Customer Reviews

There were no words the entire cruise was simply amazing the expedition team over the top the expertise of Howard Waylon got us everywhere we needed to be safely with just spectacular landings. Aurora expeditions their entire corporate culture is fabulous. The ship was beautiful new yet understated.

The ship, the expedition team, ship (hotel) staff and overall organisation of the tour were exceptional. The commitment all expedition staff had to ensuring everyone had a great time, as well as safe and practical journey, and the service given by all ship staff, food preparation and variety and cabin service was excellent and of the highest standards. This is all alongside the exceptional and very special landscape and wildlife of Antarctica. Wildlife such as birds and penguins were in their thousands and the scenic landscape was breathtaking.

The highlight for me was being a part of our 9 person kayaking group plus two guides. We were able to paddle into small coves and the most magical of all was being near three feeding humpback whales and hearing their breathing as they rose up every few minutes.

I am still 'working through' my 7,000 plus photos and I am reliving some of these moments that I captured 'digitally'. It is impossible to reduce the trip to only 'one moment'. The first sight of the Antarctic Peninsula, watching Penguins stumbling over the rocks, hitting some ice at night that shakes the entire ship, South Georgia's sheer endless number of Penguins, Grytviken Whaling station, the endless cruising along the 80 mile long iceberg A76-a,...

An impossible question. Way too many to choose from! But one stand-out moment, being a cetacean-lover, was the ship being surrounded by three species of whales/dolphins at the same time.....fin whales, humpback whales and orca. Awesome!

The trip was great. The highlight for both my husband and I was the iceberg "garden" at Pleneau Island. The icebergs were so amazing and it was fun to see seals hanging out on some of them. That day was windy and cold. We're both very glad we didn't skip the harbor tour. We saw even more penguins than we expected and were surprised by how close we were to them in some areas, mostly as they were walking to and from the ocean. Being able to experience nature in it's natural state was a once in a lifetime experience. Seeing a Macaroni Penguin at Half Moon Island was my "runner up" highlight of the trip! We enjoyed seeing a lot of Humpback Whales too. We met many interesting people on the trip too. The expedition staff were very nice and knowledgeable, and all of the crew on the ship were wonderful. There were 2 things that were a little disappointing. The first was that there was a large group of Dutch people on our ship and they mostly kept to themselves. The other was that we didn't get to see the Beagle Channel well. On the way out we followed another ship that left late. By the time we were coming through it was dusk and then dark so we couldn't really see it. On the way back, we picked up the pilot at 2 am and were at the dock by 4 or 5 am. I thought I would have a chance to see it.

I really struggled with this one because there were so many special places we visited and views that I captured with my camera, but the sight of huge icebergs was something so completely different than anything else I've ever encountered that it ranks at the top of the list.

Standing on the continent with penguins and fur seals galore!

The first sighting of Penguins in huge numbers, which previously I saw only on TV Channels dedicated to Nature, Like NatGeo or Animal Planet

Overall, this trip was a dream come true. The highlights for me were the whaling station at Grytviken and Shackleton's grave, and being able to hike the ridges above our landing sites. In regard to the wildlife, the vast quantity of wildlife, and how close you are to it, leaves you speechless. I was surprised at how easy it was to meet people on the ship. The entire experience was well planned out. As for 'magical moments', arriving in Grytviken and toasting Shackleton's grave (before the other passengers had arrived to the cemetery) was probably the most memorable.

45-50 Humpback whales surrounding us for about 2 hours! The Drake Shake with 84 knot wind gusts! Lemaire Channel with brash ice and growlers. Camping in Paradise. Sailing into Deception Island (Neptune's Bellows) at 5 am in broad daylight. Seeing 3 types of seals and 3 types of adorable penguins. Adventureous, friendly, inquisitive people-and staff.

A gentoo penguin chick pecking a seal and watching the seal react. We spent ages watching it.

. There were many but I think the first was waking early one morning and looking out our cabin at the first sighting a massive size iceberg.

Watching thousands of moulting King Penguins lining the meltwater streams from Nordenschild Glacier at St Andrews Bay, South Georgia. Wow!

Highlights were whales breaching beside us, penguins swimming in front and beside kayak, wonderful artistic ice forms- floes and icebergs, interesting history, really lovely other guests who we made great friends with, great lectures and talks from the naturalists and others. It was run very safely- much more so than when we went to the Arctic about 25 years ago, with a different company. All the people leaving and returning to the boat were signed in and out. Kayaking was a big highlight for me- being so close and it was all so well run. Safety was a high priority.

Landing on King George. The reason is that we had been delayed due to fog for two days and our trip was in jeopardy of being canceled. Two groups behind us never got to visit this incredible place due to weather. People who want to travel here have to understand that if you’re going to do the fly route the weather can be very fickle. Fog is a real issue. We came to learn that there must be at least 1000 feet of visibility clearance for the pilot to see the runway. This is a serious wild place. Landing strip has no landing lights, no tower and it’s gravel. And, wind plays a part too. Was it worth the risk of cancellation? OMG YES! The Antarctic is Overwhelming beauty and floods all 5 of your senses. Never experienced anything like this before. Sight and sounds are one of a kind. My wife and I are in our mid 60s and we didn’t find the trip physically challenging.

Awesome, Incredible, Amazing, Wonderful, Perfect, Great Response, I would do it all again! Tough to give only one example, camping, polar plunge, cruising on Zodiac's, landings, lectures, food, cabins, talent show Wildlife, great. Everyone was amazing passengers, great expedition team leader and members, and crew It was all a surprise. Whatever I thought I knew, what I thought I expected everything surprised me. Especially the icebergs, colors, wildlife, history Can't limit to one answer hitting the water in the polar plunge, watching the leopard seal catch penguins and being only feet from all of it, the whales, the penguins were so amazing.

Too many to mention. People, experiences. Face to face with a humpback, penguins, fur seal, leopard seal, in the sea with penguins. Amazing people who will be life-long friends.

There is no one memorable moment. The entire Polar Latitudes Cruise was phenomenal. The excursion crew was excellent as was all the service. The shore excursions were all breathtaking. Stepping onto the Antarctic continent was a moment never to be forgotten.

Crossing the Antarctic Circle!! this was unexpected, and awesome!