Antarctic Explorer
Starts and Ends in
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Departing
01 Jan 2001
Duration
0 days
Activity Level
Daily shore excursions, guided hikes & outings
Moderate
Season
2026, 2027
Polar Expeditions
Passengers in the Snow
Antarctica | Credit: Lauren Bath
Adelie Penguins
Devil Island, Antarctica | Credit: Pia Harboure
Fur Seals
Deception Island, Antarctica | Credit: Matt Horspool
Kayaking Past Penguins
Pleneau & Port Charcot, Antarctica | Credit: Matt Horspool
Icy Landscape
Danco Island, Antarctica | Credit: Matt Horspool
Zodiac Cruising at Spring Point
Antarctica | Credit: Adrian Wlodarczyk
Humpback Whale Diving
Portal Point, Antarctica | Credit: Matt Horspool
Antarctic Peninsula
Antarctic Explorer
AEP052S and AEP053D are Fly/Sail expeditions, please refer to our Contingency Plans specific to Fly/Sail expeditions.
Highlights
Aurora Expeditions is actively monitoring developments around Avian Influenza outbreaks closely and are is in constant communication with key authorities such as IAATO. We have implemented enhanced biosecurity measures for arrival in Antarctica and reinforced our onboard protocols, and our expedition team will continue to closely assess each landing site to ensure to determine any risks.
In the spirit of expedition travel, we encourage you to adopt a flexible and adventurous attitude when joining our voyages. This itinerary is a guide only and is subject to change due to weather, sea state and other conditions beyond our control.
Howard Whelan
Expedition Leader
Howard’s lifelong passion for adventure, writing and filmmaking has taken him to many of the planet’s wildest places. One of the first to walk the 4000-kilometre Pacific Crest Trail from Canada to Mexico, he went on to cross the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea, spent three months in remote Russia writing for America’s Outside magazine, and was cameraman on the first Australian ascent of Mt Everest.
As the founding editor then publisher of Australian Geographic and trustee of the Australian Geographic Society, Howard led scientific expeditions to remote parts of Australia, often resulting in significant geographic articles for the journal’s nearly one million readers. In 2002 he lead the Antarctic filming expeditions that resulted in the Academy Award-winning Happy Feet.
Howard has been part of the Aurora Expeditions team since our inception over 20 years ago and has led expeditions every year since. Besides exploring much of the Antarctic coastline and sub-Antarctic Islands, he’s led trips in the Amazon, Galapagos, Kimberley, European Arctic, Russia’s Far East and the Northeast Passage.
These days he runs a polar logistics and media consultancy specialising in the environment, natural history and adventure. He was recently guest curator of the Australian Museum’s exhibition, TrailBlazers: Australia’s 50 Greatest Explorers, is a Senior Polar Tourism Guide and Fellow of the Explorer’s Club.
Pia Harboure
Photography Guide
As a child growing up in the 80s, Pia was fascinated by film and the power of images. Today, she still loves the role photography can play in creating awareness and inspiring social change. She asked for her first camera at age 9, started taking photography classes in high school and went on to study a degree in Audio-Visual Production and Photography. After graduating, Pia started her global education, travelling everywhere from Patagonia to Sri Lanka to the polar regions, working as a portrait and documentary photographer.
She has spent the last decade sharing the technical and creative photographic tips she has learned with travellers. For the past five years, she has tilted her practice to more collaborative and sustainable projects in areas of human rights issues, working for NGOs like UNICEF.
Alex Chavanne
Kayak Guide
Alex was born and raised in Northern California, an area wilder and closer to nature (and colder!) than most imagine. Since he could hold his head up, he was seated in a kayak, eventually beginning to lead tours off the rough and rocky Santa Cruz coastline after graduating from the University of California.
Spending his entire youth climbing and skiing the Sierra’s, surfing, kayaking and boating off the coast, and travelling the world with his parents led him comfortably into a life of guiding. His education in earth sciences at the university inspired an environmentalist attitude, as well as a research-based approach to science and learning. Working among scientists and leading experts has allowed him to make friends with and learn from some of the brightest and enthusiastic members of the industry since the start, and inspired a passion for the birdlife and lichen ecology of the polar regions.
After beginning work with a world-class surf kayaker in Santa Cruz, Alex has travelled the world, continuously challenging himself in and out of a kayak. Guiding month long kayak trips in the Patagonian Fiords, paddling the deceivingly tricky and frigid waters of the Pacific Northwest, and providing hands-on logistical support for whole-season scientific field trips in the High Arctic, among others have provided lessons and experience in leadership and wilderness conduct.
Although these skills are useful for guiding work in polar regions, they also transfer well to Alex’s personal life. When not guiding, he can be found climbing, paddling, skiing and fishing around the Lofoten Islands which he calls home.
Meet our Expert Team
Each voyage is accompanied by our highly acclaimed expedition team who we believe are the best in the business. Many are recognised leaders in their fields, keen to share their daily insights on shore and onboard. While your actual team may vary between voyages, every member of our Expedition Team is among the world's best remote area specialists.
Included Activities
Bird Watching
Marine Mammal Spotting
Photography
Polar Plunge
Scenic Cruising
Trips Ashore
Walking
Wildlife Watching
Zodiac Cruising
Lectures on wildlife, our environment, history and destinations
Our Ships
The Sylvia Earle
Capacity
130 Passengers Maximum
Year built
2022
Cabins
71
Length
104 m
Decks
8
Speed
10-12 knots
The Douglas Mawson
Capacity
154 Passengers Maximum (130 on Expedition)
Year built
2025
Cabins
86
Length
104.4 m
Decks
8
Speed
10-12 Knots
Extension Tours
Loyal Travelers
We love celebrating our loyal expeditioners who return to explore with us. After your first Aurora Expeditions voyage, you’ll automatically achieve Bronze Adventurer status. The more voyages you embark on, the higher you climb—progressing to Silver and eventually Gold!
Solo Travelers
Voyages with Aurora Expeditions are such a fantastic choice for solo travelers, giving you the chance to experience the world’s most remote and incredible destinations with like-minded travelers and our expert guides, while on board our small, social and welcoming ships.