Ski and Sail in the Antarctica Peninsula

Price: 28000 €

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Antarctica, the last continent, is as remote as it is impressive. Few have had the chance to set foot on this unknown land, and even fewer the pleasure of skiing from its summits perched over the sea. Nevertheless the joy of discovering the beauty of the Antarctic peninsula can be yours.

Sublime turns, far-flung summits, unique animals, breathtaking landscape and friendship aboard: few experiences will match it.

Our 20m yacht will be our base camp and transport for our entire voyage form Ushuaia to the Antarctic peninsula.

First, we round the mighty Cape Horn, which divides the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. Then, we enter Drake Passage and the South Atlantic, discovering our first icebergs. The passage is an unforgettable experience of the open ocean. Next we make landfall at the Antarctic peninsula, swathed in ice and culminating in a peak of 3000m. It's a once-in-a-lifetime sight.

We reach most of the summits on an out-and-back route. Some are more remote and require camping in tents, the beauty of a camp with the background of an iceberg-studded sea is incomparable. This is an aventure in which dreams turns real.

Days 1 - 2: Flight Paris - Ushuaïa

Boarding the yacht.

Ushuaïa harbord

Cap Horn

Days 3 - 6: Passage to the Antarctic peninsula

Steering the boat in the Drake passage

We round Cape Horn, then enter Drake Passage to arrive alongside the peninsula.

Days 7 - 23: Ski touring the length of the peninsula and its neighbouring islands.

Mont Français and Mont Parry

Anchoring in the ice

Preparing for Harris Peak

Ascent Mont Bank

Skiing down Hummock peak

Lemaire channel

At the bottom of Demaria peak

The Brabant and Anvers islands feature high in our itinerary, followed by a multitude of smaller iles. With our yacht as base camp, we will head out to the peninsula's most beautiful summits, including Mount Parry, Harris Peak, Mount Shackleton, Mount Scott, Mount Hoeg, Mount Tenant and many others.  Some peaks demand an excursion of two days or more from the yacht, camping in total solitude.

Skiing up to Parry's camp

Parry's camp

Top of Mont Parry

Back on the boat for apperitif

More than a ski trip, this is a real exploration of a multitude of peaks, frozen islands and immense glaciers that pour into the sea.  Between them lies a maze of narrow canals, dominated by rocky cliffs and glaciers. We drop anchor in coves dominated by these giants. Our program are tailored taking in consideration sea, weather and snow conditions. Every day brings a summit and encounters with the diverse Antarctic animal kingdom: seals, sea leopards, emperor penguins, and many birds returning for the southern winter.

Cuverville cow

Mont Français - highest mountain in the Peninsula

Leopard seal

Days 24 - 27: Return to Ushuaïa

We retrace our sea voyage, across the Drake Passage and around Cape Horn. We will choose the most settled weather window for this passage in one of the harshest seas in the world.  We may arrive a day earlier or a day later, and in this case we will check out the area surrounding Ushuaïa.

Night in hotel

Day 28: Reserve day.

Night in hotel.

Days 29 - 30: Flight back home.

Chamonix Mont Blanc Guides offers you more than the classic routes: we're a team of innovative high mountain guides committed to our vocation.

We offer you a rare journey, a marriage of sea and peaks in one of the most remote, breathtaking corners of the planet: the Antarctic peninsula and its myriad glacial islands.

We, at Chamonix Mont Blanc Guides have 32 years of experience organizing expeditions in all corners of the world, from the highest summits to the most isolated niches. We have already led 4 ski expedition in the Peninsula: 2012, 2015, 2019, 2022.

Our expedition boat Marama is an aluminium boat, 101 feet long designed for polar navigation and its team is specialized in Antarctic trips. The skipper has sailed for more than 20 years and he knows the region like the back of his hand.

Chamonix Mont Blanc Guides do not subcontract any of our trips, we design them, then we lead them with our team of guides who specialize in far-flung expeditions.

In our spirit of discovery and adventure, we are thrilled to embark with you on this expedition that is as exceptional as it is remote.

The spirit of the trip :

More than a trip, this ski cruise is an adventure in the biggest sense of the word. While everything is planned, nothing is guaranteed. Our principle is constant adaptation to the unpredictable world of sea and ice. Our anchorages may vary from the itnerary, as the wind changes constantly and we will have to modify our plans to maintain safety.  This is a modern odyssey, venturing humbly amid forces bigger than ourselves. The rewards of engaging with these powers of nature are huge.

