Expedition cruising to the polar regions has never been hotter, even if summer temperatures there hover around freezing. Sure, Antarctica has penguins, but the Arctic lures travelers north with polar bears and walruses, especially in the remote Svalbard archipelago. Here, travel is made easy by expedition ships like Quark Expeditions’ Ocean Explorer, which I boarded in May on my 21st expedition cruise (and 5th to the Arctic) in the last five years.
Built in 2021, the bright and airy Ocean Explorer is among the smaller new-build polar-class ships in the expedition world, carrying just 138 passengers at maximum capacity. On our sailing, we had just 93 travelers, ensuring there was plenty of room onboard—and exceptional service, with a crew-to-guest ratio around 1:1. As a specialist in the polar regions, Quark knows just how to look for the elusive Arctic wildlife in Svalbard, bringing us polar bear sightings nearly every day, not to mention some of the most spectacular walrus encounters I’ve ever had. Read on for the highlights of my time onboard and off.
Onboard: Swimming in the infinity-edge pool surrounded by snow-capped mountains
On Quark voyages, the team ensures guests spend as much time off the ship as possible, since you are here for the destination and not necessarily the ship. But Ocean Explorer provides such a comfortable home base that I actually wish I had a little more time onboard to enjoy her. On this particular itinerary, Svalbard Explorer, there aren’t often many sea days (it’s worth noting that expedition itineraries change regularly based on weather and sea conditions, and you, as a guest, won’t know exactly where you’re going until the night before). All that said, I squeezed in as much leisure time onboard as possible, finding an hour here and there to visit my favorite feature of the ship: the outdoor infinity-edge pool and hot tubs on Deck 7 aft.
In all my experience on expedition ships, I’ve rarely found pools to be filled regularly—much less heated to near hot-tub temperatures—as rough sea conditions often demand the pool be drained. But since we spent most of our Svalbard trip in protected fjords, the pool remained open most days, and I certainly made good use of it. Made of clear acrylic, the entire back wall of the pool serves as a window into the wonderland around you. I particularly loved floating on my back, tilting my head to look out at the mountains surrounding Lilliehöökfjorden on a sunny, bluebird day. While I never overheated in the pool as I did in the two adjacent hot tubs, it was easy to simply stand up and cool off.
That said, the post-swim dash across the deck back to the warmth of the gym and spa was refreshing to say the least. I always found it beneficial to warm up and dry off in the sauna, which has two enormous picture windows to take in the scenery. Sitting in the sauna following one swim session, I heard the call go out across the ship—polar bear at 12 o’clock. Having seen so many bears already, not to mention only wearing a bathing suit, I decided to skip the viewing in favor of a few more minutes in sauna heaven. And somehow, I was rewarded for it. Through the window, I spotted a minke whale, the only cetacean sighting of our whole trip (that I saw, anyway).