Antarctica21 Opens Its Biggest Air-Cruise Season
Antarctica21's 2028-29 season has 47 fly-the-Drake air-cruises from Punta Arenas, with up to US$5,000 per person off Classic Antarctica and Polar Circle for bookings confirmed by 31 January 2027.
Antarctica21 has opened bookings for its 2028-29 season: 47 air-cruise departures, its largest programme yet. Early bookers save up to US$5,000 per person on every Classic Antarctica and Polar Circle departure, for new bookings confirmed by 31 January 2027 or until the cabins allocated to the offer sell out.
The season marks 25 years since the company first flew guests over the Drake Passage in 2003. The flight from Punta Arenas to King George Island takes about two hours, compared with a two-day crossing by sea.
The four air-cruises
| Itinerary | Length | 2028-29 departures |
|---|---|---|
| Classic Antarctica | 8 days / 7 nights | Most of the 47 |
| Polar Circle | 10 days / 9 nights | 2 |
| Antarctica & South Georgia | 18 days / 17 nights | 1 |
| Antarctica Express | 6 days / 5 nights | 2 |
Antarctica21’s season announcement lists Classic Antarctica from US$15,995 per person before the discount. Fares vary by ship and departure, so check the live rate before quoting.
Every 2028-29 itinerary begins and ends in Punta Arenas, Chile.
Ships and Punta Arenas
All departures use Magellan Explorer and Magellan Discoverer, each carrying up to 88 guests on air-cruises. Antarctica21 describes Magellan Discoverer, built at the ASENAV yard in Valdivia, Chile, and new for 2026-27, as South America’s first hybrid-electric polar expedition ship.
Before flying south, guests spend time at Explorers House, the company’s private club in a converted early-1900s wool warehouse in Punta Arenas. Briefings, gear fitting and Zodiac practice happen there, along with a welcome dinner.
Antarctica21 is CarbonNeutral® certified and an IAATO member. Brigitte Lämmle, its sales and marketing director, announced the season.
Sources
- Antarctica21 release via Sublime PR, 2028-29 season, 21 Oct 2026
- Antarctica21, Introducing our new 2028-29 Antarctica air-cruise season: 47 departures, fares, offer deadline, 20 Oct 2026
- Antarctica21, Magellan Discoverer: hybrid-electric, 88 guests on air-cruises
- Antarctica21, Explorers House, Punta Arenas
- Antarctica21, Classic Antarctica: 8 days/7 nights
- Antarctica21, Polar Circle: 10 days/9 nights
- Antarctica21, Antarctica & South Georgia: 18 days/17 nights, 2028-29 round trip from Punta Arenas
- Antarctica21, Antarctica Express: 6 days/5 nights, 2028-29 round trip from Punta Arenas
Casie Stewart is Senior Editor at Not An Atlas, usually found in a Toronto coffee shop in a cute outfit, laptop open, coffee in hand and phone (always) within arm's reach. Some of her warmest memories are of fishing and camping in New Zealand's Bay of Islands with her family as a kid. She's a New Zealand citizen, and it will always feel like home. She takes the window seat (she wants to see the world, not the beverage cart), swears by her Trtl travel pillow (comfort over cool, always) and orders whatever the locals are having. Waking up to the sounds of the rainforest in the middle of the Costa Rican jungle is her “this is why I travel” moment, and Arizona's deserts and sunsets are where she'd go back tomorrow. She covers the places, people, food and festivals that make a destination memorable. Friends say funny, effervescent and organized. Her mum adds cuddly. Next stop: Bali.
