THE LAST TERRESTRIAL TOURISM FRONTIER
Nature lovers, adventurers and explorers flock to Antarctica, writes Luis Andres Henao.
KING GEORGE ISLAND, ANTARCTICA They trekked snow-covered mountains, gasped at seals flopping along the coastline and oohed at penguins waddling along on the ice, and even took in the spectacle of a humpback whale flapping its tale amid a sea of melting icebergs.
But then, the dozens of tourists stranded on a cruise ship at the end of the world could only stare up at the sky, waiting for several days of thick fog to clear so they could go home. “In Antarctica, you can plan all you like, but you can’t really schedule anything,” goes a local saying.
It’s the last terrestrial tourism frontier that nature lovers, adventurers and explorers are rushing to visit. This tourist season, which runs November through March, more than 37,000 people are expected to visit the coldest continent on Earth, about 10 per cent more than last season.
While some tourists climb Mount Vinson, Antarctica’s highest point at 4,892 metres, others seek a chance to take in the views of otherworldly terrain or snap pictures of massive groups of penguins as they bop in and out of the water. Still others do extreme sports, like scuba diving in icy waters, or imagine themselves as early 20th-century explorers during re-enactment expeditions. High-profile visitors of recent years include Bill Gates and Prince Harry, while heavy metal band Metallica rocked out for a small group of fans at the Carlini Argentine Base here in 2013.
No matter the draw, a strong dose of humour, patience and humility, not to mention tens of thousands of dollars, are an essential part of any Antarctica vacation. Without fail, every year some tourists are left waiting for the sun to come out, or for a patchy Internet connection to work, or even for help to get their stuck boots dislodged from the ice.
“Was it worth it? Yes, of course it was,” said English tourist Christine Brannan, 65, recently holed up on the cruise ship. “But I would say to anybody who wants to do the flight and cruise to be aware of the unpredictability.”
“It’s been fantastic,” chimed in husband John as the couple walked with a group of tourists to the airstrip. “It’s something we’ll never forget.”
Antarctica is roughly the size of United States and Mexico combined, but tourists and the 4,000 or so scientists who live here part of the year mostly keep to areas that aren’t permanently frozen and where wildlife can be found. Those areas account for less than two per cent of the continent.
Most visitors arrive on the Antarctic Peninsula, accessible from southern Argentina and Chile by plane or ship. The next most popular destination is the Ross Sea on the opposite side of the continent, which visitors reach after sailing 10 days from New Zealand or Australia.
The harsh environment requires vacationers to come with many essentials: waterresistant hiking boots, several layers of winter clothes including long underwear and a parka, and powerful sun lotion and dark shades with extra ultraviolet protection.
“I was awed by everything,” said Maria Estela Dorion, a retired nurse from Chile. “The snow-covered mountains, the sunsets, the sunrises. There are no words to describe Antarctica.”
Although many tourists are well-heeled retirees who mostly stay aboard cruise ships, conservationists worry about potentially devastating environmental damage from boat pollution and from the more adventurous visitors who hike or cross-country ski around sensitive sites, such as moss beds or bird breeding colonies during the Southern Hemisphere summer, when 24-hour daylight allows unrestricted access.
Increasing foot traffic poses “particular risks of disturbance or contamination to some of the last remaining essentially pristine areas on the planet,” said Alan Hemmings, an environmental consultant on polar regions. “We should not passively watch Antarctica being turned into a theme park.”
Hemmings said several countries with territorial claims in Antarctica, such as the United States, Great Britain, Argentina, Chile and others, have signed agreements to regulate tourism, but most are non-binding or nearly impossible to enforce.
Despite the unpredictable weather and high costs, tourism in Antarctica has become increasingly popular since the 1980s, when on average fewer than 2,000 visitors came per year. The peak was in 2007-08, when 46,000 people visited, according to Rhode Island-based International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators.