Adventure Cruises: 7 Trips for Your Bucket List

Adventure Cruises: 7 Trips for Your Bucket List

We take a look at seven adventure cruises worthy of the great explorers themselves

Adventure travelers are generally used to a certain level of discomfort: camping on a mountaintop, trekking through suffocating jungle, jumping from something very, very high. But even for the most hardened traveler, there are some adventures that are simply impossible to complete alone.

This is where cruise vacations come into play. With the ability to transport passengers to the most remote corners of the world, cruise ships offer the opportunity to visit places and see things that most people never get to see. Here we list the top adventure cruises for your bucket list (and by “bucket list,” of course, we mean “if you win the lottery”).

Note: Prices are per person, based on two people sharing a cabin.

1. North Pole

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If breaking ice to the North Pole is your idea of ​​fun, then add this extreme adventure to your priority list. Day 1 begins in Helsinki, Finland, where you take a charter flight to Murmansk, Russia.

On Day 2, your adventure begins aboard the 50 Years of Victory, a nuclear-powered icebreaker, followed by four days of breaking through the Arctic ice pack. Passengers can take an optional helicopter ride for a breathtaking aerial view of the vast Arctic Ocean.

On day 7 you reach the North Pole, where all directions point south. There you can take a polar plunge into the icy waters or opt for a more sensible hot air balloon ride instead.

14 days, $26,995, Quark Expeditions

2. Alaska

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If you're not quite ready for a mission to the North Pole, test the waters with one of these Alaska adventure cruises instead.

Your journey begins in the Alaskan capital of Juneau, where you'll meet your crew and settle in as you sail to Tongass National Forest, the largest national forest in the United States.

From there, you'll have an action-packed few weeks of trekking, glacier hiking, kayaking, paddleboarding and snorkeling, as well as opportunities to see humpback whales, killer whales, bears, moose and mink.

15 days, from $6,845, Un-Cruise Adventures

3. Antarctica

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There are numerous adventure cruises that offer a hop to the Antarctic Peninsula. Instead, opt for something bigger by following in the footsteps of the great explorers Scott and Amundsen.

The Akademik Shokalskiy heads deep into the Antarctic wilderness and sails past the Ross Ice Shelf, the largest floating ice in the world, and, weather permitting, takes you to Ross Island where you can visit Mount Erebus (the most active volcano in Antarctica). and the historic sites Shackleton’s Hut, Scott’s Hut(s), and Scott and McMurdo Stations.

35 days, from $22,300, Heritage Expeditions

4. Greenland

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With some of the world's best displays of the Northern Lights, Greenland's pure wilderness should be on every adventurer's bucket list.

This Quark Expeditions cruise sails through iceberg-studded fjords, giving passengers the opportunity to climb mountains and view herds of grazing musk oxen on the horizon.

You'll encounter Arctic wildlife in Greenland National Park and visit Ittoqqortoormiit, one of the most remote communities in the world, where residents live off the land like their ancestors did hundreds of years ago.

14 days, from $7,995, Quark Expeditions

5. Northwest Passage

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For centuries, people have died trying to traverse this passage in the hopes of establishing a shipping route between the Atlantic and Pacific.

It was the great explorer Amundsen who finally made it from 1903 to 1906 - 60 years after Sir John Franklin's ill-fated expedition in 1845, one of the flashpoints of the expedition. Franklin ventured into the Arctic with two ships and 129 men, never to be heard from again. Passengers can visit the last known wintering location of his ships, Erebus and Terror, and several other locations that were part of his expedition.

Wildlife viewing is also on the agenda as you travel through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, home to the polar bear, grizzly bear, musk ox, caribou and walrus.

13 days, from $11,995, OneOcean Expeditions

6. Pitcairn

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Famous for his role in Mutiny on the Bounty (as well as some questionable actions in 2004), the island of Pitcairn is also one of the most remote communities in the world.

The MV Claymore II makes a round trip from French Polynesia to Pitcairn eight times a year. The current schedule calls for a 3- or 10-night stay, with visitors having to find their own accommodation.

There are several Pacific cruise ships that include Pitcairn on their itinerary, but landing depends on sea conditions and they only stay for hours. Zegrahm Expeditions' MS Caledonian Sky has visited three times in the past on its cruise from Tahiti to Easter Island and, with a capacity of 114, promises a more intimate experience than its larger counterparts.

MV Claymore II: 2 days sailing from French Polynesia each way, 5,000 NZD (3,287 USD) for transport only, booking through the tourist office

MS Caledonian Sky: 21 days, from $18,480 and includes Tahiti, Marquesas, Tuamotus and Easter Island, Zegrahm Expeditions

7. West Africa

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Africa has long suffered from an image problem. From war and famine to child soldiers and modern-day pirates, this continent has been plagued by a history of horrors, but is recovering as more of its countries open up to tourists.

Wildlife sanctuaries, bustling port towns and charming villages have much to offer foreigners, as you'll see on this Adventure Associates cruise. Starting in Cape Town, you'll have the opportunity to visit Table Mountain and several other land-based attractions before boarding the MS Expedition for a day at sea.

From there, you'll visit a number of fascinating locations, including Angola, Congo and Sierra Leone, worthy of Livingstone himself.

32 days, from $16,999, Adventure Associates

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