Reviews

Spending Christmas in Antarctica was magical. The wildlife and the scenery were fantastic, and the crew made it very special with an outdoor BBQ and Christmas stockings. Highly recommended.

This trip was beyond anything I could imagine. The quarters were very nice and the service 5 stars. The food was unbelievable! Some of our activities were cancelled due to weather but the staff did the best to keep us occupied and our eyes dazzled. They changed the route to keep us seeing more of the unknown. My only complaint was the ship photographer. She took many photos but stated she cannot share any of the good ones because she will be putting them on her website to sell. Many of us were relying on her to get photos different from ours pictures of us and we all discussed how disappointed we were. The ship prior to us with some friend on it were gifted a 25 minutes slide show. She presented an unedited 4 minute slide show that had us all disappointed.

The King Penguins on South Georgia stole the show, but many other Oscars were handed out amongst six other penguin species and the loyal birds, especially the albatrosses providing a guard of honour for our ship. Fur seals made sure we knew whose beach we had landed on whilst Elephant seals mostly stared in wide-eyed amazement. The ever-forgiving Humpbacks and Orcas enchanted us and kept camera-shutter fingers exercised. Accolades must also be handed out to our wonderful Expedition Leader and her dedicated, skilled and knowledgeable team, who ensured that opportunities to enjoy the wildlife onshore were maximised, whilst risk to the humans and disturbance to wildlife were minimised. This talented team not only drove us ashore brilliantly in Zodiacs when the sea was rough, but also filled our days at sea with lectures on just about everything we might want to know about the region and its history. Thanks must also go to our brilliant captain, aided so competently throughout 3600 nautical miles by his crew and also to the catering and housekeeping staff. We left Plancius with heads and hearts full of images and memories from an outstanding and magical trip.

It was our first time with Oceanwide Expeditions and we both are extremely happy that we have chosen you! Thank you for the excellent adventure. All the staff were great. The food and service were much more than we expected. We would like to stress the professional attitude of Katja, our expedition leader. She and her team were going constantly an extra mile to provide us with experience of Antarctic. Although the weather conditions were extremely bad - it was strong wind during almost all our cruise time -, we were able to experience most of the adventures and we have seen a lot of Antarctic peninsula and its wildlife! Thank you all of the cruise staff. We would highly recommend this cruise to friends. Mimoza and Jove

I was expecting something great, I was not expecting something so fantastic. The expedition crew lead by Ali was exceptional, they did their best to share wonderful moments with us, from spending time in the middle of pinguins colonies and seals to ensuring perfect landing even in windy conditions. Staff very competent, with great sense of humour and always cheering you up. Ali was the head and accomplished it perfectly, but each member was as wonderful. Thank you all for making me live magic moments. I don't forget the rest of the staff who ensured that every moment was just perfect: hotel and crew staff. Food of great quality and excellent meals and a captain and his crew who managed to keep us as comfortable as possible even in a mid shake Drake.

An experience never to be forgotten. From boarding the ship in Ushuaia to disembarking 20 days later, this was a myriad of amazing scenery, stunning wildlife, and great camaraderie. The expedition team are extremely knowledgeable, friendly and helpful, but look out if you stray from the chosen path..... you WILL be told off! Conservation and protection are their mantra, and we all left more educated than when we arrived. Even an ignorant "point and shoot" person like myself became enthused when Petrels or Fulmars appeared! The food was just outstanding, with full 3 course meals at every mealtime. Lectures were on the whole quite interesting, but sometimes difficult to understand from a layperson's view! All in all an amazing trip, which I would love to do again in a different month.

Very nice trip . Service and food on board very good. Special thanks to Ralf ( Head Chef ) and his team. Very experienced and sympathic guides and many lectures with a lot of information. Housekeeping Service very good. Crew always very friendly. Only thing that would be nice is something like a "anti slippery mat" ( sorry for my bad english ) in the shower. The floor is a bit slippery in the shower, especially if the ship is a bit rolling.

The trip to the Antarctic Peninsula on the MV Ortelius was a trip of a lifetime. The ship was smaller than my previous voyages. The cabins were comfortable. The food was of exceptional quality, The staff and crew were fabulous. The initial Drake Passage was calm and without trauma. The stops on the islands near the Antarctic peninsula and the peninsula itself, and Shetland Island stops were spectacular. The Gentoo penguin colonies were a sight to behold. The staff did an excellent job preparing us for the landings and they were very knowledgeable on land as we viewed our surroundings. The zodiac trips were well managed and excursions about the bays were full of delightful scenery. The return passage through the Drake Passage to Ushuaia was a bit rough, but the crew and staff handled it quite well. Overall, a fabulous journey to the outer world.

'Want to go to Antarctica?" My friend said yes and then did all the research. He did a good job... Small ship so far fewer passengers than the bigger ships. Outings planned for twice a day (other ships it was once/day) and the outings were all landings when conditions permitted, not just Zodiac rides (which are great, but still!). And, we could sign up for among other things, kayaking, mountaineering, camping out!!! All that plus great food and an enthusiastic, knowledgeable and engaging staff. I can't recommend Oceanwide highly enough. They are GREAT.

For those who live an andventure, basecamp is the trip to choose! Amazing activities, great staff and delicious food!

