Sailing solo on the frozen continent

Following in my late father’s footsteps, I’ve always been an independent travel addict, and when the opportunity arose to venture to the end of the world, I wouldn’t let it slide. 

The timing of my adventure couldn’t have been better. Having just exited a tricky long-term relationship, I needed some time to 'hard reset' my mind. And what better place to do so than a land where few humans tread and where the only distractions include icebergs, frigid air and a delightful array of polar inhabitants? 

While on many people's bucket lists, Antarctica is also a very long way away. The journey to tick off what would be my seventh and final continent involved two international flights from London via Madrid, an overnight hotel stay, an internal flight and nearly two days on the infamous Drake Passage. 

But the decision to go was non-negotiable – this rite of passage was happening for a reason, and I had to go with it. 

Known as the coldest, least populated continent on the planet, Antarctica is in the Southern Hemisphere and surrounded by the Southern Ocean. 

A few more stats: it’s the fifth largest continent and the highest, driest and windiest, but visitors only tend to see a percentage of it, with most heading to the Antarctic Peninsula and sometimes South Georgia and the Falkland Islands. 

Talking of visitors, more than 71,000 tourists visited Antarctica in 2023. The closest access point is in South America – Ushuaia is the most popular gateway, and you’ll probably fly there from Buenos Aires. 

I checked in at the five-star Alvear Icon Hotel in Buenos Aires, located on the banks of the Rio de la Plata in Puerto Madero. It was the ideal base for a wander around the city and nearby waterfront before catching the internal flight the next day. The stay was included in my cruise package. 

There was no chance of feeling lonely – I met some fellow passengers at breakfast and the cruise line arranged welcome drinks in the hotel in the evening, enabling everyone to bond further. 

My home for the adventure was the 152-passenger SH Vega, a premium expedition ship with a boutique, Scandi-style interior, an infinity pool, 12 zodiacs, an efficient and friendly crew and flame-effect fireplaces in every stateroom. As a solo traveller you want to feel safe, comfortable and well looked after and I did, at all times. 

As you might expect, visits and landings are stringently managed. All human activities in Antarctica are regulated by the Antarctic Treaty and its associated measures, including the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty. For more information on this and guidance for visitors, see iaato.org.

Each morning we attended a briefing in the Observation Lounge held by the expedition team. These Antarctica experts are focused on enhancing a voyage by making the itinerary come alive with their knowledge and unwavering energy. 

Two landings a day are usual, but if the weather plays ball you might be treated to a bonus landing or some sightseeing by zodiac. Landings include walks, hikes and wildlife spotting; at other times, you’ll head out in a zodiac. If you’re feeling brave you can also do the ‘polar plunge’ from the ship.

Along with visitor guidance and daily weather and wind briefings, there are also lectures on the agenda. I sat in on a talk about Antarctica’s role in climate change and a citizen science briefing, which explained the environmental research projects that visitors can participate in – increasingly important as the data informs research.

You can contribute and make a difference by photographing and reporting whale tails, mapping and monitoring birds, including the Antarctic shag, and helping NASA with cloud observations.  

I have sailed solo in Australia, Indonesia, the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean and feel comfortable in my own company. While I love the luxury of lots of me-time, the beauty of small-ship cruising means you make friends quickly, which comes into its own when you need someone to take your picture, fancy some company at the bar or dinner, or simply need to swap sea sickness tips when traversing the Drake Passage.

One evening, I dined with my new friends Patty and Mark from the US, along with expedition team member Richard Simpson, who shared a story of when he was partway through a quest to commemorate Shackleton in Antarctica, and he and his team had to abort the mission due to bad weather. Ships were gradually heading for ports due to Covid restrictions, but another vessel – the sister ship to Vega, in fact – finally rescued them. Not long after, he got a call from the cruise line offering him a job. 

You won’t forget the first time you jump out of a zodiac and set foot on land – it’s a surreal feeling and it took me a while to register that I was standing on a continent that not many people have seen. 

Do you think you might get bored looking at all that ice? I can guarantee that no two days or even hours are the same in Antarctica.  The sightseeing is so diverse that you’ll marvel at how such an uninhabited place can flourish. 

It’s a show that changes constantly, and you’ll be transfixed. In addition to making full use of my balcony, the bridge on Vega has an open-door policy, so you can drop by and enjoy the views alongside the captain and crew. I also enjoyed standing at the Swan’s Nest, the ship’s very cool 180-degree viewing platform at the front of the ship, to take everything in. 

Antarctica is a powerful place. One unforgettable moment was approaching the otherworldly beauty of Charlotte Bay, a glacier-rich enclave discovered by Adrien de Gerlache in 1897. The sun was beating down, and the only sound I was aware of was the hypnotic crunching of the brash ice below as Vega nudged through it. 

The wildlife was also performing: a chubby leopard seal lounged on a slab of ice while a flock of Antarctic albatross circled above the ship. 

Suddenly, the silence was shattered as a 10-metre high iceberg calved in front of my eyes. It may look like an ethereal film set at times, but Antarctica is a land of surprises, and this fundamentally inhospitable environment demands respect. 

“The Arctic is a much friendlier place than Antarctica – humans aren’t meant to be here,” shared Simpson one day, and I knew exactly what he meant.

When you travel to Antarctica, you need to be flexible when it comes to the itinerary, as weather patterns constantly change. The crew will make changes as they see fit to keep everyone safe and provide the best experience. But don’t worry – they always have a plan B and sometimes a plan C, and wherever you end up will be equally amazing. 

Over five incredible days, we experienced the Weddell Sea, Lemaire Channel, Damoy Point, Port Lockroy, Neko Harbour and Deception Island - more about some of these later.  

This will be a slice of heaven if you're a nature lover. According to the British Antarctic Survey, there are about five million penguins in Antarctica – one of the first things I saw from my balcony on the first morning was hundreds of porpoising gentoo penguins striking through the water. This sight will stay with me forever. 

Whales, seabirds and seals are essential parts of the ecosystem. The best thing about zodiac cruising through the icy waters is that you can get pretty close to a predatory leopard seal lazing on a slab of ice; you may even strike lucky like us and witness a minke whale breaching just metres away. 

We also saw humpback whales, rare Adelie penguins, chinstrap penguins, albatrosses, leopards, fur, Weddell, and elephant seals.  

One of the most iconic inhabitants is the Antarctic orca. They hunt deep in the pack ice and like to break through the ice from below to tip their prey into the water. They work in pods to hunt down seals, penguins, minke whales, and squid. We didn’t get to see any orcas on this trip, but I’m determined to one day. 

However, with climate change come major issues for the natural world: during one of the onboard lectures, we learnt that there’s been a significant change in melting ice in as little as 14 years and that temperatures rose by 5.5 Fahrenheit between 1950 and 2000. This means that some animals are at risk of becoming endangered due to less sea ice.

You may think Antarctica is purely a place for sightseeing, but its history includes tales of explorers, whalers and scientists. Highlights on my voyage included Damoy Point, the location for historic British and Argentine field huts, including the protected Damoy Hut, which is surrounded by gentoo penguins and permits just 10 visitors at a time.  

Nearby is Port Lockroy, established in 1944 and known for being a safe anchorage following its use by the whaling fleets of the early 20th century. Currently the most visited site in the Antarctic, it’s the location for the penguin post office, museum and gift shop, which is manned by a team living there during the Austral summer. From there, you can send a postcard home with an official Antarctica stamp.

One of the most fascinating and moving landings was to Deception Island. We sailed right into the caldera of this active volcano before taking Zodiacs to the misty Whalers Bay, a barren beach covered with massive structures, including rusted whale oil tanks, revealing the history of the former whaling station, which was virtually abandoned overnight in 1931.

Ships cruise during the Austral summer, between early November and the end of March. Winter is inclement and hostile. 

I’ve lost count of how many people have asked me, ‘Was it really cold?’ The answer is no. Temperatures are regularly above zero degrees. OK, we were wrapped up in polar gear, which included the line’s branded expedition parka, but I didn’t need the hand and foot warmers I’d stockpiled. Some days, when the sun came out, it was warm enough to shed a layer. 

First things first: many lines offer cruises to Antarctica, but you’re only landing if you are on a ship with fewer than 500 passengers. If you want to step on the seventh continent, look at small ship operators, not the mainstream lines, whose passengers sail through without setting foot on the terrain. 

I would also highly recommend a balcony cabin if your budget can stretch to it, as you won’t want to miss a minute of the action. I feel incredibly privileged to have visited Antarctica, and I would return in a shot to this life-changing destination. 

Are you looking to go off-grid and make the journey to the frozen wilderness, whether solo or with a companion? You’ve landed in the right place.