Antarctica Inaugural

[Nigella]

For anyone who's interested in Antarctica, or wildlife, there's a Seabourn "dispatches" blog detailing the inaugural Quest voyage in the region.

 

Informative reading, excellent pics (see the albatross one), and for me, continued reading will answer a few of the doubts I had/have about how such a cruise would work on a ship like Quest.

 

http://blog.seabourn.com/

Edited November 28, 2013 by Nigella

[DC Traveler244]

Nigella, thanks for sharing this. The photos and narrative are very interesting. we're booked on the Quest's next Antarctic voyage [it departs Valparaiso December 11], so the blog adds to our anticipation.

[Nigella]

I hope you enjoy reading it, DCTraveler.

I would like to do an Antarctica cruise one day, but did have doubts about how it would work on Seabourn. All looks ok so far,very promising.

[Smartcookie]

For anyone who's interested in Antarctica, or wildlife, there's a Seabourn "dispatches" blog detailing the inaugural Quest voyage in the region.

 

Informative reading, excellent pics (see the albatross one), and for me, continued reading will answer a few of the doubts I had/have about how such a cruise would work on a ship like Quest.

 

http://blog.seabourn.com/

 

You should check out Seabourn's Facebook page. :eek:

 

https://www.facebook.com/Seabourn

 

Look under "recent posts by others" on the right side of the page

Edited December 1, 2013 by Smartcookie

[Keith1010]

Thank you Nigella and Smartcookie for sharing the respective links.

 

Keith

[Smartcookie]

The facebook posts that were critical of the sailing are no longer there. :confused:

[Poppy1966]

The facebook posts that were critical of the sailing are no longer there. :confused:

 

I read these facebook posts/thread too over the weekend and wondered how long it would be before they were removed.

[Tony & Trevor]

Poppy1966

 

 

What generally were the comments on Facebook that were removed ?

 

Thank you,

 

Kind regards

 

Tony

[GeneBK]

Most or all of the negative comments came from one passenger. Based on what I’ve read in various places, and what I remember of the comments, my best understanding of what’s transpired (caution----this is not a first hand report….it’s wellintentioned, but it may not be fully accurate)---

 

Day #1 apparently went well, although they had to go to an alternate landing site (wind and waves at scheduled site)….the sight was "limited" and the change may have shortened the day a bit.

 

Day #2 they were unable to land because of too much ice along the shoreline. (Perhaps an early season problem, since November is early “summer” there.) They did ride along the shore in the zodiacs, and the pictures looked good to me.

 

Day #3 they unexpectedly had to abandon the program and go north due to a medical emergency. One passenger had to fly out to Chile, so they had to return to the South Shetlands to reach the airstrip there. Unfortunate, to be sure (especially for that poor passenger!!!) Once that was accomplished, they returned south and did some “sightseeing cruising” in the evening.

 

Based on the Seabourn blog, Day #4 was the highlight of the trip….wonderful on-land experience, glorious weather, entertaining wildlife. (In fairness---the passenger who posted negatively, put some smiling pictures on his Facebook timeline and he did say in his Seabourn post that this day was everything he hoped the whole trip would be.)

 

Day #5, the final day, some passengers were able to land early, but then they had to return to the ship and further landings were cancelled, again safety concerns due to wind and waves.

 

The medical emergency is always a slight possibility. The problems of condition and safety are always possible; I’m wondering if perhaps a bit more common this early in the season there. I’m hoping that is somewhat the case, since we leave Sunday for Santiago and then will embark on the next Quest cruise a week from tomorrow!

Edited December 3, 2013 by GeneBK

[Tony & Trevor]

GeneBK

 

Many thanks,

 

 

Kind regards

 

Tony

[GeneBK]

I should add a summary of the posts themselves---

 

The one person's negative comments felt that safety decisions were overly cautious and were made on the assumption that all passengers are "elderly and infirmed". No way for us to judge from words on a page.

 

In a few weeks, I'll make my own judgement.

Edited December 3, 2013 by GeneBK

[Tony & Trevor]

We did two back to back cruises down there some 9 years ago and many passengers were much much older than us. As far as my memory serves we only had to cancel one landing due to bad weather. I recall one very frosty morning when some passengers found it too slippy on deck due to the ice and one lady fell and had a nasty arm #. The zodiacs were very easy to get in and out and the sea was very calm even crossing Drakes passage-not too rough at all.

 

We did actually hit a large berg one early morning but thats another story.

 

Generally weather very good albeit cold. Scenery and wildlife surreal. It was an amazing adventure.

