Sue Clark
New Zealand
Customer
Rating
10
Customer Rating On return from their adventure we ask customers: “On a scale of 0-10, with 10 being the highest, how likely is it that you would recommend Swoop to a friend or colleague?”
Sue Clark's Trip:
Falklands, South Georgia & Antarctic AdventureSue Clark's Trip Date:
24th Nov - 17th Jan 2018
Sue Clark's Ship:
PlanciusOverall, how was your trip?
Highlight was every morning another day; landscapes and weather were varied. Expedition staff were superb and inspirational. Boat crew were also superb - sorry for lots of superlatives but I could not fault the boat, its crew or the expedition staff on anything - they were all fantastic
In one sentence, what did you think of Antarctica? Did it live up to your expectations?
Fantastic, the whole trip exceeded my expectations. My only complaint was that it was over too quickly
Would you visit again?
Yes
How was the service that Swoop provided?
Excellent service with lots of information showing that you knew what you were talking about. Frequent contact from SWOOP about all aspects of our trip.
How likely is it that you would recommend Swoop to a friend?
10 out of 10
You chose a/an Falklands, South Georgia & Antarctic Adventure experience. How was that experience?
It was not an Adventure trip I was not concerned about going to the Falklands but really enjoyed the experience and wildlife there. South Georgia and Peninsula were my main interests and the Peninsula went too quickly and was too short. we went to the South Shetlands on the last day and I would have preferred to go a bit further on the peninsula - but I am just greedy for Antarctica
If Swoop arranged some of your travel before/after your voyage. How did we do?
Internal flights up to Patagonia and beyond were good. The only disadvantage was that Zoe had booked a class of flight which did not allow me to book additional luggage online so had to pay full price at the airport. travelling for 7 weeks there was no way of keeping to the 15kg allowed on internal flights. I do not know what individual flight on Aerolineas Argentinas cost but it would be worth investigating whether Premium economy (which allows more luggage) would be a better bet than paying for an extra bag on each leg We arranged out own accommodation
How were your experiences on the zodiac excursions and shore landings?
Speaking as someone who spent most of their working life in the outdoors teaching canoeing, climbing, sailing, skiing and mountaineering the Expedition staff were superb, Ali, Jocelyn, Marieke, Liddy & Katje were inspirational women. Experts in their field, good people skills, excellent boat handling skills (Liddy didn't drive) Andrew was a good leader and had a superb relationship with the captain (for whom nothing was too much trouble) Wildlife could not be anything but fantastic and the captain, staff and crew made sure we were in position to see as much as possible. Landings were varied and the crew put the zodiacs out whenever possible. Penguins, seals, albatross, whales - what more could we want.
Do you have any tips or advice for other people planning a trip to Antarctica?
Choose MV Plancius
Anything else? Tell us anything you’d like to share that we forgot to ask! It’s ok to leave this empty too :-)
I have only one tiny criticism. on our first landing (Carcass island) the group which Ali led along the bay was too big for one leader. If we stopped to take photos then it took a while to catch up and so missed the the information Ali was giving. She was the Falklands expert and was brilliant but perhaps some of the other guides could have been briefed on likely wildlife sightings so there were smaller groups.
