Which Antarctica cruise would you choose?

[cruiseej]

As we contemplate our options after Silversea today canceled the Wind's season in Antarctica this winter, I have question for those who have cruised to Antarctica before. If you were going to choose between these two cruises, which would you select?

 

(a) a cruise that went to South Georgia Island for 3 days and spent 5 days cruising the Antarctic Sound, the Antarctic Peninsula, Elephant Island and South Shetland Island; or

 

(b) a cruise which does not  go to South Georgia but spends 8 days cruising the Antarctic Sound, the Antarctic Peninsula, Elephant Island and South Shetland Island

 

We've previously been sold on visiting South Georgia -- but I'm wondering what more do you get to see with three extra days on the Antarctic Peninsula instead?

 

If I could, I'd take South Georgia and the longer visit to the Antarctic Peninsula, and drop the Falklands instead -- but there isn't such an itinerary. 😉 

 

Thanks in advance!

[WesW]

Eric; first sorry our Wind Antarctica voyages were canceled.

 

Having not yet been to Antarctica, am looking for the inverse of your priorities,  having been to South Georgia Islands for five days on the Cloud Cape to Cape last year--magnificent vistas and spectacular wildlife.  So much so, we're booked on the Cloud Cape to Cape in 2023.   One photo of South Georgia's thousands of Penquins (not the ones in Red) below.

 

So, now looking for Antarctica first,  then South Georgia-- but would like both on the same itinerary.  Will see what Silversea's cancelation letter offers as alternative Antarctica voyages, but may end up just doing a voyage to voyage transfer for our 2023 Cape to Cape voyage.

 

 

Edited October 7, 2021 by WesW

[cruiseej]

Thanks, Wes. Condolences to you, too. 😉

 

If we had been to South Georgia before, I'd probably be happy booking the longer trip to the Antarctic Peninsula. But having never been before -- and not knowing if we'll ever be back here again -- I'm trying to figure out which is the bigger "don't miss" experience. On the one had, everyone I've met who has been to South Georgia says "you MUST go there!" On the other hand, I don't think they'd create a few cruises with several more days in Antarctica if it was basically just "more of the same" for 3 extra days. So I'm torn about which would be best for our first, and possibly only, trip to the region. I realize very few people have done both extended days on the peninsula and South Georgia, so perhaps it's a hard question to answer.

 

The other thing I just found out is that although we could get one of the few remaining suites on the Cloud's holiday cruise this year, Silversea won't provide business class air which we already paid for on our now-canceled Wind trip. They say it's too close to the date of travel for them to book business class air. I'm not keen on the idea of flying that far in economy. They won't even look into it to see if there are seats available. 

[fudgbug]

3 hours ago, cruiseej said:

As we contemplate our options after Silversea today canceled the Wind's season in Antarctica this winter, I have question for those who have cruised to Antarctica before. If you were going to choose between these two cruises, which would you select?

 

(a) a cruise that went to South Georgia Island for 3 days and spent 5 days cruising the Antarctic Sound, the Antarctic Peninsula, Elephant Island and South Shetland Island; or

 

(b) a cruise which does not  go to South Georgia but spends 8 days cruising the Antarctic Sound, the Antarctic Peninsula, Elephant Island and South Shetland Island

 

We've previously been sold on visiting South Georgia -- but I'm wondering what more do you get to see with three extra days on the Antarctic Peninsula instead?

 

If I could, I'd take South Georgia and the longer visit to the Antarctic Peninsula, and drop the Falklands instead -- but there isn't such an itinerary. 😉 

 

Thanks in advance!

If you are only going to go to the Antarctic once in your lifetime, definitely South Georgia! Hands down.  No doubt about it.

 

You do get a different experience in the Antarctic depending on when you go.  In December the penguins are sitting on the eggs.  In February, the eggs have hatched.

[Stumblefoot]

2 hours ago, cruiseej said:

I'm not keen on the idea of flying that far in economy.

Could not imagine.  SCL to USH in economy was bad enough, especially with a completely full charter flight.

 

You’ve been given lots of good advice on your Facebook post.  My POV is similar to yours in so far as we figured Antarctica was a once in a lifetime trip and doubt we’ll ever go back since we still have so much of the world to see.  And, I couldn’t imagine us ever doing the Cape-to-Cape repositioning voyage.  So, for us, S. Georgia was a no brainer.  In the end, I’m so glad we didn’t spend all of our time around Antarctica.  S. Georgia was truly worth every penny.

