Flights to Antarctica
Flying is an increasingly popular way to access Antarctica, particularly if you are short on time or concerned about the sea crossing.
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Special Offers Available: Swoop has access to the widest range of offers and can help you find the right trip, cabin, & price.
Expert impartial advice at no extra cost: no-nonsense advice on 1500 voyages across 30 ships
The Antarctic Experts. No Compromises: there’s no question we can’t answer
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A full concierge service, unlike booking direct: we leave nothing to chance in delivering your perfect trip
These trips cruise one way and fly the other. They’re a hybrid between a traditional Antarctica cruise and a Fly & Cruise trip which either fly or sail in both directions. In some ways they represent the best of both worlds, which would explain their rapid adoption and popularity over the last few years.
There is no set formula to how these trips actually operate, other than their common approach of combining both flying and cruising to get to/from Antarctica. In fact there is wide variation between the different trips based on:
Regardless of how you get to and from Antarctica, your actual experience once you arrive is the same with the ship acting as your floating hotel. Typically there are two 2-3 hour excursions each day, visiting penguin rookeries or places of historic interest, or zodiac safaris.
The two principal start and end points for these Antarctic voyages are either:
As there are two different start and end points, depending on whether you are flying or sailing, it's common for the start and end points to be different on these combination trips. With flexible ‘open jaw’ flight tickets being available, this doesn’t typically make flights more expensive or complicated and the chance to experience two countries is a plus for many people. The one thing to check is visa requirements for both countries.
A question we’re often asked is whether it's best to cruise south and then fly north, or vice versa? The simple answer is that it's down to personal choice and the departure dates that work best for you.
While some people love the romance of arriving in Antarctica by ship and the excitement of glimpsing their first iceberg after the open sea, there’s no set answer. Certainly your actual experience in Antarctica won’t be affected whichever way round you fly or sail.
There’s not only great variation in the duration of these trips, between 6 to 18 days, but also in the itineraries on offer. Unlike trips that fly in both directions, which are limited by having to operate from airports, these Fly/Sail trips are much less restricted and as a result they can cover a much wider range, including:
*These areas aren’t included in trips which fly in both directions.
Special Offers:Swoop has access to the widest range of offers and can help you find the right trip, cabin, & price.
4.3 out of 5
A rare and popular voyage which flies to Antarctica in just two hours, then sails back across the Drake Passage, maximising both expediency and experience. Spend 5 to 7 days exploring Antarctica on a small, purpose-built expedition ship, with kayaking…
4.5 out of 5
This voyage takes in the wildlife-rich wonders of South Georgia and the Falklands, as well as the dramatic landscapes of the Antarctic Peninsula. You’ll travel on board one of the most exciting new polar ships with spacious cabins, state-of-the-art technology…
4.3 out of 5
Spend 6 full days exploring Antarctica with the Polar Circle at 66 degrees south as your most southerly objective, on board one of the most exciting new vessels. A maximum of just 130 passengers, with spacious cabins, state-of-the-art technology and…
4.6 out of 5
A cost-effective Antarctic adventure. This itinerary is also ideal for those with limited time wanting to combine Antarctica with time exploring Patagonia. Sailing one way and flying back, you get to combine two iconic places: Antarctica and Cape Horn. Note,…
By sailing south across the Drake Passage then flying north in just two hours, this itinerary blends the adventure of arriving in Antarctica by ship with the speed of a quick exit. The risk of weather-related flight delays is removed…
Swoop has catered for travellers of every group size. Whether you’re adventuring solo or bringing a group of over 100. We can help.
There are two different types of flights which depart from Punta Arenas for visitors travelling to Antarctica:
Fur seals and king penguins approach a zodiac
Charter Flight over the Drake Passage
This is the most direct route to and from Antarctica. It's a short 2 hour charter flight between Punta Arenas and the 'airport' on King George Island in the South Shetland Islands.
These flights are only available in conjunction with a group trip which includes both the flight and Antarctic cruise.
Scheduled Flight to the Falkland Islands
While flying via The Falklands Islands at the beginning or end of your Antarctic trip may seem a longer routing than flying direct to Antarctica, it's in fact proving to be a useful staging post. It's a once weekly scheduled flight on Saturdays only which takes approx. 1 hour 40 minutes and is operated by the airline LatAm.
The benefits for Antarctic visitors of travelling via The Falklands include:
Whether you are embarking or disembarking the ship in The Falklands, the short transfer between the plane and ship will be arranged for you.
While not everybody wants to sail in both directions to Antarctica, by flying both ways you risk missing out on the adventure of experiencing the open sea. We love these trips as they’re the ideal combination, without compromising the best bits.
With the wide difference in both trip duration and itinerary comes significant variation in price:
The plane typically used for the charter flights to Antarctica is a BAE 146 plane which carries up to 80 people in a 3+3 seating configuration. The aircraft is perfectly comfortable if a bit ‘no frills’, with complimentary drinks and snacks provided on board. It's operated by a Chilean company who have been specialising in flying to Antarctica for over 20 years.
