Partner line · Ultramarine and Ocean Explorer in the Arctic
Quark Expeditions
Quark Expeditions has sailed nothing but the polar regions since 1991, and took the first paying guests to the North Pole the same year. We have sailed both of its Arctic ships, we know the cabins deck by deck, and we hold offers on many departures that are only available by talking to us.
Why we recommend Quark Expeditions
Helicopters, hikes and the most active days in the Arctic
Quark is the line we recommend to guests who want to be off the ship as much as on it. Ultramarine carries two Airbus H145 helicopters and twenty Zodiacs for 199 guests, which means heli-hiking on the Greenland ice cap, flightseeing over the fjords of Svalbard and a landing programme that no other ship in the Arctic can match. Ocean Explorer, with 138 guests and the wave-piercing X-Bow hull, takes the Spitsbergen, Scotland to Svalbard and Greenland to Newfoundland routes with the same expedition team and the same adventure options: sea kayaking, paddling excursions, stand-up paddleboarding, the polar plunge and camping where the ice allows. Fares are in US dollars and include the charter flights and hotel nights at the gateway city.
We have sailed with Quark in both polar regions and we know which cabins on Ultramarine sit under the helicopter deck and which Ocean Explorer suites have the forward view. Tell us the month and the kind of Arctic you want, and one Australian specialist chooses the sailing and the cabin with you, books the flights from Australia to the gateway city, brings in the offers we hold for Arctic Cruise guests, and stays with you until you are home.
- 2 ships in the Arctic
- Svalbard, Greenland, Scotland, Canada
- 9 to 16 nights
On board
What you notice in the first day
A Quark voyage is built around the outings. The expedition team is the largest in the Arctic for the number of guests, the daily briefing lays out three or four options rather than one, and the gear room issues the parka, boots and dry suits on the first evening. On Ultramarine the helicopters start flying the moment the weather clears, and the day can end with the whole ship on the ice at midnight.
Helicopter flightseeing
Twenty Zodiacs
Sea kayaking
Hikes above the fjords
Landings for every guest
The fleet
The two ships we send north
A purpose-built helicopter ship and a wave-piercing expedition yacht, both rated Polar Class 6 and both sailing the Arctic from May to October. We tell you honestly which one suits the voyage you have in mind.
Launched in 2021 for 199 guests with 103 cabins and suites, two Airbus H145 helicopters, twenty Zodiacs and a crew of 140. The ship of the Spitsbergen circumnavigation, the Northwest Passage and the Greenland helicopter routes.
Her Arctic season
Arctic expeditions aboard Quark Expeditions
Spitsbergen in spring or around the whole archipelago, Scotland to Svalbard, South Greenland by helicopter, West Greenland to Qaanaaq, the Northwest Passage and Greenland to Newfoundland. Tell us the month you have in mind and we tell you which sailing suits it, which cabin, and what we can do on the fare.
All expeditions
Questions
Quark Expeditions in the Arctic, your questions answered
Seasons, ships, what is included and how to get there from Australia. If your question is not here, we are a call away.
Svalbard, Greenland, the Canadian High Arctic and the North Atlantic between Scotland and Newfoundland. The routes we sell run from Longyearbyen around Spitsbergen, from Glasgow north to Svalbard, around South and West Greenland by helicopter, through the Northwest Passage and from Greenland down to Newfoundland.
May to October. The spring sailings in Svalbard start in May with the sea ice still in the fjords, the circumnavigations run through July and August, the Greenland and Northwest Passage voyages sail in August and September, and the Greenland to Newfoundland route closes the season.
Ultramarine, with 199 guests, two helicopters and twenty Zodiacs, and Ocean Explorer, with 138 guests and the X-Bow hull. Both are rated Polar Class 6 and both carry the full adventure programme: kayaking, paddling, hiking and the polar plunge.
The Svalbard sailings start in Longyearbyen with the charter flight from Helsinki and the Helsinki hotel night included. The Greenland and Canada sailings start from Reykjavík, Toronto or Kangerlussuaq, with the charter flights and hotel nights listed in each programme. We arrange your flights from Australia to the gateway city.
The cabin, all meals, beer and wine at dinner, Zodiac outings, landings and guided hikes, lectures, the Quark parka to keep and boots on loan, the charter flights and hotel nights named in the programme, port fees and a photographic journal of the voyage. Helicopter flightseeing is included on Ultramarine; heli-hiking, kayaking, camping and the other adventure options are booked in advance. Gratuities are at your discretion. We confirm the exact inclusions of your sailing in the proposal we write for you.
Quark publishes its fares in US dollars, and we show them that way so you can compare like with like. We quote the Australian dollar amount on the day you book, with our own offers for Arctic Cruise guests applied.
We have sailed the ships and we know them. You get one Australian specialist who chooses the sailing and the cabin with you, books the flights from home, the hotels and the insurance, brings in the offers we hold for Arctic Cruise guests, and stays with you until you are home.
Made to measure
Tell us your Arctic, we build the rest
Every guest sails differently. Tell us what you are hoping for, the ice, the wildlife, the light, who you are travelling with, and we match it to the right sailing, the right stateroom and the right year, with flights from Australia and our own offers included. One Arctic Cruise specialist stays with you from the first call until you are home.