Think about gliding via a silent sea of icebergs, the one sounds the occasional calving of glaciers, the decision of seabirds and the excited murmur of your handful of shipmates. Nowhere else on Earth rewards avid adventurers like Antarctica, the globe’s most distant and sumptuous polar wilderness. It’s straightforward to see why it makes so many nature vacationers’ bucket lists!
However first issues first. Why would you select a Nat Hab Antarctica expedition over an ordinary cruise to the White Continent? Properly, if you happen to’re aching for genuine immersion within the land of penguins and icebergs, our journeys are your ticket there.
Why Select a Nat Hab Antarctica Expedition?
Big ships can’t entry the smaller channels we go to, plus, on a typical cruise, you’ll be within the crowded firm of many extra vacationers than you’d aboard our extra intimate boats. With Nat Hab, you sail on a vessel that accommodates simply 7 or 12 passengers, guided by skilled naturalists.
Add to this the truth that we actually love what we do, and we concentrate on nature journey. In case your most important aim is to expertise Antarctica’s nature and wildlife, you’ll profit from our Expedition Leaders’ huge experience and data. In spite of everything, we’re the world’s foremost nature journey specialists—these are the solely varieties of journeys we run!
So, how are you aware which of Nat Hab’s two Antarctica adventures is best for you? We’ll be sincere: Even we discover it tough to determine. They’re each simply that good! Right here, we’ll get into the small print of each our Final Antarctica by Personal Expedition Yacht journey and our Crusing Antarctica Polar Wildlife Expedition.
We hope this information offers perception into what you’ll be able to count on from the totally different kinds of boat, and what you’ll do at sea and on land on every voyage. It is a heady alternative and a unprecedented journey, so if in case you have additional questions after studying about these Antarctica journeys, please attain out to our Journey Specialists for extra info!
Crusing Antarctica: An Intimate Exploration of the Antarctic Peninsula
If you happen to’re aiming for unique and exhilarating, our Crusing Antarctica expedition is for you. You’ll sail with simply seven vacationers on an ice-strengthened motorsailer. The one different dwelling creatures in your organization are the seals, whales and penguins you’ll see on the ice and within the water. A world-class skipper and seasoned polar crew will make sure that intrepid explorers such as you get pleasure from a uncommon expertise of one of the crucial distant and sumptuous locations on Earth.
© Catherine Lang
Aboard Ocean Tramp
Our S/V Ocean Tramp is a 66-foot expedition motor sailboat that may accommodate eight company (however we journey with solely seven, affording everybody a bit extra respiration room). She’s optimally designed for small-scale polar exploration, with swift passage throughout open seas but with agility sufficient to allow intimate exploration of the rugged shoreline and secluded bays which might be inaccessible to bigger cruise ships).
© Kelly Daughtry
Take it from Sara Higgins, Senior Journey Director for Nat Hab: “You are feeling just like the ship is your house and like you’re on a real expedition exploring Antarctica. You actually get to know fellow vacationers and crew.”
The Ocean Tramp’s expansive ahead and aft decks make for nice whale- and leopard seal-watching. And there’s a roomy, well-lit eating house inside with padded banquette seating round a generously sized desk.
© Colby Brokvist
4 visitor cabins supply various configurations, with the biggest cabin being the Shackleton Suite, with a personal en suite lavatory. For solo vacationers, there’s room for a single visitor within the Beagle Cabin. What you sacrifice when it comes to room house by not selecting a mega-ship will probably be made up for in spades if you notice how shut and private you’re with this gorgeous land and seascape.
Aboard Australis
Our S/V Ocean Australis is a 75-foot ice-strengthened crusing vessel that may be a sturdy, seasoned veteran of polar waters. Company spend almost two weeks on the motorsailer, which comprises two Zodiac tenders for entry to distant coastal areas. Just like the Ocean Tramp, she’s effectively fitted to small-scale polar exploration throughout open seas, alongside rugged shoreline and into quiet bays.
© Colby Brokvist
Compact, cozy and that includes modern-day comforts, the Australis inside provides 4 cabins for a max of seven company. There’s a saloon with a big eating desk and leisure choices, in addition to a well-equipped galley kitchen.
The spacious outside cockpit has a detachable sunshade and is a superb spot for a barbecue on the aft deck when the climate permits. Company might climb into the crow’s nest for 360-degree views and unbelievable wildlife viewing. 4 visitor cabins supply various configurations and ranges of privateness.
