Hi all,
I have a few questions for anyone who's done an Antarctic cruise aboard the Seabourn Venture. I recently booked a Peninsula cruise on the Venture for this upcoming season, but I'm a little concerned about the size of the ship (approx. 260 pax capacity) because of the 100-person limit at landing sites. Before booking I called Seabourn to inquire, who said that there would be 2 shifts/rotations per landing site rather than 3 (similar to vessels with <= 200 passengers). They mentioned that this was because some of the passengers would be traveling solo, some would be kayaking, and some would prefer to remain on the ship. I was wondering if anyone here has experience cruising Antarctica with the Venture (or another similar-sized vessel) and can confirm whether this is the case?
Also, a related question: Assuming 2 landing sites per day weather-permitting (plz correct me if I'm wrong), how would it work regarding the groups? Would each group get to land at just one of those sites and spend the full time there, or would they rotate and spend half the time at each landing site?
Lastly, I was told that during landings, any passengers that are not ashore (e.g., due to limits) would be able to go on zodiac cruises. For those that have done both, I was curious as to how the experience compares. Is there a strong preference for one over the other, or are they similarly rewarding?
Thanks in advance for your help!