We chose this cruise because we wanted to sail the Polaris as well as spend time on Antarctica, instead of having what we call the "sail by" with a "there it is" commentary to go with it. In addition to being a cruise ship and an ice breaker (!), the Polaris is a research ship and the work of its world renowned scientists is amazing and will indeed make a big difference world-wide. We wanted a cruise that would allow us to visit the land and wildlife as often as possible. The Polaris is small enough, and maneuverable enough, to be able to do this. The Captain was personable and competent, finding for us the best landing areas given the weather and availability of wildlife. We learned that on an expedition such as this, our landing areas and times would change as often as needed in order for us to visit land, given the volatility of weather and currents. Our Captain made it happen for us! Also, the food is spectacular, and the all inclusive nature of the cruise made everything so very easy.

The overall rating is a 5 because out of 5, I would give the cruise (embarkation to disembarkation) a 10, and the set up (e.g., Viking arranging travel, providing advance information, providing accurate information) was a 0 -- thus a 5 on average. In spite of my angst with ever entrusting my future travel planning to Viking corporate again, this is indeed a cruise of a lifetime. We have even asked nicely to be able to talk with someone at Viking who can do something about developing seamless customer service -- but no one is available for that conversation. We are 5 star Holland America Mariners (with grand world, and country/continent nautical miles behind and ahead of us), and with our first encounter with Viking, the inability of Viking to perform with any competence came as such a shock. The good news, the cruise is awesome and once aboard, the discontent took a back seat right away.

My rating for family is based on observation. Everyone had to be 18 or older. A couple of families brought elderly and others brought college age folks. A great time and supports necessary for safe passage and safe excursions were had by all! I did not rate fitness and recreation because we were too busy with all of the opportunities for learning and exploring. It is different on a research/exploration ship than on a typical, larger cruise ship. One might say that we got all the fitness and recreation we would ever want!