[Stumblefoot]

7 minutes ago, fudgbug said:

You do get a different experience in the Antarctic depending on when you go.  In December the penguins are sitting on the eggs.  In February, the eggs have hatched.

Excellent points!

 

Same applies to S. Georgia.  The fur seal pups are born in late November to early January.  So, they are super cute and active in January and February, which also coincides with the time period when southern elephant seals come ashore to fast during the molting season.  The molting season lasts three to five weeks.

[cruiseej]

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions. So from the comments above about the wildlife activity, is it a mistake to take the holiday cruise in December, rather than going in late January or February? Two of the four of us who are going on this trip are still working, so it's hard to take the time off to do the South Georgia trip if not over the holidays. 

[Stumblefoot]

2 minutes ago, cruiseej said:

…is it a mistake to take the holiday cruise in December, rather than going in late January or February?

I don’t think so.  We were at S. Georgia the end of the first week and beginning of the second week of January.

[taxatty]

 

3 hours ago, cruiseej said:

The other thing I just found out is that although we could get one of the few remaining suites on the Cloud's holiday cruise this year, Silversea won't provide business class air which we already paid for on our now-canceled Wind trip. They say it's too close to the date of travel for them to book business class air. I'm not keen on the idea of flying that far in economy. They won't even look into it to see if there are seats available. 

Business class on the MIA-SCL flights in question was sold out a long time ago--lots of Chileans fly back and forth to Miami to shop and visit relatives for the holidays--if you go, you may be sitting in coach next to us.

Edited October 7, 2021 by taxatty

[drron29]

Having spent 8 days in Antarctica and later 3 days in South Georgia- was actually 4 but 1 day was a total loss due to a severe southern ocean storm - I would definitely take the option of South Georgia.

On our cruise to Antarctica one guest was a senior Linblad captain -they were deciding if they would buy the ship we were on.He described South Georgia as Antarctica on steroids or the Galapagos of the Great Southern Ocean.

[jpalbny]

We have done two trips. The second one was with the Stumblefeet in January 2020, including South Georgia. The first one was in December 2009, straight back and forth to the Peninsula. We did have almost 7 days there because back then it was an 11-day trip, and we made great time across the Drake so we arrived in the afternoon of day 2.

 

South Georgia is wildlife galore, and some amazing mountain vistas. It's downright tropical compared to Antarctica. There is a lot of cool history thrown in as well w/ Shackleton, his grave, the opportunity to retrace his voyage from South Georgia to Elephant Island. All fairly unique. 

 

Elephant Island is gorgeous in its own right, if the weather cooperates. You have no chance of landing there, though. There just isn't a place to land. But if weather is good, a zodiac ride around Point Wild is pretty special.

 

There is a big variety among the landing sites and activities on the Antarctic Peninsula. We didn't get bored with 5-7 days there and I doubt we would with 8.

 

We will go back for a third time at some point but it has to be something different. Looking at some of the deeper and longer voyages on Commandant Charcot (Ponant) for the future, which go well below the circle, all the way to the Bellingshausen Sea to see Emperor Penguins.

 

You will be amazed by the grandeur of Antarctica, even if you do the voyage which only visits the peninsula. But I think the combination with South Georgia is more varied, and even 5 days around the peninsula gives you enough of a taste for what Antarctica is all about. MAYBE the only downside would be if the weather is spectacularly bad, and your 5-day trip is totally messed up, and you miss landing on the continent...your odds might be better with 8 days. But that seems unlikely.

 

The other consideration is that there are a lot more sea days on the South Georgia itinerary. It's 3 solid days of sailing from Ushuaia to South Georgia. Then more to come back to Elephant Island. Then you still have to cross the Drake. The Cloud can move it, if conditions are right, and can cross the Drake in about 36 hours. Once you're near the peninsula the seas are pretty calm but the open ocean through the Scotia Sea, and of course the Drake, can be dicey.

 

When we were there mid-December, there were almost 100% penguin eggs and we only saw a few tiny Adelie chicks at one location. It was fun to watch the penguins on their nests, but eggs don't do much... In mid-January, there were chicks galore and it was spectacular. But there was an extra month's worth of guano around the nests, which was hard to miss.

