Expedition Arctic and Antarctic Cruises

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SHIV A

Expedition

Classic

Unbelievable Fantastic The scenes, the penguins, icebergs, whales, seals and birds, ice sheets. My initial goal was get the British post office at Port Lockroy - fulfilled. But later cross the Antarctic Circle, see penguins and land ashore on the Antarctic - all fulfilled. Not to miss is the G Expedition supporting team, the ship’s captain, and crew, and the hotel management and catering.

G Expedition belongs to G Adventures which is a small group tour company with tours all over the world. Therefore if you are a single traveller you could choose to share a room instead of paying a single supplement. The crew is amazing and guest satisfaction is bigger than holding to a certain itinerary. I travelled with the tour called Spirit of Shackelton from Ushuaia to Falkland Islands (2 days), South Georgia (4 days) and Antartic Peninsula (5 days). Beforehand only this number was clear, but not where we will make landfall. And the crew made really the best afford to make the most landings as possible and we even made detours on the ship to follow a blow of a whale. Shore Excursions are all included and made with Zodiacs boats, so one should be able to enter such a boat. It's a mixture of landings and Zodiac boat cruises. (Bring at least waterproof trousers and a protection for your camera). We were provided (included in the price, to take home with you) with a water bottle, which could be filled the whole day at a water station and with a thick jacket. Also tea and coffee were available through the whole day for free. During sea days the crew gave lectures about nature, wildlife and history of the places we were visiting. And in the evening we had life music, movies and other entertainment in the Polar Bear Bar and in the Lounge. The food was amazing for such a small ship and only alcoholic beverages and fizzy drinks had to by bought, but still water was provided free to each meal. (Feedback from CruiseCritic)

This was the most enjoyable cruise I've ever done. Ship is spacious, cabin was bigger than many mainstream cruise ships. The staff and food is excellent. There's room for everyone to be seated at meal times so go when you want. No lineups to eat, or disembark, no line ups for anything. Staff lectures are outstanding. Here's the best part, there's no art sales, casinos, jewelry shops, staff taking unwanted photos. There is one dinning room with no upcharges to dine here or there. There's a small store that sells necessities, it's open 1 hour after lunch and dinner. They give you a nice reusable water bottle, it's in your room when you arrive, there's potable water dispensers throughout the ship. they have an open bridge policy, go up whenever you want, fascinating experience, especially when navigating tight channels. I enjoyed it so much I booked the Scotland/Norway with them in 2021. Simply the best. (Copied from Cruisecritic)

I've traveled throughout the world but Antarctica tops the list of places I've been. My tour was with G Adventures and specifically the Antarctica Classic In-depth. I couldn't be more happy with the experience. First off, the crew were incredible. Our expedition leader was in fact featured on Blue Planet (Whale Sharks) and set the tone for the expedition. But all of the crew were fantastic and they gave talks on history, wildlife, climate and were also our zodiac leaders. I signed up for the Kayaking option which I highly recommend. There's limited spots but if you have kayaking experience it really does offer a perspective that's unique. You don't have to kayak during each operation, so a couple time I went on land as well, but you can't beat being a foot away from the water, touching icebergs, seeing penguins swim past. The organization of the daily activities was top notch. There's a daily briefing posted each morning and a recap in the lounge every evening before dinner. They kept us up to date on everything that was happening, both from a weather perspective and also some key points around the area we're travelling. I also appreciated their concern with the environment and impact on the wildlife and ensuring our footprint was as minimal as possible. It's a balance to want to see such a beautiful place but also understanding that you being there can potentially have a detrimental effect. So they're sensitivity around this was appreciated in addition to their contribution around Planeterra. The size of the ship was just right. Only 120 passengers which meant it never felt crowded, operations to land were quick and efficient, and the captain regularly opened the bridge so you could sit and enjoy things from that perspective, with binoculars provided for bird or iceberg watching. This would not be possible on the larger ships. As for the food, incredible. The cooks got a standing ovation at the end of the trip. I'm not even sure how they managed so many amazing and varied meals over the 12 days. Anyway, I think you can guess I had a great time. I highly recommend this tour company and what they stand for. (Copied from Cruisecritic)

Lovely arctic weather and a helpful expedition staff made this trip to Svalbard, Greenland and Iceland truly exceptional. We were very excited by our two polar bear experiences. We saw a mother bear supervising her two cubs fishing! This is apparently an unusual polar bear activity. We also saw a mother bear protecting her cub from a male polar bear. Murdering the young is apparently a common male polar bear activity. We spent pleasant hours trekking across the arctic tundra, occasionally spotting musk ox, arctic fox and puffins. The zodiaks took us to retreating glaciers, magnificent icebergs and allowed us to view the wildlife still around as the arctic summer ended and we approached winter. It was a special treat to be woken to observe the Northern lights during our brief late summer nights. The food was adequate and well prepared, the beds comfortable and our safety on shore excursions well managed. I must also complement the expedition staff on their uniformly excellent lectures. My wife and I truly enjoyed our first arctic experience. (Copied from Cruisecritic)