Antarctica 2022 with #MyLifesATravelTRIBE INFORMATION

Hellooooo my awesome badass travelers who are about to go on what we hope will be one of the best adventures of your lives!!

In order for us to help make this the most incredible trip ever, we try to over-plan and be as organized as possible. So on this page you will find ALL the information we have covered in our newsletters and more!

Please read it carefully!

***You should all have gotten the Ocean Endeavor’s Expedition Hub — it is very long but has ALL the info you need so please READ IT THOROUGHLY***

BEFORE YOU LEAVE:

Please be sure you have done ALL of these things and you have all of these things!

COVID Vaccine Card: Make sure you uploaded it to your passenger dashboard, and that you bring it with you! They will deny you boarding if you don’t have it!

COVID Self-Test: If you have Covid rapid antigen self-tests, please bring them! We have just read that a test is required within 72 hours of boarding and that they will accept an at-home rapid test!

TRAVEL INSURANCE: Also mandatory to board and to put on your passenger dashboard! We use World Nomads basic plan — it’s different for everyone so make sure yours has MINIMUM $250k emergency medical and evacuation coverage (the basic plan had it for us).

VALID PASSPORT: Make sure your passport is valid for 6 months starting the day of arrival. If not, go get a renewal expedited ASAP

LIABILITY WAIVER: We need you to sign and send back our liability waiver that is specifically for our additional events and activities! If we don’t get it, you cannot attend them! You can use Docusign or DocHub to virtually sign them!

ADDITIONAL INFO SHEET (IMPORTANT) We know many of you have long layovers in BA, or are getting to Ushuaia early/leaving later, or just want to know if someone else is on your flight! For this reason we created an Additional Info Sheet. Please fill it out ASAP so you and others can see all of this information! Once we see who has the same things, we can make Whatsapp Groups with you guys in them to coordinate meeting up, sharing rooms, etc. **We can’t give you a gift or reserve a spot for you at additional dinners unless you fill this out!

INSTAGRAM HANDLES: We also put a column for your IG handles 🙂 Please feel free to follow/stalk each other! Also, we’re going to say this a lot, but if you’re having a good time, PLEASE tag us in your posts so we can reshare them, and also because we don’t use public reviews like TripAdvisor, so we rely on you guys to support us! We use @mylifesatraveltribe and #mylifesatraveltribe!

GROUP CHATS: Please click here to join our Whatsapp Group Chat! NOTE! Please WAIT until Alyssa makes the first intro to start messaging because if you make an intro or ask a question before that and more people join, they won'[t be able to see it! You will also be able to see our secret itinerary in the description of the chat!

ALSO! IMPORTANT! Please direct ANY LOGISTICS questions to Chimu! Anything about dates, money, hotels, transfers, onboard stuff, times, anything with numbers etc. all go to Chimu or expedition leaders. For any questions about our secret fun itinerary, what to wear, etc. ask us 🙂

SECRET FUN ITINERARIES: So, the expedition companies don’t like this, but we have our own secret fun itineraries in addition to the regular ones they have onboard 😀 We put it on here and in the description of the Whatsapp Chat! It is very subject to change so we will do our best to post updates on a few people’s doors while we’re onboard and not having wifi!

PACKING: We know we’ve already sent this but just in case anyone noticed the blue outer jackets they’re lending you on the ship and prefer to wear something else (like metallic snowsuits) you can find them all here! Please order ASAP to get them on time! We also strongly encourage any Antarctica-animal-related onesies, one nice dressy outfit for Captain’s dinner, and any other fun costumes or outfits you want to rock in Antarctica!

TRAVEL MEDS: Recently we had a collab with a pretty genius company who offers online doctor consultations then delivers prescription travel meds, which we actually needed on our last group trip in Egypt (half the group got travellers diarrhea). If you’d like prescription strength motion sickness patches, or sleeplessness pills, or antibiotics to take with you just in case, check them out here: Runway Health

DATA AND WIFI: To stay connected before the trip in Argentina, we recommend getting an eSIM through AIRALO. You can get a free GB using “ALYSSA258” which is probably all you need! Your phone must be UNLOCKED to use it, but it’s really easy to install!

CONTACTS: We know you may have questions or issues may arise so please use the contacts below but make sure they are for the right people:

• Our Group Chat: intros, finding others to share additional rooms with, updates on additional activities and events, etc.
• Any issues or logistical questions: Anita +54 911 6227 2697

BUENOS AIRES LAYOVERS

For anyone with long layovers in Buenos Aires, please check the ADDITIONAL INFO SHEET to see who else will be there if you want to meet up and/or share rides or hotel rooms!

