I just found out that February 22nd is Argentine Antarctica Day, and honestly I had no idea about the whole history behind it. It turns out that in 1902, a Lieutenant named José María Sobral was part of an expedition and spent an entire winter there conducting scientific observations. Two years later, they established a weather station that later became the Orcadas Base, and since then Argentina has maintained a continuous presence on the continent.

What surprised me is that if you want to travel to Antarctica, there are several options. The most popular is a cruise from Ushuaia that lasts between 10 to 12 days and crosses the famous Drake Passage, which is said to be one of the most challenging routes in the world. There are also longer tours that include the Falkland Islands and South Georgia, with over 20 days of total travel.

Now, the important part: Argentina has 13 bases there, 6 permanent and 7 temporary. The best time to go is during the Southern Hemisphere summer, between November and March, because it’s literally one of the coldest places on the planet. There are strict rules for tourists, with a maximum of 1,000 people disembarking at a time, all to protect the ecosystem.

If you want something more extreme, some companies offer helicopter overflights to see colonies of emperor penguins. The full trip lasts 11 days, and depending on the weather, they take you to different spots: Duse Bay, Seymour Island, Devil Island, or Brown Bluff. Would anyone be interested in this trip?