Inspiring Explorers Expedition™ Antarctica 2026
Are you ready to live the ‘Explorer Mindset’?
In 2026, we will be offering a group of young people (aged 18-30) to set sail to the Antarctic Peninsula aboard the historic tall ship Bark EUROPA, just as the early explorers like Scott and Shackleton did.
On this Inspiring Explorers ExpeditionTM, you’ll live the ‘Explorer Mindset’ learning how curiosity, resilience, leadership, teamwork and innovation help you build your confidence to step out of your comfort zone.
This month-long expedition to the Antarctic Peninsula will take place through January and February 2026. More detailed information on the expedition, eligibility requirements, the application process,timeline and outreach commitments will be available when applications open on Monday 11 August 2025.
Register to receive a reminder when applications open and more information is available:
Life aboard the Bark EUROPA
Are you ready to step out of your comfort zone and visit the world’s most extreme environment while growing your ‘Explorer Mindset’? Early Antarctic explorers like Shackleton and Scott voyaged to Antarctica aboard tall ships, driven by resilience, teamwork, and a spirit of innovation in the face of the unknown. Aboard Bark EUROPA, you’ll carry forward this legacy, embracing the challenge and camaraderie that define true exploration.
Alongside Antarctic Heritage Trust’s Inspiring Explorers Expedition™ team, you’ll become part of the crew, helping sail and operate the ship.
For more information about the voyage and the Bark EUROPA, please visit their official website.
About the Inspiring Explorers Expeditions™
Antarctic Heritage Trust’s Inspiring Explorers Expeditions™ provide opportunities for young people to experience and challenge themselves in Antarctica and the polar regions. These expeditions connect young people with the legacy the Trust cares for and encourage them to embrace that same spirit of exploration. It is a spirit as critical in the 21st century as it was over a century ago.
By making the legacy the Trust cares for relevant, we hope young people will identify with it, value it, and in the future be motivated to protect it.
The expeditions not only change participants’ lives, they create a platform to share inspiring stories and experiences with participants’ communities and a wide audience.
Building a Leadership Legacy
The iconic Antarctic explorers Shackleton, Scott and Hillary embodied the qualities of truly exceptional leadership. Their remarkable stories of leadership in the face of adversity have resonated around the world for over 100 years.
Inspiring Explorers Expeditions™ create opportunities for the young change-makers of tomorrow to connect with and be inspired by the qualities of those heroic Antarctic leaders.
The expeditions provide life-changing perspectives through challenge and exploration in the world’s most pristine and unforgiving environments. Antarctica is crucially important in today’s cutting edge research into climate change, biology and meteorology.
Just as crucial is fostering the Shackletons and Hillarys of the future—the young people who will draw on the great legacies of the polar heroes to drive change and instigate new perspectives for tomorrow’s world.
Inspiring Explorers Expedition™ Ross Sea, Antarctica 2025
Earlier this year, eight Inspiring Explorers™ travelled to the Ross Sea region of Antarctica on the tenth Inspiring Explorers Expedition™, in partnership with Heritage Expeditions.
This remarkable journey immersed them in the history of legendary Antarctic explorers like Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Sir Ernest Shackleton, Carsten Borchgrevink, and Sir Edmund Hillary.
As guardians of their expedition bases, the Trust was proud to bring Inspiring Explorers™ to the historic huts for the first time—bridging past and present, and sharing our knowledge of conserving Antarctica’s unique cultural heritage. Walking in the footsteps of the greats, the team experienced the landscapes that once challenged and inspired them.
