Cruising Alaska's Inside Passage on National Geographic Venture
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Guide-ready exploratory tools add to the educational feel of Lindblad Alaska cruises. On my departure, when the ship was stationary and whales were nearby, the guide team dropped the hydrophone underwater and broadcast the sounds of the sea around the ship. When a mountain goat or bear was spotted on a hillside, a guide with a spotting scope would appear on deck. And some lectures featured collected rocks and undersea specimens shown live onscreen from a video microscope.
Exploring Alaska’s Coastal Wilderness
ValuablesWhile our ships are not equipped with safety deposit boxes in the cabins, most have small locking drawers with a key where you can keep your valuables. As our vessel safes are quite small, our normal policy is that the ships cannot accept custody or responsibility for guests’ valuables while on board. Haida Gwaii, Gwai Hannas, Old Massett, and Alert Bay were strong cultural experiences which made the whole trip worthwhile. As was confirmed by the boat captain, we had some experiences with glacier calving and whale-watching that he hadn't seen in the 20 years he'd been 'captaining.' [Fellow travelers were] beautiful individuals, diverse and respectful. The Sea Bird is a small ship, so naturally accommodations were small, but we enjoyed the limited number of passengers and ability to know crew and staff. The crew on Venture accommodated my life-threatening dairy allergy seamlessly.
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Happily for us we encountered lots of wildlife, from feeding brown bears to playful whales and that most iconic American symbol, the Bald Eagle. On every expedition, we offer an exclusive service—a Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic certified photo instructor. This naturalist is specially trained to offer assistance with camera settings, the basics of composition, and to help you become a better, more confident photographer and you’ll go home with the best shots ever. The photo instructor is there to help every level of photographer, so remember to pack your camera.
Lindblad Alaska Cruise Reviews Rating Meals, Ships, Itineraries, etc.
Enjoy a full day immersed in the beauty of Glacier Bay National Park with insights from a Tlingit cultural interpreter. We ventured into inlets, searched for sea life, and hoped for calving glaciers. We saw bears, moose, whales, sea lions, porpoises, puffins, and a variety of birds. Unsurprisingly, an expedition cruise focuses on nature and activities. Meal times on this expedition cruise offered one seating at each meal.
Embark on an epic journey across the Northwest Passage from Greenland to Alaska, and follow in the footsteps of intrepid explorers who searched for centuries for a northwest route connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Experience this epic quest aboard National Geographic Resolution and discover the otherworldly icescapes that challenged generations of adventurers. While Lindblad Expeditions does not have a Past Passengers Program, National Geographic has a Lifelong Explorer program, which includes Lindblad Expeditions trips. Check with your Cruise Specialist to see if you qualify before booking. Each evening, the entire community gathers in the lounge for Recap, a daily ritual with cocktails and hors d'oeuvres where the following day's schedule is outlined, videos are shown, and presentations are given.
Reasons to Stay in a Cabin on Your Gatlinburg Vacation
In addition, and as part of our Wellness Program, our wellness specialist leads stretch classes inspired by yoga and Pilates each morning on the sun deck before breakfast. Other elements range from kayaking and hiking, to massage therapy and body treatments. There is a menu of spa treatments onboard, available for an additional fee. Wellness program Exploring the world can be a powerful reenergizing tonic. To that end, we are delighted to offer you more options to tap into your own personal wellness goals and help you rest and rejuvenate as best we can. Our Tonic of Wellness is a holistic approach that includes many levels of choice for you, with wellness elements ranging from massages and body treatments to activities with more fitness in mind.
They are very stable and easy to master for novices and experts alike. There is something special about being alone in a single kayak, or with your travel companion in our double kayaks, paddling along a remote coastline. Lindblad pioneered kayaking from expedition ships in both the Arctic and Antarctic, and Lindblad is the first company of its kind to be awarded unique permits for kayaking in the fragile Galapagos environment.
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Plus, visit an authentic Alaskan town and fishing village to explore the waterfront and shops. We have special permission to visit Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, National Marine Conservation Area Reserve, and Haida Heritage Site— the only ship with over 22 guests in over two decades permitted to do so. New small ship cruises, adventure trips, ships & the best deals at your fingertips. Our Adventure Specialist was exceptionally helpful during our rather more complicated preparations involving travelers from 3 locations and various ages and special needs. She also successfully managed to have a lost item returned to us after the cruise.
