Planning an Antarctic expedition type cruise

[VPS]

On the Seabourn Quest with 400 pax they were very efficient at loading us on the zodiacs and we were given varying time starts. I didn’t find it an issue

 

[RooFlyer]

OK. About to pull the booking trigger on SilverSea's :

Cruise from Puerto Williams to Puerto Williams - WI231219018

Classic Veranda suite, higher deck. These are in the forward 1/3 of the ship, identical to the Deluxe Veranda suites which are in the middle of the vessel. Silver Wind, which was re-furbed in 2021.



... and I'll have to sell a kidney but hey, there's 2 of them ... And the cruise is over Christmas - all I want is ... ( ! )
.
Going to do 'port to port', which is $10K cheaper but excludes 'exec' pick up in Oz, flights to and from Sth America and hotel transfer ... actually, it doesn't say where! The charter to Puerto Williams is still in port-to-port package. I'll probably do a wider flight itinerary and get better value than the $10K they want for whY across the Pacific and back!

Any comments from the SilverSea / Antarctica experts? Is higher deck more 'wobbly' than the lower decks; similar for foreword Vs middle cabins? There's a fair bit of open water cruising.

Lastly, what about CruiseCritic? Never looked, and there have been some very mixed comments here about the running of the site and various posts in it. Should I start following? Much benefit once I've chosen the cruise voyage?

 

[Port Power]

OK. About to pull the booking trigger on SilverSea's :

Cruise from Puerto Williams to Puerto Williams - WI231219018

Classic Veranda suite, higher deck. These are in the forward 1/3 of the ship, identical to the Deluxe Veranda suites which are in the middle of the vessel. Silver Wind, which was re-furbed in 2021.

View attachment 289815

... and I'll have to sell a kidney but hey, there's 2 of them ... And the cruise is over Christmas - all I want is ... ( ! )
.
Going to do 'port to port', which is $10K cheaper but excludes 'exec' pick up in Oz, flights to and from Sth America and hotel transfer ... actually, it doesn't say where! The charter to Puerto Williams is still in port-to-port package. I'll probably do a wider flight itinerary and get better value than the $10K they want for whY across the Pacific and back!

Any comments from the SilverSea / Antarctica experts? Is higher deck more 'wobbly' than the lower decks; similar for foreword Vs middle cabins? There's a fair bit of open water cruising.

Lastly, what about CruiseCritic? Never looked, and there have been some very mixed comments here about the running of the site and various posts in it. Should I start following? Much benefit once I've chosen the cruise voyage?

Good on you!

Forward cabins feel the motion more than aft and midships. Higher forward moreso. But there may not be much motion and does motion affect you anyway? Forward hears the anchor dropping, often very loudly, but that is only a problem in the wee hours. The weather will be cold - will you use a balcony? A window view cabin lower down is another choice. Those cabins are the same size, often bigger as the balcony area is inside the room instead.

Cruise Critic is very valuable. Like here on AFF, there will be the occasional bickering back and forth, and some nasty comments, but nothing major. The "Hosts" will clamp down if language becomes too nasty and you can also report a post if you think it is abusive. Really not any worse than AFF. The Roll Calls are very useful on normal cruises to "pre meet" other passengers and to arrange shore excursions. Shore excursions are not relevant to this cruise, but it is still nice to "meet" other people. There will be useful suggestions regarding flights, hotels, connections and sight seeing, etc. Also you can ask questions of those who have more experience of areas that you might want to visit. There is currently a lot of unhappy customers of Silverseas' Silver Air, but you are not using them.

Obviously I am a member, as are Drron, Mrsdrron and Pushka. We can now look forward to a new trip report in due course.

Carol

Edit: Did you you claim your referral discount?

 

[Subharpoon]

OK. About to pull the booking trigger on SilverSea's :

Cruise from Puerto Williams to Puerto Williams - WI231219018

Classic Veranda suite, higher deck. These are in the forward 1/3 of the ship, identical to the Deluxe Veranda suites which are in the middle of the vessel. Silver Wind, which was re-furbed in 2021.

View attachment 289815

... and I'll have to sell a kidney but hey, there's 2 of them ... And the cruise is over Christmas - all I want is ... ( ! )
.
Going to do 'port to port', which is $10K cheaper but excludes 'exec' pick up in Oz, flights to and from Sth America and hotel transfer ... actually, it doesn't say where! The charter to Puerto Williams is still in port-to-port package. I'll probably do a wider flight itinerary and get better value than the $10K they want for whY across the Pacific and back!

