Crossing the Antarctic circle, polar plunge, wildlife, citizen science and its impact. Memorable moments every single day

Great holiday

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Enjoyed every zodiac ride whether to just sightseeing or to get to landings. Crew and staff had a plan and worked it well. When the weather turned against us, normally an alternative was offered.

All were great. In particular Laura, EL, Scotty, Annette, Jeannine, Fabri, and Mark.Their expertise, knowledge, leadership and commitment to us having a great time really showed. Not that the others weren’t great, I just had more interaction with them. All the lectures were very informative and educational. Randy provided great music and entertainment.

This is the Seaventure’s last season in Antarctica but the ship did well for us. All the facilities seemed in good condition and working order. Our cabin was smallish especially trying to get dressed in multiple layers for cold outings. The food was good and I guess we were offered more Chinese cuisine due to the number on the ship. Some days the menu seemed weird but I always found something for dinner.

After the briefing on kayaking, we felt as though it may be too difficult to transfer from the zodiac to kayak and vice versa, so we didn’t sign up for the outing. Both of us have arthritis and our knees are bad (my wife is getting a knee replacement in early April). Beth was also seasick several days due to the weather and this didn’t help either.

The puffy jackets are nice but the women’s sizing is way small. I normally wear a women’s American XL and had to get a men’s XXL jacket which is too big in the shoulders and too small in the hips. Two others in our group also had sizing issues and had to accept men’s jackets again because the women’s were cut so small. If your clientele is mostly American, then sizing should reflect that. Water bottles were provided to us after Swoop said they wouldn’t be. Most of the lectures were on deck 7 and on sea days this was tough because of the rolling waves. Lectures should have been moved to the 5th floor for those with seasickness. I would like to praise the staff for handling the zodiac trips for my friend. She was terrified of falling and screamed on the zodiac when getting on. The staff handled her very calmly and effectively. One day she got on the zodiac but wouldn’t get off at the landing but Jeff took her on a private ride around before taking her back to the ship. I don’t think this is normally the case but the expedition team made it work for her. They went well beyond expectations on this!!! The flexibility of the expedition team is also commendable. We were informed, good and bad, so we had the information and weren’t left out. Understanding the environment of Antarctica, responding to the weather conditions, being flexible for us to have such a great trip is something that I appreciate. Although we lost a couple days to weather, we did Antarctica, crossed the Antarctic Circle, went further south to new places.

Remember that sizing is European/Asian sizing. Packing list is great advice. Use walking sticks provided on landings. Plan for rough seas. Do the polar plunge.

Citizen science brought new meaning to threatened species. I enjoyed that we didn’t see another ship for days leaving us an unrivaled view of Antarctica.

Button up communication. After we had booked the trip, I felt a bit let down when conflicting communications were received. I’m hoping I’m not just a sales number.

Very prepared for the weather. Not as prepared for the Drake passage. With Antarctica being our 7th continent, this trip was a highlight for that reason and us celebrating our 40th anniversary and my 20th year cancer free. Lots to celebrate and we weren’t disappointed.

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Within 12 months