New Year's Eve on the Antarctic Peninsula. Midnight sun instead of fireworks. The first hours of the year spent at the end of the world with 35 other people who made the same decision.
With 36 guests, six Senior Polar Guides and four Zodiacs in the water at once, all guests explore the Peninsula at its most alive together, with time and space to take it in.
In this luminous world, late December brings the Peninsula to its fullest. Gentoo and chinstrap chicks, newly hatched, grow bolder by the day. Crabeater and Weddell seals rest on drifting ice while leopard seals move through the shallows below. Humpback and minke whales arrive in increasing numbers, drawn by krill blooms at their seasonal peak. The year turns without ceremony. The Peninsula does not mark the occasion. That is, for most guests, exactly why they came.
The expedition follows the same route as every Antarctic Circle by Air departure: a Patagonian asado on arrival before the charter flight from Puerto Natales to King George Island. The aim is seven full days on the Peninsula, with a push south toward 66°33'S on every voyage.
Welcome in a new year amidst one of nature’s most dazzling spectacles.
New Year in Antarctica—where ice shimmers in summer light and penguin chicks take their first steps.
The charter flight removes the Drake Passage crossing, placing all 36 guests directly on the Peninsula with more time on the ice. Weather and conditions permitting, this departure aims to place guests on the Antarctic Peninsula for New Year's Eve.
Late December is when the Peninsula is at its most active. Under perpetual twilight, penguin colonies are in full nesting season, whale numbers are at their highest, and the landscape carries the last traces of the season's transition. With only 36 guests and four Zodiacs in the water simultaneously, all guests land ashore at once, and our Senior Polar Guides respond to what the conditions offer rather than what a timetable requires.
Where we go is shaped by conditions and opportunity. Our objectives include the South Shetland Islands and Deception Island, home to fur seal colonies and nesting chinstrap penguins. We may navigate south through the Gerlache Strait, the Neumayer Channel, and the Lemaire Channel, aiming for wildlife-rich sites at Paradise Bay and Cuverville Island, where gentoo penguins and Antarctic shags nest against a backdrop that has no equivalent elsewhere.
In this luminous, awakening world, nature leads — and we follow, quietly and respectfully.
- New Year with the people who matter most, at the end of the world. Midnight on 31 December, somewhere in the most extraordinary geography on earth. No fireworks, no countdown, just the Peninsula in perpetual summer light and 36 people who chose to be here for it.
- Micro enough to access. Subtle enough to stay. Together, we explore farther south, spending more time where wildlife is most active and the ice is at its most spectacular. That's what the right scale feels like on an Antarctic Circle expedition.
- Midsummer solstice timing. The December departure catches Antarctica at its most active. Penguin colonies at the nest, humpback whales in the channels, the Peninsula in full summer. The light at midnight is something most have never experienced anywhere.
- A push for the Antarctic Circle on every departure. 66°33'S. The threshold where the sea ice ecosystem begins and the light at midsummer barely fades at all. We attempt it on every voyage; how far south conditions allow varies, but the intention does not.
- Sea ice exploration. South of the Circle, the landscape changes register. Cathedral sized icebergs and frozen channels with a silence of a different weight. In the right conditions, guests go ashore onto the ice itself, walking among icebergs that have not moved in weeks, months, or years.
- Fly to Antarctica, explore for longer. A 2.5-hour charter flight between Puerto Natales and King George Island replaces the Drake Passage in both directions, giving you seven full days to explore the Antarctic Peninsula, the Gerlache Strait, the Lemaire Channel, and as far south as conditions allow.
- Wildlife of the deeper south. Gentoo, chinstrap, and Adelie penguins. Leopard, Weddell, and crabeater seals. Humpback whales in the channels. Further south: a small chance of Ross Seal and, rarer still, Emperor Penguin.
- Expert photography guidance. A dedicated photography guide is part of the guiding team on every departure, on hand to help you capture the wildlife, icescapes, and dramatic light of Antarctica.
Availability is always subject to confirmation. Please check with us before booking flights
Prices quoted here are often dependent on currency fluctuations. Please check with (01432 507450 or info@small-cruise-ships.com) for the very latest price, which may well be cheaper than the one advertised here.
Prices quoted here are often dependent on currency fluctuations. Please check with (01432 507450 or info@small-cruise-ships.com) for the very latest price, which may well be cheaper than the one advertised here.
Aureum
Accommodating just 36 guests, Aureum embodies everything that defines the Secret Atlas experience: small-ship exploration, exceptional flexibility, and a level of immersion that larger expedition vessels simply can’t offer.
Purpose-built for polar exploration, Aureum features a high ice class, allowing her to navigate through sea ice with confidence, along with wing stabilisers for enhanced comfort in open water. One of the features we're most excited about is her hybrid propulsion system. When conditions allow, we can switch off the engines and glide silently through the polar wilderness, experiencing the extraordinary stillness of the ice while watching whales and wildlife undisturbed.
Onboard, you'll enjoy exceptional service alongside thoughtfully designed facilities, including a panoramic observation lounge and wellness centre with gym equipment, sauna, and outdoor hot tub. I particularly love the open bridge policy, so at any time you can watch the captain at work, ask questions, search for wildlife and feel in the heart of the expedition operations.
With just 36 passengers onboard, MV Aureum is particularly well suited to solo travellers. You embark as strangers but often disembark as friends. Because the group is so small, you’ll have the opportunity to meet everyone onboard, share the experience together and quickly become acquainted as one close-knit group.
Deck plans are for illustrative purposes only – The actual ship and cabin layout may differ.