Any comments from the SilverSea / Antarctica experts? Is higher deck more 'wobbly' than the lower decks; similar for foreword Vs middle cabins? There's a fair bit of open water cruising.

Lastly, what about CruiseCritic? Never looked, and there have been some very mixed comments here about the running of the site and various posts in it. Should I start following? Much benefit once I've chosen the cruise voyage?

Excellent choice RooFlyer. Have done 2 SS cruises (but not in the cold-in the Med!) For all things SS I recommend: Silversea Passengers | Facebook. Drron is a member. The Moderator is an Australian.

 

[VPS]

OK. About to pull the booking trigger on SilverSea's :

Cruise from Puerto Williams to Puerto Williams - WI231219018

Classic Veranda suite, higher deck. These are in the forward 1/3 of the ship, identical to the Deluxe Veranda suites which are in the middle of the vessel. Silver Wind, which was re-furbed in 2021.

View attachment 289815

... and I'll have to sell a kidney but hey, there's 2 of them ... And the cruise is over Christmas - all I want is ... ( ! )
.
Going to do 'port to port', which is $10K cheaper but excludes 'exec' pick up in Oz, flights to and from Sth America and hotel transfer ... actually, it doesn't say where! The charter to Puerto Williams is still in port-to-port package. I'll probably do a wider flight itinerary and get better value than the $10K they want for whY across the Pacific and back!

Any comments from the SilverSea / Antarctica experts? Is higher deck more 'wobbly' than the lower decks; similar for foreword Vs middle cabins? There's a fair bit of open water cruising.

Lastly, what about CruiseCritic? Never looked, and there have been some very mixed comments here about the running of the site and various posts in it. Should I start following? Much benefit once I've chosen the cruise voyage?

Well done

I just checked the Seabourn ones and they are all finishing at Ushuaia and not going onto BA - not sure why

I would stick with your original idea of the balcony - I know I don't feel the cold but there were some days when it was lovely sitting out there and it also meant if you wanted to take photos you could just walk out the door

 

[Pushka]

OK. About to pull the booking trigger on SilverSea's :

Cruise from Puerto Williams to Puerto Williams - WI231219018

Classic Veranda suite, higher deck. These are in the forward 1/3 of the ship, identical to the Deluxe Veranda suites which are in the middle of the vessel. Silver Wind, which was re-furbed in 2021.

View attachment 289815

... and I'll have to sell a kidney but hey, there's 2 of them ... And the cruise is over Christmas - all I want is ... ( ! )
.
Going to do 'port to port', which is $10K cheaper but excludes 'exec' pick up in Oz, flights to and from Sth America and hotel transfer ... actually, it doesn't say where! The charter to Puerto Williams is still in port-to-port package. I'll probably do a wider flight itinerary and get better value than the $10K they want for whY across the Pacific and back!

Any comments from the SilverSea / Antarctica experts? Is higher deck more 'wobbly' than the lower decks; similar for foreword Vs middle cabins? There's a fair bit of open water cruising.

Lastly, what about CruiseCritic? Never looked, and there have been some very mixed comments here about the running of the site and various posts in it. Should I start following? Much benefit once I've chosen the cruise voyage?

Not Antactica but any cruise ship, the higher you go the potential for more motion exists. General rule is lower and middle.

Cruise critic is excellent. Not your type of cruise but we've used it to book non ship excursions as a group. I think it's also where I met @love_the_life although posted as a different user .

A balcony. Always a balcony. We loved having one for our Alaska cruise. Just rug up.

 

[sanne]

We spent over 3 weeks on Silver Cloud on an expedition cruise round the British Isles in 2019… a really good ship for expeditions… will be perfect in Antarctica. And yes to a balcony…so good to be able to open for fresh air even if it’s really cold. We always go for midship and low as I’m sensitive to motion but if you’re not, save the money and go further forward.

 

[RooFlyer]

Thanks for the above. I've only been a little seasick once, but this time there may be bigger seas and for longer periods! Yes, I think I'll need a balcony - hopefully to stand outside and survey the magnificence in front of me (no comments about mirrors, please ) !! Will go for a lower deck (assuming available with the discount) and gulp - will price the midships. Funny that the best cabins are high and right forward ... and the cheapest are low and middle (but I know there are other considerations )

And it looks like yes to Cruise Critic - @Pushka , I'll look forward to reading those inspired Japan cruise comments! Hmm .. RooCruiser? . Not on Facebook.

