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Beyond the Antarctic Circle – In the Wake of Jean-Baptiste Charcot in Luxury

Beyond the Antarctic Circle – In the Wake of Jean-Baptiste Charcot in Luxury

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Description

Set off a unique expedition, in the footsteps of Jean-Baptiste Charcot, at the edge of the world, to the Bellingshausen Sea, there where the ice shapes the horizon. Marguerite Bay, Charcot Island and Pourquoi Pas Island… the French explorer’s passage more than a century ago still resonates. Here, every moment plunges you into a grandiose and pristine universe, where ice cliffs, infinite ice floes and majestic icebergs drift where the currents take them. Aboard Le Commandant Charcot, a strikingly elegant ship capable of navigating our planet’s most extreme environments, watch nature unveil its many treasures: penguins, seals, whales and orcas roaming their immaculate kingdom. A fascinating adventure in the heart of the White Continent, reserved for the privileged few who dare to reach the unreachable.
We are privileged guests in these extreme lands where we are at the mercy of weather and ice conditions. Our navigation will be determined by the type of ice we come across; as the fast ice must be preserved, we will take this factor into account from day to day in our itineraries. The sailing schedule and any landings, activities and wildlife encounters are subject to weather and ice conditions. These experiences are unique and vary with each departure. The Captain and the Expedition Leader will make every effort to ensure that your experience is as rich as possible, while respecting safety instructions and regulations imposed by the IAATO.

Trip Name
Beyond the Antarctic Circle – In the Wake of Jean-Baptiste Charcot in Luxury
Days
16
Overview
Vessel Type: Polar Luxury Expedition Passenger Capacity: 135 cabins Length: 149.9 meters Built: 2018/2019 Le Commandant Charcot is a purpose-built polar exploration vessel engineered for extreme environments, operating with a hybrid electric–LNG system that reduces noise, vibration and emissions while pushing deeper into ice than conventional ships. Interior spaces follow a restrained, insulated design philosophy that supports comfort in high-latitude conditions: multiple lounges, refined dining rooms, theatre, boutique and extensive wellness areas arranged to maintain warmth, calm and controlled movement throughout the ship. Accommodation spans 123 staterooms and suites, all with balconies, with upper-tier suites extending up to 115 m². The vessel integrates dedicated scientific infrastructure into its core layout, including laboratories and working spaces that support ongoing polar research. Field operations and environmental systems are engineered from the ground up for low-impact navigation, aligning with the ship’s mandate to access remote polar areas responsibly. A full virtual deck plan and live bow-mounted webcam reinforce the ship’s emphasis on landscape immersion and transparency of experience. Read About Our Experience on Board Le Commandant Charcot It’s All About the Destination… And This Ship  

