Making the most of South Shetland Islands
Use these notes to shape a realistic day ashore, then confirm any time-sensitive information for the date of your call.
Arriving at the port
As cruise ships are not able to dock here you will be tendered by inflatable zodiac boats.
Sightseeing
The South Shetland chain of islands lies off the north western coast of the Antarctic Peninsula. They were discovered by William Smith in 1819, claiming the islands for the British King George III. The usual act of sealing took place of course - when William Smith returned to the South Shetlands for a fifth time (1820-1821), his two vessels alone took over 60,000 fur seal skins. By the end of 1821, the fur seals were almost completely gone. Some of the first Antarctic tourism took place in the South Shetlands: the first Antarctic tourist flight flew over the islands and the Antarctic Peninsula in 1956 The islands in the chain are largely…