Primus

There is no need to eat the burger in your cabin. Room service menu items are also available to order in the dining room and public spaces.

The 11-night Svalbard circumnavigation cruise was fantastic in August 2023. Like you, we first went on an 11-night Antarctica cruise with Atlas before booking the Arctic one. It's a hard call on which one we liked better. I'm sure the extra days allowed us to see things I didn't even know existed like huge glacier waterfalls. The wildlife, scenery, and even sounds were amazing. Sailing through the ice and going above 81 degrees North is one of our favorite memories. We'll likely book again for 2025.

What happens if the pre-ordered rental boots don't fit well? Are there extras in other sizes that you can switch to?

We were also on this 11-day circumnavigation of Svalbard cruise on the World Traveller and had an overall A+ experience. It exceeded our expectations. The scenery and wildlife were spectacular. The very first briefing was interrupted due to a large pod of belugas swimming towards the ship. That was a sign of what was to come. Viewing large waterfalls flowing from glaciers, watching calving glaciers from our zodiac, spotting our first white rainbow, being close enough to walruses to see them blink, watching juvenile polar bears playing in the water, participating in a polar plunge above 80 degrees north, and watching and listening to ice breaking beneath and alongside the ship, were just some of what we experienced. Animal sightings included 12 polar bears across 3 different locations, hundreds of walruses, plus arctic foxes, reindeer, bearded seals, and harbor seals. The quantity and variety of arctic birds was amazing. Our favorite birds were the guillemots and kittiwakes. During one zodiac cruise along the base of cliffs we saw over 60,000 mating pairs of guillemots, plus their offspring, plus other birds, plus arctic foxes. We even saw a glaucous gull kill a baby guillemot. We were often off the ship twice a day with some planned landings changed to zodiac cruising due to spotting of polar bears in the area. No specific route was followed by the individual zodiacs giving the expedition team members the freedom and opportunity to explore with the guests. They seemed to be having as much fun as us. On our down time we liked to watch the birds and ice go by while bunded up for a walk on the top deck or soaking in the 95-degree heated pool. There were super friendly, happy, and helpful officers and staff throughout the ship. It was a very team-oriented environment with staff often stepping up to help others. The knowledgeable expedition team was readily available to answer any question. The open bridge and engine room tours were nice additions. Dining can really make or break a cruise, at least for us. I’d rate our previous Epicurean cruise on the World Traveller as a B primarily due to the food. This time our dining experience was excellent but we did meet others on board that were not as satisfied. We quickly figured out our favorites among the dining staff and we were very happy with almost all of our dinner selections. Our food was well prepared and presented and the timing of the four courses was consistently spot on. Still not thrilled with a different country theme each night though, especially starting with American. A dinner highlight was the night the chef prepared cod caught by the captain earlier that day. We ordered from the menu for breakfast and generally from one of the two chef stations at lunch. The pastries and breads were excellent and there was a nice variety throughout the cruise. We only had a couple issues with breakfast. We didn't care for the bacon (it was too thick and hard) and the omelettes rarely matched what we ordered. There were two lunch highlights to mention. The chef was happy to make special dishes which we took advantage of twice. Eating a BBQ lunch on the top deck above 80 degrees north with everyone bundled in parkas for those brave enough to eat in the cold was a memorable experience. We plan to continue expedition cruising on small ships and this itinerary with Atlas is likely one we will want to repeat.

FauxNom, Is there actually more or less usable space in the 663 stateroom compared to the standard suite plan included on the Silversea website? Do you know why the layout for 663 does not include a desk? Also, your picture of the room seems to show a table higher than a standard low coffee table. I am currently booked in 663 but thinking about switching to 606.

From my perspective, there was no attempt to actually stock the minibar with selections made in advance since the ship clearly had things I selected like diet coke on board. It probably sounded like a good benefit to corporate but too hard to manage on turnaround days. Putting out a sign and blaming supply chain problems was much easier. It wasn't a benefit I needed but an example of Atlas over promising. Not nearly as disappointing as no marina toys in the Mediterranean though.

Our experience is the minibar is not stocked as requested due to supply change issues according a sign placed in the cabin. None of our selections were included for either Atlas cruise we have been on.

James, Based on your response, I immediately contacted my TA to get added to the pre-cruise list for kayaking in the Arctic this summer. I was told this week that Atlas will not offer kayaking in the Arctic. So, I'm confused. Will Atlas offer or not offer kayaking in Svalbard, Greenland, or Iceland this summer? Other expedition cruise lines offer kayaking in these areas and this was something I was expecting when booking with Atlas.

Alma dinner menu on World Traveller in May 2023:

7 Aft lunch included a small buffet until 2:00 plus the following a la carte burger menu until 4:00 on the World Traveller in May 2023:

Josper Grill/7 Aft dinner menu on World Traveller from May 2023:

Our World Navigator Antarctica lunches in February 2023 were better and more extensive than our World Traveller lunches on port intensive 2023 Epicurean cruises. The Epicurean cruises still had a big buffet in the dining room but didn't have as many specialty stations and the dishes were more repetitive day-to-day compared to Antarctica. There was no problem getting food at a restaurant after excursions. Plus there is always the room service option which can also be delivered to the pool or other public spaces besides your stateroom. Here were the Traveller dining times across 21 days in May: Breakfast buffet: 7:30 - 9:30, 7:00 - 9:30, 7:00 - 9:00, 8:00 - 9:30 (sea day), 8:00 - 10:00 (sea day) Lunch buffet: 12:00 - 1:30, 12:30 - 2:00 Lunch for B2B transit guests: 12:00 - 1:00 Dinner: 7:30 - 9:30, 6:30 - 8:30 7 Aft lunch (small buffet and burgers):12:30 - 2:00, 1:00 - 2:00 7 Aft a la carte burgers: 2:00 - 4:00 Alma Al Fresco: opened occasionally 7:30 - 9:30 Josper Grill/7 Aft dinner: 7:30 - 9:00, 7:30 - 9:30 Paula's Pantry: 6:30 am - 6:30 pm, 6:30 am - 7:30 pm

Our Feb 2023 charter flight from EZE to Ushaia left EZE at 2:30 pm. Our return charter flight from Ushaia to EZE departed at 10:00 am. We then had hours to wait in EZE before the Delta counter even opened up to accept our luggage and then hours to wait for our 9:15 pm flight home. Both of our charter flights provided a sandwich.

I've been on multiple Atlas cruises, have two more booked, and have a number of questions. I heard a rumor that Atlas might include sailings to the South Pacific in the future. Can you elaborate on future plans for new destinations as additional ships join the fleet? The outdoor spaces are very nice and heavily used during warm weather cruises. Are there any plans to make the spaces usable in the polar regions? Our amazing experience in Antarctica was due in part to the outstanding expedition team. Have you been able to retain many members of the team for future seasons? It would be nice to see their information on the website. One cruise to Antarctica is not enough for us. Are supply chain problems coming to an end? For example, it would be nice to have the craft beers, non-alcoholic beers, and spirits listed on the menus available, parkas available in the sizes ordered, and water bottles provided. Is there a way to make pricing more transparent on the website? I receive many emails advertising air credits and percent savings but have to contact a travel agent to get the amounts and even my Atlas referred travel agent can't find the discounts advertised. Specific port fee amounts would also be good to list. Can the cruises where marina/water toys are available be identified? Also what are the water toys?

Thanks Camber99. That photo and information is really helpful.