Explorer’s Guide: We Take You to the Arctic

Here’s a common question we hear from expedition travelers considering an Arctic cruise: What’s the difference between Antarctica and the Arctic? Both have glaciers and wildlife and ice and snow.

The two polar destinations offer distinctive experiences. In the Arctic, you may spot polar bears and you will encounter millions of birds and meet Inuit communities. In a series of three travel videos, Silversea’s senior expedition team takes you behind the scenes on how they have developed Arctic itineraries, shares the region’s most underrated destinations, and explains how scientists play a pivotal role in carving out explorations in the north.

Here’s one big distinction between the two regions: Antarctica is a continent surrounded by ocean, which means cruises can only skirt its coastline, he explained. Whereas the Arctic is an ocean dotted by land masses. They are places of great contrast, says Conrad Combrink, Silversea’s Senior Vice President of Expeditions, Destination and Itinerary Management, during these webinars.

The combination of sea and land in the Arctic, he tells us, means Silversea’s expedition team can delve much deeper into this region, exposing travelers to a wider variety of landscapes, cultures and fauna.

Tim Amm, Silversea Director of Expedition Sales, adds that cruises to Antarctica are predictable in the wildlife spotting opportunities they present but that the Arctic is more mysterious. The latter destination offers a “safari” style experience: Guests are frequently be surprised by the fauna that appears before them, Amm tells us. Antarctica has huge numbers of certain animals, including tens of thousands of King Penguins that live in a colony at Salisbury Plain in South Georgia. The Arctic has a far greater variety of fauna. Reindeer, walruses, arctic fox, narwhals, beluga whales, musk ox and a phenomenal array of birds reside in the frozen north.

And of course, Arctic Canada is the world’s polar bear hotspot.

The polar bear symbolizes the Arctic more than any other animal. These gargantuan creatures can be up to 10 feet tall and weight as much as 1,800 pounds. About 20,000 polar bears remain on earth, and about 80 percent live in Arctic Canada.

Despite their enormity, polar bears are very difficult to spot due their small numbers, the camouflaging effect of their translucent fur, and the fact they spend most of their lives in a solitary existence, roaming for food. But Combrink says that Silversea’s expedition staff excel at spotting these animals. How? They study polar bear behavior with a passion. The best chance of seeing polar bears, he shares, is while cruising the Canadian Arctic, especially at Baffin Island, Hudson Bay, and Hudson Strait.

A million birds and daunting caverns await in Svalbard, Iceland and Norway

Among the natural wonders revealed by cruises to Arctic Svalbard is the astonishing Gjesværstappan, Simpson says. This cluster of steep islands in Norway is cloaked in birds, including kittiwakes, cormorants, northern gannets, common guillemots and almost a million puffins. Silversea guests can admire these species from up close, sitting in a Zodiac boat, perhaps alongside a scientist.

Greenland and Canada fly under the Arctic radar

Although Antarctica is a huge continent, the area of it that Silversea cruises focus on is small compared with the expanses covered during its Arctic itineraries. The latter region includes many areas people may not immediately think of as being in the Arctic, Amm tells us in the video.

Although Svalbard is a famed Arctic hotspot, Greenland and the Canadian Arctic are lesser known. Despite this lower profile, Amm describes the Canadian Arctic as the “highlight” of Silversea’s Arctic voyages.  “It’s the wildest, remotest, most difficult to get to and least visited,” he says. “And from a wildlife and scenic perspective, it’s spectacular.”

Silversea scientists demystify the Arctic

Arctic environments are so raw and curious that they, at times, need to be unraveled by an expert to make sense to visitors. That’s why Silversea guests benefit from the insight of eminent scientists on board each Arctic cruise.

Historians tell the tales of these destinations, anthropologists detail their cultures, archaeologists explain their human footprint, and geologists decode their landscape, showing how it was formed over millennia. While cruising Prince Christian Sound in southern Greenland, Silversea scientists explain its unique rock formations and the forces that created this otherworldly landscape, Combrink tells us during the webinars.

Exit the ship and enter communities, from Greenland to Alaska

Bob Simpson, Silversea Vice President of Expedition Product Development, discusses how, on Silversea’s Arctic ships, big fleets of Zodiac boats get you into places where dockage doesn’t exist. Zodiacs, small but strong inflatable vessels, zip across waters and through narrow passages, taking Silversea guests to Greenlandic villages, sublime inlets or towering sea cliffs, which they can admire from up close or, at times, wander on foot.

Many of these on-the-ground experiences cater to people of all physical capabilities. Beyond the sheer wonder and beauty of this remote region, Silversea guests deepen their experience by interacting with local communities, Simpson says. “Each one is uniquely different,” he says of the many Inuit villages included on Silversea’s Arctic schedule (watch to learn more).

Once impassable, now the Northwest Passage dazzles

In August, Silversea’s Arctic season pivots to the dramatic Northwest Passage. This mighty ocean channel, which stretches from the Bering Sea, north of Alaska, through Canada’s Arctic Archipelago, has sections that are lined with hulking icebergs up to nearly 300 feet tall