Fly the Drake vs. more luxurious ship
Jan 10, 2024, 4:42 pm
#31
Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 102
I'm researching small ship crossings to Antarctica (possibly incorporating South Georgia) for winter 2024. I've narrowed my cruise lines to Quark, Lindblad/NG, Atlas, Ponant and possibly a Hurtigruten new ship but would consider other expedition lines as well (not Silversea, seaborne, celebrity types).
The major differentiator for me would be the quality of the lectures, naturalists, and educational aspects of the trip. Would appreciate any comments from those with direct and fairly recent experience to Antartica on the above lines and your impressions of the educational quality and quantity of lectures you received. If anyone has Antartica educational or other experience on more than one line I'd be interested in a comparison.
Thank you for your previous comments and in advance for your educational impressions.
The major differentiator for me would be the quality of the lectures, naturalists, and educational aspects of the trip. Would appreciate any comments from those with direct and fairly recent experience to Antartica on the above lines and your impressions of the educational quality and quantity of lectures you received. If anyone has Antartica educational or other experience on more than one line I'd be interested in a comparison.
Thank you for your previous comments and in advance for your educational impressions.
I'd recommend Quark but go with one of their newer ships.
Feb 29, 2024, 8:53 am
#32
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2017
Posts: 84
I wrote the original question on this thread, so I thought I'd follow up since had our cruise earlier this month.
We chose the "sail the Drake" option. Our crew marveled at what a smooth sailing we had of the Drake both ways, so I think we got very lucky that way -- sneaking between two storm systems in both directions.
Our cruise and experience was spectacular. We went with Seabourn, on the Pursuit, a new ship. We could not be happier with our choice. The Pursuit and its staff were amazing. Even if the Drake had been much worse, I'm still glad we had the time on the ship to settle in. We were kept very busy, with mundane stuff like getting boots & coats, but also fun things like touring the submarine hangar and talks. We were so thrilled with our luxurious cabin (just the base level) and ship's amenities, that we couldn't believe we considered any other ship/line. And Seabourn is far from the most expensive, esp. if you book early enough for their advance discounts.
Overall, we talked about it at the end and were very happy with our 11 day cruise duration. We're both still working, so taking two weeks off was a lot. But even disregarding that, we liked the length. We felt we got to see a good variety of Antarctica, and experienced everything we wanted that this ship offered -- penguins, whales, submarine, kayak, cross the Antarctic Circle, polar plunge, etc.
We chose the "sail the Drake" option. Our crew marveled at what a smooth sailing we had of the Drake both ways, so I think we got very lucky that way -- sneaking between two storm systems in both directions.
Our cruise and experience was spectacular. We went with Seabourn, on the Pursuit, a new ship. We could not be happier with our choice. The Pursuit and its staff were amazing. Even if the Drake had been much worse, I'm still glad we had the time on the ship to settle in. We were kept very busy, with mundane stuff like getting boots & coats, but also fun things like touring the submarine hangar and talks. We were so thrilled with our luxurious cabin (just the base level) and ship's amenities, that we couldn't believe we considered any other ship/line. And Seabourn is far from the most expensive, esp. if you book early enough for their advance discounts.
Overall, we talked about it at the end and were very happy with our 11 day cruise duration. We're both still working, so taking two weeks off was a lot. But even disregarding that, we liked the length. We felt we got to see a good variety of Antarctica, and experienced everything we wanted that this ship offered -- penguins, whales, submarine, kayak, cross the Antarctic Circle, polar plunge, etc.
Mar 10, 2024, 9:33 am
#33
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: UK
Programs: BA Gold, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 805
I wrote the original question on this thread, so I thought I'd follow up since had our cruise earlier this month.
We chose the "sail the Drake" option. Our crew marveled at what a smooth sailing we had of the Drake both ways, so I think we got very lucky that way -- sneaking between two storm systems in both directions.
Our cruise and experience was spectacular. We went with Seabourn, on the Pursuit, a new ship. We could not be happier with our choice. The Pursuit and its staff were amazing. Even if the Drake had been much worse, I'm still glad we had the time on the ship to settle in. We were kept very busy, with mundane stuff like getting boots & coats, but also fun things like touring the submarine hangar and talks. We were so thrilled with our luxurious cabin (just the base level) and ship's amenities, that we couldn't believe we considered any other ship/line. And Seabourn is far from the most expensive, esp. if you book early enough for their advance discounts.
Overall, we talked about it at the end and were very happy with our 11 day cruise duration. We're both still working, so taking two weeks off was a lot. But even disregarding that, we liked the length. We felt we got to see a good variety of Antarctica, and experienced everything we wanted that this ship offered -- penguins, whales, submarine, kayak, cross the Antarctic Circle, polar plunge, etc.
We chose the "sail the Drake" option. Our crew marveled at what a smooth sailing we had of the Drake both ways, so I think we got very lucky that way -- sneaking between two storm systems in both directions.
Our cruise and experience was spectacular. We went with Seabourn, on the Pursuit, a new ship. We could not be happier with our choice. The Pursuit and its staff were amazing. Even if the Drake had been much worse, I'm still glad we had the time on the ship to settle in. We were kept very busy, with mundane stuff like getting boots & coats, but also fun things like touring the submarine hangar and talks. We were so thrilled with our luxurious cabin (just the base level) and ship's amenities, that we couldn't believe we considered any other ship/line. And Seabourn is far from the most expensive, esp. if you book early enough for their advance discounts.
Overall, we talked about it at the end and were very happy with our 11 day cruise duration. We're both still working, so taking two weeks off was a lot. But even disregarding that, we liked the length. We felt we got to see a good variety of Antarctica, and experienced everything we wanted that this ship offered -- penguins, whales, submarine, kayak, cross the Antarctic Circle, polar plunge, etc.
We came back 3 weeks ago and did the Ponant Cruise.
We had the Drake Shake (18 foot waves) on the way out and more of a Drake wobble (about 14-15 foot waves) on the way back.
Our first cruise ever and we decided to do the Drake
We had lot of things for sea sickness with us but neither of us needed anything in the end and we just enjoyed the experience of the crossing and it was worth doing it to get to Antartica.
Mar 20, 2024, 8:18 pm
#34
formerly dave h.
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Seattle - it's not Hell, but you can SEA it from here!
Programs: SkyMiles, IHG nobody, HH nobody
Posts: 192