Antarctic Cruising: Five Things I Wish I’d Packed & Two I Couldn’t Do Without

Antarctic in the summer is a lot of things: cold, windy, and bright to name just three. It can also be sunny one minute and snowing up a storm the next. It’s a place of variables, of ever-changing conditions – and that can make packing for an Antarctic cruise difficult.

There are numerous Antarctica packing guides out there, and most of the cruise lines that offer expedition sailings here offer their own advice – often with a link to purchase items directly form them. I used these lists to help craft my packing list for my Antarctic cruise with Lindblad Expeditions, and even so, I ended up not having a handful of items that would have been helpful.

To help travel advisors who have never been to Antarctica before, here are five things I wish I’d brought with me, and two you don’t want to let your clients leave without.

(A quick note, one of the most important items to bring will almost always be given to your clients – a brightly colored, super warm parka. The bright orange, double layered parka with interior shell that Lindblad Expeditions provided everyone on my cruise is probably the warmest jacked I’ve ever had.)

Wish I’d brought

Our packing list from Lindblad clearly stated we’d need comfortable shoes, with a solid bottom for walking around on the ship. I brought comfy sneakers.

What I didn’t think about was that with these particularly sneakers, every time I want to put them on or take them off, I have to untie them. When you’re called down to the Mud Room to gear up for your turn on the Zodiac or for a landing, you want to be able to quickly get out of your everyday shoes and into your rubber boots. Similarly, when you return from outside, you want to quickly get back to your cabin to get out of anything wet (or sweaty) and warm up. Having to untie and tie laces every time, makes the process that much longer.

I would have benefited from bringing a pair of slip-on shoes like Crocs or flip-flop.

Most Antarctica packing lists will list a pair of sunglasses to protect your eyes from the ever-present glare of 24-hour a day sun hitting all the snow and ice. I was prepared for that. What I didn’t anticipate was the snow and frozen rain, which when you’re zipping through a bay at speed in a Zodiac will find its way behind your sunglasses to sting your eyes. Even on land, if you’re like me, and you need to take off your sunglasses to take pictures, you might end up with burning, watery eyes.

I ended up buying a baseball cap from the small store onboard National Geographic Explorer, and on snowy days it made a big difference, doing a much better job protecting my eyes than only sunglasses.

As an aside- some people brought ski goggles, which will definitely protect your eyes from the elements, but generally have to be removed for picture taking. If you have clients where only one person will be doing most of the photography, let the others know that ski goggles can be useful.

I brought three t-shirts with me, not including the one I wore under my fleece on the journey from home to Buenos Aires. I figured that would be more than enough, after all, wasn’t I going to be wearing my base layer more often that not? As it turns out, no, you’re not. While I’ve typically been off the ship for one to two hours every morning and afternoon, the rest of the time I’m hanging around on the ship. And the base layer and a fleece sweater is too warm. Not to mention, on more active excursions – like kayaking or walking – the top base layer was often also too warm, leaving my sweating under all my layers. On excursions where I knew I was going to be more active, I usually swapped out the base layer for a t-shirt – except I only brought three, which left me wearing the same (sometimes sweaty) tee under my fleece for lunch or dinner.

I could easily have used two to three more t-shirts!

This one is truly on me. Our packing list included mention of a dry bag, but I ignored it. I didn’t anticipate how wet things might get on the Zodiac – whether from waves splashing over the sides or heavy snow falling from above. After our first outing, during which my camera got pretty wet and I tried hiding it inside my parka, I returned to the onboard store for a dry bag. From then on, I stored my camera inside the bag except when actively taking photos. It was also a good place to put my binoculars when we weren’t using them, as well as a lens cloth.

I’m not a big photo person. I have a pretty decent point-and-shoot Panasonic that takes good photos, but it’s not the kind you swap lenses on. I don’t carry a big camera bag, don’t have any lens filters, and rarely if ever take it out of automatic mode. So, it’s really no surprise I wasn’t thinking about my camera when putting together my packing list. It’s served me well exactly as is on multiple trips around the world.

It’s been great in Antarctica too, but I haven’t been great to it. I lens protector would have been immensely useful, especially given how much snow we’ve had. Nothing ruins a shot more than snowflakes hitting – and drying on – your lens. There’s only so much a lens cloth can do in such wet conditions.

Another piece of camera equipment I wish I’d brought was my Go-Pro. I’ve only ever used it in tropical destinations to take underwater photo and videos during snorkel excursions. Since I knew I wasn’;t going to be snorkeling and the Antarctic is famous for its mesmerizing underwater life, it didn’t occur to me to bring it. What I didn’t realize is that we’re often surrounded by swimming, diving penguins. People who brought their Go-Pros were able to put them underwater to get video of the penguins, not to mention the fantastic underwater ice.

Couldn’t do without

I pretty much lived in my thermal leggings. Unlike the thermal base top, which was often too warm, the leggings were the perfect accessory to wear with my safari-style hiking pants, which were my go-to for all day wear, excursions included. Even onboard, I rarely took them off, during the day, as running out onto our balcony or to an outside deck to see whales or spectacular icebergs was usually too cold in just the hiking pants or jeans. Because I chose black thermal leggings, I could even wear them to a meal paired with a fleece sweater and they looked like normal leggings.

I discovered gaiters in the Galapagos, where I used them to protect my face from the brutal sun. When it came to packing for Antarctica, I knew I wanted to bring a gaiter to protect my face – this time from the biting cold – but I didn’t think the one I picked up for the Galapagos would cut it, so I invested in a thermal one. It’s great because it works as a scarf, and when I pull it up it covers my chin, lips, and nose. I can even pull it over my head and leave part of it over my head, under my wool cap, thus better protecting my ears, especially during windy Zodiac drives.

An alternative to a gaiter that I saw some people wearing is a balaclava.