South Sandwich Islands
United Kingdom · Europe
About South Sandwich Islands
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI) are a chain of subantarctic islands in the Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica. The islands are an overseas territory of the United Kingdom: they have no permanent residents and their administration is physically based in the Falklands, but since 1985 they have been a separate jurisdiction.
South Sandwich Islands travel guide
Understand
The American Cordillera is the line of mountain ranges that spans half the world, from Alaska through the Rockies to central America and the Andes. Until 30 million years ago this line continued east and south in the "Scotia Arc" from Tierra del Fuego through the Falklands, South Georgia, the South Sandwich and South Orkney Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula. Then the mountains sank, and by 23 million years ago the rift was complete. Antarctica became a separate continent, encircled by a circumpolar ocean current that kept out warmer winds and waters, and a climate that was already chilly became exceptionally cold. All that was left between Antarctica and the Andes was the loop of mountainous islands. These repeatedly submerged and rose again as plate tectonics distorted the region, while the eastern arc became volcanic, a frigid replica of the Caribbean chain. The Antarctic Convergence is the zone where the very cold circumpolar current meets the milder sub-Antarctic ocean. It's about 40 km wide, fairly static, and defines a climatic boundary. This zone is well north of South Georgia, but south of the Falkland Islands, so the latter's climate is much less harsh though they're at similar latitude. The mixing and upwelling of water along the Convergence creates a food chain: it fosters the growth of plankton, which are eaten by krill, which are eaten by whales and other large species. These in turn became hunted by humans. South Georgia and the other islands were discovered (or with the Aurora Islands, imagined) in the 18th and 19th centuries. They were uninhabited, with no mineral wealth, and their main value was as bases for ships hunting whales and seals. In this remote dangerous ocean, any cove was welcome if it had sheltered anchorage, dry level ground for camping, fresh water, and wildlife to eat. A cluster around Grytviken on South Georgia became year-round settlements, with others as summer camps. For similar reasons South Georgia was also a staging post f
Getting there
There are no landing strips and you can only get in by sea. The seas around South Georgia are cold and rough but free of pack ice year-round, so vessels can approach at any time of year. In summer that island is routinely visited by cruise ships, and there are multiple places where you can get ashore then get off again without risking your neck – see South Georgia Island#Get in for details. The South Sandwich Islands are a much tougher proposition. They are beset by pack ice from April to October, though the density and extent vary year by year. This ice is a metre thick so icebreakers could still get through, unlike the massive ice shelf close to Antarctica. The island landing points are at best hazardous, and some would be daunting even to a stoked-up Marines Commando. You would need to have a special scientific purpose and bring a heavy-duty polar expedition. You need a valid passport to visit SGSSI. You don't need a visa, but the expedition organiser or ship's captain must obtain clearance to land anywhere in these islands – this is done online more than 60 days in advance via the SGSSI government website. The main considerations are bio-security (including Covid-19), self-sufficiency, and resilience if something goes wrong. Clearance results in a one year permit, and first-time applicants must initially land at Grytviken for a physical check-out – how rat-proof is your vessel? Veterans may conduct the entire process online and go straight to their destination. There's a fee of £130 per visitor for visits up to 3 days, but that's only a small part of the charges for harbourage, customs and so on, which the ship's operator will have to recoup from the passengers. Tourist parties only spend a few hours ashore at each location, then return to their ships between excursions. Staying ashore overnight makes it an expedition, which incurs a £1000 charge per group (of recommended size 4–15). But yes, you can get married here, that'll be another £400 please. Cruise op
Getting around
Moving any significant distance is by boat, even within the same island. Ships deploy Ribs / Zodiacs for short hops. In summer by the coast you can walk around in stout boots. In winter the ground is snow-clad even at sea level so you need snow shoes or cross-country skis. Only competent mountaineers should venture inland, where glaciers shift and ice chasms lurk unseen beneath the snow. In South Georgia you might also have to factor in high altitude. The bio-security protocols for arriving into SGSSI also apply to moving between sites, because they're a series of unique little bio-spheres that mustn't contaminate each other. So at the very least, boot-wash; anything that might trap soil needs particular care.
Buy
There is a small gift shop at Grytviken which will accept Falkland pounds, British pounds, US dollars and euros. Water is sold by the tonne. Most large ships visiting the islands will sell basic supplies (razors, shampoo, hats, snacks), but otherwise it is unlikely you will have any use for cash.
Eat
You may not hunt, fish or eat the wildlife. Don't feed it either, though there's an exemption for upchucking as your Zodiac pitches in the swell: the fish and seabirds will appreciate this contribution. You may not bring fresh food ashore anywhere in SGSSI, unless you're a registered expedition. Chocolates and toffees are okay for tour parties. So that alas rules out eating sandwiches in the Sandwich Islands. Both foodstuff and islands commemorate John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich (1718–1792), who was First Lord of the Admiralty at the time of Cook's 1775 voyage here. Meat or cheese between bread slices was already common in England but the Earl made them aristocratically fashionable – supposedly he called for a snack while playing cribbage in around 1765, and his companions then asked for "the same as Sandwich." (He probably already ate them al desko, being a busy fellow, which didn't stop in the bedroom.) But Cook, knowing which side his bread was buttered in patronage, also conferred the name on the Hawaiian Islands. So these cold places were later distinguished as the South Sandwich Islands, while Hawaii somehow escaped being called the "Not the same as Sandwich Islands".
Drink & nightlife
On short excursions, bring all drinks with you. Don't drink alcohol until you're safely back on your ship, with the exception of raising a toast at Shackleton's grave at Grytviken. Don't drink from the meltwater pools, they're full of bird poop and other unspeakables. Expeditions can cut clean ice to melt for water.
Sleep
Visitors sleep back aboard their ship. An overnight stay ashore anywhere in SGSSI makes it an expedition, which must be vetted well in advance, for a £1000 fee.
Go next
Your cruise ship may head west to the Falkland Islands and a South American mainland port. Or it may continue south towards the Antarctic Peninsula and the South Shetland Islands. If the ship follows the chain of volcanic islands before heading to the Peninsula, it will pass South Orkney, rarely visited.
Overview adapted from Wikipedia, travel guide fromWikivoyage (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.