Blogs

10 Popular Bird Watching Binoculars

Binoculars are so common a companion of outdoor enthusiasts that many pack them with hardly a second thought. They’re tossed into a backpack

PLA14-17, trip log, Around Spitsbergen & Kvitøya

As soon as we got off the ship we were welcomed by a juvenile arctic fox wearing its summer fur, it was a wonderful start. We walked around

10 Illuminating Facts about the Northern Lights

According to Roman mythology, Aurora was the goddess of the dawn. The word “borealis,” however, is Greek for “wind.” The combined phrase “au

Oceanwide Finalist in Adventure in Motion Film Contest

The new corporate commercial for Oceanwide Expeditions, “Walk into the Waking Dream,” has just been nominated as a finalist in the Adventure

Penguins, Albatrosses, Petrels: The Winged Wildlife of South Georgia

South Georgia’s location south of the Antarctic Convergence gives the island more of an Antarctic climate than other terrain of the same lat

Inside the Svalbard Global Seed Vault

Literature, cinema, even video games have given us no small supply of global disaster scenarios. These often come in the form of annihilatin

PLA13-17, logbuch, Spitzbergen Umrundung

Nach dieser Stärkung ging es endlich das erste Mal ins Zodiac und an Land: Ny Ålesund war das Ziel. Vor über 100 Jahren wurde diese Siedlung

Behind the Scenes with Plancius Hotel Manager Sebastian Duma

A pleasant June evening, mild and warm – for the Arctic. Outside the panoramic windows of the m/v Plancius observation lounge, peaks and gla

A Bug’s Life in Svalbard

When you think about Svalbard wildlife, you might imagine reindeer, Arctic foxes, polar bears – the primary animal attractions that draw pas

OTL12-17, trip log, Around Spitsbergen

This morning the weather was moody and atmospheric, a true testament to arctic summer with low lying fog and mist. We were woken early with

Polar Cruises: The Ultimate Icebreakers

Travel is one of life’s great eye openers. It brings you into contact with new people and perspectives, challenges old assumptions you haven

PLA11-17, logbuch, Spitzbergen Umrundung

Nach einem ausgiebigen Frühstück erklärten uns Katja und Phillip die richtigen Verhaltensweisen bei Landungen im Eisbärgebiet, zusammen mit

5 Life Lessons You'll Learn in Antarctica

Whether you’re climbing mountains, buying lunch in a foreign city, or taking an Antarctic cruise, you’re not only learning more about the wo

A Thankful Tradition: Interview with Captain Nazarov

It takes a village to run a polar cruise. The guides show us the terrain, the serving staff keeps us fed, and the passengers make sure the b

10 Traits of Post-Ice-Age Greenland

During the last ice age, most plants and animals vanished from Greenland as a thick sheath of ice coated the landscape. Once this ice starte

15 Fantastic Photos of Antarctica

It's often said that it is impossible to take a bad photo in Antarctica. We'll say it again.

Remembrance of Expeditions Past

Today I sit in the sun, thinking back on the years I spent with my Oceanwide family since my retirement in 1997. My first trips were on a li

PLA08-17, trip log, North Spitsbergen, Polar Bear Special

Our first stop of the trip was in Yoldiabukta where we saw the beautiful Wahlenberg glacier coming down from the mountains all the way to th

The Enchanting Islands of Svalbard

Here we showcase the many wonders that keep people coming back to the islands of Svalbard year after year.

An igneous paradise: Franklin Island

Franklin Island is located in the Ross Sea. It's not just a pile of volcanic rubble, but actually remnants of a shield volcano. Read on and

PLA07-17, trip log, North Spitsbergen, Polar Bear Special

For those of us who had never been on a cruise before, any fears of moving water and moved stomachs were totally unfounded – the Arctic sea