22-night Polar Regions cruise: Buenos Aires to Punta Arenas, Chile on MS Fram
The Life Returns – Springtime Expedition to Antarctica is a 22-night Polar Regions cruise aboard MS Fram, operated by HX Expeditions. Departing Buenos Aires on October 16, 2026 and arriving in Punta Arenas, Chile on November 7, 2026, the voyage visits 5 ports including Falkland Islands, South Georgia Islands, Antarctica, Antarctica. Fares start from $17,153 per person.
Fixed editorial images from the places on this itinerary. They stay stable each time you return to this sailing.
Buenos Aires
Passionate, and alive with an infectious crackling energy, the Argentine capital is a breathlessly romantic city, which blends old-world colonial architecture with a down-to-earth Latin American clamour. Famed for steamy tango interplays, and expertly seared steak slabs, a visit to Buenos Aires is a fiery fiesta for the senses. Parque Tres de Febrero is a 400-hectare oasis where 18,000 rose bushes bloom, and skyscrapers give way to still lakes and pretty paths of rollerblading locals.
Mighty palm trees - that look like exploding fireworks - stand tall in Plaza de Mayo, the heart of this sprawling cosmopolitan capital of 48 barrios. The square has served as the stage for many fundamental events in this country’s history, and the location where the seeds of independence were sewn continues to serve as the city’s gathering point - and is a place for solidarity, rebellion and revolution. The presidential Casa Rosada’s salmon-hued Palatial Palace borders the plaza, while nearby Museum Nacional de Bellas Artes houses the largest collection of public art in Latin America. Teatro Colón, the opulent 1908 opera house, is one of the world’s finest venues - musical performance here take on an ethereal quality, with the exceptional acoustics transferring every quiver of bow, and tremor of vocal cord, to the audience in spine-tingling clarity. The gargantuan, precipitous terraces of Bombonera Stadium form another of Buenos Aires’s incredible venues, and a wall of noise emanates from it when Boca Juniors take to the field. Juicy steak and punchy Malbec flow in the city’s parrillas – steakhouses - while glitzy bars and thumping nightclubs welcome revellers late into the night. It’s not just the meat that sizzles here either - tango dancers fill milongas - dance halls - to strut passionately until the early hours. Sip steaming mate, the country’s national drink, shop in covered markets, and explore Cementerio de la Recoleta - a city of grand graves and intricate memorials honouring presidents, politicians and notable Argentine heroes from history.
Falkland Islands
There is nowhere else in the world like the Falkland Islands. The archipelago is a remote, wind-swept place of stunning landscapes, dazzling white sand beaches, magnificent wildlife, and a rather gregarious mix of people. Over 200 islands surround the two main islands of West and East Falkland. These isolated and treeless shores are home to an overwhelming abundance of birdlife: albatross, penguins, caracaras, geese, and many others. Perhaps it was the very remoteness of the islands; the allure of its barren landscapes, pure in their austerity and colorful in their details, and the immensely large open skies that attracted settlers to its shores long ago.
It has accumulated a wealth of maritime and military history. More than three hundred shipwrecks litter its shores, while the stark white crosses of both British and Argentine soldiers stand as a silent reminder to the war of 1982. Numerous claims for the islands have been put forward in the course of their history. Nowadays the Falkland Islands are a self-governing British Overseas Territory.
Antarctica
The Antarctic Peninsula unravels upwards towards South America, reaching out a beckoning finger to the adventurous, who dare to explore this untamed realm. Stretching up from the heart of the world’s southernmost continent, the Antarctic Peninsula lies a mere 620 mile from Tierra del Fuego and, for many, offers a spectacular first taste of the snow-blanketed landscapes and colossal ice sculptures, which make up Earth’s least-explored continent.
Unseen by humans until 1820 - a blink of an eye ago in relative terms - this is an adventure sure to make your hairs stand on end, as you experience the thrill of the truly unknown and extraordinary. The vast peninsula is sprinkled with research bases, which are at the frontline of human scientific endeavour, pushing to study and understand this unique landscape, its exceptional wildlife, and the impact that humans are having on this pristine continent. Witness cathedral-sized icebergs up close, and blue-hued glaciers, slowly slipping from imposing locations like Hope Bay. Blanched mountain peaks cover the peninsula, and you’ll find thousands of adorable Adelie penguin pairs thriving undisturbed in this peninsula’s unique setting.
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Follow the entire sailing from its first day to its last, with the route and schedule in one view.
Day 1·Oct 16, 2026
Buenos Aires
Passionate, and alive with an infectious crackling energy, the Argentine capital is a breathlessly romantic city, which blends old-world colonial architecture with a down-to-earth…
MS Fram was purpose-built as an expedition vessel with a superior ice class, chart drawing tools, a ship depth-sounding database, extractable forward sounding sonar, iceberg search lights, an autonomous tracking system, an oversized oil retention system for self-sufficiency, and a full ‘expedition tools deck’ equivalent to a car-deck that holds 25 vehicles. We believe that as an explorer, you need an ‘expedition base camp’ that is comfortable. It should combine ‘all oceans capabilities’ with safety, flexibility, and environmental friendliness. That’s MS Fram. She’s simply the best expedition ship imaginable.
This ship has passed stringent tests and is accredited by Bureau Veritas (BV), the leading independent certification body. BV’s strict and thorough safety audit ensures that every ship complies with industry and international best practices in health, safety and hygiene. Feel confident when you see the SafeGuard label, as this means your vessel met the highest standards to achieve certification. SafeGuard also entails following best practice guidelines with regard to hygiene, sanitation and limiting the spread of infectious diseases on board.
Fram means ‘forward’ — lifting our expectations of the cruise ahead. MS Fram was built in 2007 with one mission in mind: to bring her guests closer to nature, wildlife, and unforgettable experiences. The spacious outside decks include access to the very front of the ship, which is perfect for observing marine wildlife.
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