Lindblad Expeditions: the back story

About Lindblad Expeditions: the back story

By the ULTIMATE the world’s cruise lines Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

Lars-Eric Lindblad took the first tourists to Antarctica in 1966 and the first international travellers to the Galápagos a year later. His son Sven founded Lindblad Expeditions in 1979, and since 2004 the company has sailed with National Geographic, a collaboration recently extended to 2040.

The first footsteps

In 1966 the explorer Lars-Eric Lindblad brought the first tourists to Antarctica, on a voyage that, in the company’s words, “laid the groundwork for modern expedition cruising”. A year later he led the first international travellers to the Galápagos. He is widely regarded as the father of ecotourism, and his idea was simple: people who see wild places for themselves come home wanting to protect them.

A son’s company

In 1979 his son, Sven Lindblad, founded Lindblad Expeditions to carry that vision on. He built a fleet for remote places and took it to Baja California, the High Arctic and beyond, pairing every voyage with naturalists and specialists rather than entertainers.

“They represented the world and all that’s in it, and we were the people who took you there.” Sven Lindblad, on National Geographic.

The yellow border

In 2004 the company began its collaboration with National Geographic, joining the Society’s science and storytelling to Lindblad’s ships. The ships carry the National Geographic name, and the larger ones a National Geographic photographer; every ship has a certified photo instructor, and the partnership now runs to 2040.

Ships built for ice

National Geographic Endurance and her sister National Geographic Resolution, 138 guests each, carry the ice class PC5, Category A, and the inverted X-bow, which smooths the ride across rough water such as the Drake Passage. Aboard them you find glass-walled saunas, infinity hot tubs and, in Lindblad’s words, “overnight igloos”, as well as an exhibition of polar art curated by the artist Zaria Forman.

Small ships, wild places

The rest of the fleet is made for its waters: National Geographic Islander II in the Galápagos, the small coastal ships Endeavour II, Quest and Venture, Delfin II on the Peruvian Amazon, and, from 2027 in Alaska, the 154-guest Greg Mortimer. Every evening ends with Recap, when the expedition team gathers you in the lounge to share the day.

Our advice: for Antarctica, choose Endurance or Resolution for the stability and the igloo nights; in the Galápagos, Islander II has a one-to-one guest-to-crew ratio. Check the “What’s Included” page, because crew gratuities are included on the polar ships but not on the small Galápagos and coastal ships.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Lindblad Expeditions: the back story before you go.