 

[zig]

Well done.
Personally I don't really use a balcony much when I have had them, so opt for the Vista suite which is obviously also more cost effective. The vista suites are located lower and have the advantage of being quieter and less affected by motion. However YMMV and most others who have commented like a verandah. Wherever you choose I'm sure you will be comfortable.

 

[tgh]

There are different T&C for port to port -v-Door to Door..
Port to port = no deposit refund for cancellation is just one gotcha...
Suggest reading the t&c quite carefully before booking…..
I have done OK on J upgrades with SS included air and suggest you price that before committing.
Your ta needs to be sharp tho.. SS these days tends to be a bit loose with flights

 

[RooFlyer]

There are different T&C for port to port -v-Door to Door..
Port to port = no deposit refund for cancellation is just one gotcha...
Suggest reading the t&c quite carefully before booking…..
I have done OK on J upgrades with SS included air and suggest you price that before committing.
Your ta needs to be sharp tho.. SS these days tends to be a bit loose with flights

Thanks. Deposit (15% in this case) can be used for another cruise and I'm OK with that. I have the timeline for other payments etc. Biggest trap with port-to-port seems to be that you can't change your mind and then make it door-to-door, but you can go the other way. (I think that's what she said ...)

I have the air pricing & upgrade pricing and its not not attractive, compared to what I can do and want to do (not just Oz and back). TA thinks it will be QF trans-Pac and, yeah, well ... (Shhhh ... there may be a back-to back cruise in the Caribbean following, to help me warm up )

 

[drron]

Time for my Antarctic experiences.
First cruise was out of Dunedin To the Antarctic Continent Christmas/New Year 2010/11.
It was on the Orion which is now with Linblad and doesn't do Antarctica because it doesn't do well in rough seas and coming back we ran into a storm with 15 metre swell and occasional waves to 18 metres. We were on the forward most cabin on the top deck and did not get seasick. We were strapped into bed that night. Only 1 other person made breakfast the next morning. So take my thoughts on sea sickness with a grain of salt.
It was good because we were able to go into Mawson's hut 99 years after it's construction. I am not sure tourists have been back since as the sea ice began expanding rapidly after that. So much so that Climate Scientists visiting Antarctica in January 2014 got trapped in ice ~ 60Km from Mawason's Hut.
The other place which should be visited once in a life time and especially for Tasmanians is MacQuarie Island which is a part of Tasmania. On board was a Linblad Captain to assess whether they would buy the Orion. He told us that Macquarie Island was a must see and Australia's version of South Georgia but without the ice.

Basically because of that Linblad captain we did the Cape to Cape cruise on the Silversea Explorer which IMHO is one of the best Expedition ships. We on that cruise went through a Force 12 gale near Tristan da Cunha. It handled that very well and only 3 people didn't make it to breakfast.We were on deck 6 out of 7. It was fantastic as they limited it to 100 guests and everyone went on excursions together.
We do know the VP of SS for Expeditions and 3 years ago met him on his visit to Noosa. He felt no worse an experience on the Wind and Cloud as they do 2 landings a day. Half go on each excursion in the morning and reverse in the afternoon but agreed that with the Explorer you would often have 2 different areas per day. So a bit more diversity.

We loved South Georgia and definitely recommend it. But when we were in the Falklands we met some pax off the Quark who had planned on 4 days in South Georgia but ended up with none. We had 1 day we had to shelter but did a long "fjord cruise instead of landing. This trip was in M<arch and less ice which in some places was a distinct advantage. A long time since penguin chicks and seal pups were born but still obvious who they were and much more playful.

We also saw more whales on this cruise even around South Georgia but did see some on our first cruise.
The other factor with Silversea is that they have been cruising Antarctica for longer than the other up market lines and have very experienced Expedion staff. Linblad might be better in this respect but they are not in the luxury class.

 

[tgh]

The wind is very sea kindly, no fears in the Drake for her.
I booked a deck 8 cabin out of the big apple , no big seas up there thought I and nice and high for the views...….. wrong again tgh...
After boarding we sat for two days as the hurricane was passing and then sailed out into the end of it.. I was amazed as I expected them to cancel.
Messed up the Itinerary completely and ruined the trip really but the ship managed the seas and wind very well indeed.

