Antarctic Travel | Just off the ship, let's talk about the pros and cons of Atlas

This time I chose the Atlas Navigator for my trip to Antarctica. This cruise company has only been established for five years. When I was planning my trip, I found that their reputation was mixed. The main criticisms were that they would cancel landings or return early due to weather, and there were also complaints that the expedition team was not professional enough. However, after this experience, I clearly feel that they are seriously improving and upgrading. The things I was worried about before the trip did not happen, and it completely exceeded my expectations. For Antarctic travel, weather, luck, ship captain and the professionalism of the expedition team are indispensable. Even the same ship, different voyages may have different experiences. Based on my personal experience this time, I will share the pros and cons of Atlas Navigator for reference—— 👍🏻Pros: ▫️New ship Atlas now has three cruise ships, all of which are recent ships. The overall design and equipment are relatively new, and the style is also quite fashionable. ▫️Good food Nothing else to say, the food on this ship is really good. The dinner menu is different every day, and both the taste and presentation are very exquisite. It is obvious that the chef is trying hard to cater to the taste of Chinese guests. There are Chinese food for several days in a row, which is not particularly authentic but the taste is still ok. ▫️Good service I really like the atmosphere on this ship! Every service staff is very caring and cute, they will chat and joke with the guests, and also prepare small gifts and surprises. There are four or five Chinese waiters on the ship, who take special care of the uncles and aunts who do not speak English. ▫️Many activities On average, there are at least 1-3 lectures every day, piano or singing performances in the evening, and activities such as crew talent show, captain cocktail, etc., which are fully arranged. ▫️Many landings During our 11-day voyage, we spent 6 days on the Antarctic Peninsula and the polar circle, and made a total of 6 landings and 5 cruises, interspersed with 4 groups of kayaking, 4 groups of paddling and 2 groups of camping. The expedition team will adjust the route plan in time according to the weather forecast to ensure at least 1-2 landings/cruises every day, and the briefings are clear and in place. ▫️High cost performance Atlas has been losing money in the past two years, with a large discount, basically buy one get one free, the normal price is about ¥7w per person. There are also people on our ship who got last minute tickets, $3000 for a single balcony room, I am so envious🥺 · 👎🏻Cons: ▪️Not stable and reliable enough Although my personal experience is very good, the sister ship Voyager, which set off one day earlier than us, had an engine failure and was forced to return. The passengers were all assigned to other ships. It feels like a new company after all, with some inexperienced situations, and the products are not stable enough, which makes the experience good or bad partly depends on luck, which is indeed not reliable enough. ▪️The expedition team is too young Most of the 14 expedition teams are young people with only 1-3 seasons of experience, and there are even college students (I guess the powerful expedition team members have been signed by the old ship captains). It's interesting to listen to everyone share their knowledge in their own fields, but I feel that their polar experience is a bit less, and the professionalism of the expedition is discounted. Only one of them, Susy, a retired American teacher in her 70s, has the richest experience, and her sharing is also the most unique and popular. ▪️Not an icebreaker Atlas's ships are not icebreakers, and the places they can go are relatively limited, more suitable for first-time leisure tourists to Antarctica. If you want a more hardcore and adventurous experience, Atlas may not be able to satisfy.