Staff were experienced, knowledgeable and charming. Captain was able to navigate ship into beautiful channels for excellent photo opportunities. However, many planned activities were canceled due to poor weather conditions, meaning that we were unable to snow camp and only had one chance to kayak. Kayaking tended to follow same route as zodiacs, thus not quiet and serene as one expects. Only two shore landings on entire cruise. Weather was blamed, but for high price of “expedition” cruise, perhaps they shouldn’t offer cruises this early in season. Excuses don’t make up for lack of opportunities! Food was excellent with varied selection. Dining hall was way too loud, like a noisy nightclub. Very off putting, as there was no alternate quieter place to eat. Bar/lounge upstairs was as loud at all hours. Some sort of sound muffling materials need to be installed in metal walled dining room. Same applies to Suites: we had most expensive superior suite, yet we plainly heard our neighbors talking loudly and listening to tv in their superior suite until well after 10 pm. For $2,000 a day, soundproofing between Suites ought to be added. This is no longer a Russian icebreaker!

Als je eenmaal het Noorse virus te pakken hebt raak je het nooit meer kwijt . Andermaal heb ik met volle teugen genoten van deze prachtige Walvis / Orka Safari , aan boord van zeilschip, De Noorderlicht . Tot ziens , Joes.

Good staff and crew, excellent food. Because of the weather many landings were cancelled (wind) Despite that the staff made the best of it. They did a very good job.

My husband and I greatly enjoyed our visit to the Antarctic Peninsula and the Southern Shetland Islands. We found the staff very professional and approachable. The lectures were given by subject experts. We saw many Gentoo penguins courting, mating and making nests. A wonderful time of year to see the lives of these penguins. Whenever whales, dolphins, or seals were seen, the crew would let the guests know. We did a bit of snowshoeing since the snow was deep. However, we thinking going later in the year, one could encounter sloppy conditions. We snowshoed to where we would get wonderful views of the area. Just beautiful. The meals were varied and good. Birthdays were celebrated with fun. In the lounge area, there was a wonderful hot beverage machine. Finally, the crew was always safety conscious. A big example was by leaving the peninsula a little early to avoid a big storm coming to the Drake Passage. We still rocked and rolled but not as bad as it could be. We were very thankful for their concern.

Es war eine schöne Expeditionsreise mit vielen Highlights aber leider auch enttäuschenden Aspekten. Hier eine kleine Aufstellung, wahrscheinlich unvollständig ;-)

+ Crew: alle sehr hilfsbereit, gut ausgebildet, mit viel Hintergrundwissen, höflich und zuvorkommend

+ Kabine: Ich das in einer 3-Bett-Kabine mit 2 Personen: sehr geräumig, sauber, Bad top, bei uns mit Bullauge (das leider aus Sicherheitsgründen bei der Überfahrt der Drake Passage geschlossen werden musste)

+ Essen: der Wahnsinn!!! sehr zu empfehlen. Abwechslungsreich, Buffet beim Frühstück sowohl warm als auch kalt, Mittag- und Abendsessen bestehend aus 3 Gängen mit Auswahlmöglichkeit - lecker! frisch, vitaminreich, ausgeglichen

+ Atmosphäre: familiär, ich habe mich gleich wohlgefühlt, ich konnte jeden fragen, wenn mich etwas interessiert hat (Alle Crew-Mitglieder hatten Funkgeräte.-Was der eine nicht wusste, konnte der nächste beantworten) 

+ Brücke: Zu vielen Zeiten konnte ich die Brücke besuchen, von dort aus das Treiben beobachten, Infos zur Tierwelt bekommen oder auch Wissenswertes über Nautik etc.)

+ Schiff ORTELIUS: gemütlich, mit nur ca. 100 Gästen übersichtlich und kein Massentourismus, Gefühl einer wirklichen Expedition, kein großer Schnick Schnack + Sicherheit (viele Checks, Einweisungen, Kontrollen...)

+ nachhaltiger Tourismus: Regeln werden eingehalten, bzw. Gäste rechtzeitig daran erinnert: eigene Kleidung reinigen, desinfizieren, um nichts mit in die Antarktis einzuschleppen, Min.-Abstand zu Kaiserpinguinen

+ Helikopterflug

+ tägliche Recals und Fachvorträge - Tauchpaket: Ich konnte nur einen (!) Tauchgang machen, und das war der Check-TG am Sandstrand von Deception Island - ohne jeglichen Eisberg. 

- Verhältnis: 6 Tage Transfer vs. 4 Tage vor Ort (wetterbedingt hat die Überfahrt hin und zurück jeweils 3 Tage gedauert) - Kombi: Tauch- und Helikopterpakete: Man konnte entweder nur das eine oder das andere anbieten, da die Ortelius nicht dafür ausgelegt ist, beides parallel anzubieten. - So kamen viele Gäste mit unterschiedlichen Vorstellungen zu kurz. (Es gab nur 1 Heli-Flug.) - Angebote vor Ort: Dank des Wetters nur 2 Aktivitäten innerhalb der 4 Tage: 1xHeli, 1xtauchen mit Anlandung am Strand - Habe einen leichten Bootskoller bekommen, da man nirgendwohin konnte und auch nicht immer raus, dank des Wetters - hatte mir erhofft, mehr Tierarten zu sehen (außer Kaiserpinguinen und Vögeln)