I do hope you have ,which I'm sure you will, an excellent safe cruise,

 

Kind regards

Tony

[wripro]

Hey, you're not going to Paris. Weather is a factor on these sailings and if one is not ready to accept the changes it may necessitate one should not book a cruise to Antarctica. Imagine how much greater the complaints would be if the captain did not exercise extreme caution and something went wrong!

[DC Traveler244]

My husband and I are booked on the December 11 Antarctic sailing, so we'll soon have an opportunity to form our own impressions about whether the Quest is excessively cautious re Zodiac landings.

 

However, I do know that the all the materials we received made it clear that landings in Antarctica were weather-dependent. Obviously, we'll be hugely disappointed if the weather substantially limits landing opportunities, but we recognize that this was a risk we were running when we booked.

 

I think it's also worth noting that weather-related port cancellations and diversions necessitated by medical emergencies aren't unique to Antarctic voyages. For example, in Fall 2012, my husband and I were on the trans-Atlantic "Path of the Vikings" sailing on the Sojourn. The weather in the North Atlantic was quite rough, and some scheduled stops had to be scrubbed or curtailed. There also was a medical evacuation that necessitated fairly significant route diversion.

 

Bottom line -- stuff like this happens, and it's more likely to happen when you choose voyages on which you're likely to encounter challenging weather conditions.

[sfvoyage]

An argument can be made, I guess, that, this being Seabourn's inaugural journey in the region, their crew's lack of experience may necessitate erring on the safe side.

 

Having said that, whether Seabourn Quest is "excessively cautious" regarding cancellations of landings and re-routing, etc. is only meaningful when compared to what more experienced expedition companies that specialize in the region would do under identical or similar weather conditions.

 

If there are guests on this inaugural sailing who have in fact sailed with other more experienced expedition ships with similar itinerary and weather and seasonal conditions, perhaps they'll care to enlighten us...

[cruzer9]

New to Cruise Critic - first post:)

Just back in London after what must have been the most amazing trip of my life. We were on the Silver Explorer and had 18 days of spectacular exploration.

A huge Quest fan we were originally skeptical about going with Silversea, especially after Seaborn launched their program. However we could not fault ANYTHING on Silver Explorer. The crew were amazing, food fantastic, and the Expedition team first class.

We did early morning ( 0500 ) landings, sometimes three landings per day, ice cruising, landed on ice floes, and when the weather was not so good our expedition team managed to change plans and land us, even after dinner.

We did about 20 or so landings and zodiac tours, had numerous lectures and really felt we had the best possible experience.

We met up with the Quest in Ushuaia and I spoke to some of the passengers. They were not so full of praise. Seemed that the Quest Antarctica experience is very watered down. Max. one landing per day and the sites are mostly poor. The expedition team is not to the standard of the Silversea team.

We learnt while in Antarctica that the Quest can only visit 19 of the 50 authorized sites. Now having been there myself, I certainly do not want to be going with 450 persons. We were 121 passengers and our crew made impromptu landings and changes to maximize the opportunities, something that the Quest crew cannot do. Apparently they never went into the ice..... Something our Silver Explorer captain seemed to have enjoyed, and added a real experience to our trip.

This was our first Silversea Expeditions trip and we are hooked. Will return to the Quest, but would never recommend that ship for an expedition. We booked our next expedition on the Silver Discoverer ( Silversea's latest expedition ship ) already.

[GeneBK]

Cruzer9---Nice summary of what sounds like a great experience.

 

A year ago, we were also booked on a Silver Explorer Antarctica cruise. When we became aware of the Quest option we decided to change.

 

The Silver Explorer sounded excellent, and based on Cruise Critic reading we were quite sure it would have more serious information sessions, and a more extensive range of landing experiences. Maybe more serious, and more extensive, then we wanted?

 

We love a good cruise on a well-appointed ship with a range of dining, entertainment, and activity options....but we also like to explore.

 

We didn't want a "drive-by" cruise that would take pictures and never land (perfect option for some)....nor were we sure we wanted to go an "school field trip" vacation (perfect option for others).

 

We leave for Santiago in four days and will be on the Quest in a week. We'll see if it's the perfect option, for us . Who knows, we may get hooked and return on the Explorer in the future.....or we may be content with our Quest memories.

[PaulMCO]

New to Cruise Critic - first post:)

Just back in London after what must have been the most amazing trip of my life. We were on the Silver Explorer and had 18 days of spectacular exploration.

A huge Quest fan we were originally skeptical about going with Silversea, especially after Seaborn launched their program. However we could not fault ANYTHING on Silver Explorer. The crew were amazing, food fantastic, and the Expedition team first class.

We did early morning ( 0500 ) landings, sometimes three landings per day, ice cruising, landed on ice floes, and when the weather was not so good our expedition team managed to change plans and land us, even after dinner.

