South Georgia Island

King Penguins in St. Andrew's Bay South Georgia Island is a sub-Antarctic island located 1390 km southeast of the Falkland Islands and 2150 km from South America. It is the home of vast numbers of birds and marine life, but its remote location and lack of access makes it a rare destination for tourists. Get in There are no airstrips on the island, so aside from an occasional visit from a military seaplane the only access to the island is by boat. Most tourists arrive on icebreakers and other large vessels as a part of a trip to the Antarctic Peninsula, although a handful of smaller boats also brave the rough passage to the island. Whether on a small or large boat, even the crustiest old seaman should expect to become seasick during the crossing and should bring appropriate medications. Companies that can help to arrange travel to the islands include: Cheeseman's Ecology Safaris. www.cheesemans.com. A family owned company that leads a trip to the Falklands, South Georgia and the Antarctic Peninsula almost every year. The Cheeseman trip is one of the only trips to spend seven days on South Georgia, making it a great option for anyone wanting to maximize their time on this island. Quark Expeditions. www.quarkexpeditions.com. Quark is a larger company known for travels to remote locations. They stop in South Georgia for 3-4 days as part of some of their Antarctic Peninsula trips. Golden Fleece Expeditions. www.horizon.co.fk/goldenfleecexp/. Run by Jerome Poncet, a resident of the Falklands who has been visiting South Georgia longer than anyone else. His boat, the Golden Fleece, holds eight passengers, and must be chartered well in advance as Jerome is a used heavily by National Geographic, the BBC, and various research groups. See Some people believe that St. Andrew's Bay holds more density of wildlife than any other place on earth, and a first view of the massive king penguin colony and seal rookery makes this claim hard to doubt. This island is a paradise for wildlife lovers, with literally millions and millions of animals going about their lives with little concern for the handful of humans that occasionally appear. St. Andrew's Bay Salisbury Plain Grytviken Drygalkski Fjord Albatross Island Elsehul Cooper Bay Do Photography Skiing Hiking Sailing Research Eat The only food available will be what you bring with you. Fishing and hunting on the island is prohibited. Sleep Any overnight stay on the island requires a very expensive permit, so nearly all visitors to the island sleep on their boat. Contact Mail can be sent from Grytviken, and is picked up approximately every two weeks. The only other means of communicating with the outside world is via satellite phone, which most boats make available for between $2 and $5 per minute. External links South Georgia Island Official Site This article is still a stub and needs your attention. It does not have a template. Please plunge forward and help it grow!