Conditions could be difficult on the yacht or on land. There could be strong winds or sea-sickness and a strong team spirit is needed to ensure the journey unfolds well. Life onboard runs according to some rules to which we have to adapt. Maintaining good spirits and a sense of humour are vital assets for the success of this type of expedition.

Ian has come with us in December 2022 and will be able to talk with you about his experience of the trip and the spirit of this exceptionnel journey. Feel free to get in touch with Mr Ian Moller in San Francisco at: stewart.378@gmail.com.

Pierre Schmidt, the leader guide,  who has led 4 ski expedition in the Peninsula to be reached on what's app +33 6 08 54 43 29.

 
Technical level :

The summits we will climb are not very difficult, but you must be a good skier and mountaineer, and have excellent fitness. Slopes are up to 45 deg in short sections.  All the terrain is glaciated, and it will be useful to know crevasse rescue techniques, z-pulleys for example. Every member of the group must be capable of helping in case of a fall. There will be camping for a few nights in a total autonomy.

No sailing experience is necessary, but giving a hand is always appreciable. A strong mindset to affront all aspect of this trip is an asset.

Physical level :

Very good fitness is vital. We will do daily average altitude ranges of 1000m and 5 - 7 hour per day. We will need to pull a sledge loaded with a tent and food, to reach some more remote summits. This will demand extra effort from you.

The weather can also be harsh and energy-sapping.

Life of group :

A 20m yacht has limited living space and life onboard runs according to some rules so that each person can keep their small amount of personal space. Observing these rules is vital to ensure the success of communal life during a long voyage. So is good humour, having an open spirit and giving mutual support during difficult moments.

The Ushuaïa-Antarctic passage can unfold on rough seas, making life onboard less pleasant. Even then, it is important to maintain good humour. Everyone will be asked to pitch in with daily tasks onboard, including the washing-up and to maintain the cleanliness of common areas.

Modification of the program :There is no program set in stone, other than constant adaptation to the prevailing conditions. Our knowledge of the area lets us choose the best summits given the weather on the day. 

Guides:

Two high mountain guides (alpinism state qualified).

Chamonix Mont Blanc Guides founder Pierre Schmidt will be one of them.

Extra information:

Your will receive a document with full information sent out  31 days before departure.

The Boat :

Aboard the yacht Marama, a graceful 101feet aluminium-hull vessel. Marama is perfectly equipped for this type of expedition and offers all the required safety and comfort. Find out more on the site www.club-croisiere.com

Meal :

Meals are prepared on board by the crew. While we are on land, we will cook ourselves using freeze-dried ingredients in camp, and eat picnic lunches prepared onboard. You should bring your own muesli bars and treats.

To reach some summits, we will need to sleep in tents and haul our camp on sleds which we pull ourselves.  There are no porters.

Material:

The equipment list (ANTARCTIC gear list) you should have will be sent out to you at the time of the inscription

plus:

1 shovel

1 probe

1 sleeping-mask

1 inflatable mat square for sitting on

1 pair of waterproof gloves

1 headlamp

Material provided : North Face tent, sledges, ropes, tranceivers, stoves, cooking gear, satellite phone, VHF radio

Cost and availability of ski and Sail Antarctica Peninsula

Course Date Price (per person) Status Book
20 November - 20 Decembre 202728000 €Available - 10 places

We need a minimum of 8 persons to run this trip. You can sign up as an individual, or as a group, and we will endeavour the complete the group.

If you are a group of friends and want to privatise this trip, please get in touch with us. Please contact us directly by e-mail or phone / whats up +33 6 95 04 23 02  to discuss the dates you would be interested in.

The Cost includes:

  • Organisation of the trip
  • The Boat: Marama (aluminium, 101 feet)
  • Experienced skipper and 2 or 3 crew members on board. The skipper has been sailing in Antarctica for more than 20 years
  • All meals cooked by chef on board
  • 2 High mountain guide state qualified
  • Full board accommodation for 25 nights  on the boat from Day 3 to Day 26.
  • Drinks on board such as beer or wine, etc.

