Must-see attractions in Antarctica

  • This historic hut, at Cape Evans, on the shore of Ross Island, in the Ross Sea, was the starting point for Robert Falcon Scott's ill fated trek to the South Pole. The hut is in remarkably good condition, thanks to its proximity to New Zealand's Scott Base and the US' McMurdo Sound Base, and regular visits from conservators,

    Terra Nova Hut

    Antarctica

    Scott’s hut from the Terra Nova expedition is steeped in an incredible feeling of history. Here, dog skeletons bleach on the sand in the Antarctic sun,…

  • ANTARTICA - JANUARY 14:  In this handout image provided by the Monaco Palace, a general view of the wooden hut built by Earnest Shackleton in 1907, visited by Prince Albert Of Monaco, now kept by Dr David G Ainley in Cape Royds on January 15, 2009 in Antartica.  (Photo by Monaco Palace via Getty Images)

    Shackleton’s Hut

    Antarctica

    Shackleton erected this structure on his Nimrod expedition in February 1908. Fifteen men lived in the hut, which is much smaller than Scott’s at Cape…

  • Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station

    Antarctica

    The South Pole station was built in phases, so the first group of occupants was able to take up residence in January 2003, and it was officially…

  • Antarctica Lemaire Channel snowy mountain

    Lemaire Channel

    Antarctic Peninsula

    This steep-sided channel – just 1600m (5250ft) wide – runs for 11km (7 miles) between the mountains of Booth Island and the Peninsula. So photogenic that…

  • Christ Church Cathedral

    Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

    The great peat slip of 1886, a landslide which killed two people and damaged numerous buildings, wiped out Stanley’s Holy Trinity Church. The foundation…

  • Ceremonial South Pole

    Antarctica

    The resplendent flags of the original 12 Antarctic Treaty signatories surround this red-and-white-striped ‘barber’ pole, capped by a chromium globe, so it…

  • IceCube Neutrino Observatory at the south pole station; Shutterstock ID 1146088580; your: Bridget Brown; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI Image Update

    Science Facilities

    Antarctica

    Most of the scientific facilities at the Pole are off-limits to visitors, to avoid disrupting research. Other laboratories are off-limits because their…

  • Borchgrevink’s Huts

    Antarctica

    In February 1899, four years after Kristensen’s landing here, Borchgrevink was back at Cape Adare as the leader of the Southern Cross expedition. It took…

  • Abandoned facilities tells us a story about the whaling days in South Georgia back to the 1900s.

    Whalers’ Cemetery

    South Georgia

    Shackleton’s grave is the highlight of the whalers’ cemetery at Grytviken. ‘The Boss’ is buried at the left rear of the graveyard. On the back of the…

  • Scott Base

    Antarctica

    Compared to McMurdo’s ‘urban sprawl,’ just 3km away by gravel road, New Zealand’s Scott Base looks positively pastoral. An orderly collection of lime…

  • Antarctic peninsula, Goudier Island, Old British Base at Port Lockroy, Bransfield House

    Bransfield House

    Antarctic Peninsula

    Britain beautifully restored the original station building, Bransfield House, the main building of Base A, in 1996. Displays on the station’s history hang…

  • Eduardo Frei Montalva Station

    King George Island

    Chile constructed this station, known as Frei station, in 1969 on the nearly ice-free Fildes Peninsula at the island’s southwestern tip, and 10 years…

  • Scott’s Discovery Hut

    Antarctica

    Scott’s National Antarctic Expedition built this hut in February 1902 on aptly named Hut Point. The prefabricated building, purchased in Australia, is of…

  • Palmer Station

    Antarctic Peninsula

    Palmer was built in 1968 on the island’s southwest coast to honor American sealer Nathaniel B Palmer, who in 1820 was one of the first to see Antarctica…

  • Scott's Hut, Cape Evans, Ross Island, Antarctica. Built 1911 by the crew of the Terra Nova Expedition led by Captain Robert Falcon Scott, this hut was used as a base of operations for Scott's ill-fated trek to the South Pole. Owing to the cold, dry, polar conditions and remote location, the hut and artifacts remain remarkably well preserved. Pictured is Captain Scott's sleeping quarters, the last place he ever spent a night indoors.

