What factors influence the landing duration on Antarctica?
The key to determining a trip to Antarctica lies in the length of the landing time.
credit: www.instagram.com
A once-in-a-lifetime Antarctic journey, with its adorable array of penguins at varying stages of growth, is often the primary draw. To maximize the joy of being surrounded by penguins, landing duration is crucial. Besides weather, sea conditions, and the captain, the only variable you can control that determines the number and duration of landings is passenger capacity. This is why we generally recommend only cruises with a passenger capacity of 200 or fewer, the magic number that balances landing time with a rich Antarctic experience.
1. Regulations for only 100 people per landing
credit: www.facebook.com
According to the Antarctic Convention, only 100 passengers can land at a single landing site at a time. Therefore, the larger the capacity of a cruise ship, the more groups has to be divided to ensure that all passengers have a chance to land. This also reduces the amount of time each passenger is allowed to land. On each landing day, if conditions permit, landings are usually scheduled in the morning and afternoon, each lasting approximately 2 to 3 hours.
For example, if a cruise ship has 200 passengers, it will need to be divided into at least two groups to ensure that the number of passengers allowed to disembark at one time meets the regulations. Therefore, each passenger can enjoy approximately 1 to 1.5 hours of disembarkation time.
2. Classifications of cruise ship passenger capacity
credit: www.facebook.com
Continuing from the previous paragraph, some readers might thus only opt for cruises with 100 or fewer passengers. However, excluding sailboats and boutique ships with fewer than 50 passengers, among the current list of cruise ships, only 3 has a passenger capacity fewer than 100. Only one of these ships specializes in round-trip cruises and is an expedition ship, thus offering more affordable pricing. The other two ships primarily offer fly-cruise itineraries, often selling out a year in advance. As for the more familiar five-star cruise ships, recent launches, and those equipped with helicopters and submarines, their total passenger capacity ranges around 101-200.
Therefore, cruise ships with a passenger capacity of 101-200 people are the mainstream in the current market. If you only focus on cruise ships with less than 100 people, there are not many choices.
3. Cruise time at sea other than landing
credit: www.facebook.com
Since most cruise ships carry 101-200 passengers, most tourists' Antarctic experience will consist of a combination of "landing" and "zodiac cruise".
Upon landing, as long as you adhere to the five-meter distance rule, you'll be able to capture plenty of penguin photos. The wonders of Antarctica also include seals lazing on ice floes, penguins diving freely into the Southern Ocean, whales occasionally circling the Zodiac, and even a glimpse of a fin whale making a surprise appearance—all of these delights can be fully realized on a Zodiac sea cruise. Furthermore, if you're looking to pair your whisky with 100,000-year-old ice floes, a Zodiac cruise is essential. The Zodiac expedition team will occasionally collect a piece of ice floating in the Southern Ocean for passengers to photograph and bring back to the ship.
The following video, from one of our passengers, Issac Chan, captures a minke whale.
4. Additional activities
credit: www.facebook.com
Common additional, paid Antarctic activities include canoeing, camping, and SUP options. For those who prioritize landing time, water activities other than camping require careful consideration. This is because these activities overlap with landing times, while camping is the only activity that takes place outside of the scheduled landing time. Passengers considering these additional activities should consider whether they can afford to reduce their landing time. Through such arrangements, some cruise ships with just over 100 passengers can allow other passengers to land at the same time, thus increasing total landing time.
In summary, while the two main factors affecting Antarctic landing time are passenger capacity and whether or not to sign up for additional activities, penguins aren't limited to land. For a more enriching Antarctic experience, combining landing with zodiac cruise is highly recommended.
Comments (0)