From venturing to rarely-explored seas to visiting historically important and world-famous sites, all from the comfort of a luxury expedition cruise ship, following the great explorers of the 'heroic age' of remote exploration across the world provides a journey that is truly unforgettable.

Perhaps emulate the likes of Shackleton and Scott with an Antarctic exploration, visiting the site of Shackleton's infamous Endurance shipwreck, or venture to the White Continent's rarely-visited Ross Sea, whose eponym is the pioneering British explorer James Clark Ross. There's chances to visit Cape Royds in McMurdo Sound, used by Shackleton and his crew during their legendary but ultimately unsuccessful attempt to reach the South Pole, and even land at historic Cape Denison in the subantarctic islands, the site of Mawson's huts - one of just six sites which remain untouched from the 'heroic era' of Antarctic exploration led by famed Australian explorer Sir Douglas Mawson from 1911-14.

Or, swap polar regions and head to the mythical North Pole, following in the wake of explorers like Cook and Peary as you navigate through the ice among giant icebergs and frozen landscapes home to seals, humpback whales and polar bears, or make like famed Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen and sail along the fabled Northwest Passage, with incredible scenery along the way including Greenland's fjords, glaciers and icebergs, spotting whales, seabirds, seals and narwhals.

Away from the cold, there's even the chance to follow in the footsteps of Alfred Wallace, whose travels around the islands of Indonesia led to the development of the theory of evolution at the same time as Darwin.