Imagine a landscape constituting only of snow, ice, rock, and sky and where little animal or plant life can survive. This is the harsh environment of Antarctica, and Patriot Hills is the only privately owned campsite on this isolated continent, where temperature can plummet to – 89 degrees Celsius in winter. However those who willing to visit such a place can enjoy twenty-four-hour daylight in summer and ultimate escape by any standards. Photo by: mrclleite

Established in 1987, the resort at Patriot Hills is a mere 1,075 km from the South Pole. After an easy four-and-a-half-hour flight from the town of Punta Arenas on the southernmost tip of Chile, your plane lands on a rare, blue, icy runway in the Ellsworth Mountains, from where you have the option of either hiking the half mile to the camp or arriving more comfortably by snowmobile. Photo by: borge.ousland

There is plenty to do when you arrive. You can take a flight over the Pole itself, or if you are feeling particularly adventurous, you can even ski there. Photo by: mrclleite

The dining tent is the heart of Patriot Hills – a place for guests to gather, have a warming meal, and share tales of adventure. Afterward, snuggle up in you sleeping bag and dream of following in the footsteps of explorer Roald Amundsen in December 1911, the first person to reach the South Pole. Photo by: Mark Hannaford