Lifts aboard, and no adapted cabin
The National Geographic Resolution is the Endurance's twin, delivered a year
later in 2021. Same inverted-bow hull, same Polar Class 5 Category A ice class,
one hundred and twenty-four metres, 76 cabins, 138 travellers, six decks. Most
standard cabins have a balcony.
A professional review sums up this ship's accessibility in a sentence worth
quoting rather than hiding: the ship has elevators but no cabins or
accommodations for travellers with disabilities. That holds for the whole fleet,
and the Resolution is the one ship for which the phrase exists in black and
white. The same source adds that this is not a cruise that would be easy for
someone with mobility concerns.
Two lifts change nothing about the moment that counts: going down the gangway
ladder into a Zodiac that moves, then landing on a beach, often with feet in the
water.
Where she sails
Antarctica and Patagonia in the southern summer, the Arctic, Greenland and the
Northwest Passage in the northern one, with runs toward Asia and the Pacific. In
December 2025, fourteen research projects were carried out aboard. In August 2022
a Canadian call on the Northwest Passage was cancelled after COVID-19 cases were
confirmed aboard: on this kind of route, a port call is never a given.
Crew gratuities are included and a National Geographic photographer is aboard.
This ship is one of only four in that position.
The other ships in the fleet
The National Geographic Endurance is her twin, delivered a year earlier. The National Geographic Explorer is the oldest hull of the
polar series. The National Geographic Orion covers the South Pacific and Asia. The National Geographic Venture holds Alaska and
Baja California.
The fare, item by item
Included: the cabin, all meals aboard, the outings of the expedition
programme, use of the Zodiacs and outdoor equipment, park entrance fees,
special access permits, port taxes and airport transfers within the planned
window. Basic Wi-Fi is included, enough for email and messaging; packages for
streaming are paid aboard.
Not included: international air travel, visas, travel insurance, wellness
treatments, upgraded Wi-Fi packages. And, on eight of the brand's twelve ships,
crew gratuities. They are included only on the Endurance, the Resolution, the
Explorer and the Orion.
One point worth reading twice: the National Geographic photographer sails on
those same four ships only. On all the others, photographic guidance comes from
a certified instructor. The two roles look alike on paper and do not look alike
aboard.
On polar routes, rental of boots and waterproof trousers is charged extra,
where several competitors in the same category supply them.
The typical day, and what it asks
Two outings a day as a rule, early morning and late afternoon, when light and
wildlife line up. Between them, naturalist talks, time on the bridge — open to
travellers on most ships — and rest. In the evening there is no show and no
casino: the day's recap is the programme.
Landings are by Zodiac, sometimes onto a beach with feet in the water. You go
down a gangway ladder and step over the pontoon of a craft that moves. It is the
compulsory passage of this kind of travel, and it is where real mobility gets
measured.
On accessibility, the line publishes no policy and no wheelchair-accessible
cabin is documented on any of its ships. Some have a lift, others do not; none
has an adapted cabin. We would rather say so here than let you discover it at
the gangway.
Leaving from Quebec
The international flight is not included in the fare. Some essential internal
flights are, when the itinerary says so. From Montreal, most of these regions
need at least one connection, often two, and door-to-door time exceeds what the
brochure suggests.
A rule learned the hard way: arrive at least a day before embarkation, two if
the time difference is large. On an expedition there is no catching up: the ship
has sailed.
We assemble flight, expedition, hotels, transfers and insurance into one file,
with the protection of Quebec's compensation fund for travel agency customers.
Tell us about the trip before picking the date.
