Travel Articles: Traveler Stories

To get to Antarctica requires a lot of travel. As the crow flies, it’s a little under 10,000 miles from Missoula, Montana. That’s a lot of ground to cover, and looking back, I wish we would have spent more time exploring some of the miles in between. If we hadn’t been hemmed in by two weeks notice and Christmas travel plans we …

A key aspect of the enjoyment behind this cruise for me was being well informed. I liked the daily programs they would pass out the night before, giving us a run down on scheduled events. This leaflet had everything-- information on the expected weather forecast, including wind speed and sunrise/sunset times. It had our approximate location with a …

Food, on any cruise, speaks to the overall quality of the experience and is an essential part of the adventure- even more so when that food is the only option available for hundreds of miles. Cuisine provides cruise ships an opportunity to showcase their level of sophistication and luxury. Of course, French influence was apparent through each and …

Cruising with Ponant is a great experience. Every room is equipped with its own beverage center spanning from a wide variety of teas to "make your own cocktails" mini bar. All was included and restocked daily! Many fine spirits and wines were also complementary and every time we came back from an excursion, the crew would have some warm …

Lots of things about this adventure were great, but can you blame me if I say that this was by far my favorite aspect? I mean it helped that our expedition guides were cool, but I think it made a world of difference that our captain and our expedition leader both had a sense of adventure at the center of their hearts. The whole ship made us feel …

After my Antarctic journey, I decided to go "thaw out" in Iguazu. I was really excited to see the falls- I have always been a big fan of waterfalls- they are so sacred and powerful! The beauty and expansiveness of Iguazu is unmatched by all the other waterfalls I have seen on my travels thus far.

Upon finishing my cruise, I flew from …

In addition to penguins, icebergs are a quality that gives Antarctica its Antarctica-ness! Antarctica without icebergs certainly would not be Antarctica. In addition to their massive size, I was also amazed at all the different variations of blues and whites in each iceberg. Did you know that to be classified as an iceberg, the ice height must be …

I consider myself to be a pretty light packer, but planning for Antarctica was a bit daunting. Luckily, living in Montana helped prepare me for the trip as I already owned lots of cold-weather clothing. My goal for the more than two-week-long trip was to bring only a carry on suitcase and a small backpack and I successfully achieved this goal! …

Although wildlife can never be guaranteed in any location, in a place like Antarctica no wildlife sightings would certainly be unusual! On my Antarctic journey, I saw many species of penguins, whales, birds and seals. In fact, we were able to check off most of the creatures on the wildlife list provided by our expedition leaders. While I was …

The Drake Passage is the body of water between South America's Cape Horn and Antarctica. With so much water funneled through such a small space, the seas are some of the roughest in the world. In fact, 125–200 million cubic yards per second pass through the passage.I was pretty anxious about spending four days on the Drake and tried to …

This particular trip was extra special because we successfully crossed the Antarctic Polar Circle, an imaginary line at66°33′48 degrees South! Attempts to cross the Polar Circle usually happen once per season on Antarctic ships. The polar circle itineraries tend to occur during late February or March when the larger sheets of ice have …

One of my favorite days on my trip was towards the end of the cruise. We started the morning in Paradise Bay and Skontorp Cove near the Chilean Research base at Brown Station. While some people went on land, the rest of us went on a zodiac cruise to get up close to the wildlife and icebergs. The glassy bay was beautiful for taking photos- …

I was expecting to see lots of aquatic wildlife on my Antarctic cruise (and I did see plenty of swimming whales, penguins and seals!) but I was not expecting a human cold water swim team! The MV Ushuaia helped a group of 14 cold water experience a 1 km icy swim. (Two swimmers even broke world records for the first swimmers below the polar circle!) …

When choosing an Antarctic vessel, there are many different factors to consider including ship size and the number of passengers, level of on board amenity and overall cost. I chose to travel on the 88 passenger MV Ushuaia. This is one of the smallest and most basic ships plying the Antarctic waters and all passengers are able to go ashore at a …

Upon arrival in the port city of Ushuaia, I went to go check out Tierra del Fuego National Park on a trekking and paddling excursion! I visited Ushuaia a few years ago, but did not get a chance to visit this particular national park, and I was excited to check it out. In the morning, I met up with the small group of other travelers and our local …

When I have been snorkeling before, I generally see a few schools of fish, generally some clownfish and parrotfish and just once I swam with a sea turtle after hours of searching. All of my previous snorkeling experiences pale in comparison to any of the snorkels we did in the Galapagos. On our first shallow snorkel, we hopped in the water and …

The days in the Galapagos are action-packed! I don’t know what I was expecting but we got to do so much more each day than I could’ve imagined. Each morning, we were woken up by a good morning announcement over the loudspeaker at 7:30am. We would quickly dress in our outfit for the morning before heading to coffee and breakfast at 8:00 …

Instead of immediately returning to Quito, we decided to spend the night at a hacienda up in the mountains. If you have a day or two to spare around Quito, I highly recommend El Porvenir. Set in the middle of farmlands and mountains, this lodge is an oasis for all things.

When we arrived, we were greeted with warm cheese empanadas and a warm …

A few years ago, my family and I spent a month traveling around Ecuador. We visited many different areas but never got the chance to explore the famous volcano called Cotopaxi. So we decided to start our trip in the highlands near Quito. Our guide, Daniel, picked us up shortly after breakfast and we headed to the mountains. The drive itself is …

The Galapagos is no stranger to motion sickness, and unfortunately, there is no good way to see the islands that does not require traveling, at least in part, on a small boat. For those who suffer from motion sickness as badly as I do, it is a matter of choosing the lesser of the evils.

You can visit the island by cruise, or you can stay in a …

A question that often comes up from travelers is where to stay during their first night in Quito. If you are doing more than one night pre- or post-cruise, there is no question – you should stay downtown. The potential hour drive is absolutely worth it if you are going to have time to explore.

However, where should you stay if you just have …

Many travelers insist they need an itinerary that visits the Charles Darwin Station, believing it will be an amazing stop on their journey. While the Darwin Station does some fantastic work in protecting and promoting endemic life on the Galapagos Islands, most of that work is done in areas that tourists are not allowed to visit. The section of …

99% of travelers planning their Galapagos trip ask the same question: “Which islands are best?” The biggest comparison in question is between the western and eastern islands.

While it is the most commonly asked question, it is one that does not have a good answer. The honest-to-goodness truth is that both sides of the islands are …

Back at the ship from whale watching, about half of us lined up to do the polar plunge. I was surprised at how many passengers wanted to, and at the ages of some of those in line. One of the older ladies confessed she didn’t know how to swim - she had never jumped into water in her whole life - but she was willing to try this because …