skrink

I sailed on World Navigator in cabin 619, a B1 Veranda smack dab midship. South Shetland Islands may be listed on the itinerary, but it’s always “Captain’s Choice” according to weather and other conditions. We did not stop there which was fine with me because TBH, the only thing I remember about them is that after we passed through them, the GOOD stuff started showing up - icebergs, LOTS of penguins, seals, and water in more shades of blue than you’ll ever see again. I absolutely recommend a midship veranda. Midship makes the Drake a wee bit easier and the veranda because you won’t want to miss a minute of the action while in your cabin. A Juliet cabin might be just fine for some folks. If it were me, I’d go with the longer cruise only because 9 days seemed far too short, especially after traveling so far to get there and spending four of those nine days in the Drake. I still enjoyed every moment, seasickness and all.

Sounds like they’re crediting unused port fees and taxes, paid by you when you bought the cruise. Port fees and taxes were credited to our account when two ports of call were canceled due to bad weather on my Canada & New England cruise in fall ‘22, then refunded back to my card at the end of the trip.

Great catch! There’s some good cabins available. Sails RT out of Vancouver on the Grand.

If you can get your hands on an ExOfficio FlyQ vest, they’re very nice and the price is much better. Unfortunately, in a bone-headed move ExOfficio discontinued most of their clothing line so finding one in the size you need is the challenge. My FlyQ vest is good as new after months of travel to five continents. Solid quality, comfort, and plenty of pockets and features. Love it.

Avian flu.

I booked through an agency in 2021 and highly recommend it. Got a great rate plus valuable extra perks not offered by Atlas. Communication from Atlas back then was abysmal—it was during their rocky first launch—and having someone else chase down details let me focus on more important things. As with booking any trip with a good agency, a TA will secure all discounts to which you’re entitled (military, first responders, past customer, etc.), buffer you from frustrations, and be a point person when issues arise before and during the trip. Booking through tour operators—whether Atlas or not—sometimes means talking to a different person every time an issue needs resolving. I highly recommend booking through an agency.

Atlas traveler here. As a solo traveler, I paid $15,778 in April of 2021 for a B1 Verandah, so the pricing nearly three years later seems reasonable to me. I think it was $10,199 pp double occupancy, with a 150% single supplement. This was for a Jan 2022 9 day sailing. Ways to save money on Atlas: Book through an online travel company that offers extra perks, such as the $600 prepaid Visa card I got from mine after I took the cruise. Plus another person and I each got another $50 prepaid Visa when I asked for and got a referral bonus. Be sure you take advantage of military discounts, if eligible. Atlas ships are absolutely fabulous. If you look at other companies, be sure to look at whether balconies are available, or if it’s just portholes or ocean view. I wouldn’t want anything less than a Juliet balcony for Antarctica. The penguins start swimming alongside the ship long before you reach the continent and with ships that small, your cabin will be very close to them, unlike on the large cruise ships.

These are such a treasure, I hate to see them perish in the ether. Got any for Alaska? I’m looking for Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan, maybe others.

I bought Princess insurance for a 3 week Med cruise in ‘22 with Princess EZAir and used it when my flights home were canceled twice. I submitted a clean claim with receipts for all hotel and meal expenses. It took six months and multiple frustrating contacts with Aon and Princess before they paid the claim. During that time, claim status on Aon’s web portal sat unbudging as “waiting to be processed” (or similar wording). The only silver lining was that once they finally processed it, they didn’t contest it or require me to jump through additional hoops. I won’t use Aon or Princess insurance again.

I don’t think there’s any comparison to RC or X. What makes Atlas work for some: Tastefully luxurious but not ostentatious ships and accommodations Small ships, ~200 or less passengers Polar expeditions with stellar expedition crews Access to Antarctica State of the art, brand new ships Few/no inside cabins and few/no obstructed view cabins (that I know of) Good discounts during sales, which can be stacked with military discounts Decent perks/inclusions Absence of activities such as casinos, comedians, broadway shows, bingo, spas, etc. No formal nights No assigned dining time or table What might turn some off from Atlas: Limited communication pre-trip (their biggest problem) Growing pains/staff turnover (in 2021-2022; not sure how it is now) Absence of activities such as casinos, comedians, broadway shows, bingo, spas, etc. Prices might be beyond someone’s means For those who like lots of onboard entertainment, being nickeled and dimed by the large cruise lines, and being herded around in large groups to various excursions, then the luxury small ship experience probably isn’t for them. I would cruise with them again, but would go into it knowing that they don’t communicate much beforehand. Maybe that’s changing under the new CEO. I’ve never sailed on a yacht so can’t speak to that point. But their ships and the cruise itself? Ohh myyy, is it ever nice!!

Copied from a promotional email about the sale: ”For a limited time, you can Buy 2 Expeditions Get 1 FREE on select back-to-back voyages, plus Second Guest Sails FREE, 50% Reduced Deposits and 3 FREE Cultural Immersions. Or you can combine 2 back-to-back expeditions with 15% savings and 2 FREE Cultural Immersions.” Looks like it’s for B2B voyages, but I guess if you don’t want a third one for free they deduct 15%. Maybe someone else will interpret it differently. It’s confusing, all right!

How fast cruises fill depends on what type you’re looking at. The limited (like 1-2 sailings per year) drive-by cruises offered by large ships do seem to fill quickly but the pricey ones that let you actually set foot on the continent may or may not. OTOH, if you’re looking to stop in Antarctica on a trip that involves crossing the Drake, midship cabins can fill first since everyone is concerned about seasickness and there’s less pitching midship than say forward or aft. I snagged my dead-center balcony cabin quickly once the sailing I wanted became available. Unless you’re looking at expeditions on small, polar class ships, you might want to post this in a forum that has a port or ports of call where you want excursions. Places like the Falklands, for example, allow larger ships to call. Small expedition ships are the only ones in which passengers are allowed to set foot on the continent of Antarctica and because they take so few passengers, they do things differently than the large ships. (It’s part of strict IAATO regs, which ensure that tourism adheres to the Antarctic treaty.). In Antarctica, there are no ports or cruise terminals and rather than tender passengers on lifeboats, they take a few people at a time in zodiacs.