February Reviews

The highlight was the sheer untouched beauty and proximity to nature. Landscapes and wildlife were awesome. The people we met were inspirational.... How deeply we were touched by the sheer beauty of the continent and how it felt to be pecked by a penguin chick and splashed by a whales tale... The excellence of the presentations onboard..... the close proximity of whales, seals and penguins... and the gigantic and beautiful array of icebergs

Humpback and Minke whales surfacing close to ship and zodiacs. They seemed as curious and interested in us as we were in them.

Seal puppies playing all around my kayak. Climbing on to an iceberg from my kayak. Standin alone on an Antarctic hill in the snow & ice

So many. If we had to pick one, it was standing on Antarctica and looking out on endless snow fields in one direction and iceberg graveyards in the other direction.

Honestly, there wasn't one specific moment. Absolutely amazing staff across the board. They did such a great job.

When we unexpectedly stumbled upon the rare and elusive Ross seal and a pod of orcas who came right up to the ship and were swimming alongside.

Kayaking through the ice in Antarctica

The first morning, waking up and seeing the awesome landscape of blue icebergs, black terrain covered with pure white snow while on zodiak cruise, seeing a group of humpback whales engage in bubble net feeding

The scenery and sense of 'place' in Antarctica was truly wonderful.

One day one of the receptionists at the front desk was hurried and terse. Other than that one incidence the trip was a 10 out of 10. I enjoyed like-minded travelers, learned from the experts, loved the food and service and had fun, rest and a million smiles everyday!

The highlight was Charlotte's Bay as described above. It was a totally perfect experience on a perfectly calm and sunny day. The landscapes were absolutely breathtaking with the Seven Sister who were complete visible due to the awesome weather. I traveled alone, so I didn't have a group as others did; however, I met very nice people from the US, Hong Kong, UK, Australia and New Zealand. I was surprised at how skilled the crew was to adapting to new contingency plans due to changing weather. Charlotte's Bay was a magical, mystical and spiritual experience that will be forever embedded in my mind.

My highlight was stepping on the Antarctica Continent, the Ross Sea, Ross Island, Ross Ice Shelf, and Port Ross and was my most magical moment. The historic huts were amazing; to think that the explorers endured and many lost their lives for exploration gives me so much respect for all they accomplished. The landscape: icebergs as well as the flora and fauna in such remote areas were breathtaking. The wildlife and how they survive in such extreme conditions was amazing. We had an awesome group of fifty people that socialized, laughed, and shared their stories of who they were and why this trip was meaningful for them.

The first day in the kayaks when we went out in the ice berg fields then met the wildlife. I have never been so close to these types of animals or to blocks of ice that could kill me in a blink of an eye. Just the size and the vastness of everything made me feel so small.

There were very many. However the Humpback Whale playing among the Zodiacs on our last excursion was unbelievable. It literally came alongside and under our Zodiac several times.

Surrounded by grandeur AND wildlife while in an ice-encircled zodiac and feeling overwhelmed with the awe of it all. I’ll always carry that feeling with gratitude.

Polar plunging and being surrounded by whales in a zodiac

The wildlife on South Georgia

There are so many!! Fortuna Bay surrounded by thousands of King penguins and hundreds of juvenile fur seals. The history at Grytviken, with the story of Shackleton. The black browed albatross colony on the Falklands next to a rockhopper penguin colony. Icebergs of every size, shape and colour including getting close to one of the biggest icebergs in the world A23a. Standing on the continent of Antarctica among penguins, icebergs and fur seals. And then there was the great crew and staff of the Sea Spirit and the fantastic food!!! An incredible trip!!!

Zodiac trip to shore to walk among the huge number of penguins , seals, elephant seals and traveling past several whales. The ice covered areas were like visiting another planet. Nothing like it anywhere else, not even Alaska. This was a very special place.

Seeing all of the wildlife was absolutely fantastic. The level of expertise of the staff on board and the quality of the excursions was one of a kind!