NW passage 2022 - mid cruise review

[10987654321]

Currently on Le Boreal completing the 29 day north west passage cruise, sub-titled ‘in the steps of Ronald Amundsen’

We elected this cruise as we had an excellent Antarctic cruise in 2018 and the Ross sea trip was cancelled.

Sadly this cruise is not meeting the same level as the 2018 journey. 
The biggest issue is Ponants communications, both from land offices and on the ship. It’s not up to par for a cruise at this price level and marketing blurb. There are a lot of opportunities for them to offer information on the journey we are on and the sights we are seeing. Virtually all the expedition crew are bird specialists and only one more general knowledge on board. This makes for challenges providing us with quality presentations on the area’s we are in.

The expedition leader has made a poor impression, with his first on-land excursion turning into a marathon walk fest that basically upset all and caused him a reprimand from Head Office, according to the gossip. The walk briefing was not delivered in a easy, medium and hard appraisal but in a short, medium and long format. I was personally told by the expedition leader if I wanted to stop the relentless surge forwards to take pictures and enjoy the view I should have joined the medium walk. My response was I was on holiday not a boot camp.

The staff facing the passengers have a poor grasp of English and it can be hard to receive the food and drink you request. Yes, this is a French ship and the French language and passengers receive priority over the English; but Ponant have made substantial efforts to capture the Australian market and on this cruise the English speakers outweigh the French. Perhaps due to the pandemic quality staff are difficult to get but at this pricing when I ask for a cappuccino I do not expect to receive a express and a long black at once.

Logistics are proving a problem as well. Leaving Tromso was delayed due to paperwork; We were delayed entering Canadian waters due to incorrect paperwork and we were prevented leaving Pond Inlet due to paperwork. I sense a trend here, I am hoping they have their act together for entering the USA.

The food in both the grill and restaurant is warm at best - the steamed veges were steamed about 30 minutes prior to serving so they were hot at some point but not when I got them. Meat is not cooked past rare, so you need to up your steak selection by one grade. I have had basically rare lamb and beef so far. Last night I watched the chef attempt to cut the roast beef eye fillet, which required a lot of sawing. On arrival at he table I need to engage saw mode to cut the meat, which was medium on one side and rare on the other.

The bread is the signature dish here - always greasy, crusty on the outer and to-die-for on the inside. Desserts win the prize as well, crafted nicely.

Breakfast has not seen a variation in weeks and I am pretty much down to buttered toast at this point.

Alcohol has been a fizzer. I am a beer drinker and enjoy local ales. Due to the locals agent not able to supply local beer in Tromso we waited until Greenland to obtain some. But, a currency conversion glitch meant that they paid over 5 Euro per bottle, so the delightful passengers are charged €2- per bottle. Not sure how their lack of planning causes my wallet to ache.

Plus, all the beer I have looked at is expiring this month, so the cynic in me thinks it has been sitting in the ship for the past 2 years whilst it was laid up. Cruddy booze, anyone?

So, we are not as impressed with Ponant as we were. A lot of issues could be blamed on Covid but missing the stop at Beechey Island which was an important part of Amundsen’s travels is not the most professional way to conduct this expedition. Subsequent stops have been small locales which I am struggling to see relating to the cruise description.

I think myself and Gogo65 are the only CC contributors on this cruise but it would be great to see the French version to see if it matches ours.

 

But, we did see big white fluffy things close up and all issues were forgotten 😊

 

Edited September 16, 2022 by 10987654321

[AussieBoyTX]

Ugh.

 

I have been looking for French-language reviews, but haven't found any yet.

 

Have you spoken to the Hotel Manager about these numerous deficiencies?

[tnm6217]

Thank you for the update, 109. I am so sorry things haven't improved and you and gogo are still experiencing these issues. I really hope Ponant will make this right for you, even if they can't seem to make that happen until after the cruise. 

[starcluster2]

Well, after reading these accounts I am definitely worried about my upcoming trip to Antarctica in November. I hope the ship will be running at full availability in all areas. I'm spending a lot of cash for this trip, even more now with the exchange rate on the US dollar being 35% for me. 

A  lot of things have changed due to the Pandemic but now it feels like things are worse and not getting better. Communication with Ponant has been at best terrible, not knowing and needing to know certain situations has been stressful. I should not have to deal with stress when taking a vacation and especially one where the company says it is a luxury commodity.

All one can do is hope for the best - but I wonder.........  

