There’s nowhere else on Earth quite like Antarctica. You’ll find sailing through the world’s seventh continent with Swan Hellenic is a voyage like no other. Dramatic coastlines, breathtaking scenery, fascinating history, and the beautiful wildlife here combine to create once-in-a-lifetime experiences that will stay with you forever.
There’s nowhere else on Earth quite like Antarctica. You’ll find sailing through the world’s seventh continent with Swan Hellenic is a voyage like no other. Dramatic coastlines, breathtaking scenery, fascinating history, and the beautiful wildlife here combine to create once-in-a-lifetime experiences that will stay with you forever.
Cruise to the White Continent and you’ll fall in love with this unforgettable frozen land. Whether you’re relaxing on board your 5-star boutique ship or exploring ashore, your adventures in this special place will touch you forever.
Sail through crystal clear fjords, glide past giant icebergs and glaciers, discover Antarctica’s rich history of explorers, whalers, and scientists, and you’ll feel a bond with the natural world that grows stronger every day.
I had such an amazing experience on Swan Hellenic's Antarctica cruise. Our ship, SH Diana, was less than 2-years old and was a perfect environment for this expedition. The ship only had 190 passengers (and approximately 135 crew), which made it a very intimate experience.
The expedition crew was incredible. They aren't your typical "cruise crew". These are marine biologists, nature photographers, videographers, and Zodiac experts with years of experience leading expeditions to the White Continent.
Each expedition is different. The Drake passage is a wildcard in every Antarctica excursion, and determines where each expedition will go.
My 10-day cruise consisted of four days of landings — two per day. As a bonus, we were even able to make a landing in South Shetland Islands since our Drake passage was so calm. This is definitely a wildcard, so I wouldn't expect this on your cruise. Each day in Antarctica we would make two landings, typically about an hour each. This allowed us to get on land and explore a bit before returning to the ship and setting sail for our afternoon destination.
From humpback whales to leopard seals, fur seals, and hundreds of gentoo and chinstrap penguins, we were overwhelmed with marine sightings.
Departing Neko Harbour, we were even escorted by two dozen humpback whales lazily swimming and surfacing alongside our ship. It was quite an escort and one of the highlights of our trip!
SH Diana is a 2-year old expedition ship. However, it is not what you would expect in an Antarctic expedition ship. This is truly a 5-star ship!
Diana is a very small ship compared to most Mediterranean and Caribbean cruise ships — our expedition had only 190 passengers! This allows the ship to navigate many hard to reach harbors in Antarctica and gives passengers a very "up close" view of the magnificent landscape of glaciers and sea life.
As soon as we boarded, we were greeted with a glass of champagne and ushered to a lavish lounge for our pre-departure briefing. This gave us a few minutes to take in the luxurious decor and appointments of the common areas of SH Diana.
I can't say enough about the ship. The staterooms — I had a balcony stateroom — were more luxurious than any cruise stateroom I have ever stayed in. From the LED fireplace, ample storage, comfortable king bed, expansive bathroom, couch, desk and the incredible balcony, it is more like a studio apartment than a cruise stateroom!
I was able to see one of the staterooms without a balcony. Even though there was no balcony, the stateroom had huge sliding windows which allowed passengers to still take in the open air and expansive landscapes from the room.
There are three meals per day, all served from the 4th floor restaurant, as well as snacks throughout the day.
Breakfast and lunch are buffet-style, but the food is world class and the options change daily. Dinner is a five-star experience. The menu changes daily, with several choices of appetizers, soups, salads, entrees and desserts. During most of my dinners, I couldn't decide which dessert to order — so they brought me multiple!
Unlike other cruises, drinks are free! This includes alcoholic beverages like beer, wine, and mixed drinks. Premium options were available for a price, but the free drink options would be considered "premium" in any bar around the world.
