Ross Sea & East Antarctica Holidays & Tailor-made Tours

A beautiful, remote icy expanse teaming with wildlife and the legacies of explorers including Shackleton, Scott and modern day explorers.

The Ross Sea and East Antarctica is a beautiful, remote and rarely visit region bordered by the icy expanse of the Antarctic continent to the south and the peaks of the Transantarctic mountains to the west. A cruise here offers an otherworldly landscape of towering icebergs, expansive ice shelves, and vast stretches of sea ice unfolds.

Named after the British explorer Sir James Clark Ross, who discovered the region in the 19th century, the Ross Sea is renowned for its rich biodiversity and legacy of exploration. Along its shores, historic huts and remnants of early Antarctic expeditions stand as testament to the bravery and determination of the explorers who ventured into this frozen wilderness.

To the east is East Antarctica, a vast area that encompasses nearly two-thirds of the Antarctic continent with immense ice sheets, glaciers, towering mountain ranges and deep fjords. Despite its harsh environment, East Antarctica teems with life, from resilient penguin colonies to majestic albatrosses soaring overhead.

One of the highlights on an expedition cruise to the Ross Sea is the Ross Ice Shelf, the largest floating ice body in the world, and Cape Hallett, an Antarctic oasis (snow free area). It served as the base for the founder of AE Expeditions, Greg Mortimer, during his 1988 Bicentennial Antarctic Expedition. Located nearby on the west side of Hallett peninsula, Seabee Hook hosts a significant Adélie penguin rookery.

Other highlights include visiting the historic huts of explorers like Shackleton and Scott, seeing vast ice shelves, spotting unique wildlife, and experiencing the remote and untouched beauty of the Ross Sea region. You can expect to see emperor penguins, Adelie penguins, Weddell seals, minke whales, orcas, and various seabirds. The Ross Sea region is known for its rich biodiversity.