New type of cruise gains in popularity after COVID

When the COVID-19 global pandemic shut down travel of all forms, the cruise ship industry took a huge hit. But as it now recovers, a different type of cruise is gaining popularity.

Traditional cruises are huge boats with onboard entertainment such as water parks, pools, casinos and more. Some of them carry thousands of passengers. But an alternative form of boat travel -- expedition cruises -- is now attracting more interest.

"If you're going on an expedition cruise, the point of the trip is not the cruise, the point is the expedition. So it's all about the destination," Loren Christie, a travel journalist, told CTV's Your Morning on Wednesday. "And the ship is typically the best way to explore the destination."

Instead of a large watercraft, expedition cruises have smaller boats that transport 400 or fewer people to a destination. Christie recently went on a 50-passenger expedition cruise to the Galapagos Islands, off the coast of Ecuador.

"There are no bells and whistles, (but) every comfort is there and sometimes they can be luxurious, but there's no waterslides or casinos," Christie said. "It is very focused on education, lectures and sustainability."

Travel is not very good for the planet, Christie said, but for those who want to continue exploring the world, expedition cruises sometimes offer a lower ecological footprint.

"These expedition cruises, it's kind of in their DNA to try and be more sustainable," he said. "So the company I went with, called Hurtigruten Expeditions, they were the first company with the first battery-powered hybrid electric cruise ship."

Christie also said the crew focused on smaller sustainability measures, like ensuring there was no plastic on board, food was not brought to the island and caution was taken around wildlife.

This specific cruise line, Christie said, also exclusively hired Ecuadorians, many of them from the Galapagos, which supports local communities.

He did say that the expedition is typically not for kids due to the lack of onboard entertainment.

Christie found the cruise comfortable and explored some of the world's unique nature and animals.

"You're gonna see all sorts of different animals," he said. "What I found really incredible about them, is because there are no real natural predators on the islands, these animals are, they have not learned to be scared of you."

 

To see some photos from Christie's expedition cruise, click the video at the top of this article.