Old favourite – one of the last of the small expedition ships in operation

Akademik Shokalskiy is an ice-strengthened ship, built in Finland in 1984 and originally used for polar and oceanographic research. She was fully refurbished in 1998 to serve as a research ship for Arctic and Antarctic work and further work was completed in 2008. Being fully ice-strengthened, she is perfect for expedition travel.

She carries just 48 passengers and provides comfortable accommodation in twin share cabins approximately half of which have private facilities. All cabins have outside windows or portholes and ample storage space. She has two passenger decks with dining rooms, a bar, library and sauna.

On board there is a combined bar/library lounge area and a dedicated lecture room. The cuisine is excellent and is prepared by top New Zealand and Australian chefs.

The real focus and emphasis of every expedition is getting you ashore as often as possible for as long as possible with maximum safety and comfort. The expeditions are accompanied by some of the most experienced naturalists and guides, who have devoted a lifetime to field research in the areas that we visit. The ship is crewed by a very enthusiastic and most experienced Russian Captain and crew.

Akademik Shokalskiy is the sister ship to the Spirit of Enderby (Professor Khromov).

Passengers:        48 passengers in cabins and suites with shared or private facilities

Itineraries:           East Antarctica, Ross Sea, Russian Arctic

Operator:             Heritage Expeditions

Deck plan:           See below