When packing for a trip to Antarctica, your first thought is “damn, it’s gonna be cold down there, better bundle up”.

I won’t lie, that was my first instinct.

And, yes, while it’s cold down there and you do have to bundle up, your packing list doesn’t have to be crazy…

It’s summer time!

Cruises down to Antarctica only take place from October to March each year.

While that may be winter time for all us tourists coming from the Northern Hemisphere, it’s summer time in the South.

In fact, during the summer solstice on December 22nd there are 24 hours of sunlight down there.

Ah, summer time!   Time to break out the bikinis, right?

Well, not quite, but it’s also not Siberia either.

During the expedition months, the temperature hovers between 0 and -10 Celsius (14 to 32 Fahrenheit for my American friends) so it’s basically just as cold as you’d be used to back home during the winter.

Now, of course, if you were trekking all the way to the South Pole, the temperatures would be drastically colder, but 99.999% of people are just going to be cruising around the Antarctic Peninsula.

So, basically, you’re going to pack the same clothes you would be wearing back home during the winter with a couple of exceptions.

No jacket or boots

Number one, don’t worry about a winter jacket or boots.

What?!?   Are you crazy?

Well, turns out that most of the companies running cruises to the Antarctic also include a free winter parka that you’ll receive when you arrive in Ushuaia to board your cruise.

Now, I say most companies, so if you’re booking a cruise just double check that you are indeed going to receive a parka when you get there.

Instead, I’ll be boarding my flight down to South America next week wearing a hoodie cause while it may be near freezing in Antarctica, it’s actually around 24C (75F) right now in Buenos Aires where I’ll be spending a week first.

As for footwear, all companies will supply you with winter boots to use while on land.   The ship itself is pretty warm so regular everyday shoes work just fine.

When you’re done the cruise, while the boots stay behind, you do get to take home your parka as a souvenir.

Wind and waves

The other thing you need to prepare for is both the wind and the waves.

While it’ll be nice and toasty on the ship and pretty calm on land, you have to prepare for the zodiac ride to and from the ship each day.

Zodiac are basically speed boats that take a dozen of you from the ship to your different landing points each day.

So, as you can imagine, speeding through the cold Antarctic water with waves splashing up into the boat will be kind of wet and windy for ya.

Plus, while it may be relatively calm on land, you’re still going to be walking around in sub zero temperatures for a couple of hours at a time so layering up it definately the smart thing to do.

I ended up purchasing a pair of waterproof pants from the “ski pants” area of Amazon along with long underwear and knee high socks.

I also bought two pairs of gloves – a pair of waterproof ones and a thinner pair of liner gloves to wear underneath.

Instead of a scarf, I bought a neck gator which is basically a wrap around fleece scarf.

Oh, and a touque (beanie for all you non-Canadians) with flaps that also covers my ears.

Don’t forget the sunscreen!

I’m not kidding!

While it may be cold, the sun will still be out in full force.

And, yeah, that nice white snow all around you will be so pretty, it’ll also reflect the sun and give you a good sunburn after awhile.

So, pack up some sunscreen and make sure you either take sunglasses or ski goggles with you too.

Side note – make sure the sunscreen you buy is travel sized at less than 100ml cause you don’t want the big, bad, mean security at the airport confiscating it.

Don’t worry if they do or if you just plain forget to pack it cause, while Ushuaia is a small town, they have stores where you can buy anything you need.

Of course you’ll pay way more than what you would have paid back home so really try not to forget anything.

Preventing seasickness

Your journey down to Antarctica will include two days of sailing through the choppy waters of the Drake Passage to get there and another two days on your way back.

The Drake Passage is the intersection of three oceans – the Pacific, Atlantic, and Southern.

There are no landmasses down there to form any resistance to the currents so it’s a choppy ride with waves topping 40 feet.

Even the most seasoned traveler will start to feel their stomach rumbling and I am nowhere close to being a seasoned traveler on the water.

My greatest fear on this trip is getting seasick.

Not that it’ll be the end of the world but I really don’t like being sick.

So, with that in mind, I’m taking some precautions that will hopefully prevent any of that nastiness.

I bought Gravol ginger tablets at my local Walmart and a pack of motion sickness patches on Amazon.

I’m crossing my fingers these’ll work.   Time will tell I guess…

My complete packing list for Antarctica

Outerwear
• Touque (aka Beanie)
• Neck gator (scarf substitute)
• Waterproof gloves
• Thin glove liners

Tops
• 7 tshirts
• 4 long sleeve shirts
• 2 hoodies

Bottoms
• 7 underwear
• 2 long underwear
• 7 knee high socks
• 7 normal socks
• 3 pairs pants
• 1 waterproof pants

Other Stuff
• Sunglasses
• Sunscreen
• Gravol ginger tablets
• Motion sickness patches

Of course I’ll also have all the other stuff I normally pack for a trip like my electronics, toiletries and other things, but this list is for stuff specifically for a trip to Antarctica.

Also a good thing to know is that most, if not all, ships offer a laundry service so you don’t need to pack 2 weeks worth of things.   I usually pack enough for a week when I travel.

I can’t believe I’ll be doing all that packing in just over a week!

8 days to go!!!