He Said, She Said: Was visiting Antarctica cool for both husband and wife?

What’s a trip to Antarctica really like? We asked Andrew and Leonie to each tell us about their recent experience.

By Leonie Jarrett and Andrew Jarrett

As a youngster, Andrew loved reading the heroic stories of the Scott, Amundsen, Shackleton and Mawson Antarctic expeditions. So much so that Antarctica was always a place he wanted to visit. 

“To me, Antarctica is something akin to one of this planet’s true last frontiers,” Andrew says. “An opportunity for an adventure? Tick. I’m in.”

Would his wife Leonie be equally excited by this boyhood dream?

“It can’t be that bad” 

Fast forward to mid 2023 and it was Leonie who casually said out of the blue, “I’ve just found a great deal on the Scenic Eclipse to Antarctica…we could go if you like?”

While Antarctica certainly wasn’t on Leonie’s bucket list, she knew it was on Andrew’s and wanted to support his dream. She was especially unsure about crossing the notorious Drake Passage, but talked herself into it.

“[I thought] It can’t be that bad, that Scenic Eclipse boat looked super nice on Getaway, the one that Catriona Rowntree seems to be on every second week,” she says.

The trip happened sooner than expected. “We thought we’d go to celebrate [both] our 60ths in a few years’ time but a good deal came up and we pounced,” says Leonie.

They set off in December 2023 (which is summer in Antarctica), on an ‘Antarctica in Depth’ Scenic Eclipse cruise.

Here’s how the experience went down, according to each of them:

How was travelling over on the Scenic Eclipse?

Andrew

The ship itself far exceeded my expectations. I was expecting it to be good (I had seen it on Getaway on TV), but it blew my expectations and I can only rate it as a 6-star experience. With only 150 passengers on board and close to 200 staff, the experience was next-level to any other cruise boat we’d been on.

The jewel in the crown of Scenic Eclipse are the Discovery Team, a team of uber enthusiastic scientists and activity leaders who genuinely love what they do and successfully engender a youthful, contagious enthusiasm for everything we saw and did. For instance, I saw multiple examples of the Discovery team squealing with delight or tearing up with emotion at the various close encounters we had with whales, penguins and seals. 

Leonie 

I was right to dread crossing the Drake Passage. While our shipping conditions were neither good nor bad, I was seasick – queasy, but certainly not bedridden like some passengers were. I should have taken preventative seasickness medication for the trip over. It was a lesson learned and I was medicated and fine on the way back to Ushuaia.

Despite the seasickness, I found the Scenic Eclipse to be an exceptional ship (and we’d already been on about 10 cruises before this one). Super luxurious. Large cabin (even though we had the entry-level cabin). Really well-appointed. We even had a Dyson hairdryer in the bathroom!

I loved the ‘open bridge policy’, which meant you could visit the bridge for a chat to the crew at any time of day. But, like Andrew, for me the highlight was the Discovery Team. They were incredible sources of information, great Zodiac pilots and super passionate about everything we were seeing.

Which experiences did you try on board Scenic Eclipse?

Andrew

You bet I did both the helicopter and the submersible. The perspective of flying over the glaciers at altitude gave a fresh and different perspective of this pristine, untouched continent. And taking off and landing from the ship was a true rockstar experience.

For a self-confessed nautical nerd, the submersible was a fantastic experience. It was admittedly very snug inside, I was rubbing up tight against six of my newest besties as we descended 65m into near darkness.

With the submersible’s lights on, we were privileged to experience a world few people get to enjoy. While the marine life on my voyage was limited to various types of molluscs, corals and sea floor growths, it was still an experience I’ll never forget.

Leonie

As someone who suffers from claustrophobia, I gave the submersible a wide berth.

I loved ‘flightseeing’ though! We lucked in and our flight was on a blue sky day. The contrast of the cobalt blue sky with the white of the ice and snow and the dark blue of the water was unbelievably beautiful.

 And taking off and landing on the flight deck on the ship was definitely a “Top Gun” moment!

What was the wildlife experience like? 

Andrew

In a word, superb. On our voyage, we saw humpback and minke whales, we saw a pod of 20 plus orcas, leopard seals, Weddell seals and Adélie, Chinstrap and Gentoo penguins.

Whales were seen multiple times every day we were in Antarctica.

Leonie 

Seeing whales so close (one even came up as we were kayaking!) was an unforgettable experience. The ship stopped a couple of times for us to watch the whales frolic. We never tired of spotting whale blows!

I also loved the penguins and their highways. The penguins were a bit smelly at times but ever so cute.

Did the scenery ever get boring?

Andrew 

Some people told us that Antarctica would be boring… just birds and ice, they said. Well, nothing could be further from the truth. No photo I could ever take could do justice to the 360 degree panoramas.

The sight and sound of the calving glaciers, together with the unique shapes and colours of the icebergs was a truly unique and humbling experience.

Leonie

Ditto! The grandeur and vastness of the ice and the snowy peaks was breathtaking. The feeling of privilege to be in Antarctica was ever-present.

Would you ever go back to Antarctica?

Andrew 

While on the ship returning to South America, we were already plotting our next visit to Antarctica. Once is not enough for me.

Ideally, my next visit will be a departure from Hobart or Dunedin and an exploration of East Antarctica and the Australian Antarctic territory. A visit to Mawson’s hut in Commonwealth Bay is high on my wish list.

Leonie

Agree – despite thinking I’d go to Antarctica for Andrew just one time, it turns out once is not enough!

My only reservation would be having to negotiate the Drake Passage again – Drake Lake is fine (when conditions are calm) but Drake Shake (when conditions are not) would be something I’d rather not experience. Of course, you never know what you’re going to get on the crossover.

Like Andrew, I’d love to do a different itinerary on our next trip to Antarctica. And yes, we are already busy planning when that trip will be.

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About Andrew and Leonie

‍Andrew is 56 and before retiring he trained in marketing and owned several businesses. His mission for the rest of his life is to have fun and catch as many fish as he can! 

Leonie is 56 and semi-retired. She trained in law and has also owned several businesses during her working life. Her mission for the rest of her life is to write another chapter – she’s just not sure what that is yet.

Andrew and Leonie played tennis together as teenagers and have been married for 32 years. They have four grown children and two furbaby Golden Retrievers. They’ve travelled to all seven continents and over 50 countries. Their mission for the rest of their life is to make the most of every day and travel until they get tired of it!

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