0333 405 0194
Enquiries & Reservations
Aurora Expeditions · 9 Days
The quickest way to sail to Antarctica with Aurora. Cross the Drake Passage from Ushuaia on the new Douglas Mawson, spend three days on the Antarctic Peninsula, then fly back over the Drake from King George Island.
The Voyage
Antarctic Explorer Express is the younger sibling of Antarctic Explorer, condensed for people who cannot take a fortnight off. It is still a proper expedition. You spend a night in Ushuaia, sail across the Drake Passage on the Douglas Mawson, have three days exploring the Antarctic Peninsula and the South Shetland Islands, then fly from King George Island to Punta Arenas in Chile rather than sailing back. From Ushuaia to the ice and back to the mainland, it all fits into nine days.
Your ship is the Douglas Mawson, built in 2025 and the newest in the fleet of Aurora Expeditions, who also trade as AE Expeditions. She is named after Sir Douglas Mawson, the Australian geologist who led the Australasian Antarctic Expedition of 1911 to 1914 and survived one of the great ordeals of polar history, struggling back alone to base after both his sledging companions had died. The ship that bears his name is rather more comfortable, with the Ulstein X-BOW to soften the Drake, a heated outdoor pool, sauna, two Jacuzzis and no more than 130 guests on expedition.
Three days on the Peninsula goes quickly, so the Expedition Team make the most of it, generally with two landings or Zodiac cruises a day. You might find yourself drifting among brash ice in a quiet cove, watching a whale’s tail lift as it dives, or standing at a penguin colony while skuas patrol overhead looking for a careless chick. The voyage sails in January, the height of the austral summer, when the colonies are busy and the days barely end.
A nice extra is the Lake Escondido tour on the morning you board, included in the fare. It takes you over the Garibaldi Pass into the heart of Tierra del Fuego, to a ranch on the shores of Lake Fagnano for a traditional Fuegian lamb barbecue. Add the hotel night in Ushuaia, the charter flight, a hotel night in Punta Arenas and premium drinks on board, and a lot of the trip is taken care of. See what’s included for the full list.
Day by Day
Arrive in Ushuaia, where an Aurora representative meets you and takes you to your hotel for the night (the hotel is confirmed nearer departure). You can check in from 3pm. Between 3pm and 7pm the hospitality desk in the lobby gives out luggage tags, explains the plan for embarkation day and takes names for tomorrow’s Lake Escondido tour. Arrive after 7pm and your welcome pack will be at reception, with the desk open again from 8am to 10am. Meals today are at your own expense, and Ushuaia’s restaurants are known for king crab and Patagonian lamb. Our gateway cities guide covers the town in more detail.
After breakfast and check out, leave your tagged cabin bags at reception and they will be delivered to your cabin. If you are joining the included Lake Escondido tour, meet in the lobby at 8.45am. The road climbs through glacial valleys, beech forest and peat bogs to the Garibaldi Pass, with a lookout over Lake Escondido and, on a clear day, Lake Fagnano beyond. You then drop down to a ranch on the shore of Lake Fagnano for a Fuegian lamb barbecue before heading back to town to board. If you would rather stay in Ushuaia, you meet at the hotel or the pier car park later. Once on board there are mandatory briefings, a farewell to Tierra del Fuego from the deck and a welcome dinner.
Two days at sea to find your feet. Explore the ship, with its gym, wellbeing centre and well stocked library, collect your Muck Boots, and attend the briefings on biosecurity, wildlife watching and Zodiac safety that every visitor must complete under IAATO guidelines before going ashore. The Expedition Team begin their talks on Antarctica’s history, wildlife and environment, and seabirds follow in the ship’s wake. Somewhere on the crossing you pass south of the Antarctic Convergence and the water chills, and on day four, as you near the South Shetland Islands, penguins start porpoising past and the first icebergs appear. Time and weather permitting, the first landing may be late that afternoon.
Three days on the western Antarctic Peninsula and among the South Shetland Islands, with the route set each day by the Expedition Team according to the weather, the ice and the wildlife. Most days bring two landings or Zodiac cruises. You might cruise beneath ice cliffs and grounded icebergs, visit a busy penguin rookery, find a historic hut or climb a snowy slope for the view over the bay. If you have booked an optional activity you head out when conditions allow, and the polar plunge can be called at any moment. The ship may also cruise narrow straits or pause in a sheltered bay to watch whales feeding. With up to 20 hours of daylight in midsummer, nobody is short of time to look.
Approaching Frei Base, Chile’s station on King George Island, you say goodbye to Antarctica and board the charter flight to Punta Arenas, about an hour and forty five minutes. King George Island is the largest of the South Shetlands and hosts research stations from several countries, a reminder that under the Antarctic Treaty the continent is set aside for peace and science. A clear sky and good visibility are needed for the flight, so delays can happen. In Punta Arenas you are transferred to the group hotel for the night.
Breakfast is included, then you say goodbye to your fellow travellers and take the included transfer to the airport. If the flight from King George Island could not operate because of the weather, you will have stayed on the ship until it was possible to fly, so it is wise to allow some slack in your onward plans. Punta Arenas, on the Strait of Magellan, was the port from which Shackleton sailed on the Chilean tug Yelcho in 1916 to rescue his men from Elephant Island, and it is a good base for a few days in Chilean Patagonia.
