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Although it is the coldest, Antarctica has a captivating beauty with icebergs and gentle penguins, waddling in a fresh space. Once we set foot on the Antarctic peninsula, we were overwhelmed when we saw the extremely magnificent and majestic natural landscapes that not every place has.
Day 1: Punta Arenas City, Chile
Antarctica is the wildest, driest and coldest continent on Earth, 98% of which is ice and snow. To explore Antarctica, from Vietnam, we flew to Punta Arenas – a city in southern Chile, located on the Strait of Magellan and also one of the southernmost cities in the world.
Map of the Antarctic Peninsula exploration route.
Arriving at Punta Arenas airport in the morning, we went to the hotel, dropped off our luggage and walked around Punta Arenas. In the afternoon, we attended a briefing for the necessary instructions for tourists before going to Antarctica and met our fellow travelers.
Punta Arenas city in southern Chile.
Santuario Maria Auxiliadora Church in Punta Arenas, Chile
The old Banco Santander bank building in Punta Arenas, Chile
Day 2: King George Island and overnight on Ocean Nova cruise
We went to the airport and flew to King George Island - an island located in the north of the Antarctic Peninsula, discovered by William Smith in 1819 - with a flight time of about two hours. The Antarctic Peninsula is the most pristine place on earth because it has not been affected by human impact, the ice cap often lies out of the water, interspersed with giant glaciers.
A corner of King George Island.
Morning sunlight shines on the ice surface on the Antarctic Peninsula.
As soon as we stepped off the plane, the fresh Antarctic air hit our faces and filled our lungs. Before boarding the Ocean Nova to explore the Antarctic, we stopped to admire the scenery around Frei station, the main link to Antarctica, and Russia Bellingshausen station, one of the first stations established by the Soviet Antarctic expedition in 1968.
Frei Station on King George Island.
In the afternoon, we officially boarded the Ocean Nova cruise ship, starting our journey to the coldest place on earth. This ship is 73 meters long, with a capacity of 72 guests. On board, guests are served breakfast and lunch with dishes that change daily, and dinner is a three-course meal. Wine, beer, fruit juice and soft drinks are served with lunch and dinner. Coffee, tea, chocolate, cappuccino, water and cakes are available throughout the journey.
Close-up of the Ocean Nova yacht.
Days 3 to 6: Explore the Antarctic Peninsula
The ship sailed over glaciers, taking us between the South Shetland Islands and the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula, along icy fjords and between majestic icebergs. From our decks, we saw seabirds, penguins, seals and whales.
Antarctic Peninsula with icebergs
Penguins on the Antarctic Peninsula
The gentle penguins waddled along.
Together with a professional Antarctic guide, always dedicated to finding the best viewing angles for tourists, we were free to explore the magnificent natural scenery every day during the journey; at the same time, we were able to participate in the Antarctic introduction program and sharing and exchanging sessions with fellow passengers on the ship. Depending on weather conditions, the itinerary is always arranged flexibly and attractively like that.
The beautiful shape of an iceberg.
Our journey across the ice took us to explore some of the highlights. Our first stop was Paulet Island, an uninhabited circular island just 1.5 km in diameter, famous for its large penguin population.
A corner of Paulet Island in the Antarctic Peninsula.
Close-up of an Adelie penguin in Antarctica.
Next is Hope Bay located in the Antarctic Sea, which is actually a narrow bay that cuts deep into the Antarctic Peninsula, looking like an alley, a narrow lane, so it is often called “Iceberg Alley”. The bay is so named because there are countless giant, beautiful, and varied icebergs there.
Giant icebergs at Iceberg Alley.
Lockroy Harbour is a natural harbour, which consists of a memorial, a museum and a post office. Peterman Island is a small round island located off the coast of the Kiev Peninsula to the northwest, and is also a popular tourist destination.
Port Lockroy
Peterman Island
The attraction we couldn’t miss was Paradise Bay – home to whales, penguins and seals – just north of the Le Maire Strait, famous for the Mammoth Glacier. This beautiful bay is surrounded by icebergs and icebergs of all shapes and sizes floating on the water. Arriving on a sunny day, we were overwhelmed by the magical scene as the sun shone on the sparkling icebergs.
Paradise Bay.
Deception Island is an interesting place to visit in Antarctica. The reason for this name is because when sailing from the outside, many people do not expect that the center of the island is submerged by sea water and forms one of the safest natural harbors in the world.
The final stop on our Antarctic Peninsula journey was the Lemaire Channel. Depending on the wind direction, the channel can freeze over and become impassable. But thanks to that, we had an unforgettable experience of gliding over the glacier, amidst stunning landscapes of snow-capped mountains and calm waters, and many other majestic sights.
Lemaire Canal.
Day 7: Return to King George Island and Punta Arenas City
After breakfast on the cruise, we returned to King George Island. It was a pity to say goodbye to Antarctica and go to the airport to fly back to Punta Arenas, Chile. The next day, we took a flight back to Vietnam. End of the Antarctic journey.
After that 7-day journey, we found ourselves bigger, stronger and starting to love this icy continent.
