Stunning polar cruise ship National Geographic Endurance sails into Portsmouth for inaugural visit

A fabulous polar cruise ship sailed into Portsmouth for the first time showcasing her gorgeous interior.

National Geographic Endurance, operated by Lindblad Expeditions, made her maiden call into the port on Thursday (October 1). A traditional plaque exchange ceremony took place on board, with dedicated Shaping Portsmouth volunteer Vanessa Busfield passing the memento to Captain Aaron Wood.

He said he’s ecstatic to show off Endurance to the public, with him being in charge of the vessel in 2020. “She is a Polar Class Five passenger vessel, which is designed to go to some of the harshest environments in the world,” Capt Wood told The News.

“We typically spend eight to nine months a year in polar regions, The Arctic and Antarctica. We’re very flexible. We have so few guests on board, so we are able to change plans and get the best out of our plans together. This ship was built for people to enjoy looking out at the environments and around the vessel.”

A total of 144 American tourists stepped off the $135m ship and made the most of their time ashore, enjoying excursions to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, Titchfield Haven, Fort Nelson, Winchester, and other locations.

Trips ashore is one of the selling points of the cruises, with different trips to see penguins and polar bears when further at sea. “All of the cabins have a balcony and windows,” Capt Wood said. “The lounges and restaurants are designed for guests to enjoy the scenery, which could be mountains, fjord, or whales in the water.

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“A lot of it is stunning. Sometimes we get to see polar bears and have a chance to really enjoy the wildlife. A lot of people come back for the ice, which is really special no matter how many times you see it, with the different colours of blue and shades of the icebergs. It was built for people to maximise the views of all of this.”

Capt Wood said the ship is designed to be extremely strong and rugged, similar to a land cruiser. Inside, the vessel is set up to transport passengers in sumptuous comfort across various environments.

The ship had visited Portsmouth from Scotland and is heading to Portugal. Lindblad Expeditions has seen its ships visit Portsmouth before, but this was the first for their new ship built in 2021. “The relatively low numbers is one of the main selling points,” Capt Wood added.

“When we can get people on and off the ship quickly, we can maximise their time outside when exploring these unique parts of the world.”