*IMPORTANT: Argentina is currently going through a currency devaluation! Be sure you check the accurate exchange rates if you’re going to be using cash (you can use a card for almost everything).

AFFORDABLE AIRPORT TRANSFERS: For some reason taxis to and from the airports in Buenos Aires are pricey. You can find all of the options if you want to book something in advance on BOOKAWAY.

THINGS TO DO: If you only have a day or two, check out one of the tours below! We definitely recommend a tango show!

Nov 21 Ushuaia Pre-Boarding Meet Up

Most of you are arriving before the 21st or at least before 3pm ish on the 21st, so I would like to try to put together a group meet up! I’ll need to make reservations once I get to Ushuaia but I’m thinking to do a dinner at Casa de los Mariscos around 6pm and then we can go for drinks afterwards!

If you’d like to join, please write ‘YES’ in the column that I just added on the Additional Information Sheet!! I’ll also update the plans in the group whatsapp!

USHUAIA

Ushuaia is a pretty cool little town in our opinion! If you have extra time you can book a mini-excursion if you’d like, or just explore and enjoy the town!

Alyssa will be around starting Nov 19 so if you see her running around town, please just call out her name and say hi! Check the whatsapp group as well if you want to meet up for food / drinks!

Favorite Restaurants in Ushuaia:

• El Viejo Marino — a MUST for fresh whole crab at a great price! It’s very small and always busy so I’d suggest going solo or with just a few other Tribers at a time
• La Casa de los Mariscos — great seafood, we will likely have dinner here on the 21st (not included)
• Isabel — fancier dinner spot
• Sushi Truck — pretty good sushi in a cute little food court looking area
• Raos Generales El Almacen — SUPER cute olde-timey restaurant with an amazing “White Malbec” wine

Things to do in Town:

• Take the sightseeing train to the “End of the World”
• Take a pic at the “Fin del Mundo” sign
• Check out one of the many bars 😉

Supermarkets:

• La Anonima (snacks and drinks)
• Duty Free Ushuaia

Additional Activities:

HOTELS IN USHUAIA

If you are arriving to Ushuaia before the 21st, and you need a hotel room, you can book on your own extra nights at the hotels we are staying at that are included on the 21st OR you can book something else! I personally recommend booking something else in the downtown area because then you can walk everythwere instead of taking the hotel shuttle or taxi.

The two hotels we are staying at are Wyndham del Glaciar & Las Hayas — you will be told which one you are at once you have sent all of your information to Chimu! It will be on your trip ticket!

There are very limited hotels downtown and they’re all pretty pricey so please look and book ASAP! I will be staying at Riviera Fueguina Apartments the 19-21!

If you can’t find a hotel, try Airbnb!

Booking.com

ONBOARD

Since I know a few of you have asked, for electrical outlets, it’s European, SO BRING A CONVERTER!

**ELECTRICAL OUTLETS
The ship has a 220v / 50 Hz cycle system. Please check your appliances before use. 110-volt appliances require an adapter prior to use aboard the ship.
The electrical outlets on board Ocean Victory are the so called ‘F-type sockets’, round 2-pin, 220-240 V, grounded, used in continental Europe and Russia. They take C, E, and F-type 2-pin plugs.

Also important:

**GRATUITIES
Following international standards in the service industry, it is customary to leave gratuity for the ship’s crew at the end of the voyage. All gratuities will be divided among the crew. Typically, a recommended amount is approximately 13.5 USD per person per day. Gratuity is, of course, not required and any gratuity payments are voluntary.
If you choose to leave gratuity for the crew, the amount that you authorize will be charged to the shipboard account.

LAUNDRY: Is available for an extra fee, no I don’t know what the fee is.

SHIP SHOES: You should bring a pair of clean, comfortable, warm “ship shoes” to wear onboard. Think lightweight Uggz or ankle booties, that have a good grip and that also cover your toes AND back of your heel (AKA not slippers)

MY TEAM

We will have a part-time photographer with us who is also a guest! She’ll be taking candids, group photos, and general wildlife photos. We will send you all the photos after the trip, we just ask you please credit @mylifesatraveltribe if you use them!

There’s also quite a few of our Travel Tribe Alum who we will be giving walkie-talkies to in order to help coordinate our secret itinerary and find each other onboard. If you need to find Alyssa you can ask someone with a walkie talkie to call her!

ROOMS AND ROOMMATES

If you requested a roommate on the Additional Information Sheet, we will place you with them as long as you guys are in the same cabin category.If you didn’t request anyone, don’t worry, we are usually really good at pairing people up!

For additional nights/looking for someone to share, please look on the Additional Info Sheet, and be sure to write in your info as well if you’re looking for someone to share with!