Itinerary



Day 1 - Day 1 - Ushuaia
Capital of Argentina's Tierra del Fuego province, Ushuaia is considered the gateway to the White Continent and the South Pole. Nicknamed “El fin del mundo” by the Argentinian people, this city at the end of the world nestles in the shelter of mountains surrounded by fertile plains that the wildlife seem to have chosen as the ultimate sanctuary. With its exceptional site, where the Andes plunge straight into the sea, Ushuaia is one of the most fascinating places on earth, its very name evocative of journeys to the unlikely and the inaccessible…
Day 2 - Days 2 - 3 Crossing the Drake Passage
Use your days spent in the Drake Passage to familiarise yourself with your ship and deepen your knowledge of the Antarctic. The Expedition Leader will first present the IAATO rules of conduct that must be observed during landings in the region and will explain everything you need to know about the zodiac outings. Lectures about the history and wildlife of the Antarctic will be an opportunity for you to learn more about this magical region, where every cruise is a unique experience.  You will experience exceptional sailing moments on board and join the naturalist-guides on your ship’s exterior decks to look out for albatrosses, cape petrels, and other seabirds flying over the Drake Passage.
Day 3 - Day 4 - The Gullet
The sumptuous landscapes of this narrow channel between Adelaide Island and Graham Land attract all visitors sailing towards Marguerite Bay. It is like an ice palace, its immaculate white walls reflected in the frozen mirror formed by the waters of the Southern Ocean, scattered with icebergs and gleaming blocks of ice. This passage was explored for the first time by the Jean-Baptiste Charcot expedition in 1909, which sketched its position. It was then surveyed in 1936 by the British expedition under John Rymill. It is here in this magical setting that some of the first subaquatic images of the Antarctic were shot during Philippe Cousteau’s four-month expedition to Antarctica between 1972 and 1973.
Day 4 - Days 5 - 6 Expedition to Charcot Island
When he discovered this island surrounded by sea ice in 1910 from aboard the Pourquoi Pas ? as he mapped Alexander Island, Jean-Baptiste Charcot had not be able to get less than 40 miles away from it. Situated in a zone that experiences frequent low-pressure systems and regular cloud cover, the island remains in many ways an enigma. It is entirely covered in ice and sheer cliffs, with the exception of the rocky outcrops extending over a dozen kilometres in the far north-west. The ice in the narrowest part of Wilkins Sound has been cracking in recent times, thus officially detaching this island from its neighbour, Alexander Island, lying 50 km away. Very few people have landed on this largely untouched island, whose waters attract numerous seabirds, such as petrels, Antarctic terns and skuas.
Day 5 - Day 7 - Bellingshausen Sea
Stretching from the west of the Antarctic Peninsula to the Amundsen Sea, the Bellingshausen Sea was named after the Russian admiral and explorer who has been attributed the first confirmed sighting of mainland Antarctica, in 1820. Among others, its waters surround two of the Antarctic’s largest islands: Alexander Island and Thurston Island. You will explore this sea amid ice floe, blocks of sea ice and majestic icebergs. The coastal areas along the Bellingshausen Sea are also renowned as the home of colonies of emperor penguins. Depending on the month of the southern summer, you will perhaps be lucky enough to observe isolated adults, adolescents seeking emancipation or recently independent new adults.
Day 6 - Day 8 - At sea aboard Le Commandant Charcot
Spend exceptional moments sailing aboard Le Commandant Charcot, the world’s first luxury polar exploration vessel and the first PC2-class polar cruise ship capable of sailing into the very heart of the ice, on seas and oceans which the frozen conditions render inaccessible to ordinary ships. Le Commandant Charcot is fitted with oceanographic and scientific equipment selected by a committee of experts. Take advantage of the on-board lectures and opportunities for discussion with these specialists to learn more about the poles. Participate in furthering scientific research with PONANT and let us discover together what these fascinating destinations have yet to reveal to us.
Day 7 - Day 9 - Marguerite Bay
The icebergs are each more majestic than the next and scattered around the deep and intense blue waters of Marguerite Bay, one of the most beautiful regions in the Antarctic. It is delimited in the north by the mountainous Adelaide Island, in the south by George VI Sound and Alexander Island, and in the east by the Fallières Coast. Charcot named it after his wife during his second expedition to the Antarctic between 1908 and 1910. In 1909, in the southern summer when the skies are at their clearest, he led an important scientific mission to map and study this region. The bay is home to a number of cetaceans and you may get the chance to observe leopard seals or Adelie penguins.
Day 8 - Day 10 - Pourquoi Pas Island
Le Commandant Charcot will land on the coast of Pourquoi Pas Island, so named in the 1930s by John Riddoch Rymill in honour of Jean-Baptiste Charcot, who discovered it from aboard his ship Le Pourquoi Pas ? during his second expedition to Antarctica between 1908 and 1910. This mountainous island, situated in the north of Marguerite Bay between Graham Land and Adelaide Island, is 28 km long and 14 km large. It is scattered with narrow fjords and snow-covered mountains. You will go to shore in a zodiac dinghy with your expedition team and you could get the chance to observe Adelie penguins going about their business on the island’s rocky shores.
Day 9 - Days 11 - 12 Antarctic Peninsula
Succumb to the magic of a place unlike any other. To this day, the mythical Antarctic Peninsula still holds real fascination and promises its visitors unforgettable moments. Throughout your adventure in this icy realm, you will find yourself in the heart of a spectacular decor in subtle shades of blue and white, surrounded by exceptional wildlife. Penguins, humpback whales, seals and giant petrels are at home here, as are elephant seals, fur seals, Antarctic minke whales, and orcas. Depending on which sites you will be lucky enough to visit, you may get the chance to observe them and share with them the beauty of these extreme parts.Each day, based on ice conditions, the Captain and the Expedition Leader will suggest zodiac outings or landings to discover the infinite riches of the Antarctic Peninsula.  Glaciers, ice floe, tabletop icebergs, mountain peaks that plunge straight into the sea, volcanic beaches, research stations, enchanting bays, and vestiges of the whaling industry: these are the faces of the Antarctic that will likely reveal themselves to you, in a hushed and surreal atmosphere. You will sail in the wake of Jean-Baptiste Charcot, Adrien de Gerlache and Sir Ernest Shackleton, great Antarctic explorers who, from the 19th century, set out to conquer these remote and uninhabited lands.
Day 10 - Days 13 - 14 Crossing the Drake Passage
If there is one place, one sea, one waterway dreaded by tourists, researchers and hardened seafarers alike, it is undoubtedly Drake Passage. Situated at the latitude of the infamous Furious Fifties winds, between Cape Horn and the South Shetland Islands, it is the shortest route to connect Antarctica to South America. Seasoned navigators will tell you that you must earn your visit to the White Continent! As the Antarctic convergence zone where cold currents rising up from the South Pole meet warmer equatorial water masses, Drake Passage harbours a very diverse marine fauna. Don't forget to look to the sky to catch a glimpse of elegant albatross and Cape petrels, playfully floating about in the wind around your ship.
Day 11 - Day 15 - Ushuaia
Capital of Argentina's Tierra del Fuego province, Ushuaia is considered the gateway to the White Continent and the South Pole. Nicknamed “El fin del mundo” by the Argentinian people, this city at the end of the world nestles in the shelter of mountains surrounded by fertile plains that the wildlife seem to have chosen as the ultimate sanctuary. With its exceptional site, where the Andes plunge straight into the sea, Ushuaia is one of the most fascinating places on earth, its very name evocative of journeys to the unlikely and the inaccessible…
Day 12 - Please note:
Itineraries are subject to change. 

