Plancius

Is Plancius a good ship for Antarctica?

Yes, for travelers who want Oceanwide's lowest fares and a classic Antarctic Peninsula trip rather than deep ice. Plancius is the oldest of the three motor ships run by Oceanwide Expeditions: a 1976 Dutch navy oceanographic vessel, completely rebuilt for 108 passengers in 2009 and rated Ice Class 1D.⁸¹²⁰²² It also carries the season's lowest fare, $7,050 for a quad berth (two left for women when we looked on October 15, 2026) on the 10-day late-March whale-watching trip from Ushuaia.²³

Both fleetmates, Ortelius and Hondius, start at $7,800, but their matching trips last a day longer, so per day the three cost almost the same (see the comparison below).²⁴ The catch is in the ship itself: Oceanwide calls Plancius comfortable "but is not a luxury vessel", its ice class is far lighter than its fleetmates', and its specifications list no stabilizers.⁵⁶ We have not sailed on Plancius; everything here comes from Oceanwide's own documents and fares, IAATO's counts and ice-class tables published by maritime authorities.

How old is Plancius, and what was it before?

Plancius was built in 1976 as a navy research ship and has carried passengers only since 2009. It sailed for the Royal Netherlands Navy as Hr. Ms. Tydeman until June 2004; Oceanwide's specification sheet says the company bought it then, and the ship was completely rebuilt as a passenger vessel that complies with the latest SOLAS safety-of-life-at-sea rules.¹⁵ Oceanwide's own 30th-anniversary history instead dates the acquisition of its "longest-standing vessel" to 2009, two years ahead of Ortelius and ten ahead of Hondius.⁷ The name honors the Plancius Foundation, the company's predecessor from 1981 to 1996, which Oceanwide calls "the first cruise operator on a yearly base in Spitsbergen".¹

What is Plancius like on board?

Simple and functional, with more emphasis on time ashore than on the ship. Oceanwide says the diesel-electric propulsion "reduces the noise and vibration of the vessel considerably", and the public spaces are few: a restaurant that doubles as a lecture room on deck 3, and an observation lounge with a bar and large panoramic windows on deck 5, which also has the library.⁵¹ Deck 4 has a full walk-around outer deck, useful for watching wildlife without climbing to the top of the ship.⁵

The expedition team is an expedition leader, an assistant and six guides and lecturers.⁵ Bring a converter if your devices need one: the sockets are 220 V with European two-pin plugs.⁵ Oceanwide suggests a crew gratuity of 10 to 15 euros or US dollars per guest per day, with cash preferred.⁹

How much ice can Plancius handle?

Only light ice. Plancius carries Lloyd's Register Ice Class 1D, which the Maritime Office in Gdynia's correspondence table places at the bottom of the Finnish-Swedish scale, while Oceanwide's FAQ gives both Ortelius and Hondius the equivalent of 1A Super.⁶¹⁰ Our Ortelius page sets out what separates those classes in ice thickness.

The 2026-27 schedule reflects that. Plancius has no helicopter voyages, and its Weddell Sea trips go to Erebus and Terror Gulf and the islands near the tip of the Peninsula, such as Devil Island and Vega Island, while the deep Weddell Sea and Bellingshausen Sea voyages are on Ortelius.²¹¹ If the Snow Hill Island emperor colony is your goal, Plancius is the wrong ship.

Which Plancius cabin should you book?

Most couples will end up in a twin window, since 25 of the 50 cabins are that type; book a superior if space matters, because at 21 to 23 m² it is far larger than every other cabin on board.¹¹² Unlike on Ortelius, where every cabin has at least two portholes or windows, the standard Plancius cabins have a single porthole or window.¹²²⁰

Fares are per person sharing, read October 15, 2026. March 26 is the 10-day Antarctic whale-watching trip and August 2 the 10-day Around Spitsbergen voyage.² Oceanwide's own figures for the standard cabins vary: the cabin page gives 12 to 13.5 m², the specification sheet about 15 m².¹²¹

Where the cabin sits matters on this ship. The four quads and the triple are on deck 2, the lowest passenger deck; the twin portholes are on deck 3 by the restaurant and Zodiac boarding area; the twin windows and both deluxe cabins are on deck 4; and nine of the ten superiors are on decks 5 and 6, close to the lounge.¹ Booking a twin porthole for yourself on March 26 comes to $14,790, the usual Oceanwide supplement of 1.7 times the berth price.¹³²

What activities can you do on Plancius?

Plancius is the ship Oceanwide calls "basecamp" for its activity program, and on its Basecamp departures camping, kayaking, snowshoeing and hiking, mountaineering and a photo workshop are all included.¹⁴ Elsewhere, activities are sold voyage by voyage:

The Antarctic long hikes are for small groups led by at least two expedition staff, over semi-rough, rocky and snowy ground with notable climbs.¹⁴ In Greenland the groups are up to 24 people, escorted by two armed staff while a Zodiac scouts the shore ahead for polar bears, and the walk takes around six hours.¹⁵ For more on paddling and overnight stays ashore, see our guide to kayaking and camping in Antarctica.