PHOTO SHARING

We are all going to be taking A LOT of photos! Feel free to use airdrop during the trip but we will also have this SHARED GOOGLE PHOTOS folder which we use to easily drop all photos in, the only downside is you need wifi so you have to do it after the trip.

Please again remember that if you would like to share one of our professional photos from our photographer to please tag us @mylifesatraveltribe and if you tag us in general we REALLY appreciate it!

NO DRAMA POLICY

We’ve been doing group trips for 7 years now and very rarely do we have any drama, but we have to say it anyway; NO DRAMA! If you are coming on one of our trips that means you likely have the same mindset of everyone else! We are all here to travel, have fun, and do epic shit!

Please try to meet as many people as possible rather than group-off — we like to encourage switching up tables during meals in order to get to know more people! If at any point you are feeling uncomfortable or isolated, please tell Alyssa!! Again, this isn’t our first rodeo and we want each person to feel equally involved!

Please also keep in mind that we have been hosting trips for a long time, which means we have heard and seen it all! If you have any problems whatsoever, just tell us! You can even slip a note under our door if you don’t want to talk about it, but if you do need to talk, we are really good listeners!

That also being said, we have spent a long time perfecting and organizing our trips — we know many people have leader-personalities, but please trust us with the execution of our schedule! But if you want to help, please also let us know! 😉

BRINGING ALCOHOL

Drinks are not free onboard, so I’d highly recommend buying it in Ushuaia (or duty free at the airport) and sneakily bringing it in your bags. We were told that’s allowed, but you never know, so please be stealthy, and do not walk around with bottles onboard! Make/pour drinks in your rooms!

There’s several grocery stores as well as a duty free store in Ushuaia! The supermarkets are called Animinos!

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#MyLifesATravelTRIBE Tentative Onboard Itinerary:

Here is our tentative itinerary, extremely subject to change based on what spaces are available, and also the weather! If the ocean is rough and the boat is rocky, I probably won’t attempt teaching a course. It may also make it hard to stand at the bar without spilling your drink 🙂

We will do our best to keep everyone posted about the itinerary through letters to your stateroom and via walkie-talkie.

*PLEASE REMEMBER: All of our personal itineraries are subject to change because we won’t know the ship’s itinerary until we get onboard. We will do our best to post physical updates on the doors of several Tribe members’ doors so you can check them each day!

November 21: USHUAIA DAY

Most people will already be in Ushuaia or will be arriving today, woohoo! Please feel free to settle into the hotel and explore the town! Also be sure to do any last minute shopping (like for alcohol).

Our group is split between two hotels: Las Hayas and Wyndham del Glaciar

They are about a 5 minutes away from each other by car, but they are quite a bit away from the main downtown area. We have been told however that they offer free shuttles to and from the hotel to downtown, and you can also take a taxi.

UPDATE: Meet at Fin Del Mundo sign at 6pm for photos, and then we will walk over to La Casa de los Mariscos for 7:30 dinner (when it opens)

*IMPORTANT: You need to have your luggage downstairs at the hotel before 11pm! Pack a day pack for what you might need for tomorrow since we don’t board until around 3pm and you will not have access to your luggage until you’re on the ship!

Nov 22: Embarkment Day!

EXPEDITION TEAM’S MANDATORY ITINERARY:

*Please refer to the Ocean Endeavour Expedition Hub which will be updated regularly with any revised timings and information as we near departure.

Check out of your hotel this morning by 9.00am, ensuring you settle any additional charges. Please leave your luggage at the hotel reception to be collected by our team and transferred to your cabin on the Ocean Endeavour.

**Please ensure you pack anything you need for the day in your hand luggage INCLUDING passport, Antarctic Cruise Ticket and any medications, as well as any delicate or fragile items such as cameras, laptops, camera lenses, glasses, etc. Please also ensure your luggage is clearly labelled with your name and cabin number with the luggage tag provided to you on check-in.

Today, you can remain at the hotel, enjoy the hotel bar and lounge or explore the nearby walking trails while you await the transfer to Intrepid’s Ocean Endeavour in the early afternoon. Otherwise, take any personal belongings you will need today and explore Ushuaia town, ensuring you are at the meeting point (see map) at 3.00pm.

For travellers pre-booked on the Tierra Del Fuego National Park Tour – ensure you have checked out and settled your account, leaving luggage at reception as per the instructions above. Enjoy breakfast in the restaurant and ensure you are ready to depart on your tour at 7.45am. Your tour will conclude this afternoon when you are dropped at the central meeting point in town or returned to your hotel.

a) For travellers taking embarkation transfer from the hotel:

At 2:30pm transfer vehicles will arrive at the hotel to transport you to our downtown meeting point.

b) For travellers meeting at the downtown meeting point:

At 3.00pm travelers downtown, and those returning from the Tierra del Fuego tour, will also join at the meeting point.