The Cost does not include:

  • Meals in Ushuaïa as long as we haven't started to sail
  • Personal equipment and clothing (ski touring, boots, skins, tranceiver, shovel, probe etc..)
  • Flights to Ushuaïa
  • Travel insurance covering search and rescue

Mb 5 day course

Bonjour Sandrine and Piere
 
Merci beaucoup pour le cinq jour ascent de Mont Blanc 
Nous retournons aujourd’hui
 
We got to the Gouter hut b...read more
Wilkinson David
June 4th 2025

Exceptional Guide

Hello Pierre, 

 
Just wanted to let you know that we summited last Friday with our guide Julien Miller. 
He is truly an exceptional professional and fun personality. Thank ...read more
Ruedi Stoffel
MB course 3 day

wonderful time on Mont Blanc

I had a wonderful time on Mont Blanc, thanks. Javier was a terrific guide – he was well prepared, skilled and, above all, he listened. He understood the importance of two-way communication on a cli...read more

Susan
Mont Blanc 3 days course - September 2023

best service Mont Blanc 3 days

I had the best Service i could ask for. Thanks a lot to Jimmy Heredia and you Monica. I will never forget this Expedition to Mont Blanc.

Gabriel
Mont Blanc 3 days - July 2023

Mont Blanc 3 days - July 2023

Thank you. I had an amazing time and Bastien was great guide!!!!

Ted
Mont Blanc 3 days - august 2023

The Matterhorn week. August 2023

Pierre was  our guide for climbing the Matterhorn. He was incredibly friendly, pushed us well and was as professionnal as you could hope for - I intended to use Chamonix Mont Blanc guides again for...read more

James Kirkwood
Matterhorn 4 days

What a Matterhorn week! August 2023

Pierre has been a fantastic guide throughout our time in Chamonix. After 3 days of rigorous training during which Pierre continuallly pushed us to our limits in order to ensure we were in good enou...read more

Macintosh Joseph
Matterhorn 4 days

Grand Paradis August 2023

I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for the great support and coordination. 

It was definitely tough/challenging, but absolutely beautiful and worth every minute. An experience I wil...read more

Alexandra
Grand Paradis 3 days

Mont Blanc 3 days - July 2023

I summited Mont Blanc with Logan and our guide Juan two days ago and had a blast. Juan was fantastic, knowledgeable and all about safety, the perfect guide. And you, thanks for your great customer ...read more

David
Mont Banc 3 days course

Mont Blanc 5 days course

I just want to give some feedback and say thank you for some amazing five days in the mountains last week.

Our Mt Blanc course was very well organized, and the programme exactly as we hoped ...read more

Trine
Mont Blan 5 days - July 2023

Mont Blanc / Matterhorn / Eiger

Thank you for putting together a wonderful guide trip for my European Trifecta climbs in France and Switzerland.

My guide, Yann Grava, was excellent and put the extra time in early to assess...read more

Wayne - United States

Very good experience

I'd like to thank you for the good organization of the trip last week (june 20-24). It was a very good experience and we were lucky that we could summit the Mont Blanc on Friday the 23rd. Chamonix ...read more

Marc

250 m from the summit

-25 with the wind near the summit! 
But we tried. That’s all anyone can do climbing a mountain. 
The late season, the huts closing and the bad weather all came together unfortunately. <...read more

Scott - United States - September 2022
Mont Blanc 3 days private course

Great Fun & Amazing Summit

Many thanks for the course! It was great fun and amazing to summit.

I believe the first 2 days were a good pace to make sure we were ready for the ascension of Mont Blanc! It was good to pus...read more

Ryan - september 2022
Mont Blanc 5 days course

Mont Blanc 5 days course

I'm back home happy, healthy and in a good mood due the successful summit attempt. 

I consider we had the best possible weather to climb, a marvellous guide and a good alignment of the team ...read more

Daniel
Mont Blanc 5 days - september 2022

Mont Blanc 5 days Course - september 2019

"My boyfriend and I signed up for the five days training and climbing expedition on Mount Blanc chancing the last week of the climbing season. We got paired with a fantastic mix of people from acro...read more

Andra & Chris
Mont Blanc 5 days course

"Well organised, interesting, challenging and rewarding!"

Had a great experience with Chamonix Mont Blanc Guides last week with a successful ascent of Mont Blanc.

First and the most important – I was really pleased with the safety component. From t...read more

Ivan S, Russia
Mont Blanc 6 day climb, August 2018

"Excellent experience, well organised tour"

I was part of a week long training and climbing expedition on Mount Blanc. It was a truly wonderful experience and very well organised. Our guide was good at training the group for the first two da...read more

Marco P, Brazil
Mont Blanc 6 day climb, July 2018

"I will come back and climb or ski with them again!"

