If you had a uniform and a gun you used to get there for free… but now the only big ships breaking the waves are a pleasure cruise in the Falklands.
This time too we come in peace which is what the Falklands offers, a tranquility that is hard to find in this hustle bustle world.
Our friends at ROL Cruises have the very thing, a 27-nighter which, in these more stable times, even includes a stop-off in Argentina.
A modern task force
This is MS Maud’s maiden season in the Antarctica including five days of icy exploration.
With exclusive savings of up to £6,200.
And an additional discount of up to £875 per booking, book by 8pm, September 30.
You’ll kick off your adventure rather differently than the fabled Brits from the Falklands.
Flying in from London for a Buenos Aires overnighter at a 4* overnighter.
Where you can go full Argentinian with a dinner and tango excursion.
Landing on the Falklands
Take the next three days to enjoy the ship and sea and appreciate the feast you’ll enjoy rather than those soldiers’ rations.
Before you get to explore three days in the Falkland archipelago.
Enjoy a community walk around Stanley, taking in the Jubilee Villas gardens, Christ Church Cathedral and the Historic Dockyard Museum.
ROL’s landings, hikes and excursions are guided by the conditions.
But fingers crossed you’ll be able to visit albatross and penguin colonies.
And they are often found sharing space with seals.
South Georgia on our minds
And those of us old enough to have lived through those days will recall that it was South Georgia where the Falklands War started.
And your next two days will be spent cruising towards the island.
Of course there is more wildlife here than human life and that’s no bad thing.
The Expedition Team will fill you in on the polar history, geology and glaciology.
You’ll spend three days in the ‘Serengeti of the Southern Ocean’.
Its unique position free from sea ice makes the island a breeding site for large colonies of penguins, other seabirds and seals.
An Important Bird Area, it is home to albatrosses, petrels, shags, skuas and terns.
The team will also try to get you out to Grytviken, the final resting place of Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton.
All white
Of course the highlight is getting to where the sea runs out and the ice begins.
When you see the icebergs in all their glory and its inhabitants, the Gentoo, Chinstrap and Adélie penguins.
You’ll spend four days exploring several possible landing sites, the Antarctic Peninsula and South Shetland Islands.
You may also get a chance to go kayaking among icebergs and seals, or snowshoe to a stunning viewpoint
Before you take on Drake’s Passage, and we picked up on our travels that if you put a plaster behind your ear it will allay seasickness.
Chile chilly waters
And afore ye go you’ll transfer from Puntas Arenas, Chile, to Santiago to spend your last night in a 4* hotel before flying back to London.
ROL offers a choice of cabins but we imagine you’ll want the Arctic Suite (yes, we know that’s the icy north, but…).
The Arctic Suite comes in at £10,699, down from £12,099.
But you’ll be able to enjoy the beauty and serenity of one of the last unspoiled places on Earth.
On a pleasure cruise in the Falklands.