Every Antarctic itinerary depends on the ice, the weather and the wildlife. The Captain and Expedition Leader choose each day’s landings and Zodiac cruises on the spot, so the order of the days and the places visited can change.
Watch
Aurora’s film of the Douglas Mawson being made ready for her first season shows the ship you will be sailing on.
Video: Preparing the Douglas Mawson, from Aurora Expeditions on YouTube.
2026/27 Season
Antarctic Explorer Express has a single departure in the current programme, sailing from Ushuaia on 7 January 2027 and finishing in Punta Arenas on 15 January. It is on the Douglas Mawson. Early January is a lovely time to go, with the penguin colonies full of chicks, long hours of daylight and the mildest weather of the season. As there is only one date, cabins, and especially the solo cabins, tend to go early. Fares start from £14,395 per person, two sharing. Our when to go guide explains how the season unfolds.
One departure in the 2026/27 season, on the Douglas Mawson.
| Departs | Ship | Aurora Stateroom from | Balcony Stateroom from | Suites from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 Jan 20279 days, Ushuaia to Punta Arenas | Douglas Mawson | Sold out | £14,395Limited | £20,169 |
Prices are per person in pounds, two sharing, and include Aurora’s current savings. The Solo column is the price for a cabin to yourself. They are taken from Aurora Expeditions’ UK fares on 3 November 2026. The fare includes the charter flight shown in the itinerary, but not your flights from the UK to South America. Aurora adjust fares and offers often, so prices and availability can change daily. Call us on 0333 405 0194 for today’s fare and the full range of staterooms on your chosen date.
Your Fare
Aurora’s fares cover more than many people expect, including drinks, landings and your polar jacket. On this voyage the price includes:
Not included: flights to and from South America unless shown above, travel insurance (which must include at least US$250,000 of medical, repatriation and evacuation cover), optional add-on activities, visas and personal spending. A crew gratuity of US$20 per person per day is added to your onboard account, and you can adjust or remove it when you settle up. For suite guests the gratuity is already included. Our Aurora what’s included page has more detail.
Make More of It
Three optional activities are offered on this departure: sea kayaking, paddling and snorkelling. With only three days on the Peninsula there are fewer chances to get out than on a longer voyage, so it is worth booking early and accepting that the weather has the final say. Our activities guide explains each one.
Before the voyage you can add a two day Ushuaia City Stay. As you finish in Punta Arenas, the five day Patagonia Eco Camp, which starts and ends there, follows on very naturally. Aurora also offer a Taste of Santiago (4 days), the Santiago and Valparaiso Explorer (6 days), a Taste of Buenos Aires (4 days), the Buenos Aires and Iguazu Falls Explorer (6 days) and an Atacama Desert Adventure (4 days). We can arrange flights and extra hotel nights around them.
| Add-on activity | From, per person |
|---|---|
| Paddling | £370 |
| Snorkelling | £397 |
| Sea kayaking | £793 |
Activity prices vary by departure. Places are limited, they are booked with your voyage, and every activity depends on the weather and ice on the day. See our Aurora activities page for what each one involves.
Questions
The voyage is nine days. You spend a night in Ushuaia, two days crossing the Drake Passage, three days exploring the Antarctic Peninsula and the South Shetland Islands, with a possible first landing on the afternoon of day four, then fly to Punta Arenas on day eight for a hotel night before heading home on day nine.
It follows the same pattern, sailing south from Ushuaia and flying back from King George Island to Punta Arenas, but it is a condensed version with three days on the Peninsula rather than four, and the whole trip takes nine days instead of ten. It also includes the Lake Escondido tour on embarkation day, which is not part of the standard Antarctic Explorer fare.
Yes, international flights are not included. You fly into Ushuaia and home from Punta Arenas, so you need an open jaw ticket, usually routed via Buenos Aires on the way out and Santiago on the way back. The fare does include the airport transfers in the itinerary, the charter flight from King George Island and a hotel night at each end. We can book the flights for you.
Landing and taking off on King George Island needs a clear sky and good visibility, so the flight can be held up by weather. If it cannot go, you stay on the ship until it is safe to fly. For that reason we suggest you do not book a tight connection out of Punta Arenas, and good travel insurance is essential.
The Douglas Mawson, built in 2025, the newest of Aurora’s three near identical X-BOW ships. She takes no more than 130 guests on expedition, and has a heated outdoor pool and pool bar, sauna, two Jacuzzis, an observation lounge, a lecture theatre and a Citizen Science Centre. Ten types of stateroom include dedicated single cabins.
Penguin chicks are the stars in January, with gentoo, chinstrap and Adélie colonies busy along the Peninsula and skuas hunting around the edges. Weddell and crabeater seals rest on the floes, leopard seals are often seen near the colonies, and humpback and minke whales are feeding. On the Drake crossing look out for albatrosses and giant petrels.
Yes. The Douglas Mawson has dedicated single staterooms, and Aurora keep up to 10 solo cabins on every sailing with no single supplement. With only one departure these go quickly, so let us know early. Otherwise any available cabin can be booked for sole use with a 50% supplement.
Other Voyages
For an extra day on the ice, Antarctic Explorer follows the same sail and fly pattern over ten days. To skip the Drake entirely, Antarctic Peninsula: Fly the Drake flies both ways, while Across the Antarctic Circle: Fly the Drake adds a crossing of the circle. Or browse all our Antarctica cruises.