How many people visit Antarctica each year?

Around 118,000 people visited in the 2024-25 season, according to IAATO.

Is it responsible to visit Antarctica?

Go with an operator that follows IAATO's environmental rules, and come home as someone who cares about what you saw.

Where do you first go ashore in Antarctica?

It depends on the ship and the weather. Many Antarctic Peninsula itineraries include Neko Harbour, where gentoo penguins nest close to the landing site.

Why Antarctica Belongs on Your Bucket List

Picture your first step onto Antarctica. The Zodiac crunches onto a rocky beach. Gentoo penguins waddle past without noticing you. A glacier behind you creaks and groans like something alive. And then the silence, the kind that has weight, settles over everything.

Don't be surprised if you cry. Antarctica is one of the few places on Earth where the planet itself feels like it's speaking to you.

Is Antarctica worth it as a bucket-list trip? Yes. Only around 118,000 people visited in the 2024-25 season, so stepping ashore still feels like being let in on a secret. You step ashore among penguins from a Zodiac, the scale of the ice resets something in you, and the quiet stays with you long after you're home.

Key facts

Visitors: around 118,000 in the 2024-25 season, according to IAATO.
Season: November to March, the Southern Hemisphere summer.
Choosing an operator: go with one that follows IAATO's environmental rules.
The ship: SH Minerva with Swan Hellenic, with a balcony cabin and an expert expedition team.
Caviar trip:The Antarctica Expedition, a private trip with sailings from November 2027 to March 2028.

Few People Ever Go

Around 118,000 people visited Antarctica in the 2024-25 season, according to IAATO. Compare that with the millions who see Machu Picchu or the Maldives, and you'll understand why stepping ashore feels like being let in on a secret.

Penguins gathered on snow beside a rusted old tank on Deception Island, South Shetland Islands Photo: Katja Bolza-Schünemann / Unsplash

The Ice Is Changing

The Antarctic Peninsula is one of the fastest-warming places on Earth. Scientists have watched ice shelves break apart there, including the collapse of Larsen B in 2002. That's no reason to rush, and no reason to feel guilty for going. It's a reason to go with an operator that follows IAATO's environmental rules, and to come home as someone who cares about what you saw.

A blue piece of glacier ice floating below misty, glacier-covered Antarctic mountains Photo: Patrick Adlam / Unsplash

What It Does to You

The scale of the ice, the fearlessness of the wildlife, the reminder that we're guests here: Antarctica shifts something. It doesn't happen in a dramatic, caption-ready way. It's quiet, and it lasts.

A snow-covered peak and floating ice reflected in calm, misty Antarctic water Photo: Jiayin Liu / Unsplash

Our Antarctica Expedition

Our Antarctica Expedition is for travelers who've seen the world and want to see beyond it. You'll sail aboard SH Minerva with Swan Hellenic, with a balcony cabin, an expert expedition team and Zodiac landings among the penguins.

The view from SH Minerva's bow toward a snow-covered Antarctic peak and floating ice

When you're ready to plan, start with my Antarctica luxury expedition guide and my packing list. This is the trip you'll talk about for the rest of your life, and you deserve it. Let's plan it together.

6X Condé Nast Traveler Top Travel Specialist with 65+ countries visited across all 7 continents.