[FieldstonEagle]

I have found that the staff of PONANT, both onboard and on shore, to be very responsive to constructive criticism, so long as it is well informed, knowing that there will be  changes to such an itinerary out of control of the cruise line. The service staff, including dining room waiters, are not French and are English speaking, so long as the guest appreciates that it is their second language. So the one time issue with the  cappuccino sounds like unfair knit picking and undermines the other criticisms in this review. Same for the beers. 

[gogo65]

7 hours ago, FieldstonEagle said:

I have found that the staff of PONANT, both onboard and on shore, to be very responsive to constructive criticism, so long as it is well informed, knowing that there will be  changes to such an itinerary out of control of the cruise line. The service staff, including dining room waiters, are not French and are English speaking, so long as the guest appreciates that it is their second language. So the one time issue with the  cappuccino sounds like unfair knit picking and undermines the other criticisms in this review. Same for the beers. 

In regards to feedback, the hotel manager asked to speak with us following our submission of the feedback form.

I thought he was very responsive to the feedback and had highlighted parts of what I had written to discuss with my husband and I, we spoke with him for at least 45 minutes.

I tried to ensure the feedback was constructive and not all negative. 

In saying that he did acknowledge multiple issues and potential safety problems. 
Since our discussion there has been some changes, such as having an additional dish on the dinner menu (normally a carvery or pasta station), afternoon tea is now labeled so one knows what they are eating, hikes have been led by other expedition leaders etc.

So I do agree they are listening.

 

However, as 10-1 said, there has been some issues and delays to what appears poor management and these are continuing and actually impacting the itinerary.

As 10-1 mentioned there were huge delays on embarkation and it seems majority were not happy, what was a nightmare situation for those on the charter flight (not myself), was exacerbated by poor communication.

On arriving into Canada (pond inlet), paperwork was not complete and we were unable to get off the ship for 3 hours, we were due to disembark at 12, finally off at 3, with an all aboard time of 5, this caused the hike to ruins to be cancelled, unfortunately things got worse once on board, incorrect paperwork was filed and Canadian authorities would not allow us to set sail, so we stayed in the harbour all night, this obviously caused delays to the itinerary and the visit to Beechey Island was cancelled and we had a sea day instead, lots of unhappy people missing such an important historical site.

Our planned stop in Nuussauq which included a cultural show was also delayed as the community had not received notification we were arriving, apparently (as told by an elder at the presentation) money had not been received and as their was no confirmation we were arriving, nothing was planned.

Fast forward to yesterday our day in Gjoa Haven, again we are all inside the community center waiting for a cooking and sewing demonstration only to be told they also weren’t expecting us. Two young children sang two songs and that was a cultural show. Now Gjoa Haven is an historical site and an important part of Amundsen’s NW voyage, however there is nothing else there, so the cultural show was meant to be the highlight. 
 

As for the cappuccino saga it continues! We order a large cappucino and they present a small cappuccino in a large mug 😂,  a flat white has foam, and a latte is a cappuccino without chocolate, we have found one staff member in the observatory bar who knows how to make a proper coffee and so we head there everyday after breakfast, but we should be able to enjoy a cappuccino with breakfast.

We haven’t been drinking much beer, but the always included beer is Heineken and local beer, when there is no local beer loaded that doesn’t give much choice. The bar manager did get some Greenland beer, however due to the currency issue, they are charging for it despite it being included on the menu, nitpicking maybe but they shouldn’t be charging for something that is meant to be included.

 

We also have sailed Le Boreal in 2017 to Antarctica and assumed the service and facilities would be similar, but there is a definite decline. We had planned on booking the PNG odyssey cruise in 2024 while on board, but have decided to look elsewhere. While I do believe they are trying to make things better as 10-1 said this cruise is big $$$, and at this point it seems to be one issue on top of the other and it has definitely impacted the enjoyment and service we expected. 

 

[gogo65]

Gjoa Haven (not the haven we expected)

 

Edited September 16, 2022 by gogo65

[AussieBoyTX]

11 minutes ago, gogo65 said:

So I do agree they are listening.

I guess that's good, but how disappointing that things continue to be off the rails for you. Sorry we won't be on New Guinea Odyssey together in 2024. 

[AussieBoyTX]

8 hours ago, starcluster2 said:

Well, after reading these accounts I am definitely worried about my upcoming trip to Antarctica in November. I hope the ship will be running at full availability in all areas. I'm spending a lot of cash for this trip, even more now with the exchange rate on the US dollar being 35% for me. 

