I had always wanted to go to Svalbard and hopefully see Polar bears, and this cruise did not disappoint!! We flew from Heathrow to Tromso via Oslo and embarked there. Everything went fairly smoothly despite a rushed change of plane. This is an expedition cruise and not to be confused with normal cruising. We set sail from Tromso in the evening and in the morning landed near North Cape and were taken up there by bus. From there we cruised the Barents Sea past Bear Island and on to Spitsbergen. We were actually able to circumnavigate Spitsbergen as the ice had pulled back sufficiently to do so. Apparently only a week before, we would not have been able to do this! The ship is really lovely and very luxurious. The ship crew were wonderful, and the expedition team excellent, they could not have been better. We had all our breakfasts and lunches on deck (warmly wrapped up) so that we did not miss anything. The hotel staff were so caring and would bring rugs to anyone who was cold. The food was superb, even managing to keep the Sunday lunches hot while we ate on deck. The dining room was lovely but we really only ate there at night, although even then we had to leave everything and dash up on deck to see whales that had most inconsiderately decided to come close at dinner time! Every evening we had a catch-up meeting in the lounge to go over our day and to explain what we hoped to do the next day. We also had many talks from interesting team members, covering everything from the flowers we would see and the geology of the area to the land animals, marine animals and birds. Yes we saw Polar bears! Many Walrus, a Blue whale and several fin whales. Arctic foxes and thousands of birds. We were off the ship twice a day, either on hikes or Zodiac cruising close to the land. We felt very safe all the time and were looked after really well, we were supplied with waterproof walking wellington boots and parkas, so we did not have to bring those with us. We only visited 2 inhabited towns, Ny Alesund which was very interesting and we heard about the various scientific studies by several countries going on there every summer, and about Roald Amundsen who flew the airship over the North Pole from there. The other town was Longyearbyen from where we disembarked. We had several hours there as our plane back was delayed, but we had a very nice lunch in the hotel and bought more souvenirs in the shops. We were also taken on a tour and visited the museum and the Church. Our return flight with Titan Air was very good and very comfortable. All in all, everything was excellent and I would not hesitate to recommend this ship and this cruise. Read Less

We were recommended this cruise by friends and our local travel agent. They were right because I doubt if our experience could have been bettered in any way. We set sail from Ushuaia and headed for The Falkland islands, South Georgia and then the Antarctic Peninsula. We were welcomed on board very efficiently, our cabin was excellent, comfortable and well appointed. The ship's restaurant was superb with an excellent variety and choice of dishes available for all meals. The lounge, bar and library areas were very comfortable but we spent as much time as possible out on deck while sailing. There were lectures every day to prepare us for our visits ashore. The guides were superb, being knowledgeable but also very helpful and friendly - they were great people and they helped to engender a very positive atmosphere throughout the whole trip. The ship's staff were lovely too. The shore visits were all accomplished with landings by zodiac boats - getting on and off these was made very easy by the highly skilled guides. We were all issued with bright red waterproofs and sturdy muck boots to wear. All in all we had a superb experience - we were blessed with wonderful weather and the wildlife was fantastic. The whole experience was worth six or seven stars - I doubt if it could have ben bettered. Read Less

If you want to experience the Artic, this cruise and cruising is the best way. We went on the 'Land of the Ice Bear' aboard the Serenissima with Noble Caledonia July 2016 The cruise was amazing. Great bunch of passengers and the expedition team lead by Hannah Lawson were 1st class and a wonderful bunch. The crew, mainly Philippinos were equally as good. The service was second to none with nothing too much trouble. The actual itinerary worked well and apart from a couple of rough days at sea sailing to the ice cap, everything went according to plan. We were lucky that we saw a few Polar Bears ;equally the bird life and other wildlife was an amazing experience and the ship's crew always did their best to take us where there were sightings of wildlife. NC supply passengers with thick jackets and insulated boots, which you will need as it is still very cold outside the ship even in summer. I would not recommend this for young children or for people who are not interested in wildlife, however if you are, and enjoy learning about the wildlife, glaciers etc then this is for you. Read Less