Customer Reviews

We saw a lot of ices, which is all whites, the scene is fantastic. I believe that there will be no where else like here in Antarctica. The penguins and seals are so cute, and we saw many of them. It was my first time seeing a whale this closely. the weather there when we went ashore are amazingly sunny; people on ship are all nice and kind, we really enjoyed talking to them when we had a coffee or tea on deck 5. I will definitely recommended this trip to my friends.

Crossing the Antarctic Circle, seeing Penguin rookeries, Elephant Seals, pack ice and Ross Sea ice shelf. Storm Force 10 in the roaring forties was dramatic, unfortunately a couple passengers suffered bruised/cracked ribs and a fair number shaken up. The cruise ship "World" was one day behind us during our tour of the Ross Sea. It was a surprise we were not alone but that such a large vessel had sailed so far South. Seem regulations will stiffen in 2018 requiring vessels to be polar strengthened and banning heavy diesel and so this was 'The World' last chance to make such a trip.

The highlights were all the penguin chicks at Petermann island and going through the Lamaire channel. The wildlife was amazing, especially the penguins and crab eater seals. I had a wonderful roommate and met several nice people, with whom I will keep in touch with. I was shocked how the ship operator's staff allowed the other passengers to be agressive and bully others when trying to take photos.

The highlight was stepping onto Antarctica. Landscapes were awesome. The whales and penguins were fascinating. The elephant seal was a real treat to see and hear him snoring. The ship operator's staff and ship crew members were outstanding. They accommodated each passenger individually. The people we met were lovely.

Excursions were terrific being so close to the birds, seals and penguins. The landscape was breath taking and so different from the other sixth continents that I have seen. There were numerous people from all over the world and very friendly. As George Carlin says: Life is not measured by the number of breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away and Antarctic certainly took my breath away.

The ice. Going on to land/ice twice a day though I would have liked loner and more time off he boat. Landscape stunning and the wildlife unusual. Most of the time pleasant but rather pushy and over excited when they were so, so desperate to take photos. That I do not know why Antarctic does not have a flag. They are not old enough to under stand the concept of a shared geographical area. I did not expect to find 30 young Chinese children on the boat, pushing and shoving on the stairs, along the corridors, jumping the queue in the restaurant and generally making a lot of noise. They were also noisy on land and I had hoped to find wonderful peace in Antarctica. I realise children are playful and lively but I did not expect to be on holiday with them and would not have booked this holiday had I known. So it did affect my enjoyment.

Great staff who are very knowledgeable , patient and who make every effort to make the client feel cared for and welcome.

The whole experience was fantastic, from beginning to end (apart from BA flight home which you did not book!). Mixture of elements to meet both our interests: wildlife (Jane), photography (Mike), landscape (both) and history (both). Highlights included walking amongst the animals (particularly on South Georgia), doing the Shackleton Walk (SG), kayaking amongst icebergs and the privilege of being there - all this was helped by weather which Hayley had never experienced in 15 years of working in the area. Expedition staff were outstanding in enthusiasm/ knowledge/ mixing with clients and we will nominate leader Hayley for the Wanderlust Guide Award 2017. Good mix of people with similar interests meant conversations over many meals were always interesting. The ship was very well run with great crew and high quality catering (too good for our waistlines).

The trip was well organised and went as well as the weather allowed. The highlight was undoubtedly the day we walked on the main continent twice, saw whales, did a Polar plunge and went sliding down a hill near Neko harbour. The group was great, a lot of groups formed but everyone was friendly to each other. Every one of the crew was also helpful, cheerful and friendly. The penguins were cute, the icebergs immense, the seals all over the place and the whales frustrating

