Things to see & do in South Georgia
Sail southeast from the Falkland Islands, across the whale-rich Antarctic Convergence, and you’ll come across South Georgia – a curved island synonymous with wildlife spectacles and human adventure. It’s an integral part of any Antarctica and Falklands expedition, and a favourite calling point between South America and Antarctica.
South Georgia is a peak of the Scotia Arc underwater mountain chain that links the Andes in South America to the Antarctic Peninsula. Thanks to the notoriously windy weather, it can be a stripped-bare vista – but it’s also wildly beautiful.
South Georgia is a peak of the Scotia Arc underwater mountain chain that links the Andes in South America to the Antarctic Peninsula. Thanks to the notoriously windy weather, it can be a stripped-bare vista – but it’s also wildly beautiful.
And now there came both mist and snow / And it grew wondrous cold: / And ice, mast-high, came floating by, / As green as emerald.![]()
– The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Glaciers, ex-whaling towns, grey-gold penguin beaches and albatross islands carve the coastline. The interior in summertime is all green valleys, meadows and snow-dipped mountains, including the 3,000m-tall Mount Paget. Exploring these waters, you’ll be glad that you’ve chosen to travel on a small ship. It’ll squeeze between islands and make landings that bigger ships can’t, while still having a fleet of inflatable Zodiac boats at the ready – perfect for accessing cut-off bays and beaches.
If you’re traveling to Antarctica and the Falklands, a detour to South Georgia is practically guaranteed. Don’t fret about the extra two days at sea; it’ll give you plenty of time to swot up on island history during onboard lectures.
If you’re traveling to Antarctica and the Falklands, a detour to South Georgia is practically guaranteed. Don’t fret about the extra two days at sea; it’ll give you plenty of time to swot up on island history during onboard lectures.
Our Antarctica & Falklands Vacations
Falklands, South Georgia and Antarctica cruise
The Ultimate Antarctica Experience!
From
€10900
21 days
ex flights
Antarctica small ship cruises
Ultimate Antarctica South Georgia small ship wildlife cruise
From
£7950 to £18390
22 days
ex flights
Total Antarctic highlights cruise via Buenos Aires
An adventure-packed, 23-day voyage
From
£24300
23 days
ex flights
2022 Antarctica, South Georgia and Falklands cruise
Delve into this in-depth polar expedition across Antarctica.
From
US $14290 to US $14392
21 days
ex flights
Antarctica ultimate expedition
Follow the routes of bold & historic explorers to Antarctica
From
£12300
21 days
ex flights
Antarctic wildlife cruise and penguin safari
Highlights of South Georgia and the Antarctic peninsula
From
£11000
16 days
ex flights
Antarctica, Falklands & South Georgia wildlife cruise
Enchanted worlds of icebergs and ice-covered mountains
From
£10700
20 days
ex flights
Antarctic photography cruise, South Georgia & Falklands
A must for photographers and wilderness fans
From
£8999 to £12499
15 days
ex flights
Antarctica, South Georgia and Falklands cruise in 2022
Follow the trail of Sir Ernest Shackleton to Antarctica
From
US $16476 to US $18790
21 days
ex flights
Antarctica, South Georgia & Falklands luxury cruise
Cruise Antarctica in Luxury - Small ship luxury cruising
From
£11000 to £12800
15 days
ex flights
Antarctica Peninsula, Falklands & South Georgia wildlife vacation
An in-depth exploration of the Antarctic region
From
£14150
23 days
ex flights
2021 solar eclipse cruise in Antarctica
Witness a rare total solar eclipse in Antarctica
From
£14500
20 days
ex flights
Antarctic wildlife cruises via Buenos Aires
Highlights of South Georgia and the Antarctic peninsula
From
£15400
16 days
ex flights
Antarctica, Falklands & South Georgia cruise
Embark on a cruise across the Antarctic Circle and cross the Drake passage
From
US $19495
23 days
ex flights
Total Antarctic highlights cruise, epic Antarctica
Explore the world’s seventh continent
From
£15800
23 days
ex flights
Wildlife in South Georgia
The king penguins of Salisbury Plain are the stars of the show. Over 200,000 penguins breed here, forming a horizon-to-horizon colony that you can hear across the water. Combined with St Andrews Bay, Gold Harbour and Fortuna Bay, they create some of the largest breeding beaches for penguins in the world.
You’ll also see thousands of elephant seals. The restless four-ton bulls are constantly fighting for territory and females; their eye-watering battles practically shake the island. Whiskery Antarctic fur seals are a quieter neighbour, with populations fully recovered after 200 years of hunting.
