Discover the white continent by cruise

It’s early morning on Astrolabe Island and penguins are zipping through Antarctica’s petrol-blue seas, their plump bodies surfacing then disappearing, seemingly stitching the waves with impressive speed.

Above, a storm petrel rides the thermals in a sky of ink-blue brilliance, and when our Zodiac inflatable reaches the shore, a cacophony of screeches from chinstrap and Adélie penguins shatters the icy air.

In truth, we were never destined to visit this rocky outcrop. The previous day, a guest had fallen sick aboard our expedition ship, Viking Octantis, and an emergency evacuation was considered necessary.

Cue a speedy itinerary rethink and here we now are, enjoying what is quickly becoming a highlight stop on this 12-night Antarctic Explorer voyage.

We scrabble ashore, stepping gingerly to avoid the foul, fishy-smelling guano that carpets this tiny island. And goodness, it’s a remote spot. Snow-cloaked serrated peaks rise from its core.

A fur seal sprawls on a blond beach, while Weddell seals snooze in the sunshine close to our Zodiac landing, occasionally stirring to scratch their whiskers before returning to their doze.

I scan the basalt ledges with my binoculars, pulling into focus countless colonies of chinstraps, waddling like superannuated waiters. Two fluffy chicks nestle against their parents, and this pinch-me moment only intensifies when I look down and find a baby chinstrap staring quizzically at my thick rubber boots.

Our expedition guide, Andres, says, “The last time there was a penguin count on Astrolabe was in 1996, so we are hugely excited by this detour. Our penguin experts, Mairi and Hayley, will send up a drone later to do a new count."

We are midway through our extraordinary adventure and fast becoming familiar with penguin species – along with whales, birds and all kinds of icebergs – thanks to the lectures given by Viking Octantis’s crack team of onboard scientists.

Day by day, the rich experiences accumulate. There’s the thrill of lying in bed, watching clouds of vapour erupt from an unseen blowhole, the chilly air resounding with cetacean sighs as a humpback whale begins to breach. Then, when land is within reach, dressing for bitter temperatures before boarding a military-grade Zodiac.

Mind you, we have certainly earned these memorable moments. Our crossing from Ushuaia on the southern tip of Argentina included the fearsome 600-mile Drake Passage, and although Viking Octantis effortlessly cleaved her way through five-metre waves and withstood 60-knot winds, the notorious ‘Drake shake’ chased many guests back to their beds.

Yes, we were unlucky, but it was a small penance to pay for the ensuing remote beauty. At dawn the following day we head for the bow. As we sip hot chocolate, the waves grow calmer and it feels as though Moses has arrived to ease our passage through the narrow Lemaire Channel.

Ice floes litter the ocean surface like the scattered pieces of a giant jigsaw. As this is the Antarctic summer, we are greeted by eye-smartingly blue skies and plate-glass reflections of snowy peaks. It’s an ethereal seascape, with icebergs frosting the horizon in an array of astonishing shapes.

One resembles a frozen trawler, another the Eiffel Tower. Many take on the form of mythical beasts or ghostly frozen waves striated with bands of turquoise. Then something extraordinary happens: the water erupts as orcas slice through the channel, their black dorsal fins moving in sleek synchronicity.

Offsetting all this excitement is our home for the duration of the journey. Viking Octantis is like a hybrid of the line’s ocean and river ships but with Polar Class 6 capabilities including a toughened hull that cuts through ice.

Public spaces for 378 guests include The Living Room, Explorers’ Lounge and a well-stocked library where flickering vapour fires and reindeer throws add Scandi-chic embellishment to the cream leather armchairs.

Then there’s the indoor thermal pool, hot tub, steam room and gym, alongside an array of Nordic treatments in the complimentary spa. The Nordic bath, which involves hot and cold water therapies, meditation and a foot massage, is particularly rejuvenating.

Equally soothing is the neutral décor in our Deluxe Nordic Balcony stateroom, where a floor-to-ceiling window slides down at the press of a button, allowing us to capture that perfect shot of whales. There’s also a heated bathroom floor and a drying cabinet for wet gear (boots, waterproof trousers and keepsake jackets are complimentary for all guests).

Life on board is supremely relaxing, moving from cocktails in the Explorers’ Lounge, accompanied by live classical music, to lunches and dinners in World Café or the more formal Restaurant.

I also enjoy a memorable scallop ravioli, Dover sole and a perfectly cooked Chateaubriand at the Italian-themed speciality venue Manfredi’s.

Cosy Mamsen’s café, meanwhile, serves a late breakfast of fruit-topped waffles and an apple cake made to an old recipe of Viking’s owners, the Hagen family, alongside split pea soup available all day.

Viking Octantis joins its sister ship Viking Polaris in offering an impressive collection of Bond-worthy gadgets. As well as those Zodiacs, there’s a stack of kayaks and two adapted ‘special operation boats’ that allow less able guests to enjoy the icy wilderness.

But the star attractions are the ship’s two yellow submarines, and beneath a snow-capped volcanic plug in Chiriguano Bay I can’t wait to join five other guests for a thrilling dive aboard Paul (like the subs aboard Viking Polaris, it’s named after one of the Beatles).

Our captain, Josh Pons, guides us through the narrow aperture where a ladder leads to our seats. A deep thrum resounds as we slowly descend to the frigid seabed, the light changing from deep blue to speckled maroon. Josh tells us this is marine snow, made up of algae and phytoplankton. Then, at the touch of a switch, he swivels our seats so we can enjoy uninterrupted views from the curved lens windows.

At 203m down he flicks off the lamp. The blackness is absolute. “What’s cool is that what we’re about to see has never been seen by anyone before,” he tells us, flicking the lights back on. “If we’re lucky, we might see the elusive phantom jellyfish.”

The ocean floor is a rock-garden world of tiny krill, knobbly volcano sponges and dark-red algae. A starfish the size of a plate, with 50 hairy legs, looms into view – a species, Josh explains, that has been around for 350 million years.

Sea stars are in abundance; anemones too, while ribbony seaweed dances across our sightline. That jellyfish remains elusive but a crocodile icefish appears – ghostly and skeletal, barely moving to conserve its energy.

These submarines are also used by the onboard scientific team, and Josh explains that their plans include measuring salinity as well as observing life forms on the seabed.

The ship’s scientific bias is hugely valuable because it allows researchers to do academic work in a remote region that would normally be beyond their budgets. There’s a fully equipped laboratory on board, and the team includes a marine mammal specialist, an engineer from the US Antarctic Program and researchers affiliated to renowned institutions such as Washington-based Oceanites, which monitors penguin populations.

It feels immeasurably privileged to draw on their knowledge. Alongside lively lectures in the panoramic Aula auditorium, they share their research with us in the part of the ship dubbed “Expedition Central”.

One day you could be peering through a microscope at phytoplankton; the next, helping to launch the ship’s weather balloon – the world’s only roving example that measures and predicts weather patterns across Antarctica.

Our cruise ends with yet another highlight. It’s evening, and as we enjoy a cocktail in our stateroom, the sea suddenly boils with activity. Rushing to the window, we marvel at humpbacks beyond number, sighing then breaching in a slo-mo dance of curved grey bodies, while cape petrels stain the sky. Among many others, it’s an image I won’t easily forget.

Get onboard

Follow in the footsteps of explorers such as Amundsen, Shackleton and Scott as you discover the world’s last wild frontier on a 12-night Antarctic Explorer cruise. Glimpse wildlife among glaciers and icebergs and stop in Buenos Aires, Ushuaia and Antarctica. From £10,095, sailing in November 2024, including return flight from the UK.