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Chinese travel group charters Midnatsol for Antarctica sailing

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Tongcheng launches November sailing to Antarctica on Hurtigruten's Midnatsol
Chinese travel service provider Tongcheng has chartered Midnatsol for a cruise to Antarctica starting on November 11.

The full charter is part of Tongcheng’s efforts to incorporate more ‘high-end’ cruise tour programmes for Chinese travellers and results from a strategic cooperation penned with Norway’s Hurtigruten in November 2015.

Tongcheng said the Antarctica cruise tours are their so-called ‘3.0 new generation’ cruise programmes and a strategic move for the company to stay competitive on the global stage.

The two week Midnatsol sailing departs Puntas Arenas and cruises in the Tierra del Fuego first before heading to Antarctica for five days before returning back to Chile.

November to February is the best season to visit Antarctica. According to figures from IAATO, Chinese tourists visiting Antarctica were slightly over 4,000 for 2015-2016, accounting for about 10.6% of the global market share, behind the US and Australia.