Blog

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Oceanwide’s First Female Captain: Interview with Miia Holma

Miia Holma captained her first Oceanwide voyage to Svalbard in July. Nothing too exceptional about that until you consider she’s our first female captain to make the voyage.

Wanny Woldstad: First Female Hunter on Svalbard

Wanny Woldstad was the first female trapper on Svalbard, but she preferred to think of herself as simply a trapper

Whales, South Georgia, and Bill Smith

Bill frequently raises money for SGHT through his drawings, which are focused on South Georgia and polar expedition travel.

Svalbard vs. the Canadian Arctic

Svalbard and the Canadian Arctic vary in terms of what they offer expedition travelers. They offer similar scenery, but their remoteness and populations are exceedingly unique.

Ignition Nature Moment: Interview with Hubert Neufeld

Sounds of the South delivers scene after scene of stunning landscapes and exotic wildlife encounters.

Unearthing the Arctic: Interview with Dr. Louis Beyens

We’re thrilled to have Dr. Louis Beyens join us as a guest lecturer on several trips this summer. We talked to him about what he’ll be discussing and why the polar regions are unlike any other area on the planet.

Antarctic Endurance: Ultramarathon in Earth’s Largest Desert

Sixty ultramarathoners will join us in Antarctica during the 2024-25 season.

Keeping the Arctic Clean: Interview with Eelco Leemans

We spent some time talking to Eelco Leemans about what got him started in the project of waste removal and analysis on Svalbard.

Antarctic Inspired: Interview with Ruben Hein

While we love when our guests are inspired by our trips, we rarely hear of them making a nature documentary, musical album, and biodiversity website as a result. But such was the case with Dutch musician Ruben Hein.

Charting Flanders Bay

Until then, this spot in the northwestern Antarctic Peninsula had only been charted three times since 1898, when it was roughly mapped by the Belgian Antarctic Expedition. This activity, which involved our expedition leader, second mate, and other members of our onboard staff, was accomplished using the OLEX depth mapping system.

Ortelius Staff Spot Type D Orca

Taking our guests to beautiful polar areas to see exotic polar animals is what we’re all about. Whether we’re spotting polar bears or penguins, humpback whales or leopard seals or whole harems of walruses, it’s the wildlife that really fuels our passion for the polar regions.

Arctic Cruises Compared: Around Spitsbergen vs. North Spitsbergen

Around Spitsbergen or North Spitsbergen – which cruise is for you? The most distinguishing feature of these cruises is the areas they visit.

Secrets of the Stone: Restoration of Svalbard’s 1878 Memorial

Verheul's goal was refreshingly simple: make the 1878 stone legible again so that future visitors can continue to enjoy it.

Falling into Place: Iris van Zalinge’s Arctic Expedition

Iris van Zalinge, a native of the Dutch province of Zeeland where our headquarters is based, took the nine-night voyage on Plancius in July. And fortunately for us, she had much to say about this once-in-a-lifetime experience.

South Georgia Whaling Stations

South Georgia is an animal lover’s dream. In fact, it’s one of the most wildlife-rich locations we visit in all of our polar voyages, whether in the Northern Hemisphere or Southern.

Svalbard’s Texas Bar

Texas Bar is one of the historic areas we visit on certain Svalbard trips, and it always proves to be a cherished landing site among both our guides and guests.

Insider’s Expedition: Interview with Toto Vermue

As part of our reservations department, one of Toto’s responsibilities is helping book our guests on the many Antarctic and Arctic cruises we offer, so firsthand experience of these trips is highly relevant to her job.

Book Recommendations for Your Polar Cruise

We’ve reached out to our followers on social media, most of whom are former (or future) passengers, to find out what polar-related books they recommend. We were quite happy with the results, which we’ve summarized below in no particular order.

IAATO Celebrates Inaugural Antarctic Ambassadorship Day

As much as we love Antarctica, we love taking our guests there even more. And one of the things we love most about that is seeing their eyes light up as Antarctica works its magic, proving yet again its uncanny power to transform first-time visitors into lifelong ambassadors.