A  lot of things have changed due to the Pandemic but now it feels like things are worse and not getting better. Communication with Ponant has been at best terrible, not knowing and needing to know certain situations has been stressful. I should not have to deal with stress when taking a vacation and especially one where the company says it is a luxury commodity.

All one can do is hope for the best - but I wonder.........  

 

Not to be an apologist for Ponant, but unlike this once-a-year cruise, they run four ships out of South America every week during the Antarctic season, so I would be hugely surprised and disappointed if the logistics aren't well taken care of. In any event, we'll be there the week before you, so will report back the good & bad.

 

Agree on pre-cruise communication. There's room for improvement.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Part of the problem with the Cappuccino may be that you are used to an unusual variation, if chocolate is mandatory for you:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cappuccino

I have never had chocolate in a Cappuccino.  Maybe a little cinnamon dust on top as a garnish.  But generally the flavors are strictly coffee and cream.

[10987654321]

11 hours ago, FieldstonEagle said:

I have found that the staff of PONANT, both onboard and on shore, to be very responsive to constructive criticism, so long as it is well informed, knowing that there will be  changes to such an itinerary out of control of the cruise line. The service staff, including dining room waiters, are not French and are English speaking, so long as the guest appreciates that it is their second language. So the one time issue with the  cappuccino sounds like unfair knit picking and undermines the other criticisms in this review. Same for the beers. 

I have also found the staff to be exceptional, on our one other cruise which was to Antarctica.

I agree, that English is a second language for most service staff, but you miss my point; at this price point and marketing level I expect that my requests in English are understood and acted on. What you do not know about the coffee is I asked the waiter to go and find waiter X (name suppressed for privacy 👍) as he knows how I prefer my coffee. Not only did he not do as I asked he proceeded to deliver me something totally different to what I wanted.

If I were on P&O I would write it off to the level of cruise I was on. But I am not, I am paying many tens of thousands of dollars for this cruise and my expectation is in line with that sum.

All these little things are creating a bigger issue and this is a disappointment to a large number of passengers.

As Gogo said, there is a lack of coordination that to us mere passengers is inexplicable.

Another knit-picking example. At Fort Ross there is a historically important cairn of stones that contained a letter confirmed that Franklin had died, and which finally forced his wife to accept he was dead.

From the beach there is a great vista up towards the cairn, making a really good photo opp. But, all day we had an expedition guide standing directly in front of it on polar bear surveillance duty - spoiling the photo opportunity.

When I arrived up there I mentioned to him that he was blocking the view and if he moved to one side it would be better. His response? I am here to spot polar bears and have to be here. No care that he has up to 80 clients wanting to record their visit. 
There are multiple examples of this knit picking that are happening daily.

How about the expedition leader refusing to allow other Zodiac’s in front of him, as he had the ship photographers with him and they wanted clean shots (to sell to us passengers) of a couple of dead Beluga whales on the lagoon floor, preventing us from approaching a polar bear feeding on the beach? I am paying for them to be there and I have my own pro photo gear which I am using to get pictures, and I do not appreciate having to wait whilst someone uses a borrowed GoPro to get underwater shots.

We could bring this up to Management, but if the bear had left and we didn’t get the shots we did get then that comes back to basic awareness of why they are here, and how the experience to the paying guests could be improved.

 

[10987654321]

12 hours ago, starcluster2 said:

Well, after reading these accounts I am definitely worried about my upcoming trip to Antarctica in November. I hope the ship will be running at full availability in all areas. I'm spending a lot of cash for this trip, even more now with the exchange rate on the US dollar being 35% for me. 

A  lot of things have changed due to the Pandemic but now it feels like things are worse and not getting better. Communication with Ponant has been at best terrible, not knowing and needing to know certain situations has been stressful. I should not have to deal with stress when taking a vacation and especially one where the company says it is a luxury commodity.

All one can do is hope for the best - but I wonder.........  

I think we have an unusual situation and not relevant to Antarctica. We have discussed this and the Antarctic cruise was full on, with 2 landings per day and lots to see and do. If there were any knit-picking moments we didn’t notice them and we are still raving about it 6 years later.

I suspect this cruise has a lot more sea days and we are seeing more ‘issues’. I would do Ponant to Antarctica again tomorrow.

[10987654321]

28 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Part of the problem with the Cappuccino may be that you are used to an unusual variation, if chocolate is mandatory for you:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cappuccino

I have never had chocolate in a Cappuccino.  Maybe a little cinnamon dust on top as a garnish.  But generally the flavors are strictly coffee and cream.

