Antarctica21

The Drake Passage is two days of open ocean in each direction, and for many travellers it is the reason Antarctica stays on the list. Antarctica21, a Chilean company, pioneered the alternative. Guests fly from Punta Arenas across the passage in about two hours, land on King George Island in the South Shetlands, and walk down to a waiting expedition ship.

From there the voyage is spent entirely among the islands and the Antarctic Peninsula, with Zodiac landings, penguin colonies and ice-filled channels, led by an expedition team of naturalists and polar guides. The ships are small, which keeps landings unhurried and the group ashore manageable. Flights depend on the weather, and the company builds its programmes with that in mind. It also offers voyages that sail one way and fly the other.