What to expect on your daily Antarctic excursions: A practical guide

We expected to enjoy our time in Antarctica, but I don’t think anything can prepare you for the massive scale and beauty of the scenery there.

It really is magical!

Soon we’ll share a summary of each of our excursions, but first we’re going to talk you through what happens on an excursion day so you can:

• decide if you’re physically up to an Antarctic visit
• be prepared for your trip.

Because, although we loved soaking up the scenery from the ship, nothing beats getting up close and personal with the wildlife and scenery on an excursion!

What to expect from your Antarctic excursions

Do all sailings include Antarctic excursions?

No, only some sailings include time off of the ship – and for us, it was essential to choose a sailing that did.

When choosing your Antarctic cruise, look for words like ‘expedition’, ‘landing’ and ‘zodiac cruise’.

Ships that include landings/zodiac cruises include (but are not limited to):

• Ocean Albatros (the company we sailed with)
• G Adventures
• Intrepid
• Quark
• Hurtigruten
• Polar Latitudes

Typically, the larger cruise liners do not include excursions. Instead, they pass through Antarctic waters, with guests enjoying the scenery from the cruise ship.

These include (but are not limited to):

• Royal Caribbean
• Celebrity Cruises.

They will likely be marked as ‘cruising’ days on your itinerary – and Antarctica is likely to be one stop of many.

This article is all about shore/zodiac excursions though, so if you’re reading this, we’ll assume getting ashore is as important for you as it was for us.

Getting prepared for your excursions

Though Drake Passage days start at a leisurely pace, excursion mornings tend to start earlier…

Wake up calls generally rang through the ship at 6.30 am, and breakfast was served from then until 8 am.

After breakfast we headed back to our rooms to get geared up for our activities, and then we sat tight until our group was called.

Our ship was broken into four colour groups. Two were called first for shore excursions, followed by the other two groups for zodiac cruises. Then we swapped. The order of the colour groups was reversed for the next set of activities to ensure it was fair for everyone.

When you’ll ride a zodiac in Antarctica

Zodiacs are boats with semi-rigid hulls and inflatable sides.

At just under 6m long, these at the boats you’ll use every time you go ashore in Antarctica (yep, that’s right, you’ll step foot on the Antarctic islands and continent!) and whenever you go on a wildlife cruise.

Albatros Expeditions aim to carry out to activity sessions each day, with each session generally split into two; a zodiac cruise (where you stay on the zodiac) and a shore visit (where you’ll use the zodiac to transfer to and from the shore only).

This means you could spend approximately 2 hours exploring one particular area in the morning (both by land and by water), before doing the same in another spot in the afternoon.

Depending on the weather and our location, each of these activities lasted anywhere from 50 minutes to 1.5 hours each.

And on days where we couldn’t go ashore, alternatives were offered. One of these was an extended zodiac ride (approximately 2.5 hours), and others saw a wildlife zodiac cruise coupled with documentaries or related presentations.

By the end of our expedition, we felt we’d had a really good balance of scenic cruising and time on land.

What to wear on a zodiac ride/ashore in Antarctica

To get you started, we recommend wearing:

• a pair of merino pants as a base-layer
• a pair of track pants and waterproof overpants for Nathan
• a pair of Nobody’s Princess ski pants for me (as these are insulated pants, I didn’t need the additional layer that Nath did)
• a pair of long merino socks each (and a second pair if you get cold feet)
• a long-sleeve merino top as a base-layer, tucked into our pants
• a zip-up fleece
• our Albatros Expeditions parkas (which are provided to everyone on board)
• a beanie (though, with our fleece hood and parka hood, these weren’t necessarily required)
• lightweight gloves (we took waterproof ones on the zodiac too, but didn’t need them – I preferred my base-layer gloves as they work on my mobile phone screen)
• a buff
• sunglasses
• rubber muck boots, loaned by Albatros Expeditions.

Adjust your layers as required based on the conditions that day.

Be sure to use sunscreen on your face and neck as it’s very easy to get sunburnt from the sun reflecting off the water, snow and ice.

If you’re staying on the zodiac for an extended period, you’ll likely want to dress a little warmer than if you’re heading ashore (as you’ll be sitting still, rather than exercising).

For us, that was often simply using our neck buff or wearing our jacket hoods.

Pro tip: Don’t worry about the shoes you slip on in your room, as you’ll only wear them too/from the mudroom, at which point you’ll swap into the rubber boots provided by the ship.

How cold is it really?

It is chilly in Antarctica, but it’s not actually that cold.

Most days, we had temperatures around 1°C – 3°C, but one day got as warm as 9°C.

A couple of days were quite windy, and that made the zodiac rides brisk, but it wasn’t anything that decent gear didn’t fix.

Now that you’re geared up, it’s time to explore Antarctica….

In the mudroom

Earlier in our expedition we were invited to the mudroom to try on boots, so we all had a set already put aside.

Each morning, it was a matter of slipping into our muck boots (which were loaned to us all by Albatros Expeditions), fitting our life jackets and then heading over to one of the external doors, ready to board the inflatable zodiacs.