I may have not explained the issue well.

Regardless of the type of coffee I asked for, I ended up with 2 coffees and a confused waiter. I don’t see how you have aligned chocolate on a cappuccino to my comment either. That is an Australian variation and I do not expect to see that on any Northern hemisphere coffee.

On the other hand, the French bar tender (who has become the favourite for a number of guests) fully grasps how we wish to have our coffee made and delivers every time.

Again, a small issue that contributes to the whole.

[10987654321]

17 hours ago, AussieBoyTX said:

Ugh.

 

I have been looking for French-language reviews, but haven't found any yet.

 

Have you spoken to the Hotel Manager about these numerous deficiencies?

We have spoken to him about issues early on, and have submitted a 4 page feedback form. There have been improvements to the service since the feedback request so they are listening and making changes.

[starcluster2]

6 hours ago, AussieBoyTX said:

In any event, we'll be there the week before you, so will report back the good & bad.

I'm curious, will you be on Le Boreal, Nov 7 to Nov 22, The Great Austral Loop, or the trip previous to that one?

[AussieBoyTX]

1 hour ago, starcluster2 said:

I'm curious, will you be on Le Boreal, Nov 7 to Nov 22, The Great Austral Loop, or the trip previous to that one?

No, we'll be on Le Lyrial on The Great Austral Loop.

[starcluster2]

4 minutes ago, AussieBoyTX said:

No, we'll be on Le Lyrial on The Great Austral Loop.

Awe, I love hearing a Texas drawl 😀

 

Here's hoping that the rest of your present cruise gets much better. Sometimes it's hard to believe so much can go so wrong.

[gogo65]

7 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Part of the problem with the Cappuccino may be that you are used to an unusual variation, if chocolate is mandatory for you:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cappuccino

I have never had chocolate in a Cappuccino.  Maybe a little cinnamon dust on top as a garnish.  But generally the flavors are strictly coffee and cream.

Actually they always provide chocolate powder on top of a cappuccino on the ship (some ask but most don’t), the issue is a flat white, latte and cappuccino is the same, either with or without chocolate powder…no awareness of the foam and the differences. 

Its fine (I know where to get my coffee now) but just unusual that there is no one on board who has any barista training to be able to differentiate between the many options. Australians are known to be particularly fussy with our coffee (Starbucks went bankrupt in Australia because it was the lowest of low coffee shop compared to our many options).

[Host Jazzbeau]

2 hours ago, gogo65 said:

Actually they always provide chocolate powder on top of a cappuccino on the ship (some ask but most don’t), the issue is a flat white, latte and cappuccino is the same, either with or without chocolate powder…no awareness of the foam and the differences. 

Its fine (I know where to get my coffee now) but just unusual that there is no one on board who has any barista training to be able to differentiate between the many options. Australians are known to be particularly fussy with our coffee (Starbucks went bankrupt in Australia because it was the lowest of low coffee shop compared to our many options).

Got ya.  I am aware of the differences, although I couldn't describe them or make any of them...  I do know that a Café au lait in a French café is different from all the above – and my favorite – but I don't know how to explain why it's different either [and I don't think it's because it means I'm in Paris 😉]

[AussieBoyTX]

Maybe we should create a new thread, "All about the coffee machines on Ponant ships." 😅

 

Every Ponant ship I've been on has used some variation of the Nespresso Professional series coffee machines. They use Nespresso coffee pods and have some programmed drink buttons. It can, for example, make a Cappuccino with one button press, as well as a Latte Macchiato, but it can't do a Flat White automatically. A real Flat White would require the bartender to steam the milk separately and then pour it into the espresso with just a bit of foam on top. I guess it's possible the other bartenders either don't know how to make a Flat White or assume it's "close enough" to a Latte.

 

Anyway, I also have a coffee drink I like that's not a simple button push. I work through that process with one of the bartenders (usually the early morning one while I write trip reports) and then let him know that I'm going to refer the other coffee making people to come to him for instructions when I ask for a coffee. Simply, "I want @AussieBoyTX special coffee. Please ask 'Alex' in the Observatory Lounge how to make it." It doesn't take long for everyone who uses the machines to know how to do the drink I like.

[10987654321]

11am today the Captain announces 2 cases of Covid have been identified and that we should all wear face masks and wash hands.

1pm today the hand sanitiser machine at the entry to the deck 6 restaurant wasn’t working. I had to tell the Maître d.

