Captains | Lindblad Expeditions

Captain

A young woman standing on the bow of National Geographic Explorer reached over the deck rail and plucked a sprig of leaves from a mountain ash tree.

It was in Norway's Trollfjord, a narrow 1-kilometer-long fjord the captain had sailed into, turned around the ship, and in doing so, pulled so close to sheer cliffs of the fjord walls that guests were able to reach over and touch the rocks.

These are the kinds of skills born of maneuvering nimble yet powerful ice-class vessels into regions of the world where conditions are constantly changing and reliable navigational maps are sometimes hard to come by.

Lindblad Expeditions captains have earned the distinguished title of Ice Master, for cultivating skills that enable you to go deeper into the ice for a thrilling experience. They are known as the most experienced and knowledgeable in the industry. They are also industry leaders, creating and implementing industry standard best practices for captains across the travel industry.

They also happen to be vital, engaged members of the expedition community, sharing in the exploring, hiking, kayaking, and more with guests. In fact, many guests get so comfortable with Lindblad captains, that they begin to treat the open bridge like another lounge, spending hours each day talking with and watching the officers navigate.

Unique to Lindblad, captains and expedition leaders work in tandem to build a plan for each day based on conditions like ice, weather, or wildlife movement. Aboard most ships the captain would dictate the terms of each day, but in the Lindblad fleet it’s a symbiotic relationship where the planning happens in tandem to get guests into the most incredible places on Earth and then actively explore them up close. Miles apart from how a cruise ship operates, where a captain and cruise director operate independently and follow the same weekly routes, the collaboration between Lindblad captains and expedition leaders directly enhances the quality of guests’ experiences, as they work around weather, ice conditions, or other challenges to enable thrilling adventures.. And, you’ll find them just as excited as you are about a spectacular whale encounter or a gorgeous sunset.

A young woman standing on the bow of National Geographic Explorer reached over the deck rail and plucked a sprig of leaves from a mountain ash tree. ...