An Antarctica cruise could be just the adventure you're looking for this winter.
(And when I say winter, I mean winter in the northern hemisphere when it's actually summer down in Antarctica.)
No, you won't find the palm trees, sandy beaches, lust rain forests, or the scuba and snorkeling opportunities of Hawaii, Mexico, or the Caribbean. In fact, Antarctica is the windiest, coldest, and driest spot on earth. Whether you're coming from South America, Africa, or Australia, the ocean crossing will almost always be a rough one. Once you get there, there aren't any shops or entertainment venues, and the tourist season is less than four months long (with cruises often only findable in January and February). The rest of the year is very cold and very, er, dark.
So why on earth would anyone want to cruise to Antarctica?
It's all about seeing exotic wildlife and having an adventure few of your friends will ever experience.
Since there are virtually no tourist amenities on the continent, a cruise ship is the best way to see Antarctica too. Most of the wildlife occupy the narrow ice-free ridges of coastline around the mainland and its islands, so you'll have a front row seat to watch the antics of the land and air creatures.
Examples of wildlife you can see include penguins, seals, whales, and birds such as the albatross, cormorant, skua, sheathbill, petrel, fulmar, tern, and of course gulls.
For more on cruises to Antarctica and the continent itself, check out these resources:
About.com
A Surveyor's Cruise Adventure
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