Antarctica. Who hasn’t dreamed of traveling to Antarctica? I know I always have. And now, for many Singles Travel International members, that dream has become a reality. For 4 lucky traveler’s, this was their 7th Continent. We went on the Celebrity Infinity in January, 2023, summer in Antarctica. Summer? Yes, we were outside in the glorious sun in shirts and vests. No hat, no gloves, no boots. Once the sun went away, the cold weather clothes came out.

We went to what is known as the end of the world.  The. End. Of. The. World. Seem so surreal. We had to pinch ourselves to make sure it was real. It was. Now, we were told Ushuaia, Argentina is the End of the World. But Cape Horn, Chile also makes that claim. In reality, Cape Horn holds the claim. But Ushuaia is the largest CITY at the end of the world. Let’s face it though, our real goal was to see Antarctica.

Was it everything I imagined. Yes and no. It was a giant massive glacier. Bigger than anything I had ever seen before. It was impressive, beautiful, eventful, life-changing and there may or may not have been a glisten of a tear in my eye at one time. White, glacial ice on land, in the water, everywhere. What I thought I would see was wildlife. Wildlife everywhere, in the water, on land, in the sky. I am not sure why I thought this, but I imagined penguins as far as the eye could see. Whales breaching in excitement to see the ship. Cameroons and albatross greeting us with their caw caws. While all these things were seen, they weren’t everywhere like you see in a Disney animated movie. Ah, just as well. We were able to enjoy the beauty in all its silent splendor.

It was a 14 day cruise with 3 port stops and one cancelled stop in the Falkland Islands due to weather. I’ll get back to the port stops in a minute. Let me mention the sea voyage and the Drake Passage. The plan had been to go through the Drake Passage just once, but due to the weather around the Falkland Islands (waves bigger than our ship), we pivoted and went through AGAIN on our way back towards Argentina. Before I go into our voyage, the Drake Passage has been described as a lively little waterway, which is the gateway to Antarctica. To many, it is a rite of passage in order to enjoy Antarctica. I had warned our members to be prepared for anything. Between all of us, we had enough sea sickness & sea prevention meds to arm the whole ship. Some used them, some did not. To me, it was a little rocky, but not too bad……on the way down. On the way back, was another story. While we didn’t see waves bigger than our boat, let’s just say, most passengers walked like they had just done 5 shots of tequila. To say the boat was rocky is an understatement. It made the bands on board have an easy job. People were bobbin’ in their seats even without music. We all faired pretty well and didn’t have much sea sickness to deal with.

The 3 ports that we stopped in: Ushuaia, Argentina, Puerto Madryn, Argentina and Montevideo, Uruguay were fun stops. The best was Puerto Madryn where most members were able to get up close and personal with the wildlife. Seal Lions, Penguins, Elephant Seals, Cameroons and Alpaca like animals were all seen.

On board, we passed the time with Food, Theme nights (Under the Sea and Winter Wonderland), Slotsapalooza, Farkle, Food, Trivia, Food, Scavenger Hunts, Egg Drop and Boat Building, oh, and Food. Two special things stood out. The local ship Naturalist, Celia Garland was spectacular. She had a deep understanding of everything Antarctica and gave a presentation every morning at 10am. The members lined up to see her presentation which was thorough, easy to understand, funny and entertaining.

The 2^nd thing that stood out during a sea day was a wine tasting. It was a private event as our Signature Experience, sponsored by Singles Travel International. We had our very own personal sommelier as a member traveling with us. Eileen R. gave a wonderful tasting and presentation on Argentinian wines. Along with the wines we had a delicious presentation of pairing foods. Thank you Eileen!

By the end of the trip, life long friends were made.  We were like family. Experiencing Antarctica together brought us all close.  Traveling with Singles Travel International can be life changing.  Won’t you take a moment to check out our upcoming trips and create life long, potential life changing memories?

See you next time.