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Aurora Expeditions · Antarctica
Small purpose built ships, no more than 130 expeditioners on an Antarctic voyage, and one of the widest choices of activities you will find on the White Continent. Sixteen voyages, from short fly the Drake trips to a full crossing from New Zealand to South America.
About the Cruise Line
Aurora Expeditions is an Australian company, founded in 1991 by the mountaineer Greg Mortimer and Margaret Werner. It began as a small outfit taking adventurous people to remote places, and that is still very much how it feels on board. Today it runs its own fleet of three purpose built expedition ships.
Aurora sails three near identical sister ships, the Greg Mortimer, the Sylvia Earle and the Douglas Mawson. All three were built for polar work and all three have the Ulstein X-BOW, an inverted bow that slices through a swell rather than slamming into it. On Antarctic expeditions each ship carries a maximum of 130 guests, which matters because only 100 people may be ashore at a landing site at any one time. With numbers this small, landings move quickly and you spend more of the day off the ship.
What sets Aurora apart is the activities programme. Zodiac cruises, landings, guided walks and the polar plunge come with every voyage, and on top of that you can book sea kayaking, paddling, camping on the ice, snowshoeing, ski touring, snorkelling and even scuba diving, depending on the voyage. The Antarctica Active departures roll several of these together into one fare.
Aurora is also a certified B Corp, a status given to businesses that meet independent standards on environmental and social performance. Its ships use virtual anchoring to keep chains off the seabed, and on a ship this size the expedition team soon get to know the faces on board, something the bigger lines find hard to match.
The Voyages
Aurora offers sixteen Antarctic voyages, from eight days to more than a month. We have grouped them below. The Antarctic Peninsula voyages are the classic choice for first time visitors, either crossing the Drake Passage by sea from Ushuaia or flying over it from Punta Arenas. The next group pushes further south across the Antarctic Circle or east into the Weddell Sea. Then come the longer voyages that add South Georgia and the Falkland Islands, and finally the grand voyages, including the Ross Sea from Hobart and a full crossing of the continent from Dunedin. Choose a voyage for its day by day itinerary, dates and prices.
11 to 12 days · Douglas Mawson & Greg Mortimer & Sylvia Earle · Ushuaia
Aurora’s classic 11 day voyage from Ushuaia, crossing the Drake Passage by sea to spend four days among the penguins, whales and ice of the Antarctic Peninsula. From £11,778.
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9 to 12 days · Douglas Mawson & Sylvia Earle · Punta Arenas, Ushuaia
Sail the Drake Passage one way and fly over it the other, with days of landings on the Antarctic Peninsula and a charter flight from King George Island. From £13,510.
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9 days · Douglas Mawson · Punta Arenas, Ushuaia
Nine days from Ushuaia on the Douglas Mawson: sail the Drake Passage south, explore the Antarctic Peninsula for three days, then fly back to Punta Arenas. From £14,395.
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8 to 10 days · Douglas Mawson & Sylvia Earle · Punta Arenas
Skip the Drake Passage entirely. Fly from Punta Arenas to King George Island and back, with four days of landings and Zodiac cruising on the Antarctic Peninsula. From £14,329.
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14 days · Douglas Mawson & Greg Mortimer & Sylvia Earle · Ushuaia
Fourteen days from Ushuaia with seven on the Peninsula, and paddling, snorkelling, snowshoeing and a night camping on the ice all included in the fare. From £13,021.
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12 to 13 days · Greg Mortimer & Sylvia Earle · Punta Arenas, Ushuaia
Thirteen days from Ushuaia on the Sylvia Earle or Greg Mortimer, with six days on the Peninsula and a planned crossing of the Antarctic Circle. From £14,272.
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11 days · Douglas Mawson · Punta Arenas
Skip the sea crossing: fly from Punta Arenas to King George Island and spend seven days heading for the Antarctic Circle on the new Douglas Mawson. From £20,924.
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15 days · Douglas Mawson · Ushuaia
Christmas and New Year in Antarctica: 15 days from Ushuaia on the Douglas Mawson, with eight days on the Peninsula and a planned Circle crossing. From £17,013.
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11 to 13 days · Douglas Mawson & Sylvia Earle · Punta Arenas, Ushuaia
Fly from Punta Arenas to King George Island, explore the Peninsula and try for the iceberg filled Weddell Sea, then sail home to Ushuaia. From £13,371.
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17 days · Douglas Mawson · Ushuaia
Ten days in Antarctica on the Douglas Mawson: south across the Antarctic Circle, then an attempt on the iceberg filled Weddell Sea. Seventeen days from Ushuaia. From £18,518.
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20 to 21 days · Douglas Mawson & Greg Mortimer & Sylvia Earle · Punta Arenas, Ushuaia
Three weeks from Ushuaia taking in the Falkland Islands, the king penguin colonies and whaling history of South Georgia, and four days on the Antarctic Peninsula. From £21,202.
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20 days · Douglas Mawson & Sylvia Earle · Ushuaia
Twenty days on Shackleton’s route, from the Weddell Sea and Elephant Island across the Scotia Sea to South Georgia, with the option to cross the island on foot. From £21,529.
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20 days · Greg Mortimer · Punta Arenas, Ushuaia
A 100 guest photography voyage with guest photographers, flying from Punta Arenas to Antarctica, then sailing via the Weddell Sea and Elephant Island to South Georgia. From £23,627.
