King Sejong Station South Korean Antarctic Base

King Sejong Station sits on Barton Peninsula, King George Island, South Shetland Islands — the same island cluster that hosts a half-dozen other national bases, making this corner of Antarctica about as close to a small international community as the continent gets. Korea’s Korea Polar Research Institute has run the station year-round since 1988, with a summer population that can reach 60 and a winter skeleton crew of around 17. Fuel, freshwater, communications, a medical clinic, and basic resupply coordination are available for approved visiting programmes. The surrounding terrain is volcanic tundra, typically snow-free near shore in summer.

King George Island is accessible by ship from Punta Arenas or by the small aircraft that serve the island’s gravel airstrip at Teniente Marsh. By Antarctic standards the logistics here are relatively forgiving — multiple stations means multiple backup options if things go sideways. Still requires formal coordination with KOPRI before any visit.

Korea's Antarctic base on the Peninsula's busy island hub.