Adventure Travel News

Kongsberg Maritime, a Norwegian maritime equipment and technology specialist, announced a 23% reduction in CO2 emissions on the 121-meter passenger vessel MS Richard With, which is owned by Hurtigruten, a coastal ship operator and adventure travel company.The vessel finished an extensive refit last summer using Kongsberg Maritime engineering and technology and has now completed its first year back in service.Last year, Kongsberg Maritime partnered with Myklebust Verft shipyard to convert three Hurtigruten ships to hybrid technology, promising reduced emissions and quieter operations.

Hurtigruten Expeditions’ new battery-hybrid powered MS Fridtjof Nansen has made history with the northernmost naming ceremony for a passenger ship—at the location where expedition cruising began in 1896.At latitude 78˚ North in Longyearbyen, Svalbard—often dubbed “next to the North Pole”—the local community joined the celebrations of one of the world’s greenest and most advanced cruise ships.“We are thrilled to celebrate more than 125 years of exploration and adventure travel where it all began.

Expedition cruising company Lindblad Expeditions Holdings has appointed Dolf Berle as president, chief executive officer and a member of its board, effective May 10. Berle succeeds Sven-Olof Lindblad, who will become co-chair of the board together with current board chair Mark Ein.The leadership change comes as Lindblad Expeditions announced that it will resume small ship expeditions cruises and adventure travel experience operations for the 2021 season in Alaska and Galapagos, beginning in the first week of June.

Lindblad Expeditions Holdings, a global player in expedition cruises and adventure travel experiences, has celebrated the float out of National Geographic Endurance in Ulstein Verft, Norway.The first polar newbuild for the line, the 126-guest vessel is fully stabilized with the highest ice class (PC5 Category A) of any purpose-built passenger vessel, according to a press release.The vessel is scheduled for delivery in January 2020.Read Maritime Reporter & Engineering News' feature on Sven Lindblad from earlier in 2019 here: https://www.marinelink.com/news/explorer-profile-sven-lindblad-463899"Due to Polar Class 5 (PC5), the ship can venture far into polar areas.

Lindblad Expeditions Holdings, a global provider of expedition cruises and adventure travel experiences,  and Norwegian shipbuilder and ship designer Ulstein Group have celebrated the keel laying of Lindblad’s second polar new build at the Crist shipyard in Gdynia, Poland.The occasion also served as the official naming ceremony of the vessel. It is named as National Geographic Resolution,  in honor of Captain James Cook.Captain James Cook was the first to circumnavigate Antarctica, cross the Antarctic Circle, and the first European to reach Hawaii. While he captained several ships in his career, his favorite was the 'MS Resolution'.The newbuild is sister ship to the National Geographic Endurance which is being finalized at Ulstein Verft.

Norwegian shipping company Hurtigruten has announced a partnership between Hurtigruten’s land-based adventure travel company Hurtigruten Svalbard, and the Finnish start-up company, Aurora Powertrains.The agreement is an industry first for snowmobiles, and starts a new era of silent and emission-free exploration by snowmobiling.“Exploring some of the most pristine areas of our planet has never been eco-friendlier. We firmly believe the future of travel is emission-free. Introducing electrical solutions in our land-based operations and activities is a major step in this direction; with the introduction of eSleds, Hurtigruten Svalbard once again leads the way with groundbreaking green technology…

Profiled in the March 2019 cruise edition of Maritime Reporter & Engineering News is Sven Lindblad, intrepid explorer and wildlife photographer Sven Lindblad blazed the trail for environmentally sensitive travelers to Antarctica on Lindblad Expedition’s fleet of cruise ships with National Geographic.You can tell a lot about a man by whom his heroes are, whether famous athletes, virtuoso musicians, brave warriors or movie stars. As we age, we choose our heroes by their moral compass…

Marlink entered an agreement with Overseas Adventure Travel (O.A.T.) to supply its satellite voice and data connectivity services for use on five adventure cruise ships in the O.A.T. fleet.Marlink will provide the O.A.T. Small Ships with a suite of solutions; equipment, bandwidth and operations to reliably meet and exceed guest voice and data requirements; uninterrupted voice and corporate connectivity to facilitate ship management tasks; and flexible connectivity services to…

Croatia's Brodosplit shipyard today cut steel for Quark Expeditions' first newbuild, a 200-passenger vessel scheduled for 2020 launch.The ceremony took place at the shipyard and museum of Brodosplit, and was attended by senior executives from both companies, including President of Quark Expeditions Andrew White, CEO of DIV Group Tomislav Debeljak and CEO of Brodosplit Zoran Kunkera.The new ship from Quark Expeditions is the first of its kind, combining leading-edge technology, long-range operational capability and advanced safety systems to reach new frontiers in polar exploration, said a press release from the provider of polar adventure travel for three decades.“Every aspect of the ship has been built with one thing in mind: continuing to redefine what is possible in polar adventure…

As the luxury yacht/adventure sector of the global cruise market continues to gain strength, Maritime Reporter & Engineering News recently received insights from Hurtigruten, a clear leader in the sector. William Harber, President of the Americas Region, Hurtigruten, explains the path forward. Please discuss Hurtigruten’s plans to ramp up its North American presence. We are indeed ramping up our presence in the Americas. From a distribution perspective, Hurtigruten is developing stronger, deeper and more strategic partnerships to drive our expedition cruise products.

