Antarctica Direct: Fly the Drake Passage

Aboard the National Geographic Explorer, November 14–21, 2025

Experience the wild grandeur of the White Continent in a more efficient, expedient way. Bypass the traditional Drake Passage crossing on a two-hour flight to and from Antarctica and discover all the highlights without sacrificing the extra time. It’s a true journey of a lifetime where you can paddle a kayak past tabular icebergs the size of islands and walk among charismatic penguins.

Trip Highlights

Get a head start on your Antarctica experience by flying across the Drake Passage from Puerto Natales to King George Island, landing at the Chilean research station which permanently operates there. Roundtrip charter air is included in the trip price.
Explore the world’s last great wilderness in the company of top naturalists and the most experienced polar captains in Antarctica, with more than 55 years of expedition heritage.
Hike amid magnificent mountains; see huge glaciers; and observe a parade of gentoo, Adélie, and chinstrap penguins.
Kayak in protected waters, paddling in the Antarctic stillness as penguins swim nearby.
With National Geographic Global Explorers, our exclusive family program, kids and teens will learn about this exhilarating part of the world—from its massive glaciers to humpback whales.

Get a Glimpse

Faculty Host: Michael Thurston

Michael Thurston is the Helen Means Professor of English Language and Literature at Smith College, where he has taught since 2000. He is the author of Making Something Happen: American Political Poets between the World Wars, The Underworld Descent in Twentieth-Century Poetry: From Pound and Eliot to Heaney and Walcott, and (with Nigel Alderman) Reading Postwar British and Irish Poetry. He has published numerous essays on modern poetry and modernist writing, including three on Ernest Hemingway. He is the editor of the Norton Critical Edition of The Sun Also Rises and is writing the Cambridge Introduction to Ernest Hemingway. With the support of a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities, he is also working on a book on the Harvard literary scholar, F.O. Matthiessen. From 2019 to 2024 he served as the provost and dean of faculty at Smith.

Learn More About Professor Michael Thurston

More Information

Itinerary at a Glance

Day(s)	Travel Schedule
Day 1	Depart U.S. for Chile
Day 2	Arrive in Puerto Natales, Chile
Day 3	Puerto Natales to King George Island; Embark National Geographic Explorer
Days 4–7	Explore Antarctica
Day 8	Disembark ship; King George Island to Puerto Natales
Day 9	Depart Chile for U.S.
Day 10	Arrive in U.S.

Trip Details

Duration: 10 days
Activity Level: Moderate to active
Cost: TBD per person, based on double occupancy
Single Supplement: TBD
Deposit: 15% of tour price, person, payable to Lindblad Expeditions; Final payment due 120 days prior to departure
Co-Sponsors: None

Registration

To ensure a reservation on one of our trips or to find out more information, contact Sarah Doody, travel program coordinator, at 904-432-3141, or send an email to smithtravel@smith.edu. Reservations may also be faxed to 866-427-4335. We will contact you and send you the final brochure as soon as it becomes available. You can then send in your trip deposit to confirm your place.

View the full trip brochure (PDF)