The ad in a 1914 British newspaper stated: "Men wanted for hazardous journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful."

Five thousand eager adventurers applied for Ernest Shackleton's 1,800-mile expedition across the Antarctic continent by way of the South Pole.

Today's cruise-ship visits to Antarctica bear little resemblance to Shackleton's hardships.

Where the veteran explorer and his men traveled in a wooden-hulled vessel and endured six months of complete darkness with temperatures that reached way below zero, today's visitors to the southern continent arrive during the region's more comfortable summer -- November through March. One visitor has been quoted as saying: "The temperature when we arrived was warmer than that day in Chicago."

A visit to The Great White Continent is an adventure filled with icebergs, blue glaciers, jagged mountains, and waters that are home to whales and seals.

Before landing, shipboard naturalists familiarize travellers with such terms of the territory as katabatic winds (downdrafts that sweep over the ice and outward in a rush of cold air), nunatks (prominent offshore rocks), sastruggi (wind-drifted snow banks or dunes) and sundogs (large halos around the sun created by ice crystals in the atmosphere).

Visitors ride ashore in motorized inflatable craft and find the perambulations of their web-footed counterparts, penguins, an endless source of amusement.

A number of organizations offer cruises to Antarctica. Here are examples.

Chicago-based R. Crusoe and Son (rcrusoe.com) offers 14-day cruises aboard the Corinthian II, a 57-suite mega yacht that holds a fleet of Zodiacs and is manned by a crew of 70. The itinerary takes you to Buenos Aires and Ushuaia, the southernmost city on the planet, where you board the vessel. The cruise begins in the calm Beagle Channel and moves on to the Drake Passage, the broad stretch of rough water separating South America from Antarctica.

Days six through 10 are spent on and around the Antarctic Peninsula, with several Zodiac excursions each day. Then, it's back to Ushuaia and the flight home via Buenos Aires.

Departure dates begin Dec. 30. Call 888-490-8046 for dates and rates, which begin at about $8,000 per person double occupancy.

The century-old Norwegian Coastal Voyage organization now sends its ships on three Antarctica itineraries.

A 19-day voyage begins with a flight to Santiago, Chile, then on to Punta Arenas to board the ship. It passes through the Strait of Magellan to Puerto Natales and on to the Beagle Channel before arriving at the tiny island community of Port Williams. Then it's on to Cape Horn and across Drake Passage to spend six days in Antarctica. Return is via Ushuaia for a flight to Buenos Aires and on home.

A 21-day journey includes the Buenos Aires-Ushuaia linkage before sailing past Cape Horn and through Drake Passage to spend four days in Antarctica. Two days at sea brings you north to South Georgia Island for two days before moving on to the Falkland Islands for a couple of days, then sail all the way back to Buenos Aires for your flight home.

A 13-day itinerary takes you to Santiago and on to Ushuaia to board the ship, and returns home via Santiago.

Rates for the 13-, 19- and 21-day journeys that include air begin at $4,995 per person double occupancy. Departures begin in November. For more information, call 800-323-7436 or visit norwegiancoastalvoyage.ca.

Montana-based Adventure Life Journeys (adventure-life.com) offers a choice of 17 ships, including the aforementioned Corinthian II, that cruise Antarctic waters. They fall into four categories in rising degrees of comfort. Most were built in the 1980s or '90s as sturdy working craft under the Russian flag and have been converted to accommodate travellers in cabins that range from singles to triples, and from basic comfort through luxury.

Six research ships accommodate from 46 to 54 passengers each. They feature ample deck space, bridges open to visits, lounges, and lecture rooms-libraries.

The most economically priced of the group, these ships are especially attractive for the solo traveller willing to share accommodations with others.

Next come four former ice-breakers that accommodate more than 100 passengers each and include fitness facilities and a gift shop but still maintain the atmosphere of a working vessel.

The five Expedition Cruise ships feature more spacious, even deluxe, accommodations and public areas. Passenger capacity ranges from 78 to 124.

At the top of the line are the two Luxury Expedition Ships, the 14-passenger Corinthian II and 198-passenger Explorer II.

Most of the vessels are manned by Russian veterans of ice sailing but the officers and expedition staff speak English.

Itineraries among these vessels range from 11 to 38 days at prices beginning around $4,500 per person double occupancy, with most ships in the $5,500 range. Day-to-day itineraries are flexible to deal with changing weather, ice conditions, and penguin migrations. Participants leave the ship frequently for journeys in the Zodiac craft or to set foot on land.

A few of the vessels carry a doctor, and a number require passengers to sign up for emergency medical-evacuation insurance coverage.

For more information, visit adventure-life.com, or call 800-344-6118.

See also Silverseas Cruises at silverseaships.com