This company merger is good for polar bears and people. At least that's how it's being framed. A company called Cruise North Expeditions is hooking up with Adventure Canada to enhance its line of Arctic polar cruises that offer "cultural content and Inuit staffing."
According to company reps, the partnership means Cruise North's departures will be merged this year with Adventure Canada's Clipper Adventurer schedule.
Next year, Cruise North and Adventure Canada will continue to offer dedicated Arctic sails with Inuit staff and programs designed to benefit the local culture, through jobs and commerce.
Cruise North was founded in 2005 by an Inuit organization called Makivik Corp. of Quebec, and has appeared on the Conde Nast Travelers "Green List.
Cruise North and Adventure Canada also have been featured on National Geographic's top adventure travel companies.
On these cruises, you get a chance to see polar bears, icebergs and Inuit villages, while learning about the area's history and traditional customs.
Are diesel-powered cruise ships and more visitors what the Arctic needs? Or perhaps these cruises, which notably use smaller ships, will make more people understand the need to protect unique places in the Extreme North? It bears mention that climate change is making Arctic locations easier to reach.
According to a 2009 Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment posted by the U.S. Arctic Research Commission:
"The extent of the impacts on different Arctic species from cruise ships is difficult to assess due to the lack of Arctic-specific baseline information on wildlife and the relatively recent increase in cruise ship activity ..."The Arctics one cruise organization, the Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators, is limited in scope with its geographic range in the Svalbard, Jan Mayen and Greenland area. Cooperation among cruise ship operators, in partnership with academic and regulatory bodies, is necessary to ensure more sustainable eco-tourism in the Arctic."
If you take a trip like this, it pays to do your homework, and consider what you'll do after you get home.
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