🇦🇶 Lemaire Channel, Antarctica — Cruise Port Guide
Eleven kilometres long, barely 700 metres wide at the neck, walled by cliffs rising 1,000 metres straight from the water. Nobody lands here — you stand on deck in the cold and watch the ship thread it.
Updated September 2026
Quick facts
Getting ashore
When to visit Lemaire Channel
Best attempted December to February, when the channel is least likely to be plugged with ice. Captains often time the transit for early morning or late evening light.
Good to know
Ice closes the Lemaire regularly — perhaps a third of attempts turn back and go around Booth Island instead. Treat it as a bonus rather than a fixture of the itinerary.
Things to do in Lemaire Channel
Be on deck for the transit
Dress properly and get outside — the whole point is standing in the cold while cliffs slide past on both sides. Bridge wings and the bow are usually opened for it.
Catch the reflections
On a still morning the channel goes mirror-flat and doubles the mountains. Captains often aim for dawn or late evening light, and will announce the timing the night before.
Watch for whales in the narrows
Minkes and humpbacks use the channel and are often spotted from the bow. In tight water they can pass very close to the hull.
Hot drinks on deck
Most ships run out with trays of hot chocolate or glühwein during the transit — a small tradition worth staying outside for.
Photograph Una Peaks
The twin spires at the northern entrance are the classic frame. Shoot them wide, with the ship's rail in shot for scale.
Weather by month
Best time to visit: Dec–Feb, when the channel is most often ice-free
| Month | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 35° | 28° | 1.5" |
| Feb | 35° | 28° | 1.6" |
| Mar | 32° | 25° | 1.8" |
| Apr | 27° | 19° | 1.7" |
| May | 21° | 14° | 1.5" |
| Jun | 17° | 10° | 1.3" |
| Jul | 16° | 8° | 1.2" |
| Aug | 17° | 9° | 1.2" |
| Sep | 21° | 13° | 1.3" |
| Oct | 26° | 18° | 1.4" |
| Nov | 30° | 23° | 1.4" |
| Dec | 34° | 27° | 1.5" |
A little history
Crews nicknamed it Kodak Gap in the film era, and the name stuck long after the film did.
The channel was first sailed by Adrien de Gerlache in 1898 and named for Charles Lemaire, a Belgian explorer of the Congo who never came anywhere near Antarctica.
Ice decides everything. If the channel is plugged — which happens often — the captain turns around and goes outside Booth Island instead, and there is no arguing with it.
The twin peaks at the northern entrance are Una Peaks, universally known in the fleet by a ruder name that the officers will happily tell you over the tannoy.
Because the walls are so close and the water so still, the reflections can be perfect — the classic Antarctic photograph of a ship framed between black cliffs comes from here.