Antarctica

Antarctica is not a holiday in the usual sense — it is an expedition, run from purpose-built ships that sail from Ushuaia at the tip of Argentina across the Drake Passage to the Antarctic Peninsula. Days are shaped by ice and weather: zodiac cruises among icebergs, landings at penguin colonies, and lectures from the expedition team in between.

The season is short — November to March, the Antarctic summer — with December and January bringing the longest daylight and the busiest penguin rookeries. No operator can promise specific wildlife or landings, and the honest ones say so; flexibility is part of the deal.