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Book Recommendations for Your Polar Cruise
Though books can't replace the experience of visiting the polar regions, they make excellent companions for your journey. We reached out to our social media followers, many of whom are past or future travelers, to gather their recommendations for polar-related books. The results were impressive, and we've compiled them below in no particular order.
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Spitsbergen: a true polar bear trip
On the third day of our Svalbard cruise, we navigated through the sea ice north of Spitsbergen. The morning greeted us with fog and fragmented ice, but conditions gradually improved. A swarm of black-legged kittiwakes trailed behind us, as our ship stirred the waters, pushing aside ice floes to reveal the tiny dark polar cod beneath.
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Penguin Wisdom: Life Lessons from Our Favorite Flightless Birds
As enthusiasts of wildlife travel, we believe every creature has something valuable to impart - from the grand blue whale to the tiny cephalopod, the formidable polar bear to the elusive Arctic fox.
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Circumnavigating Spitsbergen
Many of our expedition cruises focus on specific areas of the Arctic or Antarctica, delving deep into local wildlife and other natural highlights. However, some programs aim to provide a broader survey, visiting a variety of sites to offer guests a wider perspective.
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Where the Polar Bears Roam
Going to the Arctic without clapping eyes on a wild polar bear can be reasonably compared to visiting Africa without seeing a giraffe or a zebra or, most analogously, a lion.
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Danger Beneath the Water: 10 Facts About Leopard Seals
If your thirst for adventure leads you to Antarctica, you may be lucky enough to cross paths with a leopard seal while you’re there. These amazing animals are wonderful to observe both in and out of the water, and they are a coveted part of the polar wildlife experience.
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Highlights from the First Arctic Voyage of Hondius
Our new ship Hondius completed its first Arctic expedition cruise on June 14, 2019. This being a new ship, the maiden voyage was not without its hiccups. But despite these, passenger response to the expedition was overwhelmingly positive.
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10 Popular Bird Watching Binoculars
Binoculars are a staple for outdoor enthusiasts, often packed with minimal thought alongside essentials like bug spray, sunblock, and waterproof matches. However, for certain groups, binoculars are indispensable, particularly for bird watchers. If you're part of this technical hobbyist community, here are 10 birding binoculars you should know about.
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Seizing the Season: Spitsbergen’s Late Spring, Early Summer
Most Arctic expedition cruises can be categorized into two main types: those that operate during the autumn and winter, focusing on the northern lights, and those that sail during the high season (mid to late summer), concentrating on a broader range of experiences.
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Diving in Antarctica: The Ultimate Underwater Experience
Ice diving offers an extraordinary experience on an Antarctica diving trip. The dive sites are teeming with a unique array of colorful marine life, including penguins and leopard seals, which are exclusive to this region.
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An igneous paradise: Franklin Island
In the most remote reaches of the world's oceans, those daring enough to embark on the Ortelius to the Ross Sea eagerly boarded zodiacs in the southernmost part of the Pacific Ocean.
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Five Reasons to Love St. Helena
Being one of the most remote islands on Earth gives St. Helena a unique allure. Named after a Roman empress and the mother of Constantine the Great, this island also holds the distinction of being Napoleon’s final place of exile, making it a fascinating topic of conversation.
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The Arctic Borderland of Kongsfjorden, Svalbard
Kongsfjorden is a glacial fjord in Svalbard that hosts a diverse array of flora and fauna.
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Polar Cruises: The Ultimate Icebreaker
Travel is one of life’s great eye openers. It brings you into contact with new people and perspectives, challenges old assumptions you haven’t held to the light in years, and invites you to make unexpected discoveries about the world around you – and most of all, yourself. Added to which, you get to visit places you never knew you loved until you saw them.
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Birds of the South: 33 Antarctic Birds and Seabirds
Of the many compelling reasons people travel to Antarctica and the sub-Antarctic, bird life is among the most beloved.
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10 Illuminating Facts about the Northern Lights
In Roman mythology, Aurora was the goddess of the dawn. The term "borealis" is derived from the Greek word for "wind." Thus, "aurora borealis" translates to "dawn wind," commonly known as the Northern Lights. This natural phenomenon has captivated humanity for millennia and remains a major attraction in the Arctic, with numerous cruises dedicated to witnessing this mesmerizing light display.
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Kayaking In Greenland
Think of Greenland and two images come to mind:
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15 Toothy Facts About the Atlantic Walrus
The walrus is one of the most recognizable animals on the planet, and for good reason. Try sneaking into a cinema with those tusks!
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The Wildlife of Antarctica’s Seas and Skies
Antarctica is one of the most pristine environments on Earth, home to whales, penguins, seals, and birds, providing nature lovers with a treasure trove of wildlife memories to take back home.
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Shackleton’s Push to the South Pole
On the evening of February 11, 1907, Irish-born polar explorer Ernest Shackleton, already among the more famous polar explorers in the world, announced his intention to embark on a momentous Antarctic expedition.