Lindblad vs. Silver Explorer to Antarctica?

[gnld]

Looking to take an Antarctic cruise with my wife. Pretty much narrowed it down to Lindblad or Silversea's Silver Explorer. Has anyone been on both, so you can give a comparison?

 

There's some posts on the Silversea threads regarding this, also comparing them to Orion. But what about this question from Lindblad cruisers?

[Seahorse Lover]

We're just back from a fantastic voyage on Lindblad. The Silver Seas ship was docked in Ushuaia getting repaired from a recent bout with rough seas.

[Turtles06]

And I'm just back from the fantastic journey with Lindblad that followed the one Seahorse Lover was on.

 

Gnld, I doubt you'll find anyone who has done this trip on both lines and can thus make the comparison you are seeking.

 

All I can say is that we had the adventure of a lifetime with Lindblad, and I can't recommend them more highly for this particular trip. I'd be happy to answer specific questions if you have them.

[Seahorse Lover]

Hi Turtles,

I'll second your recommendation of Lindblad. We, too, had an amazing time. I read the trip reports from your journey on Lindblad's website and you stopped at several different, cool sounding landing sites than we did on our voyage. We had some ocean motion both coming and going across the Drake. We were told that the weather looked even more choppy for your sailing. How did you fare?

We're still happily sorting through pictures and reliving many happy memories!

[Turtles06]

Hi Turtles,

I'll second your recommendation of Lindblad. We, too, had an amazing time. I read the trip reports from your journey on Lindblad's website and you stopped at several different, cool sounding landing sites than we did on our voyage. We had some ocean motion both coming and going across the Drake. We were told that the weather looked even more choppy for your sailing. How did you fare?

We're still happily sorting through pictures and reliving many happy memories!

 

Both of our crossings of the Drake were a bit rough. (Probably some would say quite rough.) On the way out, we had some 30 foot waves, but it was a "following sea" and so it pushed us to Antarctica that much faster! :) On the way back, the problem was the wind more than the waves. The winds were really churning up the seas, and one of the naturalists said "I haven't seen seas like that in years!"

 

In each direction, the ship was really moving around, and they had ropes strung up along the Bistro area so folks could navigate thru without falling. I have sea legs and don't mind stuff like this (I enjoy it, actually, and spent a lot of time on the bridge with other crazies like me taking pix of water splashing over the bow and even as high as the bridge), but I do understand that conditions like this make a lot of people uncomfortable, including my partner, who did say, however (and I quote): "IT WAS WORTH IT!!!"

 

We had great weather and I'm sure that contributed to where we could land. Did you do the polar plunge? :)

 

I too am going thru my thousands of pictures. Here are a few I've pulled out:

 

 

 

 

(photos by turtles06)

[Seahorse Lover]

Great pics!!! Our cruise stopped at Deception Island for the polar plunge, but we didn't participate. Did you? I couldn't get past the idea of getting back to the ship on a zodiac in a wet suit. The passengers on our voyage that did plunge really looked like they had fun :D!

 

While our seas were calmer, the rope through the Bistro was still strung up and did help us navigate for a day or so going each way.

 

My favorite part of the voyage was a close encounter with a humpback during a zodiac ride. She was ultra-curious about the zodiac, so we stopped and she must have entertained us for 30 minutes. We were baptized by her spouting many times. She nudged the zodiac, went under us, did several rolls showing us her underside, spyhopped right next to us and glided right next to us, close enough to touch. It was amazing!!!

 

And then there were the adorable penguins. I just stood and watched their antics. They were so busy taking care of their babies and stealing stones from each other.

 

This trip will be a tough act to follow!

[Turtles06]

Great pics!!! Our cruise stopped at Deception Island for the polar plunge, but we didn't participate. Did you? I couldn't get past the idea of getting back to the ship on a zodiac in a wet suit. The passengers on our voyage that did plunge really looked like they had fun :D!

 

While our seas were calmer, the rope through the Bistro was still strung up and did help us navigate for a day or so going each way.

 

My favorite part of the voyage was a close encounter with a humpback during a zodiac ride. She was ultra-curious about the zodiac, so we stopped and she must have entertained us for 30 minutes. We were baptized by her spouting many times. She nudged the zodiac, went under us, did several rolls showing us her underside, spyhopped right next to us and glided right next to us, close enough to touch. It was amazing!!!

 

And then there were the adorable penguins. I just stood and watched their antics. They were so busy taking care of their babies and stealing stones from each other.

 

This trip will be a tough act to follow!

 

We took the polar plunge by jumping into the water off the side of the ship (in Mikkelson Harbor) from the platform used to launch the kayaks:

 

 

The water temp was 29 degrees, and yes I did it! I wasn't going to miss that for anything! :) I believe the waters at Deception Island are warmer (some sort of "hot spring") -- was that the case? In any event, how did the plungers stay warm on the way back in the zodiacs? Did they just put their parkas on over wet bathing suits?

 

Your humpback encounter sounds great. That's what makes all these trips so special -- something unique happening day in and day out. A highlight for us was being awakened by Bud at 5:30am with the announcement of Killer Whales off the bow. We quickly dressed and ran out for what we thought would be a quick photo op that turned into several HOURS of following a pod of Killers as they chased down a Minke whale. It was amazing to watch this hunt in progress, and how the Killers took turns at the front like bicycle racers. Even better that we had two of the world's leading Killer Whale researchers on board telling us in real time what we were seeing. They were certain the Minke would be Killer Whale breakfast, but after about two hours, the Minke slipped away in some brash ice.

