The small-ship cruise travel brand Heritage Expeditions (New Zealand-based) is getting ready for another Southern Ocean Summer for Kiwis.
The cruise ship Professor Khromov (aka Spirit of Enderby) arrived at Port Lyttelton (Christchurch NZ) on November 23, and the crew completed their arrival testing protocols after a 30-day relocation voyage to New Zealand with preparations in full swing for the upcoming season.
In 2020, Heritage Expeditions made headlines when it was granted an exemption by the NZ government to bring the purpose-built expedition ship down from its principal homeport Vladivostok (Russia, Primorsky Krai).
Heritage Expeditions' "Southern Ocean" program starts on November 30 with its 13-day "Galapagos of the Southern Ocean" itinerary and features expeditions to New Zealand’s Subantarctic Islands, Fiordland and Stewart Island (Oban NZ), with the company looking forward to restarting in the heart of Antarctica, Ross Dependency, in February 2022.
Meanwhile, the line’s 18-passenger expedition yacht Heritage Explorer is scheduled to set sail on her maiden "Islands of the Hauraki Gulf" voyage on January 7, 2022.
The 8-day expedition is expected to explore the popular coastlines and islands of the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park and Bay of Islands (Russell) delving into the early history of the region, visiting island sanctuaries, and discovering the conservation success stories such as the Great Barrier, Mokohinau, Tiritiri Matangi Islands, Bay of Islands, Whangamumu Harbour, with an option to join a New Zealand Geographic partner cruise traveling with co-founder and former editor, marine biologist, explorer, and celebrated author Kennedy Warne.