USA TODAY 10Best
Adventure Canada named Best Adventure Cruise Line
Best Adventure Cruise Line (2021)
If you think cruising is all about lounging on the lido deck, piña colada in hand, think again. With these 10 cruise companies cruising becomes an adventure for active travelers, where exploring an exotic destination might involve kayaking through remote fjords, getting up close and personal with ice bergs aboard a Zodiac or walking atop a glacier.
The top 10 winners in the category Best Adventure Cruise Line are as follows:
- Ponant
- Celebrity Cruises
- UnCruise Adventures
- Abercrombie & Kent
- Hurtigruten
- Star Clippers
- Quark Expeditions
- Aurora Expeditions
- Lindblad Expeditions
- Adventure Canada
Photo courtesy of Eric vancleynenbreugel / PONANT
No. 10:
Aboard Ponant's fleet of luxury yachts, adventurers gets a five-star treatment as they explore destinations like Africa, Alaska, the Arctic and Antarctica. Vessels accommodate a maximum of 264 passengers for an intimate and authentic cruising experience.
Photo courtesy of Celebrity Cruises
No. 9:
While Celebrity Cruises is well-known as one of the world's top ocean cruise lines, they also cater to adventure travelers with itineraries to the Galapagos Islands aboard the small ship Celebrity Xpedition, Xperience and Xploration, as well as the new Celebrity Flora. The line also sails itineraries in Alaska and a sailing around Cape Horn in South America.
Photo courtesy of UnCruise Adventures
No. 8:
Adventure travel has always been the name of the game at UnCruise Adventures, a company that has been leading responsible small-ship journeys for more than two decades. Destinations include Alaska, the Galapagos, the Sea of Cortes and the Pacific Northwest.
Photo courtesy of Abercrombie & Kent
No. 7:
Abercrombie & Kent's small group journeys take adventurous travelers to destinations around the globe not easily visited by land, but the company is perhaps best known for its expedition cruises to the Arctic, Antarctic and the Northwest Passage. Vessels carry fewer than 200 passengers with a staff-to-guest ratio of nearly one to one.
No. 6:
Hurtigruten has been leading adventures at sea since 1893, with exploration voyages to destinations like Norway, Greenland, Iceland, Africa, Arctic Canada, South America and Antarctica. Each of the small ships are designed specifically to reach remote destinations.The line launched new hybrid electric-powered expedition ships MS Roald Amundsen in 2019 and MS Fridtjof Nansen in 2020.
Photo courtesy of Star Clippers
No. 5:
Cruisers with Star Clippers get to sail on three of the largest full-rigged sailing ships in the world, Star Clipper, Star Flyer and Royal Clipper. Passengers aboard these four- and five-masted ships have complimentary access to sailing, waterskiing, windsurfing and other water sports, as well as fitness classes, shore excursions and a variety of daily activities. The views from lookout stations positioned 60 feet above the deck on each mast can’t be beat.
Photo courtesy of David Merron, Quark Expeditions
No. 4:
Quark Expeditions has been taking adventure travelers to the polar regions since 1991 and continues to operate the largest and most advanced fleet of adventure ships in these two regions. Each Adventure Ship facilitates experiences like sea kayaking, camping, cross country skiing and mountaineering in some of the planet's most stunning landscapes.
Photo courtesy of Aurora Expeditions
No. 3:
Aurora Expedition sails to the polar regions and other wild and remote places aboard small ships with flexible, innovative itineraries. The company has been a pioneer in expedition travel, introducing onshore experiences like scuba diving or climbing in Antarctica. Onboard naturalists, historians, staff and crew help passengers gain insight into these remote regions.
Photo courtesy of Lindblad Expeditions
No. 2:
Lindblad Expeditions works in partnership with National Geographic to produce innovative eco-adventures to some of the world’s most remote and wild places including Galápagos, Antarctica, the Arctic & Russian Far East, Baja, Alaska, Pacific Northwest, Costa Rica & Panama, the Amazon, Europe, French Polynesia & South Pacific, and beyond. Voyages include a renowned expedition team. Guests interact with and learn from leading researchers, photographers and naturalists while discovering stunning natural environments, above and below the sea, through state-of-the-art exploration tools.
Photo courtesy of Lydia Schrandt
No. 1:
While Adventure Canada does indeed lead small ship adventures through the rivers, icy fjords and secluded waterways of Canada, this expedition cruise company also takes travelers to experience landscapes and cultures further afield, places like Scotland, Iceland, Ireland, the Faroe Islands and Greenland. The company shines with an always stellar lineup of onboard experts and guides.
A panel of experts partnered with 10Best editors to pick the initial nominees, and the top 10 winners were determined by popular vote.
Congratulations to all these winning cruise lines!
About 10Best Readers' Choice Awards
Nominees are submitted by a panel of experts. 10Best editors narrow the field to select the final set of nominees for the Readers’ Choice Awards. Readers can vote once per category, per day. For any questions or comments, please read the FAQ or email USA TODAY 10Best.
The Experts
Danielle Fear
Danielle Fear is one of the UK’s most recognized... Read More
Danielle Fear is one of the UK’s most recognized and trusted cruise bloggers and is better known to her audience as CruiseMiss. As well as maintaining an award-winning cruise blog, she also works as a freelance writer, content manager and social media professional covering all aspects of sea travel. Having embarked on more than 75 sailings, including 2 world cruises, it’s fair to say that Danielle knows a thing or two about cruising.