 

In the end the choice comes down to what's most interesting to you. There are some good descriptions here for you and also on FB. Both trips are amazing and I don't regret either of them.

[sloopjohnb]

Thanks, everyone, for these observations. They're really helpful!

Johnny

[taxatty]

If you care, given the state of the world and the cruise industry in general, there is also the issue of letting SS keep a large amount of your money for an extra year versus cashing in your chips now.

[cruiseej]

4 hours ago, taxatty said:

If you care, given the state of the world and the cruise industry in general, there is also the issue of letting SS keep a large amount of your money for an extra year versus cashing in your chips now.

 

@taxatty I certainly care about the amount of money we have on the table for an Antarctica cruise. But what's the alternative? Get a cash refund and book a new cruise with a smaller deposit? That would forego the 15% credit offered for transferring to a new cruise, plus the 10% early booking bonus. So to put some of the money back in my hands for part of the next year, I'd need to pay 25% more for the same trip next year. I guess if I had pretty significant doubts about whether Silversea will remain in business by next winter, this might be the right way to go -- or perhaps to simply not book anything and hunker down until the world is back to "normal". I understand why some people would do so, but I don't think that's where I'm at currently.

[fudgbug]

20 hours ago, cruiseej said:

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions. So from the comments above about the wildlife activity, is it a mistake to take the holiday cruise in December, rather than going in late January or February? Two of the four of us who are going on this trip are still working, so it's hard to take the time off to do the South Georgia trip if not over the holidays. 

Holiday would be fine.  Penguins would be sitting on eggs.

[SailinC2C]

We are booked on the Wind for Jan 2023. Did they cancel this year because of Covid or because the ship won’t be ready after it’s conversion?

[WesW]

Silversea had to cancel the Wind's 2021-2022 Antarctica season due to delays at the Polish shipyard.  The Cloud will take over the Wind voyages in 2022 from February to July.

[cruiseej]

2 hours ago, WesW said:

Silversea had to cancel the Wind's 2021-2022 Antarctica season due to delays at the Polish shipyard.  The Cloud will take over the Wind voyages in 2022 from February to July.

 

I do believe that there were delays finishing the renovation. But... because Silversea made a big PR splash to announce just last month that all three ships would be sailing in Antarctica this winter, I don't believe the Wind renovation can be far behind schedule. Think about it: if it was months behind schedule, they never would have made a big deal that it would be sailing from Punta Arenas. Rather, I suspect it was a little behind, perhaps enough to require canceling the first one or two cruises -- but not the whole winter season.

 

Instead, I believe that the cancelation of the Cloud's originally planned Expedition World Cruise starting at the end of January is why they canceled the Wind's 2021-22 season. What would they have done with the Cloud after January? It had nowhere to go. So instead of having the Wind in Antarctica minus one or two cruises at the start of the season, and the Cloud in Antarctica with no cruises from February onward, they merged the two, and some of us became the collateral damage. They moved the second half of the winter season's Wind cruises to the Cloud, and canceled the Wind's earlier cruises.

 

While this makes sense for Silversea, for those of us who waited through last year's cancellation of the holiday cruise for another shot this year, it is extremely disappointing. And I don't think they've been fully honest with Wind passengers saying the entire season was lost due to delays in the completion of the renovation. I believe it was more about the cancelation of the Cloud's world cruise than the delay in completing the Wind.

Edited October 9, 2021 by cruiseej
Typos

[WesW]

Interesting thoughts, wonder how many Cloud Expedition world cruisers they had booked for the entire WC.

 

Do not mind having the Cloud take over our Halifax to Southampton expedition voyage in May.  Prefer the Cloud's expedition configuration over the Wind.  Tho, after two expedition voyages on the Cloud, concur with one of the Cloud's Hotel Directors who said they should have used the barely adequate fitness space for very large the photo studio and vice versa.  I rarely saw more than six guests in the photo studio at one time and I saw over ten guests in the fitness studio multiple times.

[taxatty]

It does appear that a significant number of former Wind passengers may have chosen to switch to the Dec 21 Cloud cruise--in the last couple of days, unlike before, most of the suite categories on the latter are now waitlisted. 

[cruiseej]

19 minutes ago, WesW said:

Prefer the Cloud's expedition configuration over the Wind.

