by Kathryn Folliott
TORONTO — Who could have foreseen the day when one of travel’s on-trend destinations would also be one of the most remote places on the planet?
The popularity of ‘The White Continent’ isn’t new, but it is growing exponentially. The International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) keeps stats on the number of travellers making landfall on Antarctica, and the growth trajectory tells the story.
About 20 years ago, in 2003-04, there were 19,385 visitors. By 2018-19, that number had more than doubled, to 46,705, with even more (55,875) arriving in the 2019-20 season, the last normal year before the pandemic.
In 2022-23, even with some countries barely out of pandemic travel restrictions, the number rose to 71,258.
The IAATO keeps track of visitors’ nationalities too. The 2003-04 bottom line included 548 Canadians, about 2.8% of the total. By 2022-23, there were 3,323 Canadians, now representing 4.6% of the total.
Antarctica is still by and large for the adventurous few. It’s increasingly a top-level expedition style of travel, with the price tag to go with it. The season is short too; most trips run mid-December through mid-February. No one is looking for Antarctica to out-sell Mexico and Cuba getaways any time soon.
But for increasingly well-travelled clients, who have explored the world and are now looking to tick the Seventh Continent off their bucket list, Antarctica may prove irresistible.
THE OVERTOURISM CONVERSATION
No doubt much of the momentum bringing travellers to Antarctica is climate change, and concerns for Antarctica’s future.
The IAATO operates within the Antarctic Treaty System, and part of its mission is to advocate and promote safe and environmentally responsible private-sector travel to Antarctica.
U.S.-based Jeremy Clubb, who launched travel retailer Antarctica Cruises in July 2023 after 12+ years of running sister company Rainforest Cruises, says that as with any destination, especially ones with such delicate ecosystems, overtourism is always a concern, and rightly so.
Says Clubb: “Not just in terms of the well-being of the wildlife and their habitats, but also the essence of the destination. Part of the allure of Antarctica is its remote isolation, the romance of the Heroic Age of Exploration, and the considerable undertaking and lengthy voyage involved in even reaching it.”
The good news, he adds, is that travel operators in Antarctica have been proactive in self-regulating to protect the continent’s pristine ecosystem. The IAATO has been around since the 1990s, and member operators adhere to a set of guidelines and requirements, designed to mitigate everything from overcrowding to pollution to wildlife disruption.
“It’s important to remember that tourism to Antarctica can bring many benefits too,” says Clubb. “Experiencing first-hand the singular wonders of the White Continent can have a profound impact on travellers and engender awareness of, concern for, and activism about our planet’s greatest remaining terrestrial wilderness and its protection.”
Clubb also notes that many polar operators have also been the driving force behind the latest developments in ship design the world over, pioneering hydrodynamic efficiencies in hull shape and more sustainable hybrid fuel technologies.
Antarctica Cruises works with small ship operators that can access remote areas. Larger vessels with capacities over 500 passengers by law aren’t allowed to make landfall in Antarctica, says Clubb.
“While there are certainly more operators and visitors than ever before, it’s often overlooked that the growing number of larger ships carrying ‘cruise only’ passengers has played a large part in the growth in Antarctica’s visitor numbers,” he says. “Having comprised just 6% percentage of the total cruise visitors at the turn of the millennium to now accounting for 31% in the latest season’s figures, these vessels with capacities for more than 500 passengers aren’t actually permitted to make landings on the continent,” so their associated mass tourism has less of an impact.
More of a concern is the climate change crisis, says Clubb. “From its all too apparent impact on the ice shelves, water temperatures and wildlife, there’s arguably nowhere where its effects are as visible or worrying. I fear this is one of the main drivers of the overtourism conversation, with trips to Antarctica seemingly now all the more urgent as fear of its effects on the region heightens. I think it’s fair to say that there could well be an element of travellers prioritizing the destination now before things get any worse.”
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