Visitor Documents

Visiting South Georgia

Online Application Forms

Code of Conduct Whilst Ashore

Guidelines For The Provision Of Medical Care

Biosecurity

Please note updates to Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in section 9 of the 2023-24 Biosecurity Handbook. This guidance describes the tiered response in relation to risk and presence of HPAI, enhanced biosecurity procedures, signs to be vigilant for and the steps that will be put in place for different groups / activities depending on the response level.

Visit Permit Holder Landing Declaration

Permit Holder Briefing & Assessment

Visiting Grytviken and King Edward Point

Post-Visit Report Form

Bird Strike

The Government SGSSI has defined an expedition as “any person or group of people whose approved activities include overnight camping (night(s) ashore) on South Georgia, regardless of the aims of the expedition. These might include filming, mountaineering, skiing, science, longer trekking, sea kayaking, or other activities.

Expedition applications will be subject to an assessment process that draws advice from a panel of expert advisors (for which an administrative fee is charged). The advisory panel are guided by the planning factors and expedition guidelines in the downloaded information.

As part of our 2016-2020 strategy, the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI) committed to working with stakeholders to develop our visitor management policy to better take account of the impact and benefits of tourism and integrate visitor management into our thinking for a new system of terrestrial protected areas. We aim to ensure that visitors can access and enjoy South Georgia whilst still ensuring that the highest standards of environmental protection and safety are upheld.

The first stage of this process is to establish baseline information on how visitors (including science, media, BAS, Government and tourists) use terrestrial areas on South Georgia by gathering data on the current spatial extent of operations.  Input from expedition staff will be crucial to the success of this process.

We recognise that although for some sites there are specific visitor management plans, for others there is more open access and the potential for a higher degree of free roaming and so different operators may use the landscape differently. So we can capture this information, we have prepared a booklet which contains a map for each landing site. Please  mark/shade the area that you use at each location as part of your ordinary landings.

We are also interested in what you consider to be the attractions of each site (wildlife, scenery etc.), where these are located within the site and how the environmental situation on the day of landing (e.g. fur seals, position of rivers) affects how you use a site on any particular occasion.  Please also mark on the maps if there are areas within sites that you think are particularly sensitive and would benefit from additional monitoring efforts.

Assistance with this process is greatly appreciated and we would encourage you to take this opportunity to engage in this survey, which will really help develop management plans that facilitate access to South Georgia whilst protecting its unique environment.

Please return completed maps to ‘GSGSSI, Government House, Ross Road, Stanley, Falkland Islands, FIQQ 1ZZ

The Site Visitor Management Plans (SVMP) have been prepared for the most popular approved visitor landing sites and a number of overland walks.  These detail open access areas, closed areas and routes for overland walks.  Visitor management information is detailed as well as additional information such as hazards and areas which are particularly sensitive to disturbance.  

It is a condition of visit permits that these must be complied with and visit permit holders must ensure that all visitors and staff under their charge adhere to these plans.  SVMP are reviewed annually and visit permit holders must ensure that they have the most recent versions of the plans before they depart for South Georgia.

Further information and online application forms on the Regulated Activities Permit page.

With its stunning landscapes, abundant wildlife, and unique history, South Georgia is a very special place to get married. Your wedding can be incorporated as part of your visit to Grytviken.

If you decide this is what you want to do, you should contact the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI) at least three months before your prospective wedding date. This allows for the practicalities of the marriage to be arranged before your visit so that your special day is relaxed and hassle-free

Further details here.