Read more about my trip to Antarctica here.Founded in 1991, Quark specializes in polar expedition cruises to the Arctic and Antarctica. I traveled to Antarctica on the Ocean Diamond with Quark Expeditions from 29 December 2013 – 7 January 2014 and booked my trip at the last minute with Sarah at Freestyle Adventure Travel – whom I highly recommend! It’s an enjoyable and educational experience sailing to Antarctica and I’d love to sail with Quark Expeditions to the polar regions again (perhaps to visit Greenland). You will definitely make friends and get to know everyone on board, by face or through long discussions with many of them in the restaurant, lounge, zodiacs or on land.Ī trip to Antarctica does not come cheap and there is no guarantee that the ship will reach all its intended destinations considering the remoteness and rapidly changing weather, sea and ice conditions – that’s what truly makes it an expedition and the Quark Expeditions team truly provides value for money considering the programs they run and options available. Lots of guests from the USA, Canada, Russia, Germany and Japan were on my cruise young and old. There’s an interesting mix of passengers on-board, each travelling to Antarctica for their own specific reasons. The Quark Expeditions team members were also given some awesome looking uniforms to wear – cool Acteryx jackets with their names stitched to it. Quark Expeditions will provide you with a parka to wear (and take home) and boots on loan for your shore landings. Flip-Flops / open heeled shoes are not permitted in public areas on the ship (as you are at greater risk of slipping with them). However you should carry long sleeved / wind resistant clothes if you want to go out on deck. The ship is warm inside – some people were in t-shirts and short pants. during the lecture programs), did make me feel tired. I didn’t take any meds but sitting still (e.g.
#QUARK EXPEDITIONS ANTARCTICA PATCH#
You will also see the corridors lined up with throw-up bags when we are in the Drake Passage – just in case… Many people were using the patch or taking meds for motion sickness. The doc is available with meds for those in need. This was perfectly fine for everyone as we were getting the best of both worlds. Because we had 185 passengers everybody would get off the ship but half the passengers would cruise on zodiacs while the other would go onto land (for approximately 1.5 hours) and then alternate. IAATO (International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators) guidelines limit the number of guests that can make a shore landing to 100 at any time per vessel. It’s great to be among talented people with great passion for adventure, with their high levels of expertise and excellence. They offer photography guidance, drive the zodiacs, offer a range of lecture programs, handle all the expedition program logistics and socialise and dine with the guests – so we get to know them very well. The expedition team is highly talented and multi-skilled. There are 2 doctors on board, one from ISP for the crew and one from Quark for the expedition team and guests. I would say that the Quark Expeditions leader on board is equivalent to a cruise director on a mega cruise liner. All on-board programs are run by Quark Expeditions. The Ocean Diamond is owned and manned by crew from ISP (International Shipping Partners) but the ship has been chartered by Quark Expeditions who have approximately 24 of their team members and Expert’s in Residence (researchers) on board. The cabins have power sockets that take 2 round pin adapters (there is a screw in the middle hole below). The vessel offers a variety of accommodation options, from suites with balconies to cabins with portholes for single, double or triple shared use. Initially, I believe the vessel used to be a car ferry before being totally refitted for passenger travel.
It’s a modernised, small super yacht that offers Carbon Neutral voyages to Antarctica (even the crew’s flights to the ship are offset).