Clearly losing my marbles….NYC to Montreal in '17 was the Silver Whisper.. duuuh… however I remain quite sanguine about the wind in the Drake

 

[RooFlyer]

Eeek. Not going to look at Cruise Critic any more - too much information & things to worry about.

So much so that Climate Scientists visiting Antarctica in January 2014 got trapped in ice ~ 60Km from Mawason's Hut.

Ah, yes. The 'ship of fools' as I think they were called

So take my thoughts on sea sickness with a grain of salt.

Or a pill of ginger.

The other place which should be visited once in a life time and especially for Tasmanians is MacQuarie Island which is a part of Tasmania.

I was supposed to do my geology hons. project there (its an ophiolite - phwoar!) but I got bumped off the boat by a rabbit shooter. Fortunately no chance of that today.

He felt no worse an experience on the Wind and Cloud as they do 2 landings a day. Half go on each excursion in the morning and reverse in the afternoon

This is typical of a 'landing' day:



Would that be either/or, or would all be offered/ possible during the day (which will be long, if not 24 hrs!!)

We had 1 day we had to shelter but did a long "fjord cruise instead of landing. This trip was in M<arch and less ice which in some places was a distinct advantage. A long time since penguin chicks and seal pups were born but still obvious who they were and much more playful.

I'm rather sanguine about weather-affected stops and missing the animals. I expect there will be more than 1 penguin to see all up. And no weeds!!

 

[drron]

At times you will see a fair bit of weeds but at least they call them weeds-sea weeds.

 

[RooFlyer]

They do fret a lot about formal wear on Cruise Critic/SilverSea, don't they?

I wonder if my fellow cruisers will mind when I turn up the same as my screen name:



Or, for formal-wear occasions: (or is this a very old joke?)

 

[drron]

The top picture with a jacket,collared shirt and long pants only misses a tie to be OK for formal night. They would lend you a tie.
However on the Expedition ships pre covid there were no formal nights and a Maximum of 30% would sometimes wear a jacket.
But being well dressed comes with a few perks. A lovely moment with one of the Expedition staff who I used to call the chick with a gun. She was a polar bear guard.

 

[RooFlyer]

only misses a tie

A cravat, my dear boy, a cravat. And that's my smoking jacket.

 

[zig]

Eeek. Not going to look at Cruise Critic any more - too much information & things to worry about.





This is typical of a 'landing' day:

View attachment 289842

Would that be either/or, or would all be offered/ possible during the day (which will be long, if not 24 hrs!!)

These are the standard activities however they may not all be offered each day, eg I doubt that Kayaking would be offered everyday because the conditions may not always be suitable. They are listed to provide a guide to the types of activities that you might be available depending on conditions.
The routine will be probably similar to that which you experienced on Ponant. Usually an early start with either a landing or zodiac ride. If landing there is often a choice of 2 hikes ( one more difficult than the other) For those who don't want to hike Expedition staff are available near the landing site to point out highlights of the area and guests just potter around the area. On returning to the ship it will relocate to another area and then usually after lunch the 2nd landing / zodiac ride of the day will commence. I was on Explorer (smaller than you will be on) and guests are allocated to zodiac groups for all activities. The groups rotate through departure times to ensure that the 'early' starts are shared around all guests, so if you are off the ship at 7am one morning you are likely to be the last group off the following day. All group departure times are advised at the evening briefings.

I spend very little time on Cruise Critic - I might check it every couple of months and that experience reminds me to stay away

 

[RooFlyer]

These are the standard activities however they may not all be offered each day, eg I doubt that Kayaking would be offered everyday because the conditions may not always be suitable. They are listed to provide a guide to the types of activities that you might be available depending on conditions.

Lists of such activities (sometimes 2, usually 3 sometimes 4) are specified for all days of the cruise, except sea days, so I think the choices are specific for each destination. I guess "draft" ATM, but they seem to be different focuses - zodiac Vs kayak Vs hiking so my impression is that they would be alternatives, not all do-able, or maybe choose 2 out of 3 morning/afternoon.

Anyway, I'll be in the zodiacs/landings most of the time, but a few hikes might be useful.