Poseidon ExpeditionsReviews of poseidonexpeditions.com

A fantastic trip and amazing teams. From the expedition team and the hotel staff to the ship's crew. Although excursions were always heavily dependent on the weather and weren't possible relatively often, an alternative was usually found (by sailing back and forth), and the ship's relatively small size was also an advantage. I'd especially like to commend the kayak team! Elo, Katherine, and Flipper did a fantastic job and ensured an unforgettable paddling experience.

A crew member warned me that I was not following the rules in a very aggressive manner, even though they were breaking the same rules themselves. I also saw crew members asking passengers to leave reviews on tablets provided by them. I believe many of the reviews you see are false.

Greenland Northern Lights trip - 15 Sep - 26 Sep 2025 The good: * Expedition itinerary was great. * We had wonderful weather which helped as we saw Northern Lights about 6 or 7 days out of the itinerary which was fantastic * We saw muskoxen - even some butting heads and a pack, along with Arctic Hare - so that was good * Excursions - with hikes were outstanding * Food was very good * Western Iceland - was very nice. We're catholic and even visited a Catholic Church - St John The Evangelist in Westfjord - which was great. * Expedition team was very good and approachable and informative The Bad: * The design and the quality of the Parka's (which were included was TERRIBLE). * First the design, it has at end of the sleeves some cloth that functions as hand warmers - but if they get wet - they stay wet. Compared to competitor Parka's that are actually 2: an inner lighter parka and an outer heavier parka - that design is much better. I still use the inner jacket of the competitors (8 years after going to Antarctica ) and is good marketing for them. (I don't use the outer jacket as much, living in Texas - another plus of that better design). * Second the quality was TERRIBLE. My torn off in 2 places before the end of the trip. I showed to the expedition team and i though they would have replaced it but they didn't. So we donated mine (and my wife's, since she wouldn't keep hers if mine was torn). I also told the sales person on my return. I would have been ok even if they at least had given a "Polar plunge" shirt or something (since i did the Arctic plunge). I have pictures of this. The opportunity to improve: * The competitor, at least on our trip to Antarctica, had professors and researchers giving lectures, in addition to the expedition team. So this added extra-depth and knowledge which was very useful.

Good happy wish for more

This was - by far - the best (and most expensive ;-)) Trip of my life. (This counts as I did a lot of traveling in the past 54 years!) The trip was exciting because of several topics: 1. The destination was outstanding (ok, I chose it ;-)) 2. The ship (size, condition, layout, facilities) / number of tourists: the OPTIMUM for a traveling type "expedition" 2.1 size of the ship: not "small" but sufficient (size, lounges, rooms for breakfast/lunch/dinner. Not too big so guests could stay together for communication and nobody had the risk of "being alone" 2.2 cabines in very good condition (of course depending on the money "invested") 2.3 number of guests not too big: - it was possible to get in touch basically with everyone -> big enough to "select" people / groups fitting into the own "style"/language - allowed everybody to do all activities together without giving the feeling, that the nature is disturbed too much; the guests diluted a lot while being on shore an in the wild 2.5 the size of the ship gave me also a feeling that it does not interfere with the nature too much 2.6 Even if - because of the smaller size of the ship - the power of nature (waves, wind) had a significant impact on the ship (the ship moved a lot under strong conditions on open water) I personally loved this as it gave me the feeling of an expedition and to of an "all inclusive big scale ship cruise far away from the nature"; exciting to feel the power of the nature! 3. Staff andservice 3.1 Expedition Team (ET): 3.1.1 I loved to understand that these members have been specialists on their fields (scientists, guides for kayaking) being absolutely competent and knowledgeable. Even detailed/scientific questions had been answered in any case. And if one did not know the answer he/she made a research and came back with the answer! Lectures of these guys have been amazingly interesting/competent (as far as I can judge it); I felt the passion with which the lecturer presented their topics. Absolutely outstanding! 3.1.2 The entire ET showed to be caring about the nature, which I loved to see. They communicated precisely the rules 4 being in the nature/how to behave so that the nature is not too much disturbed by the guests. If the rules have not been followed they interfered promptly to fix it. (This even could have been more intensive as some guests seemed not adhere to the rules with adequate care sometimes) 3.1.3 The ET did an amazing job to care about all guests to enable all of them to experience all activities & especially about guests, being not that fit and athletically. All of them onboarded and offboarded the Zodiacs safely and not one accident happened here. For doing that they stood in ice-cold water up to the hips to enable these experiences for everybody. Amazing! 3.1.4 The ET showed the guests that they are a real team. They worked together, everybody did care about everything (even if the tasks had been split up between the members) and I did't recognize any conflicts at all. They communicated in each minute with each other so the information flow was outstanding. In particular information about e.g. whales, in particular during the last expedition day where we all could watch the orcas coming along. Kayakers, guests on the Zodiacs and the guests on the ship had been informed in real time. So I had the feeling of the best service on all kind of topics. Even individual arrangements have been achieved ("is it possible to get back to the ship a bit earlier because of ..." (I had a job interview during the trip and ask for a special service to be back on the ship latest on a concrete time). Having problems with my teeth on Falkland Island they arranged an appointment with a dentist and organized a ride to the dentist and back again). The doctor on the ship frankly told me that he's not a dentist and to be sure about the situation he strongly proposed a visit with a specialist! Please let them know my feedback! It was AMAZING! 4. Staff for housing / cleaning / making up the rooms / cooking / serving the meals 4.1 same thing as above! Everything has been done on a level that I did not miss anything. Also here the staff communicated with each other quickly. E.g. as I told - not as a complaint but just as a comment - somwhen that my back is aching while sleeping, at the same day I had 2 toppers on my bed without having asked for it. I took the time to write all this because it was super service by everyone! Only one final thought "room for improvement": The internet connection was really slow. As - "sadly" - everybody is hanging on the smartphone to send pics/information to their families this was sometimes difficult and pulling e.g. an ebook via the network was not possible. This is the only recommendation!

