Poseidon ExpeditionsReviews of poseidonexpeditions.com

My 3rd expedition with Poseidon on the Sea Spirit proved to be as exciting as the first two, to both coasts of Greenland and Iceland before Svalbard on this 3rd expedition. Longyearbyen proved to be a good starting and departing point. There are places in the spread out town to walk to, and scenery towards the sound was beautiful in the Solstice sunshine offering deep shadows and contrasts all 24 hours. The boarding was very efficient, with our luggage right in front of our rooms. The fitting of boots and parka with its emblems was well-organized, as my size was not available (remember to put on full thermal socks before trying on the boots!) when I needed a size larger with full thermal gear on. The fire drill and fire information in the cabins were both very orderly, so if we had to prepare quickly, say, in the middle of the night, we know what we have to wear and what NOT to bring. The lifeboats are fitted with coverings to help keep us warm in case we had to evacuate. The safety factor is something I cannot over-emphasize in an ice-filled polar sea. The ice line was constantly watched, and our tour team leader often stayed up almost all night with the captain and crew to design a course to avoid the fickle ice up north while providing us with incredible, sometimes previously unvisited, sites to view the abundant wildlife that he knew about as he lives in Longyearbyen. The captain was very funny and sociable. His hysterical introduction of the crew members made us spill our champagne, so our glasses had to be refilled. The lectures were quite useful and interesting. I did not attend them all, as, with anyone, one's interests vary and sometimes there were repairs or laundry to be done for the next day's landings. Polar bears on the hunt were the main feature. We saw two of them. The people with giant lenses that extended almost to the polar bears themselves shared super closeup films and photos of the chase when it was either too far away for my zoom lens, or our Zodiac was not in position to catch the footage. The final score was Seals & Reindeer 2, Polar bears 0. I was cheering for the seals and reindeer. Reindeer were abundant, allowing rank amateur photographers to get really good videos and photos. The same with abundant walruses and seals. Birds were beyond my abilities and equipment, but others shared their rookery footage. The ones following the ship gave me some good footage. Our visit to far-northern Ny-Alesund research town where the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen had over-wintered and had flown from, was remarkable. The museum is memorable. The food on board--forget dieting or anything like that when on the Sea Spirit. I loved the food prepared by international chefs for all nationalities except haggis, which was never offered and which I never have eaten and may never try even if offered. The fellow passengers were once again a variety of people who share a dedication to seeing and hopefully preserving the arctic for future generations. They were very sharing and helpful to us less-experienced eager beavers. I could go on and on, but some readers may have already benefited by being put to sleep. Others may have reached for their eye drops. One improvement I'd like to suggest on land: the hotel in Longyearbyen does have one strange policy I wish they would change--in the high season, check-in is only after 15:00 hrs. To secure my room for a 2:00 am arrival from Oslo an extra day before the expedition, I had to reserve and pay for the room for the previous day as well. The stay on the day of the expedition is provided free. For the 08:00 morning arrival after the expedition, the 15:00 check in time threw me. So I will also book the previous day in order to be able to check in right away when I arrive both times. Next year, I plan to do my 4th expedition, the polar expedition to Franz Josef Land. After that? I may be tempted to look at Antarctica as I want to visit Chile for listening to Inti Illimani's, Violeta Para's and Victor Jara's music there. It is a short hop to Ushaia from there. 2021 or 2022.

Fantastic trip to Franz Josef Land. The crew and expedition team were outstanding. Nothing was too much trouble. A truly once in a lifetime experience

Ich bewerte die Reise Svalbard - Franz-Josef-Land als sehr gut ! Wir hatten jeden Tag mindestens ein Highlight ! Wir sahen Gletscher und Eis und Gletscher und Eis und Gletscher und ... Wunderschön ! Wir sahen Belugawale, Walrosse, Eisbären, Wale, Sand, Felsen, die großen runden Steine auf Champ Island, Vogelfelsen mit zehntausenden von Vögeln, kleine Blumen, wunderschöne Flechten und Moose und immer wieder Eisbrocken und Eisberge und Gletscher. Es gab Sonne und Nebel, ruhige See und Wellen, Windstille bis starke Böen, etc. Neben den weiteren Anlandungen sahen wir auf Kap Norwegia die Reste des Unterschlupfes in dem Nansen und Johansen seinerzeit überwinterten und in Bukhta Tikhaya die Polarstation. Auf dem Rückweg von FJL nach Svalbard geriet das Schiff in eine Gruppe von Walen die von Schwärmen von Möwen umgeben immer wieder auftauchten. Der Kapitän reagierte damit darauf, daß er den Passagieren sehr lange Zeit zur Beobachtung und zum fotografieren gab. Und obwohl das Schiff witterungsbedingt einen Tag früher Richtung Svalbard zurückfuhr, wurde der verbleibende Tag in den Fjorden von Svalbard bestens genutzt. Für das Expeditionsteam sind wir voll des Lobes. Wir schätzen sehr das Verantwortungsbewußtsein des Expeditionsleiters Ryan Hope-Inglis verbunden mit der Hingabe aus ganzem Herzen, das Maximum an Möglichem den Passagieren zu bieten. Wenn ich mich recht erinnere wurden mindestens 2x noch nach dem Abendessen (nach 21:00 Uhr) die Zodiaks zu Wasser gelassen, um Walrosse und einen Eisbären zu beobachten. Ein anderes Mal mußte die Ausfahrt kurzfristig abgesagt werden, obwohl die Scouts bereits unterwegs waren, da die Windböen bis über 70 Knoten anstiegen. Die beiden Leiterinnen des Kajak Clubs Ida und Marta haben uns die Paddelausflüge zu einem echten Traum werden lassen. Die Vorträge waren sehr informativ und interessant von den fachkundigen Begleitern vorgetragen. Zusammenfassend war die Expedition besser, schöner, erlebnisreicher als wir es uns vorgestellt hatten.