We did about 20 or so landings and zodiac tours, had numerous lectures and really felt we had the best possible experience.

We met up with the Quest in Ushuaia and I spoke to some of the passengers. They were not so full of praise. Seemed that the Quest Antarctica experience is very watered down. Max. one landing per day and the sites are mostly poor. The expedition team is not to the standard of the Silversea team.

We learnt while in Antarctica that the Quest can only visit 19 of the 50 authorized sites. Now having been there myself, I certainly do not want to be going with 450 persons. We were 121 passengers and our crew made impromptu landings and changes to maximize the opportunities, something that the Quest crew cannot do. Apparently they never went into the ice..... Something our Silver Explorer captain seemed to have enjoyed, and added a real experience to our trip.

This was our first Silversea Expeditions trip and we are hooked. Will return to the Quest, but would never recommend that ship for an expedition. We booked our next expedition on the Silver Discoverer ( Silversea's latest expedition ship ) already.

 

 

Good to know we made a good decision to do same. I can see from the blog that it took all day to handle the numbers for their landing. That means one landing per day.

[LoveBora]

Cruzer9---Nice summary of what sounds like a great experience.

 

A year ago, we were also booked on a Silver Explorer Antarctica cruise. When we became aware of the Quest option we decided to change.

 

The Silver Explorer sounded excellent, and based on Cruise Critic reading we were quite sure it would have more serious information sessions, and a more extensive range of landing experiences. Maybe more serious, and more extensive, then we wanted?

 

We love a good cruise on a well-appointed ship with a range of dining, entertainment, and activity options....but we also like to explore.

 

We didn't want a "drive-by" cruise that would take pictures and never land (perfect option for some)....nor were we sure we wanted to go an "school field trip" vacation (perfect option for others).

 

We leave for Santiago in four days and will be on the Quest in a week. We'll see if it's the perfect option, for us . Who knows, we may get hooked and return on the Explorer in the future.....or we may be content with our Quest memories.

GeneBK, I hope you'll return here to post some specifics on your cruise. I'm particularly interested in the scheduling for the Antarctica days. I'm a less adventurous traveler, much to the dismay of my husband, so the Quest seems like it would be a good fit for me. We're booked for 2015, so I'm hopeful Seabourn will be able to work out the kinks.

[D999]

Cruzer9---Nice summary of what sounds like a great experience.

 

A year ago, we were also booked on a Silver Explorer Antarctica cruise. When we became aware of the Quest option we decided to change.

 

The Silver Explorer sounded excellent, and based on Cruise Critic reading we were quite sure it would have more serious information sessions, and a more extensive range of landing experiences. Maybe more serious, and more extensive, then we wanted?

 

We love a good cruise on a well-appointed ship with a range of dining, entertainment, and activity options....but we also like to explore.

 

We didn't want a "drive-by" cruise that would take pictures and never land (perfect option for some)....nor were we sure we wanted to go an "school field trip" vacation (perfect option for others).

 

We leave for Santiago in four days and will be on the Quest in a week. We'll see if it's the perfect option, for us . Who knows, we may get hooked and return on the Explorer in the future.....or we may be content with our Quest memories.

 

You have exactly expressed why we too booked the Quest GeneBK, taking the middle road seemed perfect for us. We are excited to be leaving on Sunday for Santiago also and fully intend to enjoy some Seabourn luxury combined with an experience we would never otherwise have had. The adventure option seems far too full on for us but going all that way and not setting foot on land is definately not enough. Safe travels.

D.

[Thecat123]

Cruzer9---Nice summary of what sounds like a great experience.

 

A year ago, we were also booked on a Silver Explorer Antarctica cruise. When we became aware of the Quest option we decided to change.

 

The Silver Explorer sounded excellent, and based on Cruise Critic reading we were quite sure it would have more serious information sessions, and a more extensive range of landing experiences. Maybe more serious, and more extensive, then we wanted?

 

We love a good cruise on a well-appointed ship with a range of dining, entertainment, and activity options....but we also like to explore.

 

We didn't want a "drive-by" cruise that would take pictures and never land (perfect option for some)....nor were we sure we wanted to go an "school field trip" vacation (perfect option for others).

 

We leave for Santiago in four days and will be on the Quest in a week. We'll see if it's the perfect option, for us . Who knows, we may get hooked and return on the Explorer in the future.....or we may be content with our Quest memories.

 

GeneBK we are another couple who go along with your thoughts for a first time visit to Antarctica. We did kinda check out other shipping lines but thought Seabourn would suit us as we would get to see a lot of different areas from Buenos Aires, Falkland Islands, Ushuaia and all the way up to Valparaiso as we have never travelled to any of these places

We would love to step onto Antarctica at least once to say we have done that

We picked the Jan 4th sailing hoping for the better weather, calm seas and blue skies

[Joc123]

I am currently on the Quest and feel I should answer a few questions.

