Antarctica Travel

Physical fitness and good health are essential when embarking on a voyage aboard a sailing vessel, especially in remote areas where medical assistance is limited. Safety is our top priority. Along with the health declaration in the booking form, we require sailors aged 65 and older to provide a medical statement signed by their doctor. You can find the form here.

There is no internet access on board, offering you the chance to disconnect from the digital world and fully engage in the sailing experience. However, if you'd like to stay in touch with loved ones, you can send and receive small emails for a fee. In case of emergencies, a designated contact back home will have access to the captain's phone number.

No prior sailing experience is necessary to join. As part of the voyage crew, you'll receive training from Bark EUROPA’s permanent crew, who will teach you everything you need to know along the way. Everyone is encouraged to take part in activities such as steering, setting sails, assisting with maneuvers, navigation, weather observations, and furling the sails. The crew will provide theory training and hands-on instruction throughout the journey in a relaxed and supportive atmosphere—true to the Dutch style, without yelling, whistles, or uniforms.

On board the Bark EUROPA, we offer 11 cabins for the voyage crew, including three 2-person cabins, four 4-person cabins, and four 6-person cabins. The ship has a variety of common areas, such as the library, lounge, poker corner, and deckhouse, making it well-suited for ocean crossings and longer voyages. Whether you want to enjoy quiet time reading or writing in your logbook in the aft library, or prefer to participate in the lively social atmosphere of the deckhouse, there’s a space for everyone. In the deckhouse, you’ll also find the ship's bar, where you can share a glass of wine with fellow crew members, play board or card games, or engage in good conversation. Below deck, the lounge serves as the breakfast area and a space for lectures and movie screenings led by the guides.

Life on board the EUROPA is shaped by the changing weather and the watch system, making each day unique. A typical day might be like this: You’re woken up at 4 a.m. by the previous watch—it’s your turn to join your watchmates. After checking the weather and suiting up in your sailing gear, you head outside to take turns keeping lookout, steering, and helping the crew with sail handling. After your 4-hour shift, you wake the next watch and enjoy a delicious breakfast prepared by the cook, with fresh bread, yogurt, granola, and fruit.

With some free time after breakfast, you can catch up on sleep, relax on deck, chat with fellow travelers, or assist the crew with ship maintenance. After lunch, it’s back to watch duty, where the weather and course may have shifted, requiring you to hoist or lower sails. In the evening, after dinner, you can either grab a nap or unwind with a drink—it’s up to you. 

Aboard the Bark EUROPA, we encourage you to embrace the adventure by participating in the watch system and helping to navigate the ship. As a sail training vessel, involvement in these activities is an essential part of the experience. You'll take turns standing watch, steering, and assisting with sail handling under the guidance of our experienced crew. It’s a fantastic opportunity to immerse yourself in the voyage, learn new skills, and actively contribute to the journey alongside your fellow sailors.

While your participation is necessary to enhance your experience, there is also plenty of time to relax and enjoy the voyage—whether you prefer spending time on deck, socializing with other travelers, observing the crew, or simply taking in the stunning views.

It can happen that the luggage arrives later, only in very few cases has it been completely lost. If you arrive three days in advance, you have enough time to wait for the lost luggage and, if necessary, get replacement. The crew is always ready to help in such situations.

Handwashing is always possible, and clothes dry quickly on the corridor radiators.
While we strive to offer two laundry cycles, weather conditions may limit machine use. The crew will provide each cabin with a laundry bag. This will be dried in the dryer. We encourage the guests to label their belongings clearly to avoid confusion.

English is the primary language spoken on board. To ensure you can follow all safety instructions and communicate effectively with your fellow crewmates, a good understanding of English is required. This will help you fully enjoy and engage in the overall experience!

The galley of the Bark Europa is always busy preparing delicious meals to keep everyone full and satisfied. The experienced chef and his assistant take care of all meals on board and surprise the crew with a variety of dishes prepared with local ingredients from the ports they visit. They offer both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. When you book your trip, you can specify your preferred meals so that everything is arranged in advance. 

There is plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables on board to keep everyone in top condition, but towards the end of the longer expeditions, meals are prepared with fruit and vegetables from the freezer. However, there is no need to bring any food supplements.

One vegetarian meal (no fish and no meat) and one non-vegetarian meal will be prepared each day. When booking, you choose one of these two options for your entire trip so that we can organize the right meals for your sailing expedition. We cannot cater to a vegan diet.

On most trips we do not have the opportunity to re-stock during the adventure, all shopping has to be done before departure. Therefore, the chefs need to have an overview of the number of vegetarians and non-vegetarians on board and should be aware of possible food allergies.

The barque EUROPA has been sailing the world's oceans regularly since 2000 and has earned a reputation as a true sailing ship. Her voyages take her to remote islands and cities around the globe and offer you the opportunity to accompany her on long crossings.

We recommend around €10 per day. This may vary depending on your personal spending habits and the nature of your trip. On trips with a lot of sailing you may spend less time at the bar! Your cash bill will accumulate during the trip and can be settled in either Euros or US Dollars at the end of the trip.

Space on the ship and in the cabins is limited. You have a drawer and a small closet to store all your belongings, so pack thoughtfully and sensibly, prioritizing the important things. Here you can find our recommended, tried and tested packing list.

You will receive a separate invoice for the landing fees for South Georgia. This was in 2024 €290 for all landings.
For the Falklands we add the landing fees to the barbill (as this will be counted per landing). The landing fee is 25-30 GBP per landing, it differens per location. We might make 1-2 landings per day. Antarctica has no additional landing fees.

Bark EUROPA sails 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Sail handling can happen at any moment and therefore we work with a watch system. Participating in sailing and running Bark EUROPA is a big part of the overall experience on board. It will put you out of your comfort zone and into the world of tall ship sailing.

Life on board is simple, but ever changing at the same time. As soon as the watch system starts you will quickly find the rhythm of life at sea. You will be divided in three watches, the red watch, blue watch and white watch, named after the colors of the Dutch flag. During your four hours on watch there will be several tasks that will be divided between the members of your watch.

There will always be two people on helm duty. Together, you will maintain a steady course on the helm. The crew will explain how to steer the ship and how to keep the right course. On the bow of the ship two people will stand on look-out. Whenever you see anything of interest in the water such as ships, buoys, icebergs or wildlife this will be communicated to the officer on watch. The rest of the watchmembers will be on deck duty.

During your watch there is also time to assist the crew with the maintenance of the ship. You will learn to work with traditional materials and methods. Woodworking, astronavigation, sailmaker work and traditional rope and rigging work will be part of your sailing experience. This way you will learn something new every day.

Disembarkation takes place in the morning, and although we do our best to be back at the time we have planned, the Bark Europa is a sailing ship that depends on wind and weather. We recommend flying in the late afternoon or evening of the day of disembarkation. Or instead of ending your wonderful adventure rather abruptly, you could always stay in port for another day and explore your new surroundings.

If additional landing fees are incurred during a trip, these will be charged at a later date via the invoice or with an additional invoice before the expedition. In addition to unlimited tea and coffee, you can purchase drinks at the bar. The bartender will keep a record of everything you buy and at the end of the trip the bill will be paid in cash. You can pay in USD or in EURO (or via Stripe).