🇦🇶 South Shetlands
“Shackleton's refuge at the edge of the world”
Avg. Ships / Day
Cruises Depart Here
Peak Season
Not really a peak season
3 sailings over the next 12 months
Based on cruises available on Cruisello
Elephant Island is a mountainous, glaciated island in the South Shetland Islands, about 245 kilometres northeast of the Antarctic Peninsula. Almost entirely covered in ice, it has no permanent inhabitants and no facilities. The island is famous as the place where Ernest Shackleton's crew sheltered for four and a half months in 1916 after their ship Endurance was crushed by pack ice. They survived under two upturned lifeboats at Point Wild while Shackleton sailed 1,300 kilometres to South Georgia for rescue. Cruise ships pass by or make Zodiac landings when weather permits, which is not always. A bust of Captain Luis Pardo, the Chilean naval officer who eventually rescued the crew, sits on a cairn at Point Wild. The island is home to chinstrap and macaroni penguin colonies and elephant seals, which gave the island its name. Conditions can be harsh, with high winds and poor visibility common.
5-Day Forecast
Sail to Elephant Island for $11,820pp
Compare 3 upcoming sailings.