First of all, this is not an expedition ship - never has been, never will be, so if you want the full experience of several ice landings and zodiac trips a day choose a different ship. It is, however, a great hybrid cruise - part luxury part expedition which suits me and most on board. Some had expected more but I'm not sure how they thought the Quest could suddenly become something it clearly is not. The crew have been great and Robin West and his team are very experienced and have handled changes of itinerary very well. The landings have always been weather permitting so I really don't understand why people are so upset. Getting people on and off the zodiacs has been very smooth and well organised but there will only be one landing a day - weather permitting. You are on the ice for about 1 hour, but you can come back sooner if you want.

It is true, we lost about 36 hours due to a medical problem. I can not believe people have complained about having to back track to get the patient to the nearest airstrip. Be warned. This is not like cruising the Med. There are no hospitals nearby so if there is a medical incident it will mean time will be lost and in fact, could mean the trip is over!

This has been everything I wanted and more. For people who are packing for this trip, be warned, there a lot more resort casual evenings than usual. I am wishing I had not brought so many dressy tops. Can you believe that is another thing people are complaining about? Guess you just can't please some people, but for me, this is great!

[cruzer9]

Good to know we made a good decision to do same. I can see from the blog that it took all day to handle the numbers for their landing. That means one landing per day.

 

PaulMCO

You will have the most unforgettable time. I see you are going to South Georgia. It left me speechless. Standing amongst 200 000 King Penguins is an experience I will never forget.

I agree that the Silver Explorer sounds "hard core" but that is what we loved about the ship. It really is not. It is such a nice balance between elegant small ship cruising, and exploration. Nothing is forced upon you, and the atmosphere onboard the ship was particularly good.

 

I agree - all to their own - and I am sure the Quest is not as bad as what we heard in Ushuaia. I love that ship. But I am so happy that we decided to go with the Explorer. It was a trip of a lifetime and I would not have wanted it any other way.

[GeneBK]

I am currently on the Quest and feel I should answer a few questions.

First of all, this is not an expedition ship - never has been, never will be, so if you want the full experience of several ice landings and zodiac trips a day choose a different ship. It is, however, a great hybrid cruise - part luxury part expedition which suits me and most on board. Some had expected more but I'm not sure how they thought the Quest could suddenly become something it clearly is not. The crew have been great and Robin West and his team are very experienced and have handled changes of itinerary very well. The landings have always been weather permitting so I really don't understand why people are so upset. Getting people on and off the zodiacs has been very smooth and well organised but there will only be one landing a day - weather permitting. You are on the ice for about 1 hour, but you can come back sooner if you want.

It is true, we lost about 36 hours due to a medical problem. I can not believe people have complained about having to back track to get the patient to the nearest airstrip. Be warned. This is not like cruising the Med. There are no hospitals nearby so if there is a medical incident it will mean time will be lost and in fact, could mean the trip is over!

This has been everything I wanted and more. For people who are packing for this trip, be warned, there a lot more resort casual evenings than usual. I am wishing I had not brought so many dressy tops. Can you believe that is another thing people are complaining about? Guess you just can't please some people, but for me, this is great!

 

Thank you!! Thank you!! Thank you!!

 

I know how busy days can be in the midst of a cruise, so special thanks for giving us some first-hand account. We will be boarding in Valparaiso the day you disembark, so every extra detail of anticipation gets focused attention.

 

We share your attitude in general....from the understanding acceptance of things like medical emergencies to increased frequency of resort casual.:)

 

If you happen to be posting again, a couple questions:

 

***In general, has the weather been warmer than you expected? (We spend A LOT of time on deck when the ship is moving).

 

***In the past we have often walked U-shaped "laps" on Deck 5....is that still possible or do the storage lockers etc make it impractical?

 

***Was there any possibility to stay on shore longer than an hour during a landing?

 

No worry if time does not allow for a response; the information already posted is greatly appreciated!!

Edited December 5, 2013 by GeneBK

[GeneBK]

GeneBK, I hope you'll return here to post some specifics on your cruise. I'm particularly interested in the scheduling for the Antarctica days. I'm a less adventurous traveler, much to the dismay of my husband, so the Quest seems like it would be a good fit for me. We're booked for 2015, so I'm hopeful Seabourn will be able to work out the kinks.

 

I intend to do exactly that....hopefully as the Antarctic experience unfolds, but, if not then, certainly upon our return.

 

I totally understand your curiosity!