Solar Eclipse Travel

“Totality, no matter how long its duration, seems to last no more than eight seconds.” This oft-repeated comment accurately describes the experience for anyone encountering totality for the first time. Even for eclipse veterans, totality always seems far too short. Of course, the eclipse itself lasts more than two hours, but the exquisite total phase is only a fragment of the experience.

To see those fleeting moments of totality, you must get yourself into its path. Occasionally, the path is close. In 2024, totality sweeps up the eastern half of the United States, putting the eclipse within driving distance of millions of Americans. But most of the time, totality falls across distant lands—southern South America, the Pacific Ocean, northern Africa, Australia, and even Antarctica. Reaching these remote destinations can be challenging, so why not join us and let TravelQuest do the heavy lifting when it comes to solar eclipse travel.

Explore this and other types of eclipse travel

Don’t Miss This Unforgettable Experience

Totality is an immersive experience. For mere moments, it creates a sense of wonder and awe in all who view it. Those who have seen totality will travel thousands of miles to see another and relive this amazing celestial sight.

Totality is also an overwhelming visual spectacle. Day becomes twilight as the Moon covers the Sun. A black hole materializes in the heavens where the Sun once shone, a hole with a red-tinged rim. Stretching beyond where the now-vanished Sun previously glowed are pale, gossamer filaments of silvery light. Bright planets and the brightest stars appear, even though it’s midday. A pale yellow-orange sunset glow encircles the horizon. It’s easy to understand how the ancient peoples thought it was the end of the world. Even today, those seeing totality for the first time are often moved to tears; it can be a very emotional experience.

Witnessing a total eclipse of the Sun is a “must see” and should be on everyone’s bucket list. That’s because it’s not just something to see—it’s something that must be experienced. No photograph can ever do totality justice. Words are inadequate to describe it. Witnessing a total solar eclipse is visceral, emotional, an experience unlike any other. First-timers are often completely unprepared for the range of emotions that engulf them when the Sun vanishes from the sky. Moments later, when a beam of sunlight pierces the darkness and totality ends, the first words on everyone’s lips are: “When is the next one?”

Take an Amazing Solar Eclipse Holiday

It’s often said that seeing totality is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Happily, that doesn’t need to be the case. There is a total eclipse, visible from somewhere on Earth, once every 18 months or so. The catch is—you have to get to it. Fortunately, you’ll find TravelQuest at each eclipse, perfectly positioned somewhere on or near the centerline of totality. Finding the ideal eclipse-viewing site often takes us to the extremes of our planet; it all depends on where the path of totality falls.

In 2021, the totality touches one of the most challenging places on Earth to reach: Antarctica. Because this eclipse is so unique, we have two equally unique excursions, by land and by sea, to the white continent.

During our 2021 Antarctic Expedition to Totality, we spend six nights at our private eclipse camp on Union Glacier. The camp features a complete kitchen and dining area, 2-person clamshell tents, plus outlying tents and structures that house a communications center, washroom facilities, and workshop. Organized daily activities while on the ice are tailored to the weather and your interests. Our specially arranged eclipse-viewing site is near our camp so we can witness totality on December 4th.

This is not TravelQuest’s first expedition to the Antarctic; we’ve made this journey several times previously, always partnered with Antarctic Logistics & Expeditions. But this Antarctic Expedition to Totality will be absolutely unique. Experiencing totality in Antarctica will serve as the crown jewel for anyone seeking to stand in the Moon’s shadow on all seven continents.

For TravelQuest’s 2021 Antarctica, South Georgia & Falklands Total Solar Eclipse Expedition Cruise, we chartered the 126-passenger National Geographic Endurance, a next-generation expedition ship purpose-built for polar navigation. For this 20-night cruise, Lindblad Expeditions takes care of all the cruise logistics and expedition programming. Sailing from the tip of South America, we travel alongside, and land on, the Antarctic Peninsula and its surrounding islands, then discover Ernest Shackleton’s historic South Georgia Island with its breathtaking scenery and fascinating wildlife, and spend time among the natural and cultural attractions of the Falkland Islands. Toward the end of the cruise, we strategically position ourselves for the December 4th total solar eclipse.

An Experienced Travel Company

Since its founding in 1996, TravelQuest has planned and fulfilled some 250 solar eclipse tours and astronomy-themed excursions to all seven continents. Beyond totality in 2021, we have a variety of upcoming eclipse trips in various stages of development, including western Australia and the Timor Sea in April 2023, Mexico and the eastern United States and Canada in April 2024, and Iceland and northern Spain in 2026. This is what we do—create and deliver eclipse travel packages that provide our clients with the opportunity to experience the wonders of our planet and stand in the shadow of the Moon. Join us on one of our upcoming solar eclipse trips.