The weekly scheduled flights between Punta Arenas and The Falklands are typically operated by an Airbus Industrie A320, which is often used around the world for short-haul flights. These planes have a capacity for 168 passengers with a seating configuration in two rows of 3+3.
Those trips which utilise the weekly scheduled flight between Punta Arenas and The Falklands operate throughout the Antarctic season from November to March, however the number of departure dates can be limited.
As the airport on King George Island only operates during the height of summer in Antarctica, trips using the short charter flight between Punta Arenas and Antarctic are limited to only operating between early and the end of February. Fortunately this coincides with arguably the most optimal time to visit in terms of both weather and wildlife.
Due to the increasing popularity of these combination trips and the relatively limited number of departures each season (there’s a far wider choice if you’re happy to sail both ways), demand is high.
We strongly recommend booking 10 - 18 months in advance to be confident of getting your first choice. In short, the earlier the better. The departure dates are typically published 18 months in advance.
Fly To Antarctica & Cruise Back trips scored 4.4/5 from 269 reviews
10/10 - It was the perfect combination to experience both. We were lucky to have just a mild Drake shake experience and we had an extra day in Antarctica due to weather conditions. I was completely surprised when the expedition team took the opportunity to take us on another outing. Above and beyond. Read the full review
Travelled: February 2024
Julia Balogh - USA
10/10 - We did the sail first. It's good to get the Drake over with first. And everyone going to Antarctica should experience the Drake, at least once. This was my first "cruise", so I wasn't sure what to expect. But everything from the cabin, the food, the staff and crew were fantastic. Read the full review
Travelled: February 2024
Barbara Alexander - Canada
10/10 - Perfect amount of time, loved the expeditions to get us into the water and landscape. Read the full review
Travelled: February 2024
Natalie DeNormandie - USA
10/10 - Fabulous doing the Drake Passage in and saving time with the flight out. Read the full review
Travelled: February 2024
Sylvia Caira - USA
Swoop's service prior to voyage was excellent in all respects. Read the full review
Travelled: February 2019
Irina Prishchepa - United States Of America
The most magical moment was visiting Paulet Island and seeing hundreds of thousands of penguins. Read the full review
Travelled: December 2018
Liz Chon - Greece
Use Swoop to plan the trip! The icebergs, wildlife and landscapes were all hard to take in. Read the full review
Travelled: January 2018
Al Carzoli - United States Of America
The landings were great because even if you weren't mountaineering or kayaking, you were able to hike and take more time to view wildlife/scenery and practice photography - we got some amazing photos! Read the full review
Travelled: December 2017
Travis & Kalli Walthall - United States Of America
We definitely picked the right ship and itinerary. And once we got to our cabin, we understood why that number had been selected. Close to the middle of the ship for minimal rocking! Read the full review
Travelled: December 2017
Tish & Obadiah (Natasha) Scolnik - United States Of America
The flexibility and determinism that Swoop showed me was really amazing and very much appreciated. Read the full review
Travelled: March 2017
Deirdre Clute - United States Of America
Thank you, thank you, thank you! We had a fabulous time on our cruise. Our expectations were high and they were exceeded by a million percent!
Travelled: February 2017
Karen - Pennsylvania
I have visited 89 countries and islands and Antarctica was my final continent. Without doubt, the Antarctica and Falkland Islands trip was the best experience, holiday and adventure I have ever had.
Travelled: February 2017
Nick - UK
I sailed to Antarctica and then flew back across the Drake. Flying was so easy, taking off from King George Island and watching Antarctica fall away felt surreal, 2 hours later I was back texting photos to my family. I had to pinch myself, did I really just go to Antarctica!?
Travelled: December 2016
Agi - Hungary
This was a trip I want to return on as soon as possible. I would have loved more time in Antarctica, but even with the short time it was the perfect size and timed trip. Certainly made the visit to the 7th continent special.
Travelled: December 2016
Boyce & Elizabeth - Mississippi
Review:
To get to Punta Arenas you first need to fly to Chile’s capital, Santiago, and from there take a domestic flight south to Punta Arenas. Santiago itself has good international connections with direct flights from New York, London & Sydney.
Heading south from the capital, there are daily flights between Santiago and Punta Arenas operated by LatAm & Sky Airlines. Tip: make sure you're seated on the left hand side of the plane flying south for wonderful views as you fly parallel to The Andes.
Punta Arenas isn’t a large city, but has a fair selection of things to do for anyone wishing to arrive early, including some notable museums.
Given the time and effort to get there, we would heartily recommend adding on a few days at either the beginning or end of your trip to explore Patagonia a bit more. Punta Arenas is the gateway to Torres del Paine National Park, arguably the most spectacular and best known trekking mecca in the whole of South America. We can put you in touch with our sister company Swoop Patagonia who know this whole region like the back of their hand.
Flying is an increasingly popular way to access Antarctica, particularly if you are short on time or concerned about the sea crossing.
Discover MoreA short two-hour flight quickly and comfortably transports you to the White Continent. On arrival, you then switch to an awaiting ship that acts as your floating hotel.
Discover MoreThe Antarctic Interior offers the chance to visit the fabled South Pole, camp with emperor penguins, climb remote mountain peaks and see our planet at its rawest and most …
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