Optimally designed for small-scale polar exploration
S/V Ocean Tramp is a 66-foot-long aluminum ketch-rigged expedition motor sailboat designed for exploring polar waters. The yacht can accommodate eight guests (and up to four crew), though we travel with no more than seven. Ocean Tramp's length and profile ensure swift passage across open seas, though her nimble size also permits intimate exploration of the rugged coastline and secluded bays of the Antarctic Peninsula that are inaccessible to larger cruise ships. Very large forward and aft decks facilitate superb whale watching, and keep an eye out for leopard seals, too, slinking below the surface in the crystal-clear water. In fine weather, we can even dine on deck. The dining space inside is likewise roomy, with ample padded banquette seating around a generous table in a well-lit space ringed with windows.

The expeditionary style of a voyage aboard a smaller vessel like Ocean Tramp means the ultimate in flexibility to pursue wildlife viewing, the best light conditions for photography, and other advantages. If a few guests want to go for a Zodiac cruise after dinner—let’s go! Whales are bubble feeding? Let’s stay and watch. A leopard seal is on the hunt for a penguin? Let's slow down and see what happens. Our afternoon visit to a penguin colony is so amazing that no one wants to rush back for dinner? We’ll push dinner back another hour to enjoy the time onshore. In this context, we have the ultimate opportunity to explore as conditions invite.

Important information on rooming configuration
Accommodations are in four guest cabins of varying configurations: the Forward Cabin has a lower double and upper single berths with access to one shared full bathroom just feet away. Mermaid Cabin has one single lower berth and one single upper, with access to the shared bathroom. Shackleton Suite is the largest cabin on board, with one double lower and one single upper berth, plus a private en suite bathroom. And one single guest will be in the two-bunk Beagle Cabin utilizing the shared bathroom as well.

Cabin/rooming assignments are determined by booking date as well as by gender and other preferences. Though our quarters are compact, the Ocean Tramp is surprisingly comfortable. Utilizing this vessel as our mode of exploration allows us exclusive access to an experience of Antarctica that's simply not available to most travelers. The rooming situation may not be as spacious or convenient as you would find on a larger cruise ship with a hundred (and often plenty more) guests on board, but getting away from dozens of other tourists to experience the polar wilderness in solitude is exactly the point, isn’t it?

All the specs
Dimensions: LOA 19.55 m, LWL 17.10 m, beam 5.35 m, draft 2.2m.
Tonnage: Displacement 32 tons.
Construction: Aluminum.
Machinery: Perkins Sabre 215 HP.
Tanks: Diesel 5500l, 2500l Fresh water.
Speed: 8 knots maximum, 7 knots cruise, under engine

Ocean Tramp is equipped with every state-of-the-art instrument and amenity you'd want to have aboard on a journey such as this: broadband 4G radar, AIS, 3 VHFs, SSB Radio, 3 GPS, 2 echo sounders, forward-looking sonar, autopilot, media drive for watching movies, chart plotter, Satellite Iridium Phone with email and weather download capabilities, a large separate kitchen and a large saloon for 12 guests. She carries all the safety equipment required, including Epirb beacon, two SARTs, a line-throwing device, two life rafts, flares, handheld VHFs, SOLAS life jackets, inflatable life jackets, and a full Co2 engine room firefighting system.