Guests will travel with the most experienced team in the industry—some of whom have honed their polar expertise over more than 200 expeditions in their 20-plus-year career. The guest experience is enriched by paddle guides, photography guides, geologists, ornithologists and other experts who share their expertise as it relates to each specific polar destination.
When you venture into the untouched wilds of the Arctic and Antarctic, you need a great team around you. And we have the greatest. You’ll join elite guides trained at Quark Academy—which surpasses every standard imaginable for safety and preparedness in the Polar Regions—and interact directly with world-class polar experts. Our philosophy? The team that explores together, discovers more together.
Our Expedition Team
Always an Opportunity to Learn
Guests, whether they’re new to a topic or are longtime enthusiasts, broaden their knowledge base as they learn from expert presenters (on polar history, glaciology, ornithology, penguin science, marine biology etc.) . These world-renown polar authorities share their expertise daily in the context of what guests see and do during their off-ship excursions.
Learn in all environments
Our 1:6 expedition team member-to-guest ratio means you’ll have all the attention you want throughout your voyage and excellent access to polar experts. You could be standing on the deck of a ship, binoculars in hand, discussing seabirds with one of our ornithologists. This enriched (and often spontaneous) interaction with staff is apt to happen on ship, on a Zodiac or during a shore landing.
World Class Training
Quark Academy, the only proprietary polar training program in the industry, ensures guests have the safest and most immersive experience possible—with the best team in the industry during shore landings and Zodiac excursions. All participants at Quark Academy are fully immersed in the rules and regulations set out by the Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators (AECO) and the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO). The safety of guests—as well as wildlife—is always paramount.