 

This turned out to be a boon for the researchers, as the Killers were tired, and decided to play around our ship. The reseachers headed out in a zodiac, and were successful in shooting dive transmitter tags on the Killers, the first time this type of Killer has ever been dive tagged. So... tourism and important research all in one morning! It was truly one of the highlights of the trip.

 

 

(photos by turtles06)

[Seahorse Lover]

We were told that the top 6 inches or so of the water at Deception Island along the shore (we could see the steam rising) was thermally heated, but the rest was very cold! The swimmers tried to stay warm on the zodiac ride back in a variety of ways, mainly putting sweats on over their suits. They were a motley crew, but really seemed to enjoy the experience. The looks of the few penguins onshore were funny. They kept glancing down the beach at the odd humans..some even coming closer to investigate. It was a beautiful afternoon, the sun was shining and it was fairly warm with no wind. Perfect for a plunge! We saw several other ships in the caldera too.

 

John, the whale researcher, was on our voyage as well. His wife, Holly, was onboard instead of his research partner. They went out on zodiacs two different times (for quite a stretch of time) to try and tag Killers, but didn't ever get close enough for a good shot. It was interesting to see them at work. My money was on the whales!

[Bradleycruiser]

Sounds like a fantastic trip on National Geographic Explorer--thank you for the WONDERFUL pictures. We are looking to book for next year and have the exact same question as gnid. It looks like National Geographic is a bit more expensive but I would think that their naturalists/leaders are unparalleled. Silversea threads sound great too--just hoping that some Silversea cruisers will weigh in here!

[gnld]

Thank you all, esp for the photos. NG Lindblad sounds really great! But having hard time getting my wife to agree to the trip. May have to find a guy friend to go along with me -- expensive enough w/o the single supplement!

[Seahorse Lover]

On our trip we met several folks who were traveling without spouses due to a lack of interest. Two guys were sailing solo and several ladies were sharing cabins with gal cousins or friends. Do go...definitely the trip of a lifetime! And Lindblad does it right!!!

[Turtles06]

Thank you all, esp for the photos. NG Lindblad sounds really great! But having hard time getting my wife to agree to the trip. May have to find a guy friend to go along with me -- expensive enough w/o the single supplement!

 

There were a number of "solos" on our trip as well (the one following the trip Seahorse Lover was on). The Explorer actually has single cabins, and the price, while more than half of a double cabin, is not as much as the huge "single supplement" you'd pay to travel alone on a "normal" cruise where you're taking up a double cabin. [but yes, it's certainly expensive. And I have to thank my 90-year-old aunt, whose generosity and love of travel enabled me to take this trip.]

 

One person on our trip who had booked a solo cabin was upgraded at the last minute to an empty double cabin. I know she enjoyed having the extra space! (Though the single cabins looked pretty comfy from what I could see walking by when the steward had the door open for cleaning.)

 

But tell your wife this will be THE MOST SPECTACULAR adventure she will ever have...

 

(is she just not interested? or does she have some specific concerns that we might address...)

[Turtles06]

Sounds like a fantastic trip on National Geographic Explorer--thank you for the WONDERFUL pictures. We are looking to book for next year and have the exact same question as gnid. It looks like National Geographic is a bit more expensive but I would think that their naturalists/leaders are unparalleled. Silversea threads sound great too--just hoping that some Silversea cruisers will weigh in here!

 

Since this thread was posted in the Lindblad forum, it's not likely to attract folks who have taken the Silversea trip. I would suggest re-posting the question in the Antarctica forum (Ports of Call), where it will be seen by folks who have been to Antarctica with various companies.

 

(And thanks for the kind words about my photos.)

[cougfan]

I went on the Explorer in Nov. 2010. My husband didn't want to go so I went solo in one of the single cabins. I did meet two solo men who had signed up for a shared room. They seemed to get along as roommates. I liked the idea of having my own room. Not sure about them but I didn't really spend a lot of time in my room, I was mostly on the bow of the ship. This trip turned out to be my most favorite vacation. Go, even if you have to go by yourself. Once you get to the departure city, Santiago in my case, you won't be alone. Once on the ship you will make all kinds of friends to do things with, like eat, go ashore and such.

 

Julie

[Turtles06]

. . .Go, even if you have to go by yourself. Once you get to the departure city, Santiago in my case, you won't be alone. Once on the ship you will make all kinds of friends to do things with, like eat, go ashore and such.

 

Julie

 

Actually, maybe even sooner than that! On our nonstop flight to Buenos Aires last month, two days earlier than the Lindblad departure date, my partner and I wound up chatting before takeoff with the woman sitting across the aisle from us, and SHE turned out to be one of the "solo" travelers on our expedition! Needless to say, we all made new friends well before arriving in South America. :)

 

And it was my observation that all the people traveling "solo" on our expedition were having a great time and indeed making new friends.

 

Great advice, Julie!

[Seahorse Lover]

We noticed some people wearing their Lindblad baseball caps, using dry bag backpacks or other subtle identifiers on the way down. We were able to connect with them early too.