About AntarcticaCompared

Antarctica is one of the most extraordinary destinations on Earth — and one of the most expensive. A typical expedition costs between $8,000 and $30,000 per person. That investment deserves rigorous, honest research.

AntarcticaCompared is an independent editorial site. We compare Antarctic expedition operators across five weighted criteria — shore time, expedition team quality, IAATO compliance, ship capacity, and included activities — and publish our findings openly so any traveller can see exactly how we reached our conclusions.

We do not work for any operator. We do not accept sponsored content. We do not sell placements. Where we earn referral commissions, we say so plainly on every relevant page.

Our research draws on multiple primary and secondary sources, updated at least once per year before each Antarctic season:

• IAATO public filings — the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators publishes membership records, vessel data, and visitor statistics at iaato.org.
• Operator websites and brochures — we review official pricing, itineraries, ship specifications, and team credentials directly.
• Verified traveller reviews — we read and aggregate reviews from TripAdvisor, Reddit (r/antarctica, r/solotravel), and CruiseCritic, filtering for verified purchasers where possible.
• Direct operator engagement — we contact operators to verify data points, flag discrepancies, and confirm current pricing before publication.
• Annual updates — all operator profiles are reviewed in September–October before each Southern Ocean season begins.

Our rankings are determined exclusively by the five criteria described in our methodology. No operator can pay for a higher score. No operator can pay to suppress a lower score.

We disclose all commercial relationships. Where a "Book Now" or operator link earns us a referral commission, a disclosure note appears in the same section. These relationships cover some but not all operators we review — we review all significant IAATO-member operators regardless of whether a referral relationship exists.

If an operator asks us to correct a factual error, we investigate and correct within 48 hours if the error is confirmed. If an operator asks to be removed entirely, we comply and note the removal.

Our editorial process is described in full in our Editorial Policy.