Fly the Drake

A private flight across the Drake and straight to the ice. A private, tailored journey of 8-9 days in The Antarctic Peninsula, Antarctica, designed end to end by a Forest Travel advisor — with Virtuoso privileges at the finest luxury hotels, from US$25,000 per traveler.

Antarctica is the last true wilderness, a continent with no residents and no crowds, where a private expedition places the great white silence entirely at your own unhurried pace.

When to go

Travel November through March, when the Antarctic summer opens the ice and daylight barely fades; December and January bring peak wildlife, while November delivers pristine snow and March offers the finest whale watching. Your advisor times it to the light, the crowds and your own calendar.

The experiences

A sense of what this journey can hold — each one arranged privately and shaped to you:

• A private charter flight south across the Drake Passage, landing straight onto the ice.
• A first afternoon Zodiac cruise, arriving among the icebergs the same day you flew in.
• A short shore walk to a gentoo colony with the whole coast to yourselves.
• A quiet evening on deck at anchor, the sea flat and the peaks close on either side.

A sense of the rhythm

Flying the Drake trades two days of open-ocean crossing at each end for a couple of hours in the air, which turns a long expedition into something a busy schedule can hold. You reach the ice sooner, spend proportionally more of the journey among it, and leave the roughest water to those who prefer the traditional way. It is the Peninsula for the time-rich in attention but not in days.

Sail the Drake or fly over it?

Sailing is part of the pilgrimage for some; flying is a gift of days for others. If your calendar is tight or the open crossing holds no romance for you, the flight puts you on the ice with hours to spare.

How to do it well

The counsel our advisors give travelers planning this journey:

• Weather can shift a flight by a day; keep the surrounding schedule soft.
• The shorter format still delivers the essential Peninsula, distilled.
• Ask your advisor to pair the flight with a night in the gateway city beforehand.
• Pack light for the charter; luggage allowances are firmer than on a ship.

What only your advisor can open

The difference between a good trip and an unrepeatable one is access — and access is a relationship, not a booking. Every guide, room and moment is chosen and sequenced for you.

Who it's for

Travelers who value privacy, time and doing it once — beautifully — and who would rather have one trusted advisor orchestrate every detail than assemble it themselves.

Estimated investment

From US$25,000 per traveler, based on double occupancy — scaled to your dates, party size and level of privacy. A starting point, not a final quote; confirmed once your advisor tailors the itinerary.

Designed entirely around you

Nothing here is a package. A Forest Travel advisor shapes the whole journey and stays one message away before and throughout your trip.

Your Virtuoso privileges

As a Virtuoso member, Forest Travel includes benefits reserved for Virtuoso guests at the finest luxury hotels, at no added cost: a room upgrade on arrival when available, daily breakfast for two, a property credit toward dining or spa, and early check-in with late check-out when the hotel allows.

Continue exploring The Antarctic Peninsula

Part of our The Antarctic Peninsula travel guide. Related private journeys:

• The Private Ship
• Kayak & Adventure
• The Photographer's Antarctic

Begin the conversation

Tell a Forest Travel advisor how you like to travel and they will design Fly the Drake around you — privately, every Virtuoso privilege included. Request your private consultation →