    Nordenskjöld Hut

    Antarctic Peninsula

    The Swedish South Polar Expedition’s prefabricated black-walled hut, the Antarctic Peninsula’s oldest remaining building, is a protected historic site…

  • Novolazarevskaya Station

    Antarctica

    Located at the southeastern tip of the Schirmacher oasis and on the shores of Lake Stantsionnoye, Russia’s Novolazarevskaya Station is named for Mikhail…

  • Esperanza Station

    Antarctic Peninsula

    Argentina built this base in 1951, though a naval post was established here in 1930. Esperanza was significantly expanded in 1978 and women and children…

  • Davis Station

    Antarctica

    Named after Captain John King Davis, master of ships used on expeditions led by Shackleton and Mawson, Australia’s Davis Station is a colorful collection…

  • Rothera Research Station

    Antarctic Peninsula

    The UK’s Rothera, built in 1975, occupies a small peninsula on Adelaide’s southeast coast. A 900m gravel airstrip and hangar were added in 1990–91, making…

  • Academician Vernadsky Station

    Antarctic Peninsula

    This Ukrainian base, which accommodates 24 people, is located on Galindez Island. Transferred from the UK in 1996 for £1 (look for the actual coin…

  • Bellingshausen Station

    King George Island

    Russia set up Bellingshausen station in 1968 and it is now separated from Frei base by a small stream. After a fuel-tank farm was established,…

  • Emperor Penguins

    Antarctic Peninsula

    On the fast ice about 400m from the low ice cliffs on Snow Hill Island’s south coast is Antarctica’s northernmost (and most accessible) emperor penguin…

  • Crary Science & Engineering Center

    McMurdo Station

    Symbolically numbered ‘Building 1,’ this center, usually called the ‘Crary Lab,’ is named for Albert P Crary, a geophysicist and glaciologist who was the…

  • Hansen’s Grave

    Antarctica

    The Southern Cross expedition’s zoologist, Norwegian Nicolai Hansen, died on October 14, 1899, probably of an intestinal disorder: the first human death…

  • Geographic South Pole

    Antarctica

    The Geographic South Pole (Geodetic Pole) marks the spot at one end of the Earth’s axis of rotation (the other being the North Pole). It is indicated by a…

  • Henryk Arctowski Station

    King George Island

    Poland’s Arctowski station, opened in 1977, was named for a geologist on Adrien de Gerlache’s Belgica expedition and houses 40 people. Female visitors…

  • Mawson's Main Hut

    Antarctica

    Mawson intended to have two separate huts, one housing 12 men, the other six. But it was decided to join the two, creating an accommodation area and a…

  • Mario Zucchelli Station

    Antarctica

    At the coast, Italy operates summer-only Mario Zucchelli Station, which accommodates 90 people. The station, a collection of blue buildings with orange…

  • Building 155

    McMurdo Station

    Building 155 is McMurdo’s indoor Main St, and the long central corridor is known as Hwy 1. Along it are the dining facility (still known as the Galley…

  • Commandante Ferraz Station

    King George Island

    Brazil’s Commandante Ferraz Station on Admiralty Bay, opened in 1983–84, is located between an old whaling station and the site of the abandoned British…

  • South Georgia Museum

    South Georgia

    When entering this wonderful museum, be sure to look up to see the wandering albatross mounted overhead. Unless you’re a scientist, this is the closest…

  • Plateau Observatory

    Antarctica

    In early 2008 a six-tractor caravan left China’s Zhongshan Station, covering the 1300km traverse to Dome A in three weeks to set up the PLATO Observatory…

  • East Base

    Antarctic Peninsula

    East Base was built during aviator Richard Byrd’s third Antarctic expedition, the US Antarctic Service Expedition of 1939–41. It was also used in 1947–48…

  • Mawson Station

    Antarctica

    Australia's Mawson Station was established in February 1954. Named for Douglas Mawson, an Australian Antarctic explorer, it is the oldest continuously…

  • Whalers’ Church

    South Georgia

    The restored Whalers’ Church, consecrated on Christmas Day, 1913, is a typical Norwegian church. Indeed, it was originally erected in Strømmen before…

  • Goudier Island

    Antarctic Peninsula

    Goudier Island is home to 800 pairs of gentoos. Monitoring of their breeding success since 1995 has found no discernible impact from tourists, who tramp…

  • Maitri Station

    Antarctica

    Maitri, Hindi for friendship, is a long, U-shaped, tan-colored building with a large Indian flag over the entrance. Maitri’s winter and summer complement…

  • Grave of Matthew Brisbane

    Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

    Vernet’s lieutenant Matthew Brisbane was murdered by gauchos after British naval officer JJ Onslow left him in charge of Port Louis in August 1833. In…

  • Chapel of the Snows

    McMurdo Station

    The white Chapel of the Snows, a 64-seat house of worship with a pretty, penguin-motif stained-glass window and an organ, is the third chapel raised at…

  • Torgersen Island

    Antarctic Peninsula

    The Adélie rookery just offshore is often visited in conjunction with Palmer Station. Since 1974, however, the Adélie population here has dropped by 60%…

Not Antarctica... but still worth the visit