Sigh.

[10987654321]

Well, we are back home now.

Having met a number of passengers on the travel home, the general feeling is that this was a very poor effort by Ponant and most intend to write letters of complaint to head office.

One couple we spoke with had done over 15 cruises and this was the worst of them. Others decided against booking another cruise on board based on current performance, despite intending to.
As noted by myself and Gogo65 there were too many little issues to ignore, which snowballed into a high level of dissatisfaction on the whole ship. 
There were some standouts; Anton in the deck 6 bar won the popularity vote for his service, ability and personality. In fact, when he hit the catwalk during the fashion show, the entire audience gave him a cheer and shouts. No one else got that.

Karl in the restaurant made friends by delivering outstanding service and remembering passengers likes and dislikes and making the effort to accomodate meal requests, which he usually achieved.

Alex the bar manager stunned with his ability to knock up a sexy drink from memory and his desire to improve the bar standard. If you are on the next Le Boreal cruise in Ushuaia then you are in for a treat to have them on board.

Standouts were seeing 8 polar bears in their natural environment and cruising through ice to drink champagne. 
The Northwest Passage is an entirely different environment to Antarctica and I will admit to thinking they would be similar but we had 3 days of a polar desert with nothing but rocks.

Hopefully this was just a glitch in Ponant SOP and we were the unlucky ones who experienced it.

[highplanesdrifters]

Thanks for a great report. I know it's difficult to separate the cruise experience from the NW Passage experience. If possible could you comment on the NW passage experience envisioning a better ship product. In other words would the trip be worth the money or is it just to long and boring?  Thanks.

[10987654321]

13 hours ago, highplanesdrifters said:

Thanks for a great report. I know it's difficult to separate the cruise experience from the NW Passage experience. If possible could you comment on the NW passage experience envisioning a better ship product. In other words would the trip be worth the money or is it just to long and boring?  Thanks.

That's a good question, and one I asked myself over the last parts of the cruise.

We booked this as the Ross Sea cruise was cancelled, and we desperately needed a holiday. It was originally the Northeast passage, which morphed into the NW passage when Putin decided to play up.

I didn't research the cruise much at all, apart from looking at the stops, which all sounded good on paper.

I think the cruise can be split into 2 halves (and even termed as that by Ponant on board); an excursion cruise incorporating Iceland and Greenland and an expedition covering Canada.

 

So... the NW passage. I think this cruise is suited to folks who are interested in the actual sea history of the achievement of making a journey across the top of the world rather than a wildlife type trip. To travel the NW passage was a commercial need to reduce shipping time and cost, and the wildlife and scenery wasn't a consideration. Sure, they did map the lands they saw but Amundsen just wanted to get from A to B.

A classic example of how Ponant missed the point is at one landing there was a monument at Gjoa Haven that is actually photographed in the brochure but was never mentioned to passengers so we never saw it. With the exception of one guide (see further down) the history was glossed over.

I will admit I expected to see more of an Antarctic experience with snow and ice the dominant landscape.

This is not the case on this cruise, and we had 3 days of a polar desert with nothing but rocks to view.

Wildlife has been hunted extensively, and there is not a lot of land-based animals. We did see Polar Bears on 8 occasions, including 3 in a sheltered lake area, along with 2 Arctic Foxes. Birds were plentiful and followed the ship, and we did see migrating flocks.

The Northern Lights were seen 4 nights, with 1 night being the best of classic forms and colours. The other nights were 'sheet' colours across the whole sky.

Unfortunately we missed visiting Beechey Island which contains graves of original expedition members so I don't know what else was there.

Whales, seals and Narwals were also low in number (someone thought they saw a Narwal but not confirmed).

The communities we visited were very much remote. Powered by generators, mainly fishing or hunting with little commerce. The amount of rubbish throughout the villages was an eye-opener.

 

Iceland: We missed the original harbour stop due to weather so went to Reykjavik. Just another small city so no attraction for me.

Greenland: Beautiful fjords, villages and scenery. We did see traditional culture at most villages but mainly they are very basic huts and houses with skidoo's and quadbikes for transport. Sleds were about along with dogs but this was the end of summer so not being used.

We did a walk to a glacier and a bay full of ice which was good, but I think the optional boat cruise to the front of the ice trying to roam the sea's freely would have been better. There was a better walk to observe the ice but for us this was not explained and we were 'guided' to the boardwalk. Again, a missed opportunity.