 

We've sailed on the Cloud (post-renovation) before, but not the Wind. Just curious: what do you find better about the Cloud's configuration? I thought they were going to be pretty similar.

 

20 minutes ago, WesW said:

Tho, after two expedition voyages on the Cloud, concur with one of the Cloud's Hotel Directors who said they should have used the barely adequate fitness space for very large the photo studio and vice versa.

 

Yes, I remember being surprised at how large the photo studio is on the Cloud.

 

21 minutes ago, taxatty said:

It does appear that a significant number of former Wind passengers may have chosen to switch to the Dec 21 Cloud cruise--in the last couple of days, unlike before, most of the suite categories on the latter are now waitlisted. 

 

We actually had out RA hold a suite off the Dec. 21 Cloud voyage on Monday, prior to the announcement. There were only two veranda suites left at that time; only some larger suites remained. So I don't think there was a lot fo room on the Cloud for the displaced people on the Wind holiday cruise. And I suspect many, like us, wanted South Georgia Island, which is why we dropped our hold for the Cloud this year and instead are holding a suite for next year's holiday trip in the Cloud.

[sloopjohnb]

1 hour ago, cruiseej said:

Silversea made a big PR splash to announce just last month that all three ships would be sailing in Antarctica this winter

 

Didn't Ms Muckermann say recently that they would have "multiple" ships in the Antarctic this season? It was that careful ambiguity that first alerted us to the possibility we might not be there!

[RachelG]

Well, any cruise to Antarctica on Silversea will be amazing, but I would recommend including South Georgia, particularly if you think this is something you will only do once.  The wildlife is spectacular, much more than in Antarctica.  I was with Stumblefoot and jpalbany on their trip.  I really loved Antarctica, but South Georgia was so unexpectedly fabulous.

[taxatty]

Just now, RachelG said:

Well, any cruise to Antarctica on Silversea will be amazing, but I would recommend including South Georgia, particularly if you think this is something you will only do once.  The wildlife is spectacular, much more than in Antarctica.  I was with Stumblefoot and jpalbany on their trip.  I really loved Antarctica, but South Georgia was so unexpectedly fabulous.

We used to think that long, exotic trips were once in a lifetime, but for example, we had planned making second visits to the Galapagos, Australia, and New Zealand in the last two years--each were of course cancelled due to the pandemic. We'll hopefully return to each of those destinations instead in 2022, 2023 or 2024. Presuming that the Cloud is going to Antarctica in December, we want to be on it. What has now unfortunately happened to the Wind was predictable in a pandemic situation--see my prior post below. We expect to say hello to the million+ penguins on South Georgia on another trip.   

 

[cruiseej]

20 hours ago, sloopjohnb said:

Didn't Ms Muckermann say recently that they would have "multiple" ships in the Antarctic this season? It was that careful ambiguity that first alerted us to the possibility we might not be there!

 

Yes, that was more recently. But when they announced their agreement with the government of Chile last month, they trumpeted they would be sailing all there ships from Punta Arenas. When Barbara Muckermann and Conrad Combrink stopped replying on Facebook to questions about the Wind in the last two weeks, that was my indication that we were in trouble.

 

Now that the full picture has emerged, it seems to me that the cancellation of the Wind's season likely is more due to the cancellation of the Cloud's world cruise than a delay in finishing the renovation of the Wind. Once they canceled the Cloud world cruise, they were stuck with a ship in South America with nowhere to go. By moving all the Wind's trips from January through June to the Cloud, they saved the cost of running two ships and having one without passengers. It's likely that the renovation work did fall behind, but considering they announced it would be sailing just a month ago, it's probably not too far behind. Perhaps they would have needed to cancel the first cruise due to the delay. But with the ability to serve all the Wind itineraries in the second half of the Antarctica season on the empty Cloud, it didn't make sense for them to staff the Wind and sail her to South America for just a few cruises before the Cloud could take over. If the Cloud hadn't been there, I'm pretty sure the Wind would have sailed this season, even if it was a little late. So those of us booked on the Wind in November and December became collateral damage in the cancellation of the Cloud's world cruise.

 

Since we want to see South Georgia, and the holiday timeframe is the only time that works for us to take a cruise that long, we're stuck waiting until next year. 😞