, surrounded by spectacular mountain scenery. Enjoy lunch while cruising the Beagle Channel. Later, embark the National Geographic Explorer, an authentic expedition ship uniquely equipped with a hull strengthened to “ice-class” and advanced navigation equipment for polar expeditions. With just 81 cabins and a maximum capacity of 148 passengers, the spacious and modern National Geographic Explorer offers a roster of tools for exploration and a variety of public areas for viewing the incredible passing landscape. In the ship’s spacious lounge, you will have informative presentations and a nightly recap of the day’s activities.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Dinner Included

Visit Area: Ushuaia
Located at the tip of Argentina and in the area of Patagonia is Ushuaia. This "Bay overlooking the West" is regarded as the southernmost city in the world and is part of the the Tierra del Fuego region. Bordered by sweeping mountains and the Beagle Channel, this former prison colony is a popular destination for people traveling to Antarctica and provides insight to the different people that settled here including the Yamana Indians and British missionaries.

Cruise south through the fabled Drake Passage, named after the explorer Sir Francis Drake. Set between Cape Horn and the Antarctic Peninsula, a crossing of the legendary Drake Passage is unforgettable - a milestone in any adventurer's personal travel history. Warmer waters of the north meet the colder, denser waters of the south here in the Antarctic Convergence, making the area rich in marine life.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Dinner Included

Visit Area: The Drake Passage
Named after the British explorer, Sir Francis Drake, the Drake Passage is the shortest route between South America and Antarctica. Stretching over 500 miles, this passage is a connection point between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Known for it's sometimes tumultuous crossings, the Drake Passage is also known for it's abundance of marine wildlife such as whales.

The next six days are filled with discovering Antarctica, the last great wilderness stretching across ice-covered desert and mountains for over five million square miles. The ethereal beauty and immense scale of the continent is like nowhere else on the planet.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Dinner Included

Admittance: Authentic Expedition Ship
The National Geographic Explorer, an authentic expedition ship uniquely equipped for polar expeditions, will be your home during the tour.

The voyage keeps a flexible schedule (daily activities are contingent on weather conditions) to take advantage of the unexpected. With nearly 24 hours of daylight, make the most of your days with daily explorations.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Dinner Included

Admittance: Zodiac Forays
Rugged Zodiac boats will zip you across glacier-lined expanses and take you into the heart of this wild and beautiful continent.

You may take a Zodiac foray amongst towering icebergs under a bright sun, walk along the shoreline amid a huge penguin colony, hike to a summit for a breathtaking view, or kayak along a cliff-side rookery in search of blue-eyed shags.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Dinner Included

Visit Area: Penguin Colony Close-Ups
See wildlife like never before with excursions that will take you to penguin colonies for up-close encounters with these charming birds.

Today you could have the thrill of watching the ship crunch through the packed ice or step ashore to the cries of thousands of Gentoo penguins.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Dinner Included

Admittance: Kayak Excursions
Let the quiet majesty of Antarctica surround you as you kayak along a cliff-side rookery in search of blue-eyed shags and other wildlife.

Learn from the experts how to identify different penguin species and get photo tips from a National Geographic photographer while watching those same penguins.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Dinner Included

Admittance: Photography Guidance
Let a professional National Geographic photographer give you photo tips during your close encounters with Gentoo penguins.

Onboard, the undersea specialist may present video from that day’s dive with rare images taken up to 1,000 feet below the surface. The expert staff will craft an expedition where you will learn more, see more and experience more.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Dinner Included

Admittance: On Board Information Sessions
Antarctica Experts will give informative presentations and lead captivating discussions as the ship sails across Drake’s Passage.

Leave Antarctica and sail back to Ushuaia, crossing the southern waters of the Drake Passage. The ship’s spotters will keep an eye out for marine life, albatross and other seabirds that cross the ship’s bow.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Dinner Included

You may want to enjoy a wellness treatment, spend time in the gym, catch up on the book you haven’t had a minute to read, or participate in on board discussions reflecting on all you have seen and learned.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included
Dinner Included

After breakfast, disembark in Ushuaia with time for independent exploration before proceeding to the airport for your flight* to Buenos Aires where your tour comes to an end.

Breakfast Included
Lunch Included