Loved my Antarctic expedition. Guides Marta, Max and Santi all gave interesting talks. Marta's on Antarctica was comprehensive and her talk on her sailing trip to Antarctica was entertaining; Max was great on history - especially the explorers. I'd read a lot about them, but still learned much from him. And Santi's talk on mate told us a lot about Argentina's history and culture. Those 3 were also great Zodiac pilots and always had smooth rides. We had 2 landings most days and got to see lots of ice, penguins and seals. I'm a keen walker and enjoyed trekking through the snow. The food on board was plentiful and tasty and the hospitality staff very helpful and entertaining. Loved the birthday ceremonies. Rooms were comfortable and it was great not to get seasick either.

The expedition met all our expectations. The team made a real effort to ensure we had as many landings as were feasible given the conditions. Landings were well organised, safe and swift. The expedition team varied a little in quality, friendliness and knowledge. It was disappointing not to have a naturalist on board and we felt it was top heavy on photography. The cabin was spacious and really comfortable. Polar Spirit (max approx 112 but we were 86) was well stabilised with great outdoor viewing. The food was generally very good and the choice was generous. There were about 13 different nationalities amongst the guests and this enhanced the experience. The wildlife and other viewings on South Georgia were absolutely wonderful. The Falkland landings were also good but a whole day in Stanley felt excessive. Poseidon use the Arakur hotel in Ushuaia for the night before the trip and this was excellent. Luggage collection and other arrangements were faultless. Poseidon made it possible for us to visit these incredible places in a small(ish) ship at an affordable price and to do so comfortably, efficiently and safely. We would recommend this trip.

My recent trip with Poseidon Expeditions was overshadowed by serious shortcomings from their sales team. Although I had received clear written confirmation that Poseidon would arrange the South Georgia landing permit, I only discovered after boarding the ship that this had not been done. No one from the sales office or my travel agent notified me in advance—leaving me to find out about this last-minute exclusion in the middle of my voyage. This essential permit costs £200 per person and is required for every South Georgia landing. Had I not managed to resolve it myself, I would have missed all planned excursions on the island. When I requested compensation, the Poseidon sales office refused, claiming that anyone booking under the “Last Minute Price” must secure their own permit—directly contradicting their earlier written assurance and standard expedition practices. While the onboard crew were outstanding and always helpful, the lack of transparency and support from the head office sales team led to unnecessary stress and frustration. Travelers should beware: with Poseidon Expeditions, even written promises from the head office may not be honored, and you may only discover problems after your trip has begun.