Ortelius antarctica cruise reviews5/8/2023 The guides are ashore for the entire landing time, resulting in a great staff: passengers ratio due to the fact there is never more than 100 passengers ashore at a time with the fill attention of guides throughout. The usual length of time ashore is around 1.5 hours per landing, with two landings per day.Īboard there is an expedition team of ten lecturers, naturalists and guides - they present lectures throughout the voyage as well as hosting recaps and briefings each evening. There is a maximum of 200 expeditions aboard which means that for Antarctica this is divide into two groups that head ashore one after the other, with the group orders rotated so everybody has a chance to be first. Everyone makes their way to the lounge where they kit up in their outer layers before heading down to the zodiacs. Zodiacs collect passengers from the marina which is located on the stern, access to which is through the main lounge. Once in Antarctica it was time to see and experience the expedition operation in action. The next morning as we crossed the Drake Passage the third aspect that became apparent was that the four large fin stabilizers kept the ship remarkably stable, even with a sizable Southern Ocean swell rolling through on our beam we were still enjoying a comfortable ride with the glasses sitting on the tables. Once we were sailing down the Beagle Channel the next thing that was apparent was that modern technology is remarkably good at reducing noise - I couldn't hear or feel the engines despite being at full power. The first thing that struck me upon arriving at the ship in Ushuaia was the sleek lines and all the balconies - essentially everybody aboard the ship has a balcony suite. This is expedition cruising aboard a modern and luxurious 5-star vessel. Antarctic expedition cruising with this vessel might not be what you imagine when you think of an expedition to Antarctica.
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