Lindblad Expeditions Alaska Cruises
Thanks to the open bridge policy, you can also chat with the Captain, see his or her view, and learn a bit more about navigation whenever you please. Internet access is available for an additional charge while onboard. Lindblad Expeditions currently operate two sister-ships on their seven night Alaska programmes, Sea Bird and Sea Lion. Launched in 1982, she carries 62 guests (plus 25 crew) and at just 50 metres in length she is small enough to access all the coves and tributaries you want to explore on a cruise like this. Indeed the ships are small enough to pull close to shore to allow guests to see brown bears feasting on a kill, an encounter we were lucky enough to experience. There is no place like Alaska—a vast, untouched frontier of snow-capped mountains, breathtaking fjords, and extraordinary wildlife.
More Cruise Lines Spotlight Indigenous Cultures - Cruise Critic
More Cruise Lines Spotlight Indigenous Cultures.
Posted: Fri, 29 Sep 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
The setting for all our activities was at the base of the Blue Mountains, which was lush with the growth of spring. Dunham Cellars was enjoyed for their acclaimed cabernet sauvignon, syrah, and chardonnay. Everyone then met at Three Rivers Winery for a catered lunch with wine tasting and an enjoyable bask in the warm sun, supplemented by frisbee golf, corn hole contests, and relaxing on the deck. The afternoon was spent at Fort Walla Walla Museum and downtown Walla Walla. Fort Walla Walla has many exhibits from the late 1800s to early 1900s, including a full-sized diorama of a team of 33 mules used to move the large wheat combines. This was the practice prior to mechanization in this highly productive wheat area.
Lindblad has several permits that allow guests to visit remote parts of Tongass National Forest and Glacier Bay National Park, all while remaining close by the line's beautiful and cozy expedition ships. Most of the destinations on an Alaska cruise with Lindblad are places you've never heard of, and with just 62 guests on each ship, you're sure to be among like-minded, bold travelers like yourself. Their knowledge and passion for Alaska is the key to your once-in-a-lifetime experience. Even with all this activity, the standout feature of the expedition is the Lindblad staff. What unites them despite their diverse backgrounds is that each has chosen their current path after a life-changing experience in nature.
We also saw a number of sea creatures during our snorkeling activities. We finished the day with a delicious dinner on the sky deck of National Geographic Endeavour II . We include just about everything you have the opportunity to do as part of your expedition aboard the ship and ashore. The only items not included are those of a personal nature-alcohol, internet usage, tips to the crew, wellness treatments and specialized arrangements such as optional flightseeing in Petersburg. Every expedition aboard a ship in our fleet offers an exclusive service – a Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic certified photo instructor.
Steve (expedition leader) and Linda (botanist) were both knowledgeable and friendly. Michelle Leon (doctor on board) was very considerate, kind and friendly. We felt safe and confident with her and will go other expeditions anywhere with her. While all Lindblad Alaska ships offer the same amenities, the Venture and Quest have obvious refinements.
While we enjoyed water activities (Zodiac cruising, stand-up paddleboarding and kayaking), the dive team would slip underwater to collect fascinating footage to then edit and present in a brief lecture. She also features a shallow draft, allowing her Captain to navigate the inner reaches and provide more intimate experiences. Other speakers included natural historians and a variety of experts in their fields—birding, whales, photography, culture, and even a young man who found a previously unknown octopus colony in Puget Sound. One point made by this young man stuck with me—he claims that octopi is not a word. The experts shared their tales with aplomb, whether out in the zodiacs or in the lounge. Nothing ever got boring, especially with the clever and sometimes cringeworthy jokes sprinkled in for good measure.
Desert was a paltry substitution of what the omnivore was provided. Our room on the middle deck of the ship had a private balcony, just above the water, with sliding glass door to our tidy room. This feature allowed a peaceful, private retreat to view water, vistas, and bring fresh air, allowing a feeling of immersion in the environment. Lindblad Alaska guests can delight in having their every intellectual and operational need not only met, but exceeded. It’s for this reason that many of our Lindblad Alaska small ship cruises make our list of luxury Alaska cruises, and why I would happily take another Lindblad Alaska cruise. This elite group is comprised of researchers, naturalists, marine biologists, hydrographers, NOAA scientists, university professors, licensed boat captains, global sailors, divemasters and more.
Those function to keep feet dry when the zodiacs make wet landings. With its turquoise seawater rippling through glacier-carved fjords, few locations on Earth provide a more visceral image of our planet’s living ecosystem than Alaska’s Inner Passage. It would be impossible to venture through here without gaining a better understanding of the interconnectedness of matter both alive and inanimate.
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