Growing up in the industrial northern town of Widnes, the closest I probably got to a ship was a ferry across the Mersey. Sailing in Antarctica on the world’s most luxurious expedition ship was something that never would have crossed my mind, so to be offered the opportunity was genuinely life-changing.
The world’s fifth largest and windiest continent, and technically a desert, this vast area wasn’t even seen by humans until 1820, but these days it’s possible to skirt around its edges in comfort and enjoy plenty of David Attenborough-type moments.
Being five metres from yawning seals; seeing vast albatrosses with wing spans the length of two humans; gazing in wonder at the unique blue hue of icebergs; watching noisy penguin colonies go about their daily business; seeing whales swim in tandem right next to the ship – this is sheer magic.
We’d set sail on Silver Endeavour from Puerto Williams in Chile, with a stunning natural setting on Navarino Island on the southern shores of the Beagle Channel. It’s a place that tussles with Ushuaia, Argentina’s nearby and better-known cruise hub, for the crown of “southernmost city in the world”. With only 2,500 residents, this one is definitely sleepier and its useful infrastructure stems from life as a Chilean naval base.
Silversea is the first ultra-luxury line to use Chile’s southern ports as a preface to the Drake Passage, or the “Drake shake” as it’s sometimes known. But for those with the extra budget who want to avoid the risk of a choppy crossing altogether, Silversea also offers what is has christened the Antarctic Bridge service. This flies you on a privately chartered flight in great comfort from Chile’s Punta Arenas to King George Island, the largest of the South Shetland Islands, from where you join the ship.
I had built myself up for the worst possible scenario here, having heard tales of how challenging this crossing of many hundreds of miles of open water to Antarctica could be; ours took 36 hours. Between the southern tip of South America at Cape Horn, Chile and the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica, this is the clashing of the south-west Atlantic and the south-east Pacific.
The passage is named after 16th-century privateer Sir Francis Drake who discovered the connection between the two oceans. Half a century previously though, Spanish explorers had inferred it too, hence it is also known as Mar de Hoces, or Sea of Hoces, to give credit to Francisco de Hoces.
I’m happy to give credit of a different kind here – to Gary Buchanan, TTG Luxury’s cruise expert extraordinaire who suggested I take Phenergan as the inevitably required sea sickness pill. I started before we sailed, and it worked: I’ve felt more ill on a gentle sunset cruise in the Caribbean.
All change
The waves were certainly lashing at the ship– but this is one sturdy craft. Silversea excitedly took delivery of its latest addition – and at the time its 11th ship – four months after buying it from creditors following the collapse of Crystal Cruises, and by November was ready to let trade partners and media loose on a “shake-down cruise”.
Accommodating up to 200 guests (and with an equal amount of crew) the ship was just over a year old when they took it on and had barely seen any action, but Silversea chose to refresh it anyway, in keeping with its own vision of “whispered luxury”. And when it comes to numbers there are 18 zodiacs, 14 kayaks and seven suite categories, and the ship will have sailed 64 voyages in this inaugural season.
Silversea fans will recognise some elements from the classic fleet – The Restaurant (for main dining); Arts Cafe (light snacks and non-stop coffees – or champagne if you prefer); Il Terrazzino (a smaller version of La Terrazza); The Grill (by the indoor pool); and La Dame (elegant dining to the backdrop of Lalique decor).
The ship also features a “mud room”, for guests to bundle up, or de-robe and leave their boots (provided by Silversea, along with a robust parka, which you get to keep) after a landing, with the space leading perfectly to the gangway for joining Zodiacs.
The ship is due to go into a month-long drydock this April when the vast space on Deck 8 that would previously have housed the helicopter of the Endeavor (as it was known under Crystal – Silversea put the ‘u’ back in to give it the British spelling) will now be given over to some new suites. Four more will also be added on Deck 5 too, in a space once home to the medical centre, which will be moved to the defunct casino – something else no longer seen as relevant on an expedition ship.
As beautiful as Endeavour may be, it’s what surrounds the ship that counts, of course. It was spring time (the cruise season is November- March) and the sun rose around 5.15am and didn’t set until at least 9.15pm, giving blissfully long days in which to admire the setting. Our opening landing was Robert Island, making us the first guests Silver Endeavour had brought here.
There was palpable trepidation as we boarded the Zodiacs, feeling the full bite of the cold for the first time. Gentle snow drifted around, but the winds were not as forgiving – brutal and noisy – yet nothing could stop the joy of seeing penguins for the first time, or the marvel you feel when faced with seals, tens of them piled together like grey beanbags.
Gritty determination
On another day, I listened intently to a talk in the elegant Explorer Lounge by ship’s godmother Felicity Aston, the first woman to cross Antarctica alone in 2012, covering 1,744km in 59 days on skis, proving what can be done if you grit your teeth and “just decide to get through today in one piece”.
The ship’s extraordinary christening took place against the beautiful backdrop of the Lemaire Channel, so photogenic it’s known as Kodak Gap. It was something I’ll always treasure, with us bobbing around in Zodiacs waiting for Aston to smash a bottle made of ice against the ship. She seems to have smashed most things in life, and this was no different.
We also ducked into Petermann Island on the same day, making one of the most southerly landings ships make around the peninsula. This is home to the world’s southernmost gentoo penguin colony and there were also signs of human life – and death, with a cross commemorating three British Antarctic Survey men who died in 1982. The ship also managed to tick off both Neko Harbour – classified as an important bird area by Birdlife International, as it supports a breeding colony of about 250 pairs of gentoo – and stunning Cuverville Island during the cruise.
But I would be lying if I said I disembarked for a landing here. I received sad news during the cruise, hearing that my mum had died – slipping away at home in Spain, with my sisters and stepfather by her side, but there I was, literally all at sea. Watching my mum’s funeral from my room as it was live-streamed a few days later into the cruise was the most surreal and heartbreaking thing I will ever do.
Yet being in the world’s most precious place was at least some kind of balm, while also trying to reassure myself how proud my mum could have been that her little baby from Widnes had made it to the other end of the earth. Seeing the White Continent is a complete and utter privilege, and it’s one I won’t forget in a hurry, for so many reasons.
How to book it
A 12-day cruise on Silver Endeavour costs from £16,500pp with the “door-to- door” offering, which includes chauffeur airport transfers in the UK, international (economy) flights, airport transfers in destination, hotels pre- and post-sailing, round-trip charter flights between Santiago and Puerto Williams to join the ship, food and beverages onboard, excursions and expedition gear. The round-trip cruise departs Puerto Williams on 26 February 2025, travelling the Drake Passage, Antarctic Sound, Antarctic Peninsula and South Shetland Islands.
• silversea.com
