These Sight-Seeing Day-Trip Plane Tours of Antarctica Are Taking to the Skies Again in 2022

Sun, surf and sand are all great Australian day-trip staples — but if you're looking to add some ice, snow and a bucket-list destination to your next adventure, that's achievable, too. Fancy ticking the South Pole off of your must-see list? Have a bit of spare cash to burn? Eager to head overseas just for one day? Then you'll be excited to know that Antarctica Flights is now taking bookings for its 2022–23 season.

The name does indeed say it all, with these plane trips flying to Antarctica from Australia courtesy of the sightseeing group.  Antarctica Flights has been hosting the rare, sky-high, one-day charter tours for a few years now, and will be taking to the skies again from November 2022 through till February 2023. And, because these trips are classified as domestic flights, you don't even need to take your passport with you.

Departing Sydney (November 6 and December 31, 2022), Hobart (November 13, 2022), Brisbane (November 20, 2022 and February 12, 2023), Perth (November 27, 2022), Canberra (December 4, 2022), Melbourne (December 31, 2022 and February 19, 2023) and Adelaide (February 5, 2023), these flights will cruise above the dazzling Antarctica Treaty area for around four hours.

Each flight path is carefully chosen to maximise viewing from both sides of the plane and to ensure the best views should the weather turn nasty, while some passengers will rotate seats to allow everyone an equal shot at the spectacular scenery below.

Travelling on a Qantas 787 Dreamliner, the whole trip clocks in at around 12.5 hours — depending on your departure city — during which you'll hear from expert Antarctic explorers, talking about the polar environment and its fascinating history.

Your trip includes all of that, while enjoying some better-than-average Qantas plane food, full bar service and, in the lead-up to the views, a spot of in-flight entertainment — classic flick Happy Feet, or some Antarctic docos, of course.

As expected, this kind of plane trip doesn't come cheap. You're looking at $1199 to be seated without direct access to a window, for instance. Other options, including Standard Economy Class ($2199), Superior Economy Class ($3199) and Premium Economy Class ($3999), involve seat rotations throughout the flight, so passengers can spend time both close to the window and further away.

Of course, you and your favourite travel buddy could drop $7999 each on Business Class Deluxe tickets to have a window seat and the one next to it all to yourselves for the entire flight.

ANTARCTICA FLIGHTS 2022-23:

From Sydney: November 6 and December 31, 2022
From Hobart: November 13, 2022
From Brisbane: November 20, 2022 and February 12, 2023
From Perth: November 27, 2022
From Canberra: December 4, 2022
From Melbourne: December 31, 2022 and February 19, 2023
From Adelaide: February 5, 2023

Antarctica Flights' 2022-23 season is open for bookings now, with flights out of Sydney, Hobart, Brisbane, Perth, Canberra, Melbourne and Adelaide between November 6, 2022–February 19, 2023.