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23 days · Douglas Mawson & Greg Mortimer & Sylvia Earle · Buenos Aires, Ushuaia
Twenty three days from Ushuaia taking in the Antarctic Peninsula, a crossing of the Antarctic Circle, South Georgia’s king penguins and the Falkland Islands, with Christmas departures. From £25,587.
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34 days · Greg Mortimer · Dunedin, Ushuaia
Thirty four itinerary days from Dunedin to Ushuaia on the Greg Mortimer, through New Zealand’s subantarctic islands, Macquarie Island, the Ross Sea and the Antarctic Peninsula. From £32,774.
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26 days · Greg Mortimer · Dunedin, Hobart
Twenty six days from Hobart to Dunedin on the Greg Mortimer, by way of Macquarie Island, the Ross Sea and its Heroic Age huts, and New Zealand’s subantarctic islands. From £27,508.
View voyageWhy Choose Aurora
Watch
Aurora’s own film of the 2025 to 2026 Antarctic season, from Zodiac cruises among the ice to the wildlife that greets the ships.
Video: Antarctica 2025 to 2026 Season Highlights, from Aurora Expeditions on YouTube.
The Ships
The three ships are sisters, built to the same basic design between 2019 and 2025, so the experience is very similar whichever one sails your date. The Greg Mortimer came first, the Sylvia Earle followed in 2022, and the Douglas Mawson, the newest and largest, adds a heated outdoor pool and the widest choice of staterooms. Read more on our Aurora fleet page.
Built 2019 · 130 guests · 76 cabins
The ship that started it all in 2019, and the first passenger ship ever built with the Ulstein X-BOW. She has 76 cabins, about 85% with a balcony, and sails Aurora’s longest voyages, including the Ross Sea from Hobart and the full crossing of Antarctica from Dunedin.
About the ship
Built 2022 · 130 guests · 71 cabins
Launched in 2022 and named after the American oceanographer Dr Sylvia Earle, she is a floating ambassador for ocean conservation. She has 71 cabins, a Glass Atrium Lounge inside the bow and a Citizen Science Centre, and sails Peninsula, Weddell Sea and South Georgia voyages.
About the ship
Built 2025 · 154 (130 on expeditions) guests · 86 cabins
The newest and largest of the three, arriving in 2025. She keeps to 130 guests in Antarctica but has 86 cabins across ten stateroom types, including single staterooms, plus a heated outdoor pool and pool bar. She sails the widest range of Aurora’s Antarctic voyages.
About the shipBooking with Us
We are Coastal Cruises, a small UK travel agency that specialises in Antarctica, and we book Aurora voyages on your behalf. We can talk you through the differences between the voyages, help you pick a stateroom, and tell you honestly which departures suit kayakers, photographers or first time visitors. Call us on 0333 405 0194, use our contact page, or read how booking works and the Aurora booking conditions. You can also see what is on offer across every cruise line on our special offers page.
The key terms are on our Aurora booking conditions page, and our how to book guide explains each step.
Or call 0333 405 0194
Questions
Yes. AE is a newer trading name, and you will see both names on their brochures and website. It is the same Australian company, founded in 1991 by Greg Mortimer and Margaret Werner, with the same three ships and the same expedition teams. We use Aurora Expeditions throughout our site.
A maximum of 130 expeditioners on Antarctic voyages, on all three ships. The Douglas Mawson can take up to 154 guests on Aurora’s small ship cruises elsewhere in the world, but in Antarctica she sails with 130. That keeps groups small and fits comfortably within IAATO’s limit of 100 people ashore at one landing site at a time.
Most people start with a Peninsula voyage such as Spirit of Antarctica or Antarctic Explorer, which give several days among the islands and bays of the Antarctic Peninsula. If the Drake Passage worries you, Antarctic Peninsula: Fly the Drake avoids the crossing altogether. If you can spare more time, a voyage that crosses the Antarctic Circle or adds South Georgia is well worth considering. Call us and we will talk it through.
Not always. Voyages from Ushuaia cross the Drake Passage by sea, usually two days each way. Antarctic Peninsula: Fly the Drake and Across the Antarctic Circle: Fly the Drake use a charter flight between Punta Arenas and King George Island in both directions, and a few other voyages fly one way and sail the other. The X-BOW on all three ships helps make the sea crossing more comfortable.
The Antarctic season runs through the austral summer, from late October or November to March. Early season brings pristine snow and courting penguins, December and January give the longest days and busy chicks, and February and March are the best months for whales. Our when to go guide explains the season month by month.
On most voyages the fare includes your onboard accommodation, all meals, premium spirits, cocktails, beer, wine and liqueurs, all shore excursions and Zodiac cruises, lectures, a three in one polar jacket to keep, Muck Boots on loan, Wi-Fi and a hotel night before the voyage. Flights to South America and the optional add on activities are extra. Our what’s included page has the full list.
Yes, and Aurora is one of the better lines for it. Every sailing has up to 10 dedicated solo cabins with no single supplement. If those have gone, or you want a different grade, you can book any available stateroom for sole use with a 50% supplement. The ships are sociable, with open seating at meals, so it is easy to fall in with fellow travellers.
Aurora rates its Antarctic voyages as moderate. You will need to manage the steps into and out of a Zodiac with help from the crew, and walk on uneven, sometimes snowy ground. The active add ons such as kayaking or ski touring are optional, and there are always gentler choices on each landing. If you have any concerns about mobility, talk to us before you book.