All travellers will then take the short coach transfer for embarkation of the Ocean Endeavour.

All travellers, please note the following:

• Due to International Security Regulations and Port Requirements, you will not be able to come to the pier to join the Ocean Endeavour on your own/on foot. All travellers must arrive on our group coach transfer, accompanied by our Intrepid representatives.

• On embarkation you must show your passport and Antarctic Cruise Ticket, otherwise, access can be denied by port authorities. Please make sure you have your Antarctic Cruise Ticket printed or saved on your smartphone/device prior to embarkation and these items are in your hand luggage.

TRAVEL TRIBE ITINERARY:

Please check the whatsapp group chat description in the morning for any changes!

We will likely all finally get onboard and settled in by 4pm. Please aim to meet at the at the bow (front) of the boat after the safety briefing/you put your safety gear away for a little Bon Voyage toast! Feel free to grab a drink from the bar (or your own supply discretely)! We can then do a formal introduction session so you know who you’ll be adventuring with for the next week!

Nov 23: Drake Passage Day 1

11am-12pm: iPhone and Action Camera Photography/Videography Course (Location TBD)

Lunch

3pm-4pm: Mobile Photo/Video Editing Course

                 (Download Lightroom Mobile, Splice, CapCut)

Captain’s Dinner (subject to change due to weather) 

Travel Tribe Cocktail Party (wear what you wore to dinner)

Nov 24: Drake Passage Day 2

3pm-4pm: Travel Stories! Come tell your best travel story and listen to others! We can also play “Never Have I Ever” *Travel Edition*

5-7pm: “Happy Hour” (location TBD)

After Dinner: Friendsgiving Gift Exchange!

Nov 25: Drake Passage Day 3 & Landings

Depending on weather we will hopefully have our first landing today! Therefore we won’t have many events during landing days since the excitement and adventuring is a bit exhausting!

We will however continue to list meeting areas for after-dinner drinks!

Nov 26: Landings

Nov 27: Landings

Nov 28: Landings & Departure

Cheers to Antarctica Party! After our last landing today, we will all meet again at the bow of the boat for a toast to Antarctica and group photo! Feel free to grab a drink from the bar (or your “room bar”) to bring! Please be careful with glass!

Evening:

Nov 29: Drake Passage

Onesie Party & Best Stories of the Trip & Karaoke

Nov 30: Drake Passage

TRIVIA CONTEST:

Round 1: My Life’s a Travel Movie Trivia – Prize: ‘Yes I’m a Woman and I’m Traveling Alone’ book

Round 2: Antarctica Trivia – Prize: Antarctica Flag!

Dec 1: Disembarkment Day

Sadly they are going to wake us up VERY early to get off the ship today 🙁

You can choose to get the included transfer straight to the airport, or if you have a later flight, you can take a taxi there later and hang out downtown!

PACKING GUIDE

Yes I will be dressing as Extra as possible, and yes most of my outfits are metallic. Feel free to play along 😉

My biggest tip is to get one or two high quality wool thermal layers, wool socks, and gloves that will keep your hands dry and warm!

Here’s my Antarctica Packing Guide

WHAT TO WEAR ONBOARD:

I’ve had quite a few questions specifically about the Captain’s Dinner, so going to answer that and give some other insight for what to wear onboard the ship:

Captain’s Dinner: This is supposed to be the fancy dinner, so if you can bring a nice dress or pants, and for guys slacks and jacket, that would be great! You do not need to wear heels, but if you feel so inclined, feel free! 

Drake Passage: Dress comfortably because it’s going to be cold and rough! I wore mostly leggings with sweaters and a pair of comfy boots. Make sure you have boots/boat shoes with a good grip on the bottom 😉 

Dinners: Please do not wear pajamas, onesies, or robes to dinner. Not my rules. Learned from experience.

Swimwear: There is a pool and sauna onboard, and we will hopefully be doing the Polar Plunge, so bring a swimsuit! I will likely bring a onepiece and a long-sleeved swimsuit.*Note: it is rare they actually open the pools…if we are lucky we will get at least one day! If you hear or see it is open, please tell everyone you see and meet there!

Your Jacket, Rental Jacket, and Rental Boots

Don’t worry too much about buying expensive jackets or boots for the trip, because you will each get a rental outer jacket (waterproof) and rubber boots to wear during landings. You’ll also get a soft warm jacket to wear under the outer jacket, which is yours to keep!

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