Tourist Attractions in Antarctica

Think because you're in Antarctica, you'll be free of gift shops? Of course not! Your boat will more than likely have a shop selling over-priced shirts and trinkets.

If you are lucky enough to land at a science station (I went to England's Port Lockroy) they will also sell postcards, shirts, and other things. You can even post a letter from Antarctic (complete with a stamp from the respective Antarctic territory).

Unique Suggestions: Bring US Dollars for your purchases.

The Chilean 'Research' base, Gonzalez Videla, is a popular stop on the Antarctic Cruise circuit.

However, it should be known that this base is more of a revenue-generating facility than research center. The primary purpose of this base is to support Chile's claim to the Antarctic, as well as sell souvenirs to tourists on passing ships.

The base is only open four months a year (the tourist season) and it's research consists solely of measuring the temperature.

Unique Suggestions: The research stations with post offices (of which Gonzalez Videla is one) will allow you to mail post cards from the Antarctic, and

When we visited Gonzalez Videla (as a back-up, since the Ukrainian base that we were originally going to land at was unreachable by Zodiac), the base did not have any souvenirs or postage stamps - so the most that could be done was getting your passport stamped and tour the facility

This is a story about a rescue my husband was involved in. One of our members asked me to enter it...hope you enjoy....and learn from it.
On January 16, 1969, the Antarctic Support Activities command had a Change of Command. After the ceremony the men were givin a rare day off. One young Lt.JG and an enlisted man went for a walk on a small nearby mountain. While walking near the edge of a crevasse, the LTJG slipped and fell in. It was quite deep and V shaped. The enlisted man rushed back to McMurdo base (a distance of about a mile an a half to 2 miles) and reported the incident. A doctor who was an experienced ice climber called down to the parachute loft and asked about rescue personnel and equipment. I told him I was the only member of the Para Rescue team that was available ...so we were IT. We boarded a Sakorsky helocopter with a banana sled, peton pegs (sp?) and ropes, etc. We flew to the top of the mountain (which was flat) but the high winds kept the helo from landing. We made a pass around the mountain and located the LTJG who was still conscious but very cold. We managed to get close enough to the mountain (about 400 feet from the top) and unloaded our gear while the helo hovered close to the ground. We had to climb up the side of the mountain, cross the plateau, and prepare to descend into the crevasse. Using petons (sp?), spikes (with a ring on the end) driven into the ice, and rope...we went dow the side where the LtJG was. When we reached him he was very blue in color and very cold, but still able to speak. We pulled and pushed him back to the top and down to the drop point where the helo came back to pick us up. The helo took him back to McMurdo Sick Bay where all the medical personnel waited to thaw him out. It took a couple of days because he had to be warmed slowly...but he survived and went back to duty. Sakorsky Air Craft Company awarded us the Sakorsky "Winged S" Life Saving Pin and Certificate.

A CREVASSE IS A DEEP CREVICE IN A GLACIER, ACCORDING TO WEBSTER. THEY ARE A SIGNIFICANT DANGER ON "THE ICE". MEN AND EQUIPMENT NEED TO BE GUARDED AT ALL TIMES. NAVY PHOTOGRAPHERS CLIMBED DOWN INTO THEM FOR PHOTOS. YOU HAVE TO ASK YOURSELF IF YOU WANT A GOOD PHOTO THAT BADLY?

There are no tourists: hence, no tourist traps. There are some cruise tours to Antarctica, but most do not stop on the continent.
There are, of course, some suveniors in the gift shop, you need those!