Has anyone been on Silver Cloud Arctic Expedition?

[newkq]

Hi Everyone, I have a quote from Silverseas on Silver Cloud, and also have a quote from another company on one of the other vessels. I am not sure what's the pros and cons of both these expeditions. Silverseas also has zodiac landings and pretty much seems to visit same western and northern areas of Svalbard. I heard Silver Seas focus is luxury and not the destination? 

Other than the luxury of Silverseas and cost, is there any other reason to pick one over other in terms of expedition experience and wildlife viewing? We want to see polar bears (i understand sightings not guaranteed on any ship).

Anyone who has been on this itinerary on Silver Cloud can provide their experience?  Thanks

[Mocamps]

Yes, we went on Silver Cloud from Reykjavik to Tromso last year. We absolutely loved it!! We liked it even better than the Antarctic (which we also did on Silver Cloud) We had the cheapest cabin and would do that again as we didn't really miss a balcony as it was sometimes quite chilly. I spent a LOT of time in the Observation lounge and you get a great view from there plus there's always some of the 'experts' hanging around to tell you what bird you are seeing or to find whales and polar bears!  And we saw 4 polar bears, beluga whales, an arctic fox, lots of walrus, various other whales and loads and loads of birds. 

 

The other great thing about the Silverseas expeditions are the kayaks. We were able to go out on them twice whereas in the Antarctic the weather got too bad and we missed our planned trip. The kayak guides were highly professional and we always felt safe and well looked after.

 

We've only been on Silverseas Expedition ships and we just love the mix of luxury and adventure.

[newkq]

7 hours ago, Mocamps said:

Yes, we went on Silver Cloud from Reykjavik to Tromso last year. We absolutely loved it!! We liked it even better than the Antarctic (which we also did on Silver Cloud) We had the cheapest cabin and would do that again as we didn't really miss a balcony as it was sometimes quite chilly. I spent a LOT of time in the Observation lounge and you get a great view from there plus there's always some of the 'experts' hanging around to tell you what bird you are seeing or to find whales and polar bears!  And we saw 4 polar bears, beluga whales, an arctic fox, lots of walrus, various other whales and loads and loads of birds. 

 

The other great thing about the Silverseas expeditions are the kayaks. We were able to go out on them twice whereas in the Antarctic the weather got too bad and we missed our planned trip. The kayak guides were highly professional and we always felt safe and well looked after.

 

We've only been on Silverseas Expedition ships and we just love the mix of luxury and adventure.

Thank you very much for the response. What timr of the year did you go? Thats great you saw 4 polar bears. I heard silver cloud has few kayaks compared to other expedition ships and it takes lot of time to get off the ship for landings. Is that true? Did they have  landings daily?

[Mocamps]

We went in June. I don’t know how many kayaks there were - I think about 8 went out at a time with 2 guides and an armed bear guard. There were about 200 passengers and I think about half signed up for kayaking. We got to do it twice but only wanted to do it in Svalbard. The people who did it before we got to Svalbard ( in Iceland) did more. One girl who was very keen did it on most days because she made herself available as a stand-in if someone didn’t turn up.It was a bit of hassle getting into all the gear (drysuit etc) but worth it!

There were typically 2 landings on each day In Svalbard, one in the morning then the ship would move to somewhere else for the afternoon. Around Iceland and in Jan Mayen there was only one but it was a more major trip so, for example, at Akuyeri there were a choice of excursions ( all included) and on another island we went ashore, did a hike to see puffins and Eider ducks, saw how they collected down and then had afternoon tea with the owners. 
I don’t recall that it took long to get off the ship. We were all in groups and each group was called separately so that everyone wasn’t gearing up at the same time. I haven’t been on any other expedition ships but I guess if the ship is smaller it will take less time.