You’ll also see thousands of elephant seals. The restless four-ton bulls are constantly fighting for territory and females; their eye-watering battles practically shake the island. Whiskery Antarctic fur seals are a quieter neighbour, with populations fully recovered after 200 years of hunting.
Wander boardwalks that thread right past raised albatross nests and giant petrel burrows.![]()
Kilometre-long Prion Island floats just off the northeast coast of Georgia. Wandering albatrosses nest here, returning to breed after years at sea. Although the birds aren’t hard to spot (at around three metres, they have the largest wingspan on the planet), their numbers have been hit hard by longline fishing and plastic pollution. It’s worth noting that you can’t explore Prion Island between 20 November and 7 January to protect seals breeding on the landing beach.
The unlikely subject of the South Georgia’s best conservation success story? Rats and mice. These 18th-century stowaways have raided the ground nests of penguins, pipits and pintails for 250 years. But in 2018, the South Georgia Heritage Trust declared the island rodent free after a 10-year habitat restoration project.
The unlikely subject of the South Georgia’s best conservation success story? Rats and mice. These 18th-century stowaways have raided the ground nests of penguins, pipits and pintails for 250 years. But in 2018, the South Georgia Heritage Trust declared the island rodent free after a 10-year habitat restoration project.
Our top Antarctica & Falklands Vacation
Falklands, South Georgia and Antarctica cruise
The Ultimate Antarctica Experience!
From
€10900
21 days
ex flights
Small group travel:
2021: 25 Oct, 6 Nov
2021: 25 Oct, 6 Nov
Travel Team
If you'd like to chat about Antarctica & Falklands or need help finding a vacation to suit you we're very happy to help.
Grytviken: whaling ghost town
Abandoned whaling towns perch like shipwrecks around the coast of South Georgia. Grytviken is the main port of call. This century-old Norwegian outpost hunkers down on the (slightly) less windy east coast and once had the dubious honour of being crowned the whaling capital of the world.
With whale stocks decreasing and public outcry increasing, the hardships of living in South Georgia started to outweigh the fading whaling goldrush.![]()
The Antarctic whaling industry was a victim of its own success, with boats harpooning over 40,000 whales in one season in 1930. By the 1950s, humpbacks had almost been extinguished from the Antarctic. Over a couple of decades, fishing families filtered out of Grytviken, shrinking a population of almost 1,000 to a ghost town sunk under snow and ice.
These days, king penguins waddle the streets and elephant seals have taken up shop at abandoned whaling stations. The Whaling Manager’s House is now the South Georgia Museum, which traces the island’s history from Shackleton’s explorations to the 1982 Falklands conflict, covering a ton of natural history in between.
These days, king penguins waddle the streets and elephant seals have taken up shop at abandoned whaling stations. The Whaling Manager’s House is now the South Georgia Museum, which traces the island’s history from Shackleton’s explorations to the 1982 Falklands conflict, covering a ton of natural history in between.
Shackleton’s last stop
Polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton launched many of his Antarctic expeditions from South Georgia, including the fateful Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (popularly known as the Endurance Expedition). He died from a heart attack on his fourth voyage and was buried on the island. You can pay your respects at his simple granite grave in Grytviken’s traditional Nordic graveyard.
We had seen God in His splendours, heard the text that Nature renders. We had reached the naked soul of man.![]()
Some Antarctica and Falklands vacations offer the chance to retrace the steps of Shackleton and his crew between Fortuna Bay and Stromness Harbour. You’ll pass Shackleton Waterfall, abandoned whaling villages and snow-topped mountain passes, as well as wheeling albatrosses and sprawling Gentoo penguin colonies.
Read our South Georgia travel guide to find out more.
Read our South Georgia travel guide to find out more.
More about Antarctica & Falklands
Our Antarctica and Falklands travel guide reveals a wild and strange world ruled by waves, weather and some of the world’s biggest wildlife characters – from king penguins and albatrosses to elephant seals and blue whales.
The conditions of shipping passages dictate the best time to go to Antarctica and the Falklands.
We’re expecting the 2021/22 Antarctica cruise season to be one of the busiest ever, as the Covid-19 pandemic comes to an end. There will be a huge amount of demand, and limited availability, for sustainable small ship cruises.
protection
Photo credits: [Page banner: Ondrej Prosicky] [Intro: Brian McMahon]
[Wildlife in South Georgia: Andrew Shiva]
[Grytviken: whaling ghost town: Lexaxis7]
Back to the top
- Recently viewed
%E2%80%93Wandering_albatross_(Diomedea_exulans)_06.jpg){kind=link}
