We are just starting our search for a 10-14 day cruise to Antarctica, etc. for mid December, 2009.

Please send us your thoughts and the names of the ships you enjoyed around the same time. Also, if you could include ballpark figures on the rates, that would be very helpful.
Any information that would make our search a bit easier and less time consuming would be great.

We are teachers and therefore money and the exact time is important.

Thanks so much.

We did the Antarctic on Princess and Holland America. But if you go to www.cruise.com and plug in (I believe under South America) Antarctica you can put in the dates etc and they will show you all the options for cruises and dates. You can get a very good idea from that what is available and pricing. You can always shop for prices after that but I find their website most comprehensive for cruises available. You can choose from the more intensive (and pricey) cruises to a more relaxed sightseeing experience. You will certainly enjoy it - no matter which line you choose.

Another good information source if you want to take the time to read the posts is www.cruisecritic.com. Select "Boards" in the left of the yellow bar and then select "Ports of Call" and "Antarctica". I very much enjoyed the small ship experience of the Clipper Adventurer. It is no longer owned by Intrav so I can't really recommend it exclusively as I don't know the operator now. There are advantages and disadvantages timewise. Late in the year (November and December)which is early spring there, I think you see more youngsters. But the earlier you are in the season which extends up until March, the more ice there will be which has not broken up permitting good passage as in January and February. Still plenty of wildlife to view later but the babies will be a little older. Another good source is www.expeditiontrips.com and you can sign up for their "Just Released Offers". I have booked with them for numerous cruises of the expedition type. The advantage to this type of cruise is that you do numerous landings. Only 100 people are permitted to land at one time so with a larger ship there is rotation problems. It is a fabulous destination.

We booked out Antarctica cruise through Polar Cruises. Just head over to www.polarcruises.com and it shows you the different ships, dates, prices, and everything else you need. Our trip was on the Orlova, which is run by Quark Expeditions, and we loved the trip and would definitely take another Quark trip in the future.

Chris

We are booked to go from the 10th Dec until 20th with Gap. They have a refitted boat and are offering good discounts at the moment.We have friends that went with Gap on the old ship and enjoyed themselves immensely.

We went with Silversea aboard the Prince Albert in December 2008. It was a fabulous experience.