Where does Plancius sail in Antarctica in 2026-27?

Plancius sails from Ushuaia between November 23, 2026 and April 4, 2027, crossing the Drake Passage by sea on every Antarctic departure, and ends the season by sailing north into the Atlantic.²

On the December 29 trip the discounted twin porthole is cheaper than the waitlisted quad, a reminder to check every column before booking.² The November 23 trip calls at Stanley and the South Orkney Islands as well as South Georgia, and Oceanwide handles the South Georgia government's Electronic Travel Authorization and its cost.¹⁶ The March 12 voyage starts at Point Wild on Elephant Island, where Shackleton's men first landed after losing Endurance, and crosses the Antarctic Circle to Crystal Sound.¹¹

IAATO's preliminary estimate for 2026-27 lists 12 Plancius voyages and 1,200 passengers, two voyages more than Oceanwide's dates page shows; its 2025-26 figures included a Plancius voyage operated by Cheesemans' Ecology Safaris, so not every sailing is sold by Oceanwide.¹⁷ For when to go, see best time to visit Antarctica.

What is the Plancius Atlantic Odyssey?

It is a one-way, 24-day voyage north from Ushuaia to St Helena, leaving April 4, 2027, from $9,450 per person in a shared quad, with no Antarctic Peninsula landings.² The route runs through South Georgia, including Grytviken, then Gough Island, Tristan da Cunha with Nightingale and Inaccessible islands, and on to St Helena.¹⁸ Oceanwide keeps two spare days at Tristan da Cunha because weather has canceled 35% of its landings there since the trip began in 1998.¹⁸ At St Helena you can visit Longwood House, where Napoleon died, or climb the 699 steps of Jacob's Ladder, and fly home from Jamestown if flights are available.

The combination prices reflect the 10% discount Oceanwide gives for back-to-back Antarctic voyages.²⁴ Seabird watchers get the most out of it; on the sea days of the Cape Verde leg, Oceanwide expects whales, flying fish and dolphins, and northbound Arctic terns and long-tailed skuas.¹⁸

Where does Plancius sail in the Arctic in 2027?

Plancius starts its Arctic summer in Iceland, spends late June to mid-August around Svalbard, and finishes with two voyages to Greenland.²

Timing matters on Around Spitsbergen. Based on 1992 to 2019, Oceanwide puts the chance of completing the full circuit at about 30% in the first half of July, 70% in the second half, 90% in the first half of August and 95% in the second, so the August 2 and August 11 departures have the best odds.¹⁹

The September Greenland trip explores Scoresby Sund, which Oceanwide calls the largest fjord system on Earth, and calls at Ittoqqortoormiit, a settlement of about 500 people.¹⁵ It starts and ends in Akureyri; a chartered bus from the Harpa concert hall in Reykjavik takes 5 to 6 hours and costs $165 each way, booked and paid for in advance.¹⁵ The trip facts for both this voyage and the August 2 Around Spitsbergen list English and German, plus "Language Assisted", as the languages on board.¹⁹¹⁵

How does Plancius compare with Ortelius and Hondius?

Plancius is the cheapest Oceanwide ship per trip, not per day. All three sail a late-March whale-watching voyage, and the one on Plancius is a day shorter; divide each fare by its days and the gap all but disappears:

Fares are per person sharing, read October 15, 2026 (Hondius October 14); per-day figures are our arithmetic.²⁴ So the choice is about the ship, not the price. For the same per-day money a Plancius twin window is 12.5 to 13.5 m² with one window, an Ortelius twin window 17.5 to 17.7 m² with two, and a Hondius twin window 12.1 to 14.3 m² on a 2019 hull with stabilizers.^12212322 In 2026-27 only Ortelius flies helicopters and sails to the deep Weddell Sea, only Hondius has balconies, on six suites, and only Plancius continues north on the Atlantic Odyssey.²⁴²²

Pick Plancius for the lowest total outlay, long hikes and Basecamp trips in January and February, or the one-way voyages north; Ortelius for ice, helicopters and larger window cabins; Hondius for stabilizers and a newer ship. For a rival operator's take on similar trips, see Quark vs Oceanwide.

Who should pick Plancius, and who should not?

Pick Plancius if price comes first, if you want activities or long hikes on a classic Peninsula itinerary, if you are a seabird enthusiast with a month for the Atlantic Odyssey, or if you want to see East Greenland from Iceland in early September. Our guide to the cheapest way to Antarctica puts its fares in context.

Skip it if you want the emperor penguins of Snow Hill Island or the deep Weddell Sea, which need Ortelius, or if you want stabilizers, a balcony or a newer ship, which point to Hondius or another operator. Anyone worried about the Drake should read fly or sail the Drake Passage first, since no Plancius trip flies it. The Oceanwide Expeditions page covers booking terms, and how to choose an Antarctica cruise helps weigh the options.