The Long Trip Home from an Antarctica Cruise
On our last evening on the ship, the crew set up a buffet cocktail hour out on the back deck, since Ushuaia felt downright warm after three weeks at the bottom of the world. Everyone was out there, and all I could think was that I didn't want it to end.
Ushuaia as seen from Seabourn Venture
I always get a little sad when a trip winds down, but this one was harder. We'd planned it for two and a half years, spent three weeks somewhere extraordinary, and now there was nothing ahead but a very long trip home. Saying goodbye to people who had started as strangers and become real friends was hard, and harder still was simply not wanting it to be over. I would have stayed on that ship indefinitely if they'd let me.
Disembarkation worked like any other cruise, just with more luggage (see my blog about packing for more about that). Bags went outside our door the night before and were routed straight from the ship to the airport, the same way they'd come, and we wouldn't see them again until Buenos Aires. Our flight out of Ushuaia left absurdly early, around 7am, and our flight home didn't leave Buenos Aires until late that night, which left an entire day to fill. Since Seabourn had booked our flights, that included a group lunch for departing guests, mostly a way to pass the time, because the Buenos Aires airport won't let you check in early no matter how much you beg.
Even with the lunch, we got to the airport an hour or so before we could check our bags in, which just meant joining everyone else waiting in the main terminal.
We flew American Airlines business class both ways, and I remember almost nothing about the flight home. I sat in the lounge barely able to keep my eyes open, put my seat back the moment we were in the air, and only woke up upon landing at JFK because my husband woke me up. I don’t know if I’ve ever been quite so tired. The past three weeks had been so incredible and overwhelming, it had left me completely drained in a whole new way.
Exhaustion and all - it was still the best trip I have ever taken. I would do the entire thing over again as many times as anyone would let me.
Thinking about a trip like this? I plan Antarctica and expedition cruises — the ship, the flights, the hotels before and after, all of it. Tell me when you want to go, and I'll be in touch within a day to schedule a call.
And every Friday I send Penguin's Picks, the week's luxury and expedition cruise offers worth your time: shipsportsandpenguins.com/cruise-offers