Some villages had museums detailing the history of their patch and some were very informative. Mostly these were included so I don't know what the cost of admission was.

Canada: By far the biggest chunk of time. Again, small villages  mainly focussed on fishing and hunting and a lot of debris scattered about. Skidoo and quad bikes abounded.

Here the villages had local craft for sale, in varying volume and type but the one common factor was high pricing. I got the feeling they saw cruise ships in the area as full of rich people so they priced accordingly. Some people offered more reasonable money which was refused. Some accepted lower amounts but by and large we were the cash cows. $300CAD for an alabaster sculpture of a polar bear about 3" high is not value to me.

The locals did put on shows, but to be frank only one was something I felt was of value. This may have been due to Ponant stuffing them around (one village elder did apologise for the poor show as they only received payment and confirmation of the visit days prior) but it's a case of seen one, seen them all.

A few villages demanded that local guides accompanied us. The expedition leader stated that this was new and he felt unwelcome as a result but it did mean we couldn't roam about freely to see live as it is lived. I didn't feel unwelcome however and I thought these villages did as good as others.

But, the villages by and large held no history relating to the NW passage and were there due to natives living there for sustaining life by fishing and hunting. 

Alaska: So what they don't tell you on the box is that USA requires all boat landings to be done by USA-made zodiacs/boats, and to be piloted by US citizens. So as a result we did no landings in the US and spent 5 days at sea. That was boring.

 

Landings not at villages: We did a few landing at sites which were not qualified or explained the significance of, so we basically did hikes to view the view and to observe the fauna. There were expedition guides who thrived on the flora and fauna and got a thrill out of it, but for me it was meh. One highlight was spotting an Arctic Hare as it scooted across a far away field. I missed it.

 

Would I do it again? No. My bent is wildlife and wild landscapes, so Antarctica was my dream. The NW passage was nothing special for me, with scenery that was not spectacular; I have seen similar in non-ice regions. Perhaps if this cruise was cheaper, or not billed as an 'expedition' I may have different feelings about it.

The trip was also devoid of ice - we had to divert for about 12 hours North to reach the sea ice pack - so the sense of challenge or loss/triumph in making the first crossing wasn't there.

Due to the change to go NW instead of NE, we received an extra 5 days from the original. 2 of these were getting to Reykjavik from Tromso and I guess 3 across Alaska. Being a small ship there's not a lot to do, except watch birds and hope to spot a whale. So yes, this was boring especially the last days.

There we a couple of gaps were we travelled and didn't stop. Due to the length (we travelled 6,600NM) I suppose this couldn't be avoided but it did make for no fun.

Would I do it on a better ship product? Perhaps. I think what this trip needs is a focus on what the journey is, and if the history and sites were intertwined into the cruise then it could be good. I'm all up for a story and if the drama, excitement and facts were a theme then it could be a success.

Like I said, the original goal was to seek a new trade route and there was nothing sexy or romantic about it and travelling in a 5 star ship for 29 days doesn't compare. We didn't get stuck in ice, we didn't go with natives to hunt our first kill, no one got scurvy and no one challenged the captain (although we prolly should have :))

 

 

 

 

 

 

[AussieBoyTX]

Thanks for the very detailed thoughts and account. 

 

It looks like the 2023 version on Boreal is down to 24 nights from 29, but on its own doesn't sound like that would enhance your experience. Charcot is also sailing next year on a more northerly itinerary that promises an ice crossing and doesn't promote stops at villages along the way.

 

We have a more tropical focus, so I hadn't really thought about NW, NE or even North Pole expeditions. If I had gone, I'd want to see a focus on Amundsen and other explorers and I'd be disappointed if I missed the highlights of those expeditions. Once upon a time, I worked for an exploration company and the impact of development on remote, basically subsistence farming / hunting communities is interesting to me. Sounds like your experience has some similarity to what you can see in parts of the Amazon, PNG and elsewhere.

 

I'm not entirely adverse to sea days, but I'd like all of the ship's services to be available (e.g. spa). Too bad about Alaska -- Deadhorse is not interesting unless you can get a tour of Prudhoe Bay oil fields. Barrow (Utqiagvik) has a population of about 5,000 and would probably be the largest community you'd have seen since Reykjavik. It has museums and heritage centers focused on the US expansion into the Arctic, so that would have given a different perspective. There are some places you might be able to land, like King Island, that were formerly inhabited, but the Inuit were forcibly relocated by the US Bureau of Indian Affairs in the mid 1900's, so they are now deserted.