Danielle Fear
Danielle Fear is one of the UK’s most recognized and trusted cruise bloggers and is better known to her audience as CruiseMiss. As well as maintaining an award-winning cruise blog, she also works as a freelance writer, content manager and social media professional covering all aspects of sea travel. Having embarked on more than 75 sailings, including 2 world cruises, it’s fair to say that Danielle knows a thing or two about cruising.
Don and Heidi Bucolo
Don and Heidi Bucolo are the husband and wife team... Read More
Don and Heidi Bucolo are the husband and wife team behind EatSleepCruise.com. Their love for cruising began after taking their first cruise together back in 2007. Having spent over 180 days at sea on more than 30 cruises with various cruise brands, they have learned a thing or two about planning and executing the perfect cruise vacation. The couple was voted as one of Porthole Cruise's Top 10 Cruise Influencers and is featured in the new book Cruising Interrupted. You can find them on the web and social media sharing detailed cruise ship reviews, port guides, packing tips and planning tips to help travelers "sea the world, one port at a time."
Don and Heidi Bucolo
Don and Heidi Bucolo are the husband and wife team behind EatSleepCruise.com. Their love for cruising began after taking their first cruise together back in 2007. Having spent over 180 days at sea on more than 30 cruises with various cruise brands, they have learned a thing or two about planning and executing the perfect cruise vacation. The couple was voted as one of Porthole Cruise's Top 10 Cruise Influencers and is featured in the new book Cruising Interrupted. You can find them on the web and social media sharing detailed cruise ship reviews, port guides, packing tips and planning tips to help travelers "sea the world, one port at a time."
Jason Leppert
Jason Leppert is a San Diego-based cruising expert... Read More
Jason Leppert is a San Diego-based cruising expert with more than 150 sailings under his belt and a fresh, millennial perspective on the industry. He has been cruising since before he was two years old, thanks to his parents’ shared passion for traveling and their desire to experience all journeys together as a family. Now, he regularly sails and writes “he said, she said” cruise columns with his wife Heidi. He is the founding editor of Popular Cruising, producer of the successful Popular Cruising YouTube channel and Cruise Editor for TravelAge West. He also contributes to Cruise Travel, Porthole and Cruise Business Review magazines; USA Today 10Best; Oyster.com; MiceChat.com and the Cruise Radio podcast.
Jason Leppert
Jason Leppert is a San Diego-based cruising expert with more than 150 sailings under his belt and a fresh, millennial perspective on the industry. He has been cruising since before he was two years old, thanks to his parents’ shared passion for traveling and their desire to experience all journeys together as a family. Now, he regularly sails and writes “he said, she said” cruise columns with his wife Heidi. He is the founding editor of Popular Cruising, producer of the successful Popular Cruising YouTube channel and Cruise Editor for TravelAge West. He also contributes to Cruise Travel, Porthole and Cruise Business Review magazines; USA Today 10Best; Oyster.com; MiceChat.com and the Cruise Radio podcast.
Ming Tappin
Residing in New Brunswick, Canada, Ming has been... Read More
Residing in New Brunswick, Canada, Ming has been in the cruise industry since 1994. Ming spent over 20 years in the retail travel sector, working with travel agencies in marketing initiatives, cruise training, and promoting cruise vacations to their clients. In 2015, Ming created Your Cruise Coach and transitioned into travel writing, preaching the merits of cruising via her partnerships with Canadian and American travel trade publications as well as consumer media outlets. An avid cruiser since 1991, Ming has sailed on over 70 cruises and has experienced over 25 ocean, river, and expedition cruise lines combined.
Ming Tappin
Residing in New Brunswick, Canada, Ming has been in the cruise industry since 1994. Ming spent over 20 years in the retail travel sector, working with travel agencies in marketing initiatives, cruise training, and promoting cruise vacations to their clients. In 2015, Ming created Your Cruise Coach and transitioned into travel writing, preaching the merits of cruising via her partnerships with Canadian and American travel trade publications as well as consumer media outlets. An avid cruiser since 1991, Ming has sailed on over 70 cruises and has experienced over 25 ocean, river, and expedition cruise lines combined.
Sherry Laskin
Sherry hasn’t set foot on an airplane in more than... Read More
Sherry hasn’t set foot on an airplane in more than 25 years. Instead, she relies on cruise ships, river ships, trains and road trips to travel the world. In that time, she’s been on more cruises than she can count and includes her solo cruise and travel adventures on her website, CruiseMaven.com. Her articles have been published in major newspapers and magazines - in print and online. During a year and a half of living in Alaska, Sherry has cruised and spent time at every port in the Last Frontier except for Nome. She’s become an avid transatlantic cruiser since 2005, as that is the only way for her to get to Europe without flying. Sherry hopes to inspire and encourage her readers to travel slow and travel solo, experience new cuisines and cultures.
Sherry Laskin
Sherry hasn’t set foot on an airplane in more than 25 years. Instead, she relies on cruise ships, river ships, trains and road trips to travel the world. In that time, she’s been on more cruises than she can count and includes her solo cruise and travel adventures on her website, CruiseMaven.com. Her articles have been published in major newspapers and magazines - in print and online. During a year and a half of living in Alaska, Sherry has cruised and spent time at every port in the Last Frontier except for Nome. She’s become an avid transatlantic cruiser since 2005, as that is the only way for her to get to Europe without flying. Sherry hopes to inspire and encourage her readers to travel slow and travel solo, experience new cuisines and cultures.
