acing_spades1

Just nerd stuff in general. Not having microscopes isn't a deal breaker or anything, nothing really is when we're talking "Antarctica cruise" sphere, but it would be really cool to be able to look at the special Antarctic stuff close up like that. Since everyone does lectures the laboratories are a cool way to dive in deeper and an easy way to differentiate between lines. There will be much enjoyment of the environment and wildlife as well but again that's a given for any line.

Looking into an Antarctica cruise for my partner and I and we're not typical demographic so it's been a bit difficult to parse out the options. Late 20s / early 30s, relatively fit but not competitive athletes, penchant for adventures, and big fans of lifelong learning (especially science for me). She loves a good spa day but otherwise not very set on typical luxury experiences. Pretty frugal in everyday life as we value experiences over materials. Not having to dress up for dinner is a bonus. Tl;Dr at the bottom. My current thoughts are: Viking Has the most comprehensive science center. Laboratory on ship with an entire Citizens Science Program. Partnership with Cambridge University, Cornell University, and NOAA. Very new to the region. Clearly a lot of thought put into the lecture hall design with the 270deg windows. More traditional cruise ship with great spa. She likes massages but I do have a soft spot for a Nordic hot/cold pool setup. Zodiacs, kayaking and hiking included. Submarines for a fee. Possibility for free or reduced airfare depending on sales and sail date. Lindblad / National Geographic Has a "science center" but puzzlingly not a laboratory. However, is the only line advertising a remotely operated vehicle, underwater video camera, hydrophone, aerial camera, and video microscope. Partnership with National Geographic (but is Nat Geo a real science partnership or really just Photography+). Long history in the region. Zodiacs, kayaking, hiking, cross country skiing, and snowshoeing are included. Small, X-Bow construction, Polar Class 5. Hurtigruten The larger ships have a very comprehensive science center with laboratory. Promises of actual science work. No formal science partnerships. Long history in the region. For such a large capacity ship the amenities seem a little low but cost is substantially cheaper. Website leaves a lot to be desired -- zodiacs, kayaking, hiking, snowshoeing, and camping are all offered but hard to tell what's included. Swan Hellenic "Expedition Center" laboratory (with no microscopes?) and Citizen Science Programme but quite vague about what that entails. No formal science partnerships. Long history in the region. More traditional, upscale looking cruise ship (like Viking) but for a low fare. Zodiacs, kayaking, hiking, and snowshoeing in the brochure but unclear what's included vs extra. Small, Polar Class 5 Quark No science center. No science partnership. Zodiacs and hiking included. Kayaking, paddleboarding, and camping available for an extra fee. Small, cheapest but lots of possible add-ons Hurtigruten and Swan Hellenic are substantially cheaper, Viking is the mid ground, and Nat Geo is a fair deal more. While this is a bucket list trip and I don't want to be cheap, I am value oriented. Viking pulls at my nerd heartstrings with the science focus (those partnerships!) and seems like it's a good mix of luxury and expedition but it's a bigger boat and I am concerned about how that affects excursions. For roughly $2k more than a single person fare on Viking, though, we could cover the both of us on Hurtigruten which coincidentally has the second-best lab. Nat Geo and Swan Hellenic being small Polar Class 5 vessels logically to me seem like an availability for less competition for excursions, getting closer to land, etc but that may be unfounded. In terms of excursions, Nat Geo and Hurtigruten have the best swath but I'm assuming those are dependent on early season travel when there's more snow (which I'm not opposed to unless there's major benefits to going high season). Plus, knowing full well that all excursions may or may not actually happen, that seems a silly thing to make the deciding factor. Tl;Dr Thoughts and advice? Go full tilt and spend big bucks on Lindblad / Nat Geo? Sacrifice the science for the small boat, upscale affordability of Swan Hellenic? Big boat, upscale, intellectualism price tag of Viking? By far biggest boat, big science lab but no partnerships, less upscale but cheap Hurtigruten?