Customer Reviews

Within a 24 hour period we visited one of the historic Antarctica Explorer's huts, visited a large Adelie penguin colony, and enjoyed champagne on ice, with an Emperor penguin, standing on the Ross Sea Ice pack.

Traveling on the Ultramarine was the most epic and unforgettable experience. The expedition team is top notch and the service on the ship is exceptional. This ship had all the expedition activities you could ask for. We were able to get on zodiacs twice a day and signed up for kayaks as well. Expedition team provided dry suits and guidance through the activities and voyage. Lots of knowledge transfer during the voyage too and enjoyed the learning about birds, seals, whales and penguins. Plenty of food to fuel and cabins were well stocked with general toiletries. Loved the beds and pillows and the stabilizers helped make the ride smoother than expected. All logistics were taken care of by staff, and it was easy to follow. Programs posted daily so you always knew what was going on. Booking through Swoop was seamless, and all information was provided for in the portal. Now Investigating our next voyage to see the Arctic! Ready to go!

The landscape, the animals, the harmony, the pristineness

Alex. I have given you detailed feedback over the phone. I assume that the emails asking for feedback are automatically generated so do not see the need to repeat all I said to you. In short, Swoop provided a very good service with plenty of discussion and information before departure. The ship's hotel staff and crew were excellent. The ship's layout was poor, with nowhere other than the cabin (or the deck when weather permitted) to escape from the lounge when the presentations did not appeal or when we wanted to escape from the endless musak. The fixed 'fore and aft' lounge seating did not afford sensible conditions for lectures. The quality of the lectures was generally very poor with most expedition staff lacking basic public speaking skills and putting far too much emphasis on endless statistics. The expedition staff generally were lacking in general knowledge and sometimes even in courtesy. Any request for information about the bird life was usually met with 'ask Bruce' and of course Bruce was not always around to be asked. They ensured a safe environment but we often felt that they were reluctant to engage in conversation. Andrew and Michelle, the leader and his deputy, were both off-hand and dismissive. another member of the team, Bill, behaved totally inappropriately on occasion - largely to play to the gallery - even turning up in drag in the middle of a beautiful cruise through the ice. Our fellow passengers were mostly Swiss and German and were generally a good crowd although it was often difficult to find enough places at a table at mealtimes for a group of English speakers to sit down together. Hope that helps Peter

Climbing up the ice shelf overlooking the ocean and passing waddles of penguins.

The Cruise was notable for having Greg run the trip. He seemed to know the weather and pointed us in the right direction each day. Most often the landings were great experiences, The staff and food as well as the accomodations were excellent as well. I loved every other aspect of the trip and would have liked a longer trip(in my dreams). If there was one hiccup, it was going to Stanley(staying in town was a waste of time unless you knew or were told to go to a bay to see penguins, etc, but it all was so disorganized at that time, we were not told about that option), I personally would have enjoyed a trip to an albatross colony. Perhaps most important to me was rooming with my grandson and spending the time with him and my daughter who live in Australia. I loved kayaking, the sights we saw, even kayaking in brash ice were real treats, and the support team were all engaged and fun to be with on this journey!

Kayaking as a Humpback whale surfaced in front of the Kayak and brushed the end of the Kayak before gently gliding back under the surface

Was meeting Emma Carey, (the Girl who fell from the sky) on the ship. she is a walking miracle. this was followed by watching the A23a Iceberg and the thousands of King Penguins in south Georgia. in short is is a combination of many Memorable moments.

The vastness of Antarctica - the landscapes of mountains, icebergs were mind blowing. And then add in amazing wildlife - just wow! There truly aren't adequate words.

Having a Humpback whale swim around our zodiac for 20 minutes while getting great video above and below water of the gentle giant.

Camping on the continent

Penguins - hands down. Walking among them on shore was the best. Zodiac trips a poor second but in the bird flu situation, understandable.

The morning we spent kayaking followed by an afternoon on the zodiac spotting both Orca and humpback whales.

Overall there were lots of disappointing moments got to do only 1 of the things i wanted to do...(polar plunge) Saw tons of gentoo penguins very little if any of much else people were nice...much younger crowd than i expected boat was ok, food was good, staff good.

The pure and spacious of Antarctic, the abundant of wildlife, the greatness of the nature, the efforts and enthusiasm every expedition staff are also very impressive. I still missing all of these when I back home.

The silence while sailing on the most south part of our voyage

Kayaking through brash ice near the Argentinian research station and seeing leopard seals basking on icebergs.

Cruising with the zodiacs. Espacially the day at Meusnier Point with the unique iceberg!

Highlight- the penguins Landscape- I was surprised at how little snow there was and how rocky the terrain was Wildlife - penguins were amazing and the sea lions were very cool People- my travel companions were terrific! We are got along very well. Great group Surprises- accommodations. We expected to be in a thermal tent and instead stayed at the Russian scientific location in bunk beds. It was good but unexpected. Also the weather. We were supposed to leave Monday mid day and do half a day with tours on Antarctica and then half a day the next day and head home. Instead we left late Monday night. Just had time for dinner and bed and then only half a day tour Tuesday because the weather turned bad on Wednesday afternoon.

Kayaking and being surrounded by humpback whales