Viking Polaris

Great Lakes and Greenland mid-year, Antarctica from November

Viking Polaris spends the middle of the year in North America and Greenland, then moves south to Argentina for the Antarctic season. Between May and August she runs 14-night one-way voyages between Toronto and Duluth, Minnesota, through the Great Lakes. Stops change between departures, but you might see the Welland Canal, Detroit, Mackinac Island or Thunder Bay. Some Toronto departures end in Nuuk instead, and other voyages begin there, so she is also worth a look if you are weighing up cruises to Greenland.

In November and December, as the Australian summer begins, she sails round trips from Ushuaia in Argentina. The longer ones run 17 nights and the December round trips 11 or 13. Landings vary from one departure to the next, but the Antarctic Peninsula features on both, with Westpoint Island and Port Stanley in the Falklands among the stops on the longer trips and Cape Horn on the shorter ones.

Between those seasons she sails one-off voyages from ports including New York, Fort Lauderdale, Milwaukee and Valparaíso, some of them long ones. A few take in the Southern Caribbean, and our searches for Caribbean cruises in 2027 and Caribbean cruises in 2028 show what else sails those islands. Toronto, Duluth, Milwaukee, Nuuk, Ushuaia, Valparaíso, New York and Fort Lauderdale all mean a flight from Australia, and we book the flights out and home, the hotel either side and the transfers as one holiday with the cruise. Viking Octantis is her sister ship, and the rest of the line is on our Viking Cruises page.

Nordic home cooking across Viking’s expedition ships

Viking’s expedition ships lean on Norwegian home cooking. Mamsen’s serves waffles baked from a family recipe, open-faced sandwiches and split pea soup, all included in the fare. The Restaurant changes its menu daily around regional specialities made from fresh, local ingredients, and is included too. Manfredi’s Italian Restaurant is the line’s trattoria, with a private dining room for special occasions, and it carries a charge.

Lectures and lounges with floor-to-ceiling views

On Viking’s expedition ships, the days at sea revolve around the places you are about to see, and The Aula is where that happens. It is an auditorium with 270° views, where the 4K screen retracts to reveal floor-to-ceiling windows behind the lectures, documentaries and films, with admission included in the fare.

For quieter hours, the Explorers’ Lounge sits high on the ship behind floor-to-ceiling windows, a place for aquavit or craft beer and Scandinavian food while the scenery passes. The Living Room has the same wall of glass and is made for lingering and meeting other guests. Both are free to enter, with drinks charged separately.

How do you get ashore on a Viking Polaris expedition?

On Viking’s expedition ships, guests head ashore in small landing craft, boarding either from the midship area or from The Hangar, depending on the boats in use and the weather. The Hangar is an enclosed in-ship marina: you step aboard from a flat, sheltered platform inside the ship and launch through a slipway into open water, returning the same way afterwards, and it is included in the fare. Before a landing, the specialists in Expedition Central explain the destination and the activities with 3D-printed maps and digital displays, with tips for your own explorations.

Viking Polaris cabins and deck plans

Her accommodation is listed in just two families, balcony cabins and suites. The Viking Polaris cabins and deck plans are the place to choose between them, deck by deck, before a voyage where the scenery outside is the reason for going.

Cruise1st has Australian cruise experts, seven days a week, who can talk you through her Great Lakes and Antarctic seasons before you book. To see what else sails the far south, browse our South America cruises.