Commentaires

This was a once-in-a-lifetime trip to a destination one can only dream of. The dream was realized thanks to the exquisite organisation of Oceanwide. The ship, the crew, everything and everybody went the extra mile to make this journey unforgettable in every aspect. Thank you!

Abundant wildlife, including 4 polar bears, 2 blue whales, 40+ belugas, arctic foxes, reindeer, ivory gulls, king eider. Very spectacular zodiac cruises near glaciers. Beautuful hikes. Excellent staff. Great views from the Plancius.

Good expedition with seeing beautiful arctic wildlife

My husband and I were on the Rembrandt Van Rijn cruise that left Longyearbyen on June 16, 2022. We wanted to send you a quick note to tell you what an incredible experience we had. In particular, we wanted to tell you how much we appreciated our guides Jordy and Fritz. They truly made our trip into something special that will remain with us for a long time. Fritz was incredibly knowledgeable about birds and even sparked in us a new interest in birding. Jordy had a great sense of humor and we learned so much from his almost uncanny knowledge of the geography, geology, and wildlife of Svalbard. He was also generous enough with his photography skills to make a trip log for us that we will treasure. We left the ship hoping that we will be able to have another polar adventure with Jordy and Fritz sometime soon!

We had an absolutely fantastic experience with the Oceanwide crew. So knowledgeable, enthusiastic and friendly! Went out of their way to give us a great trip. And succeeded!!! Thanks so much!

Excellent crew and organisation

This was undoubtedly an exceptional trip with fewer than half the expected guests due to travelling difficulties, great wild life viewings and a ship Captain, Crew, Hotel staff and Expedition staff that went above and beyond to make our visit to the Arctic one that will forever be remembered.

Once on the ship, all was very much OK

Led by knowledgeable and enthusaistic expedition leaders and staff, this expedition around the coast of Spitsbergen and Nordaustlandet was a feast of polar experiences. From active glaciation through tundra to the diminutive plants in the polar desert we got a very good taste of the polar regions of Svalbard. MV Plancius was a comfortable and quiet ship crewed by a very good team who went the extra mile to accommodate the needs and comfort of the passengers. For those who have hesitated to join these expeditions I urge them to go. It is most certainly value for money.

My overall impression on this trip is absolutely positiv, thanks to the competence of the expedition crew, the hardworking staff and to the well organised leaders. You have been all entertaining, interesting, funny and motivating showing the passion you put in your job.

Fantastic trip onboard Plancius. Excellent and friendly staff. I was upgraded to a twin room w single occupancy. Food excellent with good selection at each meal. Expedition staff very knowledgeable and we had some good lectures on rocks, ice and wildlife. Captain was a great spotter of polar bears and we saw 4 on our trip. An amazing once in a lifetime experience to go to 80 degrees north and explore the remote and beautiful Arctic.

An excellent trip blessed with good weather and kind seas. Superb staff and a very happy ship. Early July was perfect timing for the Arctic flora. Most memorable moments - a day in the pack ice; close up views of a polar bear under a cliff face of nesting Brunnich's Guillemots; Zodiac trip to the end of a glacier and Little auk nesting site. Would certainly recommend the trip to anyone with an interest in natural history.

What a fantastic visit to the Arctic! Aboard a very happy ship, we saw places that we could only dream about and wildlife that we had only ever seen on TV and in books. It all became real. Our guides and crew cheerfully led us safely to wonderful places and we had the chance to see Polar Bears, Arctic Foxes and Svalbard Reindeer on land. In the water we saw Bearded and Ringed Seals, Walruss and Minke Whales. In the air we saw many Arctic birds including Glaucous Gull, Arctic Skua, Snow Bunting and the charming Little Auks. Fulmar were our constant companions and the beautiful Ivory Gull visited us in the pack ice. There is far too much to mention, but the beauty and fragility of the area moved me deep inside. The recaps and lectures added to our understanding and enjoyment of the cruise. Regrets? Only that it had to end so soon. Thank you to the guides and the crew who made this a trip of a lifetime.

Photos below- from the smallest (Copepods) to the Largest (Polar Bear)! After 4 years of waiting for this trip, amid train strikes in the UK; SAS strikes and COVID I never thought I would make it,. Make it I did (although my Baggage did not! BUT despite all this the voyage was brilliant. The landscape was spectacular; the wildlife a joy and the sea ice out of this world. Everyone on the ship - Staff, Crew and all those involved in making it a great trip, are to be congratulated. They made us all feel at home from the start, and all the rest of the passengers were great companions also. I will highly recommend the voyage to others and to this great ship ( my 2nd trip on it - the last time was 5 years ago to Antarctica - and the getting there was equally difficult leaving home during the "Best from the East"! Well done Oceanwide Expeditions. Just thinking of which icey place to visit next!

Trip and ship were good, there are concerns. 1) Although passengers were cautioned to be quiet while observing wildlife, at the bear-eating-seal site, a dozen or more guides were on the bow talking and laughing very loudly. 2) Never received a straight answer regarding whether or not we would have access to our luggage on the dock after deboarding. I wanted to know if I could wear waterproof etc. gear on the zodiac but ditch it in my luggage on shore. 3) Some of the guides were unwilling or unable to maneuver the zodiac so both sides could see. Twisting and turning was awkward at best, giving me sore neck and back for duration of journey. 4) Neck-breaking life jackets. Heavy weighting on neck made it difficult to hold head up. Did not seem to be a problem on large/tall people. Maybe a smaller version for shorter people? One size does NOT fit all. Life jacket was one of the major reasons I canceled upcoming Antarctic trip with Oceanwide . 5) Not pertinent directly to ship but...why did you choose a dark background with white lettering on preliminary material about ship and packing? Hard to read and used an unnecessary amount of ink to print it.