Die MS Sea Spirit von Poseidon Expedition ist ein hervorragendes Expeditionskreuzfahrtschiff mit Fokus auf die Destination (wie hier FranzJose-Land in der Arktis). Internationale Lektoren verschiedener Fachbereiche informieren über Geschichte, Natur und Tierwelt. Mit Zodiacs verschedene Inseln angefahren, auf denen sich die Passagiere nur nach entsprechender Einweisung oder mit einem Führer auf ausgesteckten Routen bewegen dürfen, um die sensible Natur und erstaunliche Flora nicht zu zerstören. Die Passagiere aus aller Welt (von Neuseeland bis Argentinien) wissen die schönen, geräumigen Kabinen an Bord zu schätzen, das elegante Restaurant mit mehrgängigem Gourmet-Dinner und ausgewählten Weinen. Auch der gemütliche Salon mit Bar wird sehr geschätzt. Vor allem auch die reichj bestückte Bibliothek. Die Passagiere, die bei Poseidon Expeditions buchen, sind aus historischem Interesse und Begeisterung dieser besonderen Natur- und Tierwelt an Bord. "Champagner im Zodiac", womit Luxus-Schiffe werben, würden hier als dekadent abgelehnt.

Unheimlich sympathisches Expeditionsteam, außergewöhnliches Schiff und eine Erfahrung, die man nur einmal im Leben macht. Eine Reise zum Nordpol wirkt lange nach.

In jeder Beziehung top. Die Reise ins Franz Josef Land war ein einmalig schönes Erlebnis. Besonders herausragend waren neben der Schiffscrew die hervorragenden Expeditionsleiter. Sie verstanden es ihr enormes Wissen in interessanten Vorträgen verständlich und begeisternd weiterzugeben. Besonders eindrücklich waren die mehrmals täglich stattgefundenen Ausfahrten mit den Zodiacs, je nach Situation kombiniert mit Landausflügen.

My experience to the high arctic with Poseidon Expeditions was absolutely wonderful. The office team, ship's crew and expedition leaders went above and beyond to ensure that all facets of the trip were planned and executed in a professional, friendly, and adventurous manner. The ship's captain and crew worked very hard with the expedition team to ensure the expedition was able to take full advantage of all opportunities to see wildlife, amazing scenery, and enjoy incredible shore landings. The expedition team also ensured there were daily lectures and activities that suited a wide variety of interests and abilities. I highly recommend Poseidon Expeditions if you want a great adventure in the high latitudes.

Let me start by saying that this was a great trip!! The trip to Franz Josef land is a very special one. it is heavily dependent on weather conditions, and the wildlife is not abundant in this icy, foggy and frosted land. You might easily miss it all together. we had a very good weather at the first part of the trip and then a storm came and the crew took a decision to go back to Svalbard and make a tour over there. It was a good decision as we had the chance to compare the two lands and experience both. i personally loved Franz Josef very much. The space, the serenity, the light, the reflections, the icebergs, the birds (tens of thousands of them), the whales. Every landing was a surprise, was different, there was a story. It was fascinating. The small flowers, likens, mosses and shrubs, struggling to flourish, it takes a very close look to appreciate their beauty. And the thought that i am one of very few people who are fortunate to be here - it felt incredible. In Svalbard we saw more animals - foxes and puffins, but also more people, and the magic was almost gone. The ship we knew from our previous tour to Antarctica in November 2017, and also part of the expedition team, and it really felt like coming home again, being welcomed with hugs and kisses and being greeted every day in our own language (Hebrew) in the dining room by Ruel. The service was 100% , no less, in all fronts - the rooms, the ship crew, the food, the expedition team, all functioned in the most smooth and optimal mode. Finally I wish to make 2 small criticism: 1) there was an unrealistic expectation to see many mammals: Polar bears, we saw only 3 and from very far away. Walruses - we saw only a couple of families and we took a safety distance from them. Is it just bad luck or is it an inherent problem originating from the contradiction between the bears hunting on ice and the ship avoiding the ice? 2) We felt that the lectures, as well as the room TV, did not give us enough background about the history of North Pole expeditions, and the history of Franz Josef land. we strongly recommend to visit the two museums in Longyearbyen. In both you may find a lot of information. Especially in the museum of Polar Expeditions, where the history is presented in great details, including original videos. i hope this fault will be corrected in the future.