Originally Posted by
GeezerCouple
We just cannot decide about a cruise to Antarctica. I admit that one of our concerns is the distance - meaning time - if there is any medical emergency beyond the ship's medical center's capabilities.
It is a concern, but make sure your ship is prepared to handle it, and that you have medical evacuation insurance (our company required $100K minimum). On our trip to Antarctica, one of the SCUBA divers had issues and was airlifted back to South America. We were never told how time-critical the situation was, but it appears all went well.
The biggest concern with Antarctica is if you want to go ashore, international law restricts each ship to 100 people per landing (plus guides). So if you're on a larger ship, you may not get to go as often as you'd like or even at all. That's why we picked a ship that only carried 100 passengers and included all landings.