© Ben Wallis
Final Antarctica: A Luxe Crusing Expedition Like No Different
Prepare for an journey of epic proportions aboard a ship you may not first count on when crusing to Antarctica. With unparalleled grace and vigor, the Hanse Explorer, a 156-foot luxurious expedition yacht, carries simply 12 company in consolation and elegance right into a land of icy wonders. It’s a vessel you’d usually should utterly constitution, however we’ve taken that chore out of the equation and performed it for you.
© Martin Enckell
Our Final Antarctica voyage aboard the Hanse is for these whose expeditionary spirit is particularly sturdy and who’re drawn to discover in a context of remarkable consolation. Aboard this particular ship, you’ll discover all of the facilities of residence (after which some), whereas on the identical time having intimate entry to the icebound ends of the Earth.
Aboard Hanse Explorer
What some might describe as a “superyacht,” we have a tendency to think about as an elevated expeditionary expertise—all of the attributes of a giant expedition vessel, however with simply 12 lucky company onboard.
“Even by Nat Hab requirements—the place the smallest teams enterprise to the planet’s wildlife locations to view wildlife in essentially the most intimate of contexts—this expedition is actually particular,” says Ben Bressler, Nat Hab’s founder and president.
© Justin Hofman
No have to e-book all the vessel—we’ve received it taken care of. You’ll get the liberty and adaptability of a personal constitution, security, consolation, understated magnificence, and a light-flooded inside that makes you are feeling one with the wild world past. Inbuilt Germany in 2006, she was utterly retrofitted in a multi-million-dollar redesign in 2020, together with new state-of-the-art stabilizers that make for a extra nice journey. This ship can be designed to maneuver at a sooner tempo than the motorsailers we use, so you’ll be able to count on to cowl extra distance (weather-depending).
Count on all of the luxuries of a world-class yacht however with an expedition-oriented type and extra move-about house than on the motorsailers. From the bar and lounge within the coronary heart of the visitor space, you’ll be able to sip your favourite drink whereas gazing out at panoramic views. Head out via glass-paned sliding doorways to the skin decks. Eating decisions crafted by an acclaimed worldwide culinary crew, an inviting statement lounge, the deluxe Finnish sauna and the highest deck sizzling tub are simply icing on the cake.
When it’s time for some shut-eye, retreat to 6 elegant and sensible visitor cabins on the principle deck, all an identical with personal en suite bogs, plenty of pure gentle, a TV, desk, and ample closet and bureau house. There’s an Proprietor’s Suite for an additional indulgence, located on the Higher Deck, with a king mattress, en suite lavatory and enormous, linked open personal sitting space and workplace.
General, the Hanse Explorer remains to be an expedition ship, however the residence you come to after your every day adventures is a extra well-appointed one. By creating a peaceful inside with understated magnificence, there isn’t any effort to compete with the grandeur of the passing scene. In each side, she is without doubt one of the hardest, most secure, most nimble and cozy ships of her dimension.
Antarctica Encounters
Whichever ship or itinerary you select, you’re assured experiences like none different. On a smaller vessel like Ocean Tramp or Australis, we generally is a bit extra versatile with our itinerary, and also you’ll really feel a part of the crew making selections about the place to go and what to do. Regardless, listed here are only a few of the extraordinary moments you might need:
© Kelly Martin
- A post-dinner Zodiac cruise the place you occur upon whales feeding or a leopard seal on the hunt for penguins.
- Searching for one of the best lighting circumstances for images, notably aboard the nimbler motorsailers.
- Kayaking amidst icebergs and alongside rugged shorelines to see Antarctic wildlife at eye degree.
- The place touchdown permits, climbing ashore on pristine polar seashores that we share solely with penguin rookeries, Antarctic fur seals and southern elephant seals.
- Glimpsing your first icebergs and the snow-clad mountains that point out the South Shetland Islands.
- Recognizing big populations of albatross, petrel, skua, gull, tern and cormorant.
- Tenting ashore in essentially the most distant and ethereal surroundings you’ve ever skilled (accessible on the motorsailer itineraries solely).
© Catherine Lang
Questioning what different wildlife you’ll see in Antarctica? Get all of the deets on Adelie, chinstrap and Gentoo penguins, whales, seals of all ilk, dolphins and seabirds in our Antarctica Wildlife Information.
© Conor Frantzen
Antarctica: By no means the Identical Journey Twice!
Do remember the fact that climate dictates our Antarctica itineraries, actions and routes. Actually, it’s that wild, unpredictable nature of the journey that makes it so magical and memorable. No two journeys are precisely the identical, and we all know whichever Nat Hab Antarctica journey you select, it is going to be completely life-changing.
© Catherine Lang
Able to discover the White Continent? Study extra about our Crusing Antarctica and Final Antarctica journeys!
