A cruise to Antarctica, the last pristine wilderness

A cruise to Antarctica will change the way you see the world. Chris Carter reports.

People in a dinghy watching a whale surface
In Antarctica, the wildlife is not afraid to come to you
(Image credit: © Alamy)

“Sailing to the pristine White Continent is a privilege,” says Mark Stratton in Wanderlust magazine. But as demand to visit Antarctica grows, the number of cruises visiting this wilderness is only set to increase, perhaps putting a strain on its value as a wilderness in the future. “Attempting to add value to my voyage, I joined an Antarctic Whale Safari… operated by Polar Latitudes, a company committed to supporting scientific research.” Passengers engage in citizen science over the 14 days onboard the small ship Hebridean Sky. Seawater was analysed for temperature and salinity and a seabird survey took place astern. “It wasn’t long before albatrosses were trailing the ship, swaying side to side like kites.”

Passengers are also encouraged to send their photos of whales to marine conservation website happywhale.com, so that the whales can be identified and tracked. But is citizen science really of use to conservation efforts? “For sure,” onboard marine mammal expert Annette Bombosch tells Stratton. “[Scientists] benefit from this data, because they cannot always be in Antarctica due to its remoteness and cost.”

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Chris Carter
Wealth Editor, MoneyWeek

Chris Carter spent three glorious years reading English literature on the beautiful Welsh coast at Aberystwyth University. Graduating in 2005, he left for the University of York to specialise in Renaissance literature for his MA, before returning to his native Twickenham, in southwest London. He joined a Richmond-based recruitment company, where he worked with several clients, including the Queen’s bank, Coutts, as well as the super luxury, Dorchester-owned Coworth Park country house hotel, near Ascot in Berkshire.

Then, in 2011, Chris joined MoneyWeek. Initially working as part of the website production team, Chris soon rose to the lofty heights of wealth editor, overseeing MoneyWeek’s Spending It lifestyle section. Chris travels the globe in pursuit of his work, soaking up the local culture and sampling the very finest in cuisine, hotels and resorts for the magazine’s discerning readership. He also enjoys writing his fortnightly page on collectables, delving into the fascinating world of auctions and art, classic cars, coins, watches, wine and whisky investing.

You can follow Chris on Instagram.