Had a great week climbing with Pierre and later Gaylord. Excellent guides which adapted our schedule to our abilities as climbers and also the weather to have the best possible condition on Matterh...read more

Nick P, Sweden
Matterhorn 5 day climb, July 2018

"Absolutely marvellous experience"

Thank you for your assistance getting me onto the mountain. I've had an absolutely marvellous experience and thoroughly enjoyed the company of my three fellow climbers. I was not disappointed not m...read more

Peter D, Australia
Grand Paradiso climb, July 2018

"What an incredible adventure"

"What an incredible adventure! This is just a quick note to say thank you to chamonix mont blanc guides for a most memorable experience.

Our guide, Pierre was outstanding. He taught us what ...read more

Eva

"Looking forward to my next adventure"

Thanks to the proactive attitude and helpfulness of the company and Pierre (our guide) we were able to climb Mont Blanc on a very short notice.

It was a great experience - not only reaching ...read more

David R, Switzerland
Mont Blanc 2 day climb, August 2017

"Thank you for all the support"

Dear Sarah,

Just wanted to let you know that all went well. We reached the summit as planned and right now I'm in my hotel.

I wanted to express my gratitude to Antoine, and once again...read more

A. Glaskov
Mont Blanc 2 day course July 2017

"Amazing experience, exceptional guide"

I just wanted to write a review for our experience last week with Chamonix Mont Blanc Guides.

We had an amazing experience and were very pleased with the accommodations, organization, and th...read more

Carissa C., USA
Mont Blanc 6 day course, July 2017

"An exceptional experience"

I could not have had a better experience than I did with Chamonix Mont Blanc guides. Pierre's infectious energy lightened up the day and his expertise made my dream of climbing the Matterhorn an ex...read more

Scott B, Salt Lake City
Matterhorn, July 2017

"Brilliantly professional company"

"An amazing trip with an brilliantly professional company. I was lucky enough to have CMBG's head guide take me up to the summit of Mont Blanc in a speedy, safe, confidant and perfectly timed exper...read more

N. Smith, UK
Mont Blanc 2 days course, September 2016

"Experience exceptional"

"Climbing with Pierre and Luc of Chamonix Mont Blanc Guides was a great time. Their climbing experience is exceptional, they are both great guys, and we had fun bantering back and forth on multiple...read more

Bruce Mckay, United States
August 2016

"They will make it happen"

"Wow. What can I say about Chamonixmontblancguides and Pierre? Top athlete who knows his way around a mountain. Very personal service his company provide. If there are ways to get up a mountain wit...read more

John R., Scotland
Mont Blanc 2 days course, July 2016

"An unforgettable experience"

"My guide Pierre and Chamonix Mont Blanc Guides in general were the best one could hope for up the difficult trek that is the terrain and crowds of Mont Blanc.

Their command of the English l...read more

Owen, Kansas, USA
July 2016

"One of the better things I've done in my life"

"Just thought I’d drop you a note thanking you for organising this trip. Definitely one of the better things I’ve done in my life and couldn’t be happier.

The weather played it’s part which ...read more

Nick D., London
Mont Blanc 6 days course, July 2016

"An adventure I will never forget"

"Merci beaucoup !!! Thanks to you and your fellow guides I had a most incredible trek to the summit of Mont Blanc.

First, your guidance on the training days was highly invaluable especially ...read more

Peter H., England
Mont Blanc 6 day course, July 2015

"Really appreciate all your advice and confidence"

"Just want to say a big thank you, and really appreciate all your advice and all the confidence you put in us throughout the trip.

We all had a good time and look forward to many more trips ...read more

Dr Shyam S., England
Mont Blanc 6 days course, 2015

"I would certainly recommend your services"

"Everything was awesome, thank you very much for your help.

David is a great guide - I couldn't have done it without him, I underestimated a little how technical it can be and how dangerous ...read more

Dima P., USA
Mont Blanc 6 days course, 2014

"Highly recommend you and your company"

"On the climb up Mont Blanc, the view was absolutely stunning, but the climb was also a real personal challenge.

I was fortunate enough to make it to the top and I have to say all thanks to ...read more

Paul M., Australia
Mont Blanc 6 days course, 2014