MS Otto Sverdrup: Hurtigruten's Third Battery-Hybrid Expedition Cruise Ship
When MS Otto Sverdrup departed Hamburg, Germany, on itsmaiden voyage on August 24, Hurtigruten marked off three milestones: Introduction of Hurtigruten Expeditions’ third battery-hybrid powered cruise ship; Introduction of the first year-round expedition cruises from Germany; and a return of expedition cruises after more than a year of pandemic pause.
Since the very first expedition cruise in 1896, Hurtigruten Expeditions has helped to define the expedition cruise category, with today a growing fleet of smaller, more sustainable expedition cruise ships taking guests exploring more than 250 destinations, including Antarctica, Alaska, Greenland, Iceland, Svalbard, British Isles, West Africa, and the Galapagos
Equipped with battery backs and other green technology, MS Otto Sverdrup will operate year-round expedition cruises from Hamburg to the Norwegian coast. This means that Hurtigruten Expeditions – which introduced the world’s first battery-hybrid powered cruise ships, MS Roald Amundsen and MS Fridtjof Nansen – will add another hybrid powered ship to a growing fleet of smaller, more sustainable expedition cruise ships.
Following a complete upgrade and transfer to Hurtigruten Expeditions, MS Otto Sverdrup’s maiden voyage from Germany will be the first sailing in the step-by-step restart of operations.
Late September, MS Maud will start the first ever year-round UK-based expedition cruises. In addition to the closer-to-home departures from Hamburg and Dover, Hurtigruten Expeditions 2022/2023 winter program also includes Antarctica, West Africa, Alaska, and from January 2022, the Galapagos Islands.
Hurtigruten Expeditions recently launched expedition cruises to West Africa, including Bissagos Islands and Cape Verde, as well as unique ways to explore both the Canary Islands from 2022.
Expedition cruises to Galapagos Islands has also been introduced as part of Hurtigruten Expeditions global offering.