Magellan Explorer

What is Magellan Explorer?

Magellan Explorer is Antarctica21's own expedition ship, launched in 2019 and designed around one kind of trip: guests fly from Punta Arenas to King George Island and board it there, so the ship can stay in Antarctica between groups instead of crossing the Drake Passage.¹² IAATO calls it the only ship purpose-built for air-cruise operations.³ It was built by the ASENAV shipyard in Valdivia, Chile, construction began in 2016, and its maiden voyage left on November 28, 2019.⁴⁵⁶

That design brief shaped the ship. Most expedition ships refuel and restock in port at the end of every trip; on an air-cruise the ship stays in Antarctica while guests come and go by plane. So Magellan Explorer carries 720 m³ (about 190,000 US gallons) of marine gasoil, which Antarctica21 says is enough for 60 days of operation in Antarctica, along with large refrigerated stores and freezers, 200 m³ (about 53,000 gallons) of fresh water tanks, a desalination plant making about 24 tons of water a day, and space to compact and keep all its waste on board.²

What are Magellan Explorer's specifications?

It is a Polar Class 6 ship of 298 ft (90.7 m) carrying up to 88 guests on air-cruises:¹

PC6 is a summer and autumn class: Transport Canada's table of polar classes describes it as operation in medium first-year ice that may include old ice inclusions.⁸ The hull is double, of thick steel plate, with a rounded bilge and a bulb shaped for ice, and the ship carries ice radar.² Zodiacs load from two mid-ship gangways served by a double set of cranes, and a gear store runs the full width of the ship for the kayaks and snowshoes.²

The guest numbers vary by source. The ship page headline says 88 on air-cruises, but its 2026-27 deck plan gives a maximum of 76 on air-cruises and 96 on sea voyages; IAATO lists 100 passengers, and Antarctica21 said it sailed with 76 guests in 2025-26.¹⁷⁹ Any of those figures keeps the ship under IAATO's limit of 100 visitors ashore at one site, so all guests can land together.¹⁰¹¹

What are the cabins like on Magellan Explorer?

There are seven categories, from a 200 sq ft (18 m²) Porthole Cabin to two-room suites of 480 sq ft (44 m²), and every category except the Porthole Cabin comes with a balcony. Every cabin has a wardrobe, its own heating control, a sitting area and a bathroom with a shower and heated floor.¹ Per-person fares below are for two sharing on two 2026-27 Classic Antarctica Air-Cruise departures, one in the shoulder season and one at the December peak, read on October 15, 2026.¹²

The Deluxe Suite is larger than the Penthouse Suite but $1,500 to $2,000 cheaper per person (our arithmetic), and the Triple Suite, shared by three, is the cheapest balcony on the ship.¹²¹ Antarctica21's own accommodation table lists every category, Porthole included, as a "cabin with sitting area and balcony"; the Porthole Cabin's detail card says porthole, so do not count on a balcony there.¹

Solo travelers have three options: a Single Veranda Cabin, a berth in a same-gender shared cabin, or a double for sole use, which costs 85% extra in a limited number of Porthole and Veranda cabins and double the fare in the rest.¹³¹² On March 2, a Porthole Cabin for one was $29,591, against $26,995 for the dedicated single.¹²

How much does a Magellan Explorer cruise cost in 2026-27?

From $5,995 per person, in a Triple Suite shared by three, on the 6-day Antarctica Express of November 17, 2026; the 8-day Classic starts at $15,995. Every 2026-27 departure on the ship, as listed in Antarctica21's booking engine on October 15, 2026:¹²

The fares on the air-cruises include the flights and Punta Arenas hotel nights; the Classic and Polar Circle include two nights, the others one.^14151617 No 2026-27 promotion was listed; the early-booking offers on Antarctica21's promotions page were for 2027-28 only, ending December 31, 2026.¹⁸ The season starts and ends outside Antarctica: Cruise Industry News reported that the ship began 2026-27 in mid-September with Patagonia trips from Puerto Montt, moves to the Falklands and South Georgia from mid-October, and runs air-cruises from November until late March 2027.¹⁹

What happens if the flight to Magellan Explorer can't go?

You wait in Punta Arenas with meals and the hotel paid, and if the plane has not left by 2 PM on the trip's deadline day, the trip is called off and 100% of the cruise fare is refunded. That is the contingency plan in Antarctica21's booking terms of August 4, 2026. If the flight home is late, you stay aboard with full board and excursions, and nothing is refunded.²⁰ For the ship's 2026-27 air-cruises:

Terms from Antarctica21's booking conditions, trips and dates from its booking engine.²⁰¹² A delay that ends before the deadline earns no partial refund, and the plan never pays for a missed flight home.²⁰ Antarctica21 says only three of its flights in 22 years were delayed beyond day 4.¹¹ Its operator page walks through each day of the plan and the flight record.

What is on board Magellan Explorer?

A glass-enclosed observation lounge that doubles as the lecture room, a library, a dining room with wide windows, a bar serving Chilean wines and cocktails, a gym set up by Anytime Fitness, and a sauna.¹ A forward-facing observation deck leads to the bow.¹⁴ For 2025-26 Antarctica21 added Leica binoculars to borrow or buy and a faster internet service with 20 GB of free data per guest.⁹ There is a doctor and a small infirmary for basic care; serious cases need evacuation to South America, which is why medical evacuation insurance is compulsory.²⁰¹³

The two paid activities are sea kayaking, a program for up to 20 guests a voyage that requires previous sea-kayaking experience, and guided hiking and snowshoeing, booked per outing on board; both have a minimum age of 15.²¹²⁰ Snowshoes are generally useful from November to January and usually not needed in February and March.²¹ Drones are not allowed.²⁰

Should you choose Magellan Explorer or Magellan Discoverer?

Choose Explorer to save money and Discoverer for a newer, larger cabin with a guaranteed balcony. Magellan Discoverer, its sister from the same yard, takes its first guests on December 15, 2026 and sails the Classic, Polar Circle and Express routes alongside it.¹⁹¹²

Specifications from the two ship pages and Antarctica21's announcement of Discoverer, fares from the booking engine for January 2027 Classic departures.⁴²³ Antarctica21 calls Discoverer the first hybrid-electric expedition cruise ship built in the Americas, and its batteries allow low-noise, zero-emission running in sensitive areas.²⁴⁴ It is new, though: it had completed sea trials by early October 2026, and the 2026-27 season will be its first.²⁵

How does Magellan Explorer compare with other fly-the-Drake ships?

It is the smallest ship in this group and the only one that can land every guest at once at a 100-visitor site (our arithmetic from the guest counts below).¹⁰ Lowest published 2026-27 fares for each line's fly-both-ways trip, per person, two sharing:

The others start from different places and have different rules if the plane cannot fly; the Antarctica21 operator page and our guide to whether to fly or sail the Drake Passage compare them.

Who should book Magellan Explorer?

Travelers who want a week in the Antarctic Peninsula without two days of sea each way, in a group small enough to go ashore together, and who can pay from about $16,000 each for the 8-day trip, or $22,000 for a cabin still open in mid-October.¹²¹¹ Those wanting the Antarctic Circle have the 10-day Polar Circle trip, and those wanting South Georgia have the 18-day air-cruise that flies in and sails out.¹⁵¹⁷ Book elsewhere if you want the cheapest possible Antarctica, a guaranteed balcony at the lowest fare, or the brand-new ship: that is Discoverer.