Hurtigruten Expeditions launches record-breaking 2023-24 season

Spanning five continents and more than 150 different itineraries, Hurtigruten Expeditions' new 2023/24 expedition cruises offering includes the widest ever selection of Galápagos, Antarctica, Arctic and West Africa expeditions – along with more sustainable off-the-beaten-path Alaska small-ship exploration.

Hurtigruten Expeditions – the world’s largest and leading expedition cruise line – has rapidly expanded the global offering of small-ship expedition cruises, growing in destinations such as the Galápagos Islands, West Africa, the Caribbean, and the Canary Islands.

The upcoming 2023/24 season is the most extensive in the history of Hurtigruten Expeditions which dates back to the company founding expedition cruising in 1896.

“We are thrilled to offer the greatest ever selection of adventure travel opportunities covering some of the most extraordinary areas of our planet. This broad offering of unique small-ship expedition cruises is perfect for modern adventure travelers looking for one-of-a-kind experiences while exploring with authenticity, learning and sustainability at the core,” said Hurtigruten Expeditions CEO Asta Lassesen.

Abundance of adventures

Photo: JOHN CHARDINE/Hurtigruten Expeditions

In addition to new destinations, a growing fleet also means more opportunities in some of Hurtigruten Expeditions’ most popular and iconic expedition destinations. Some of the highlights of the 2023-24 season include:

• Four different, year-round itineraries in the Galápagos Islands aboard the newly upgraded MS Santa Cruz II in collaboration with the pioneering Ecuadorian company Metropolitan Touring in which Hurtigruten Group recently acquired a 24.9% stake;
• Greener exploration on board MS Fridtjof Nansen, which was recently named “world’s most sustainable cruise ship”, and its sister ship MS Roald Amundsen;
• Year-round expedition cruises to Norway and the Arctic with the growing popularity of closer-to-home departures from Hamburg, Germany, and Dover, UK, with MS Otto Sverdrup and MS Maud;
• 34 different Antarctica departures – the largest ever offering on the Seventh Continent – with three ships exploring Falkland Islands and South Georgia. Expeditions are spanning from 12-23 days, including several 16-day attempts to push south of the Antarctic Circle and into the remote wilderness;
• A series of Pole-to-Pole expedition cruises – epic 66-94 days explorations from the Arctic to Antarctica – combining bucket-list destinations such as Alaska, Iceland, Greenland, the Northwest Passage, South America and Antarctica with fabled crossings such as the Arctic Circle, the Panama Canal and the Drake Passage;
• More off-the-beaten-track Alaska expedition cruises;
• Unique opportunities to explore the cradle of expedition cruising – the remote Arctic gem of Svalbard – with the company that founded expedition cruising there in 1896;

Other expeditions include exploration of both the East and West coasts of Greenland, eight full circumnavigations of spectacular Iceland, exploration of the Chilean fjords, and much more.

More experts – deeper exploration

Photo: ESPEN MILLS/Hurtigruten Expeditions

All Hurtigruten Expeditions’ cruises feature large on-board expedition teams with experts specifically handpicked for each itinerary. Building on more than 125 years of experience, Hurtigruten Expeditions offers the widest range of experts in the industry.

Leading up to the 2023/24 season, the size of the expedition team on all Hurtigruten Expeditions’ ships will be increased even further. More expedition equipment will also be added to the ships.

For the guests, this will mean a significant improvement, with an even wider range of activities to choose from – such as more kayaking, more small-boat exploration, hiking, lectures, science projects, and other activities – and even more experts to indulge in knowledge and create a deeper understanding of some of the most spectacular destinations of the planet.

“Great will get even better. Sharing passion, knowledge, and expertise of the areas we explore, is the core of the Hurtigruten Expeditions experience. Bigger expedition teams mean more of everything – more experts, more knowledge, more activities, and more options for our guests,” said Lassesen.

Explore more

Photo: RUNE KONGSRO/Hurtigruten Expedtions

Hurtigruten Expeditions is widely recognized for a push for more sustainable cruising, and has spent the recent global pause in cruising to further investments and upgrades, including installation of fleet-wide shore-power connections and adding Hurtigruten Expeditions’ signature state-of-the-art Science Centers to all ships.

Hurtigruten Expeditions' industry-leading Science Program includes scientists on every cruise on every ship, and a wide range of Citizen Science research projects that guests are encouraged to participate in during their expeditions.