Trip Dates

StartEndPrice FromRoom Type
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $39,110Prestige Stateroom Deck 6
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $39,790Prestige Stateroom Deck 7
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $85,770Duplex Suite
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $125,320Owner's Suite
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $40,480Prestige Stateroom Deck 8
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $41,520Deluxe Suite Deck 6
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $43,250Deluxe Suite Deck 7
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $44,630Deluxe Suite Deck 8
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $56,390Prestige Suite Deck 7
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $58,110Prestige Suite Deck 8
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $59,850Grand Prestige Suite
01-12-202716-12-2027AUD $63,310Privilege Suite Deck 8
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $39,110Prestige Stateroom Deck 6
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $39,790Prestige Stateroom Deck 7
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $40,480Prestige Stateroom Deck 8
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $41,520Deluxe Suite Deck 6
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $43,250Deluxe Suite Deck 7
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $44,630Deluxe Suite Deck 8
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $56,390Prestige Suite Deck 7
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $58,110Prestige Suite Deck 8
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $59,850Grand Prestige Suite
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $63,310Privilege Suite Deck 8
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $85,770Duplex Suite
27-12-202711-01-2028AUD $125,320Owner's Suite

Inclusions

    • Exploration aboard the Commandant Charcot, following in the footsteps of Jean-Baptiste Charcot’s polar expeditions, all the way to the Bellingshausen Sea.
    • Discover the polar landscapes (ice floes, glaciers, icebergs) and wildlife: opportunities to observe penguins, seals, whales, orcas and seabirds.
    • Activities: outings and shore visits in a rubber dinghy with a team including naturalist guides; kayaking; polar hikes on foot or snowshoes; polar plunge without a wetsuit.

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