You won't be missing anything except wide open seas, sea birds galore following the ship. Sailings can be rough, but flights can be cancelled due to weather as well, thus losing valuable time. I'd try to search the history of any cancellations. At the time we went with Quark (2007), they weren't offering this particular itinerary with flights, but I know we would not have considered it. Whatever you decide, have a great time when you go.

Thanks for th reply -- just curious why you would not have considered the flights? Did you enjoy the ship ride through the passage? Which cruise did you take?

For me, I wouldn't quite use the word "enjoy", but I'm very glad I had the sea passages. I was somewhat seasick between the Falklands and South Georgia, and again between South Georgia and Antarctica. Coming back across the Drake, we lucked out with very calm seas.

The crossings were cold and windy, but you had the rare experience of the vastness of the place, the isolation, the desolation. There was the excitement of the first iceberg sighting, then gradually more and more. The albatrosses, petrels, other sea birds. We had an amazing encounter with a humpback whale and her calf, who spent half an hour playing with our ship. I think you really appreciate the experience and the place more with a sea crossing.

On the other hand, it does take time, you'll see plenty of sea birds and icebergs and hopefully whales after you've flown in. I think if you're more of a been-there-done-that traveler, or have very limited time, flying in may make sense. But if you like to really experience a voyage, and have the time, it's worth it to be in the water the whole time.

Just my opinion. I'd be curious to hear what eenusa and dmbtraveler (and anyone else whose gone) have to say...

Sorry ... I haven't been back for a while. Why wouldn't we have considered the flight? SelfPropelled put some of our reasons into words, so no sense in repeating them. We wanted the full experience as it unfolded hour by hour, and would have felt like we cheated ourselves by flying over. I'm not saying that's a bad option, it just wasn't what we wanted.

The unknown of what might be ahead or behind the ship kept us going out on deck throughout the day ... and when the weather allowed (and it did much of the time), we bundled up and sat on a bench either on the aft deck, or on the top deck ... often the only two people out there ... us and the ocean ... and the wildlife ... and the giant icebergs.

And to answer the second part of your question ... we did the Quark voyage on the 48 pax Prof Molchanov ... our itinerary took us from Ushuaia, to the Falklands, to South Georgia, and the Peninsula ... long itinerary; and yes, lots of days at sea (but not a single one was boring), and ... oh so worth it.

If you click on my user name, you'll find my lengthy review somewhere on these boards.

My photos from the trip are here: http://eenusa.smugmug.com/Antarctica

BTW, eenusa, I really want to thank you for your fantastic trip report! That was influential in my decision to go, and it was very helpful in planning, and packing, and generally knowing what to expect.

You're welcome SelfPropelled.