As a bird watcher and photographer, the penguins were the stand out act followed by the landscapes and ice. I had wondered about the point of visiting the Falklands but after visiting the Black browed Albatross colony I quickly became enchanted. South Georgia is amazing for both its wildlife and the sheer wonderment of its land mass and form. You get a much better sense of and focus on the beginnings and break up of the continents similar to the relationship between the Galapagos Island and Charles Darwin's theory of evolution where you can see it happening. Having visited most prime bird watching areas around the world, its takes something very special to get me going and penguins aside, I would rate Galapagos as a better experience from a bird watching perspective. I hope that somehow in this seemingly out of control period of time across the globe, that Antarctica can continue to be preserved for generations to come and that my children and grandchildren and so on can experience it. I would be very disappointed but not at all surprised to see this happen from from hotel bases on Antarctica in the future. Mankind in general and business in particular cannot help itself in this regard. I was surprised at the mix of people on board the ship and quickly concluded that generally, it is the only generation that can afford the trip. I was surprised at the kindness of the weather which may have been a double edged sword from a bird watching perspective with relatively calm seas reducing numbers of seabirds sighted. I do suspect there were other areas that could have been visited that would have produced different numbers and species but I guess time, accessbility and other ships all play a part in that situation. I understand there were 14 ships in the area at the time. My grown up children have already experienced much overseas travel to remote and interesting places and no doubt my young grandchildren will follow on some day with Antarctica being on their lists. My photographic records are in part, kept for them and in time, my Antarctica bird photos will be uploaded to grahamefinniganbirdphotogrpahy.com where my birding highlights are stored.

Too many highlights too pick out one in particular, but South Georgia is a must do. Landscapes were simply awesome. The wildlife was much more plentiful than I imagined, also unafraid and curious. We were literally amongst them and not simply viewing from a distance. The passengers on board our expedition (don't like the word 'cruise'!) were about 70% English which did surprise us. Maybe 20% American and the remainder were European/Chinese/Brazilian. Average age was early sixties but all pretty fit, game, and in it for the adventure, so pretty like minded. My grandchildren will hear of the apparent isolation (other cruise ships were out of sight!) teeming wildlife and magnificent scenery. Our biggest surprise was the amazing weather, we did not use our thermals at all. The only big blow we had was behind us and helped us on the way to the Falklands. We had rain on our last day in the Antarctic peninsula which was also the day of the polar plunge! I was also pleasantly surprised by the standard of the catering, I was not expecting it to be so good. Only complaint is that there was too much of it.

Great experience with eighteen landings. Highly professional crew and expedition staff.

Was great. Amazing sights and scenery. The huge penguin numbers at Salisbury Plain and St Andrews Bay were mind blowing. Albatross at Prion Island and the scenery was stunning.

Spending 3 1/2 hrs in Grytviken was the highlight of my trip Staff and other travelers were wonderful to spend time with Less wildlife seen than during November trip

I stepped on Antarctica - the final continent for me! The combination of the landscapes and wildlife will always be a highlight for me. It is hard to believe that such a place still exists on earth. I mailed a postcard from Port Lockroy, Antarctica! The crew of the Plancius were outstanding. They even remembered my name among all the passengers. Food and services were outstanding. There were many surprises. The Plancius was able to go through the Lemaire Channel for the first time this year, so we were very fortunate. Also, the captain took us to Deception Island and Cape Horn on the way back. I was very fortunate that I was matched up to a great roommate from Finland. I met many people from many different countries, all with very interesting stories.

Zodiac trips were amazing~ wildlife was amazing~ landscapes amazing..and I really enjoyed the lectures.

We were amazed by the beauty of its nature. The steep hill with their snow and glaciers. The icebergs were so huge and colorful. The gentoo penguins were the only breed we saw, but they were cute for a few days. We sat with different people at every meal and met some really interesting people. The ship was a good size for this trip. I would not want to go any larger since we would have not been able to make landings at some of the places we did. The ship's operator provided a very nice experience, with the only downside being that some of their lecturers were not well prepared.

The highlights of our trip were the many amazing wildlife experiences. We were SURROUNDED by BUBBLE FEEDING WHALES on TWO occasions during zodiac cruises! We were a few yards away from DOZENS of playful crabeater adolescent seals frolicking in the water. We were CHASED by a leopard seal! Penguins and birds galore! (Can you tell I am on team mammal rather than team bird?) The landscapes were breathtaking. The people on the cruise were lovely and fun.

Our trip was FANTASTIC! There were too many highlights to name only one... Seeing the Blue whale... 150,000 King Penguins... Glaciers... Glacier cave that was illuminated from withing with the most amazing blues and greens... Black ice... Humpback whales everywhere... Excellent level of customer service and attention to details. The expedition team members' passion, enthusiasm, knowledge and life stories were wonderful to watch and experience. The lectures were excellent and inspiring. The biggest surprise was the food. Food and service for foodies - did not expect that on an expedition ship.

The penguins were the highlight for me..however we were very fortunate to see a Blue whale and the seals were amazing. The people I met were well traveled and interesting. My grandchildren are required to view my photos.