San Francisco Chronicle
December 1, 2024
By Gregory Thomas
AdventureSmith Explorations’ founder and president, Todd Smith, offers his perspective on a current travel trend. The following sections have been excerpted and paraphrased from an article originally published in the San Francisco Chronicle.
Tourism to Antarctica, which picks up this time of year and runs through March to coincide with the Southern Hemisphere’s summer, has grown substantially in recent years. The number of visitors rose from about 35,000 people in the 2012-13 season to nearly 105,000 in 2022-23, according to the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators, which promotes responsible travel to the continent.
A disproportionate number of those travelers appear to originate from one place: California.
When asked about the surge, Todd shared his insights: “It’s definitely a trend. It’s a large, populous state with lots of affluent travelers. It’s become a big market for this kind of travel.”
Thomas goes on to describe how Antarctica has emerged as a quintessential “last chance” destination, drawing travelers to witness the planet’s most fragile environments before they change. This urgency is reflected in data from World Nomads, which reveals a significant rise in Californians purchasing travel insurance for trips to environmentally threatened regions. These trends highlight how deeply attuned Californians are to the realities of climate change.
Todd Smith explains, “California is a population that is pretty aware of climate change, and I think if you’re in tune with that, then you’re naturally in tune with what’s happening to Antarctica, and that leads you down the rabbit hole to wanting to visit the place.”
Thomas notes that discussions about environmental degradation are nearly unavoidable for visitors to Antarctica, a destination where the impacts of climate change are visible. Todd Smith agrees, and sees this as an opportunity to inspire travelers to become advocates for the environment.
“If you can take someone to Antarctica and impress them while still talking about issues like climate change, they could potentially become an advocate,” Todd said. “By connecting a person to the destination, maybe you can do some good overall.”
AdventureSmith Explorations represents hand selected and vetted Antarctica small ship cruises that not only integrate education and environmental stewardship into every journey, but adhere to strict sustainability standards. Through these immersive expeditions, we believe travelers leave with not just memories of Antarctica’s immense beauty but also a greater appreciation of its vulnerability—and an inspired commitment to its protection.
Featured on KCBS Radio
To talk more about this travel trend, KCBS Radio’s news anchors Patti Reising and Bret Burkhart spoke with Todd Smith, Founder of AdventureSmith Explorations, to discuss the growing trend of Antarctic travel. Listen to the full interview here.
