6 of the best new expedition cruises

Cruise clients can choose their preferred adventures, from polar-bear spotting to scenic Norwegian fjord sailings 

Cruise expert Jane Archer rounds up six of the best new expedition cruises to entice travel clients with. Whether your passengers want wildlife encounters, wellness retreats or other-worldly scenery, there's an expedition ship that can deliver. Here are some suggestions. 

1. Best for the Ross Sea: AE Expeditions’ new ship Douglas Mawson, launching in December 2025, will sail from Australia to east Antarctica and explore New Zealand’s subantarctic islands. The vessel will hold 154 passengers and offer single cabins to cater for the growing number of solo travellers.

2. Best for short expeditions: HX Expeditions has released 10 new seven-night Ultimate Norway round-trip cruises from Tromso, operating between January and March 2026. Sailings on the 160-passenger Spitsbergen visit the Lyngen Alps, Senja, Lofoten and Vesterålen in northern Norway.

3. Best for polar bears: Polar bears and walruses await as Scenic’s Scenic Eclipse I circles Svalbard on a 12-day Arctic expedition round-trip from Longyearbyen, departing 17 August 2025 after a night in Oslo. Tips and expeditions ashore are included in the price.

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4. Best for penguins: Atlas Ocean Voyages is off in search of glaciers, penguins and orcas on a 13-night voyage from Ushuaia that visits Chile’s Magdalena Island, Argentina’s Isla de los Estados and West Point Island and Stanley in the Falklands. Prices for the 3 March 2026 departure are from US$6,999 excluding flights.

5. Best for wellness: Swan Hellenic is offering two five-night Explore and Restore cruises from Salvador de Bahia in Brazil in autumn 2024; both include daily yoga and meditation sessions, self-discovery workshops and Ayurveda-inspired meals. Prices start from US$2,480 including the wellbeing package.

6. Best for islands: The remote archipelagos of Vanuatu, Solomons, New Guinea and the Federated States of Micronesia are under the microscope on a trilogy of new expedition voyages from Coral Expeditions departing in January and February 2026. Two voyages sail for 16 nights, the third is 21 nights, and between them they offer wildlife and cultural encounter, including opportunities to dive and snorkel.

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