6 of the 7 Continents For The Budget Traveler: Antarctica: I'm Going Back On The Ice!

My first trip to Antarctica New Year's 2023

Well.. The title breaks it down well, I hit the ice the first time in 2022, to celebrate New Year's in Antarctica. Continent number 7, New Year's on all 7 continents, and I hit the Human Flag on all 7 continents. This blog was as you may have noticed never written with the intention to hit all 7. But life changed a lot, that's covered in the prior articles, so lets get to the return trip I just booked! I am living in Argentina. When I moved down here it was my goal and dream to visit all the places that are nearby that normally would have been a long international flight from the USA. I have already been making my way around Argentina, I have a short trip to Brazil planned in March, and I am hoping to visit Easter Island in Chile early next year. A lot of places I love, are now a lot closer, and of course, one of them is Antarctica.

Since I wrote my first article on How To Go To Antarctica in September 2011, not much has changed. There's a few more fly options, but they certainly aren't cheap. However, the item I wrote last on the list of that fateful article, "If you live in Argentina".... I live in Argentina. I mentioned Ushuaia, and how if you are present cruises can be 75% cheaper when they are unsold. I personally witnessed that the first time I went to Antarctica... A bed in a triple share for $3,000... I had paid around $12,000 for a window suite with some dude I never met sleeping in the bunk adjacent to mine. He was a retired Australian military guy, I was a firefighter, we enjoyed the cruise, and camped separate nights so at least one night it didn't have the hostel vibes. I loved the experience of traveling solo, I met great people, and I set foot on the continent, it was by no means a budget trip, but I never wanted to do it that way again.

So cut to Argentina, I moved here in April, I had been looking at Antarctica deals since April, but just casually, I figured when the season got closer I'd start throwing out some lines... Right about the end of August, I contacted every company that goes there, there's not many. Including the first company I cruised with, Oceanwide. I told them who I was, I lived in Argentina, it would not be my first time there, I am self employed and can be in Ushuaia on 1 days notice for the right cruise. Within a week, the insanity of the offers was blowing my mind, the sailing trips in particular were cheaper than some of my domestic vacations in the USA. But I wasn't going alone this time, my girlfriend down here is joining, and lets just say her sea legs are not as ready for a small boat as mine (I love you if you are reading this baby!), so we opted for something similar to Antarctica Part 1.

The fly and cruise deals were even good. These deals that when I searched in 2022 were $20,000+ were now $7,000 or so. The same cruise I had taken in 2022, was 20% cheaper, I had to go back to the states at the end of November and we are planning a New Year's trip to Asia, so even though now I had my pick of the litter, I had to narrow it down a bit. I didn't want to go straight from Antarctica to USA, or straight from the ice to Asia. So then one day I got an email from Freestyle Adventure travels. They gave the usual hello email and asked for what I was looking for specifically. I did the camping and mountaineering last time. So this time was going to be more humble, hiking, snow shoeing, maybe kayak. It was all based on if the deal was good or not. They sent me an email with 5 or 6 cruises, all were amazing deals, all were extremely cheap, or at least Antarctica cheap. One of the options was $6,000 for the two of us in a window cabin. So half price of what I paid 4 years ago! I was going to book it, but then they sent me an email for the same cruise, two weeks earlier, with a balcony suite, for $8,000 each. To put this in perspective, the same suite in 2022 would have been somewhere around $30,000... Each! Plus the dates were much better for my USA trip.

Not only was I sold, but I was a bit panicked! I researched everyone involved to make sure it wasn't a scam, how could it be almost what I paid 4 years ago now for two people in a balcony suite!? I hit all the forums, tripadvisor, google, etc. I even called the banks involved. Which ended up not being necessary because I paid in the end with credit card, those points are going to cover the New Year's Hotel in Tokyo! This trip also includes a night in a luxury resort in Ushuaia, and all the snow gear needed, which we need a bit because Buenos Aires winters aren't that bad. Last time I paid for all that upfront.

By the way, I absolutely loved the first trip, and Oceanwide, but it was New Year's, the peak week/peak day of the peak season, and I booked it over a year in advance. This was the art of the last minute deal. So we are booked. I paid for the cruise 50 days before departure. I had a funny call with the girl asking if things could get even cheaper...

Me: "I don't know, things always happen, someone can get in a car accident, and break a leg, and they can't go."

Her: "It's so expensive they usually break their leg a few months before."

Anyway, $16,000 is certainly not cheap. But for all things Antarctica, its a great deal. Enough about the booking... I'm super excited to go back. It was a dream that I thought would never happen, and now I'm going for the 2nd time. I feel blessed beyond belief, and I am looking forward to sharing it with someone this time. We are ready to sail the drake lake, or the drake shake. We are ready to see the glaciers, say hi to the penguins, maybe the mighty whales, we are ready to kayak, hike, or snow shoe... I can't wait to breathe the crisp cold air, and to see the iceberg blue shades that I swear I have seen nowhere else in this world... Antarctica captured my heart the first time, it showed me the bottom of the world in a way I'll never forget. And now, I get to go back to the ice. I can't wait.