Boarding day – World Voyager

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Finally time for us to board our ship for Antarctica. We’re on Atlas Ocean Voyages – World Voyager. The ship is 3 years old and has a passenger capacity of 193, crew of 135. There are no inside rooms on this ship, all outside cabins with balconies or windows. Our room has a balcony.

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Check-in

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World Voyager

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Our stateroom

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Our balcony

20240227_160910 20240227_160944 IMG_1517This is a very different type of cruise ship. First, it’s not a cruise ship but a super yacht; second, there are no evening song & dance shows by the crew, and no bingo, no pool contests, no ice carvings, no midnight buffets, no casinos, no ports. That’s right, this ship does not stop at any ports. It anchors in bays and harbors of Antarctica and we take Zodiac “RIB” boats to do shore excursions. This is an expedition boat and there are no stops along our journey for souvenirs or trinkets, just exploring Antarctica.

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The Dome lounge, home away from home

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Briefing room

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Snack bar

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Bridge

This ship also has a “mud room” where our parkas (free with the cruise), waterproof boots, life jackets are kept until we muster down for our group to load up in the Zodiac for their excursion. Before loading we all dress out and exchange our shoes for the boots. This is to prevent introducing any foreign organisms to the land mass of Antarctica.

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Ready to board

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Mud Room

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Suited up

The ship does have a pool and two hot tubs that are pretty nice when coming back from the cold.

For our friend Linda, weather is a bit colder than the rest of South America. Temperature will be around 25-40F, no precipitation is in the forecast. Sea swell in Drake Channel around 3-5 meters, winds around 25mph. Once inside the Antarctic passage, the waves will calm but the wind may pick up.

And with that, we’re off on our Antarctica journey.