Lindblad Expeditions Holdings, Inc., a global provider of expedition cruises and adventure travel experiences, and Ulstein Group, Norwegian shipbuilder and ship designer, celebrated the keel laying of Lindblad’s first polar new build. The keel laying at the CRIST shipyard in Gdynia, Poland, marked a milestone in the construction of the sophisticated expedition ship, and served as the official naming ceremony of the line’s latest addition to the Lindblad-National Geographic fleet. “We are thrilled to announce the name of our new polar ship: National Geographic Endurance, due for delivery in the first quarter of 2020,” said Sven Lindblad, President and CEO of Lindblad Expeditions.

First polar newbuild ordered for the Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic fleet. Expedition cruising and adventure travel company Lindblad Expeditions Holdings, Inc. has signed an agreement with Norwegian shipbuilder and ship designer Ulstein to build a new polar expedition ship for delivery in the first quarter of 2020, with an option for two additional ships to be delivered in subsequent years. The state-of-the-art vessel will be built in Ulsteinvik, Norway and has been designed with a focus on safety and comfort…

As part of its 2017 State of the Cruise Industry Outlook, trade association Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) has forecasted the top eight cruise travel trends that will have the greatest impact on the cruise industry in the coming year. New Generation Takes to the Water – A recent study found that younger generations—including Millennials and Generation X — will embrace cruise travel more than ever before, rating it as better than land-based vacations, all-inclusive resorts, tours, vacation house rentals or camping.

Hurtigruten’s two new hybrid powered expedition ships under construction at Kleven Yards have been named Roald Amundsen and Fridtjof Nansen, after two influential Norwegian polar pioneers from the era when the company itself first started offering adventure travels. The vessels are due to be delivered in 2018 and 2019. “On December 14, it will be exactly 105 years since Roald Amundsen became the first person in the world to plant his flag on the South Pole,” notes Daniel Skjeldam, CEO, Hurtigruten.

Norwegian exploration travel company Hurtigruten, has signed a letter of intent for the construction of up to four new explorer ships with Norwegian shipyard Kleven. The order for delivery in 2018 and 2019 is a move to meet growing demand for adventure travel from travellers in the U.S. and across the globe. The order includes the construction of two new state-of-the-art vessels, which will be designed and customized specifically for adventure-rich expedition voyages in the Arctic and Antarctic regions, as well as along the Norwegian coastline. True to Hurtigruten’s commitment to sustainability, the new ships will be equipped with advanced environmentally-friendly technology to reduce emissions.

Silver Cloud is to move Silversea Cruises’ luxury expedition fleet in November 2017. Destined mostly for polar waters, the elite 296-guest ship that launched the ultra-luxury cruise line will be converted into an ice-class ship during an extensive refurbishment scheduled to start in August 2017, Silversea Cruises said. As an expedition ship, the all-suite Silver Cloud will accommodate 260 guests and also sail on itineraries to non-polar regions. When sailing Arctic and Antarctic itineraries, the guest complement will be restricted to 200. Silversea is a member of the Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators (AECO) and the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO), and adheres to each organisation's guidelines to ensure sustainable tourism.

(Ft. Lauderdale, FL -- April 20, 2011) Ultra-luxury Silversea Cruises today announced plans to change the name of the Prince Albert II, its expedition ship, to Silver Explorer. The change will occur later this month while the vessel is in dry dock at the Lisnave shipyard in Setubal, Portugal, undergoing routine maintenance prior to commencing a summer program of Northern Europe and Arctic voyages. "Our expansion into adventure travel has turned out quite successful and we have to prepare for the possibility of adding more ships," said Manfredi Lefebvre, Silversea's chairman.

Demaree Inflatable Boats Inc. (DIB) has delivered two 19-ft. Ship-to-Shore boats to Cruise West, a small-ship cruise line based in Seattle, Wash. Cruise West purchased these USCG-approved, inflatable hull, rigid deck boats to transport passengers and equipment ashore during winter and spring excursions from California to Mexico. Each boat is powered by a single Yanmar 36 hp outboard diesel motor. Cruise West already owns four DIB boats purchased in 1998. With the new deliveries, the company now has three DIB boats stationed on the 192-ft., 96-guest Spirit of 98 and three stationed on the 217-ft., 102-guest Spirit of Endeavor. Colin Leech…