HX Expedition Ships

The Fleet

Three ships made for the ice

HX, the expedition company that began life as part of Hurtigruten, sends three ships to Antarctica each southern summer. Two of them are sisters: MS Roald Amundsen and MS Fridtjof Nansen, launched in 2019 and 2020 as the first hybrid powered expedition ships in the world. The third, MS Fram, is older, smaller and much loved by repeat travellers, and she handles the longest voyages of the season to South Georgia and the Falkland Islands.

None of them is a cruise ship in the usual sense. There are no casinos, no theatres and no formal nights. Instead you will find a Science Centre with microscopes and lecture screens, a deck full of small expedition boats, a team of naturalists, historians and scientists, and plenty of big windows. The ships are named after Norwegian polar explorers, and they carry that heritage lightly but proudly.

Size Matters

Why small expedition ships work best in Antarctica

Antarctica has rules, and they are good ones. Under the guidelines of IAATO, the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators, ships carrying more than 500 passengers are not allowed to land anyone at all. Big cruise ships can sail past the scenery, but their guests never set foot on the ice. Every HX ship sits below that limit, so landings are part of every voyage.

There is a second rule that matters just as much: no more than 100 people may be ashore at any one landing site at a time. On a ship with 490 guests, the Expedition Team organise landings in groups, rotating people between the shore and small boat cruises among the ice so that everyone gets their turn. On MS Fram, with 200 guests, there are simply fewer groups to rotate, so you tend to get longer ashore at each stop. That is one of the reasons experienced polar travellers often seek her out.

Smaller ships are also nimbler. They can slip into narrow channels and sheltered bays, change plans at short notice when the ice moves, and launch their fleet of expedition boats quickly when a pod of orcas turns up. At the same time, all three ships are large enough to be stable in the open ocean, which counts for a lot on the Drake Passage, and big enough to carry a proper Science Centre, a doctor and nurse, and a team of experts to bring each landing to life.

Cleaner Exploration

Hybrid technology and how it helps

When MS Roald Amundsen left the Kleven shipyard in Norway in 2019, she became the first cruise ship ever to sail on battery power alone. She and her sister MS Fridtjof Nansen combine modern, efficient engines with large battery packs. The batteries smooth out the load on the engines, store surplus power and allow short periods of near silent, emission free sailing. HX say the hybrid system cuts carbon dioxide emissions by more than 20 percent compared with conventional ships of a similar size.

The technology sits within a wider record that HX are rightly proud of. They were the first to stop using heavy fuel oil, back in 2009, ahead of the international ban in Antarctic waters, and in 2018 they became the first cruise company to remove single use plastics across their fleet. You are given a refillable water bottle when you board, and there are water stations throughout the ship. HX is a member of IAATO, and every guest is briefed on how to visit Antarctica with the lightest possible footprint.

Our Advice

Which ship should you choose?

In practice the voyage usually chooses the ship. If you want South Georgia and its king penguin colonies, that means MS Fram. If you want the shortest trip, the Highlights of Antarctica on MS Fridtjof Nansen is the one. And if you have set your heart on crossing the Antarctic Circle or exploring the Weddell Sea, MS Roald Amundsen has the itineraries for you.

If you do have a free choice, think about what matters most. The twin hybrid ships have more facilities, more balcony cabins, a pool, three restaurants and a proper spa. MS Fram is simpler and cosier, with fewer cabin choices and no balconies outside the Grand Suites, but she has a lovely sense of community and gets you ashore for longer. Neither is the wrong answer. Our life on board page describes a typical day at sea, and if you would like to talk it through, call us on 0333 405 0194.