Getting off the ship

Getting on the zodiacs from the ship

Our crew shared a (compulsory) zodiac briefing the evening before our first activities, complete with instructional videos and photos, so we all felt reasonably well-prepared.

Boarding a zodiac from Ocean Albatros requires you to:

1. ensure your hands are free – cameras etc. need to be put in your backpack
2. hand your backpack over to the crew
3. form a sailers handshake (forearm holding forearm) with the ship-based crew member
4. reach out to your zodiac captain (with your other arm) for another sailers handshake as you step from the side of the ship, onto the side of the zodiac
5. then onto a little portable step
6. then onto the hull of the zodiac
7. before sitting on the side of the zodiac and sliding over.

How difficult is boarding a zodiac in Antarctica?

We had a reasonable amount of swell one morning morning, but when this was timed with stepping onboard, boarding wasn’t difficult for most of us.

If you have reasonable balance and mobility, you’ll be absolutely fine boarding and disembarking the zodiacs.

If you require assistance, it’s worth checking with Ants or the Albatros Expeditions team to ensure they can accommodate you, but generally getting on a zodiac isn’t difficult.

Will you get wet on the zodiacs?

Everyone onboard the zodiacs is required to be in waterproof clothing – both pants and parka/jacket.

We were also told we needed waterproof gloves, though I didn’t actually use mine at all (choosing instead to use my mobile-phone-friendly liners, perfect for snapping photos).

But no, aside from a few little splashes, we didn’t get wet on the zodiacs.

We did, however, get a little wet coming ashore (just on our pants which wasn’t a big deal, as they were waterproof and we had big boots on too).

Can you go to the toilet on excursions in Antarctica?

There are no toilets on the zodiacs and no facilities on landings either (unless you’re camping overnight).

We recommend limiting your fluids before excursions, to ensure you can last the two to three hours you’ll spend off the boat.

If you need to go to the toilet while on your zodiac cruise, your whole boat will need to go back to shore for you.

If you need to go to the toilet while ashore, however, it’s a bit easier. Empty zodiacs were constantly returning to shore, allowing people who had seen enough to head back to the ship.

If you need to go back to use the toilet, they’ll take you back to the ship, and will return you to land again if time allows (and you’d like to explore further).

Really though, it’s best to hold on until you’re back on the ship if at all possible.

Getting off the zodiacs onto land

All of the zodiac cruises we carried out were ‘wet landings’.

This means your boat will pull up on a beach or against rocks, rather than using a dock.

When you first come ashore in each new spot, your expedition leader will give you a run-down of what to expect at that landing site (and the rules you’re expected to follow).

You’ll then be told how to disembark.

Most of our landings required us to walk through shallow water to get to the shore, but the water water never above the top of our muck boots so we never got wet (though the bottom of our waterproof pants would have).

The surface we disembarked onto varied – it was sometimes slippery rock (though towels placed by the team ensured nothing was too slippery) or sand, though it was mostly pebbles in shallow water.

Getting off the zodiacs wasn’t ever difficult for us, though again, for people with limited mobility or those unsteady on their feet, it would be worth getting some assistance.

What to expect on a landing

Once you’re off your zodiac, you’ll be free to explore Antarctica by foot at your own pace.

The expedition team go ahead of guests to lay out a safe and interesting route. This is clearly marked with red flags.

You’ll also find expedition team members dotted around the route, so you can ask questions and get more information about the amazing flora/fauna.

Walking sticks were available at each landing and most guests chose to take at least one on hilly sites. They were particularly helpful on icy walks which we encountered in a few locations.

We had plenty of time at each spot, which allowed everyone to move at their own pace. Because of this, fitness didn’t seem to be a problem for anyone.

We were quite surprised to have so much flexibility when exploring by land, but we also really enjoyed it.

It was great to spend as much (or as little) time as we wanted, watching specific animals as they went about their business. It also gave us plenty of time to take the photos we wanted.

We just kept an eye on the time, ensuring that we were back ready to board our zodiac at the required time.

Want to return to the ship early? No worries! Zodiacs were always running from the shore to the ship, allowing guests to return at the time that suited them.

New rules for landings

To stop the spread of avian flu some new precautions have been implimented.

You’ll be briefed on these but basically you must:

• not crouch down or sit while on land
• not place backpacks or any items on the ground
• clean your boots and pants well following shore visits
• dunk your boots in an antiseptic solution before/after each shore visit (don’t worry, it won’t damage your pants).

Getting from the land back onto a zodiac

Though we didn’t find any of the zodiac transfers to be difficult, getting back into the zodiac was the most challenging for me.

This is because we’d often be parked in the water, so the starting point is lower than the side of the boat – and I don’t have particularly long legs – so it was a good little jump for me to get my butt up on the side of the zodiac.

As I say though, it still wouldn’t be difficult for the vast majority of people and assistance is available if required.

Did you know? Before getting back on the zodiac, you’ll need to clean your boots. This normally happens in a puddle or the ocean.

Transferring from the zodiac back to the ship

Transferring from the zodiacs to the ship is easier than getting on – you’ll just reverse the steps required to board – and just like when getting on, there will be two people there to help you.

Stay tuned for more information about each of our specific landings shortly.

But first, have you read our other Antarctic posts?