Elephant Island Antarctica South Shetlands
Antarctica
53
Cruises availables
At departure or passage at this port
Aurora Expeditions (3 Cruises)
Celebrity Cruises (11 Cruises)
Celebrity Equinox
11 Cruises
Lindblad Expeditions (2 Cruises)
Norwegian Cruise Line (6 Cruises)
Frequently Asked Questions
Because twenty-two men from Ernest Shackleton's expedition survived one hundred and thirty-seven days there in 1916, on a spit of shingle called Point Wild, after their ship Endurance was crushed by the ice of the Weddell Sea.
Rarely. Shallow reefs, surf and sudden weather changes make any landing uncertain : some expedition leaders have put passengers on that shingle only twice in thirty attempts. The visit is usually a zodiac cruise along the shore or a slow pass by the ship.
The shore where the Endurance castaways waited for rescue, a few dozen metres of shingle wedged between a glacier and black water. They overturned two lifeboats there for shelter. The place is named after Frank Wild, the expedition's second in command, who kept discipline and hope alive.
Yes, a bronze bust honours the Chilean captain Luis Pardo Villalón, whose tug Yelcho succeeded in August 1916 in taking off every man. Not one member of the crew was lost.
In the Weddell Sea, where it was found in 2022 at more than 3,000 metres depth, remarkably preserved. It cannot be visited, but the discovery brought Shackleton's story back to worldwide attention.
Because of the elephant seals the first sealers found sprawled on its beaches. The name has nothing to do with the island's shape.
Chinstrap penguins in their thousands on the ice free slopes, their din carrying across every approach to the coast. Seals haul out on the shingle, Cape petrels wheel in the wake, and humpback whales pass through in the austral summer.
Dark cliffs rising straight out of the Southern Ocean, capped by glaciers spilling down to the sea. The wind barely lets up and the swell comes from every direction. From the bridge you understand that this island welcomes no one : at best it tolerates a visit.
Several warm and waterproof layers for zodiac work, even in January. Antarctic biosecurity rules apply : clothing vacuumed, boots disinfected, distances kept from wildlife.
Strongly recommended. The onboard lecturers tell the Endurance story before arrival, and that talk transforms the visit : without it you see only a grey beach hammered by waves.
