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Ponant's Le Commandant Charcot anchored in a turquoise bay beneath rugged sunlit mountains, with guests in orange parkas walking the shore

Arctic Guides

What to Pack for an Arctic Expedition Cruise

The ship gives you the parka and lends you the boots. What goes under them, what goes in the dry bag and the one item nobody provides.

Packing for the Arctic is easier than packing for Antarctica and most people get it wrong in the same direction: too many warm things, not enough waterproof ones. The ship gives you the parka and lends you the boots. What you bring is what goes under and around them, and what you need for the rest of the day, which is spent indoors at 21 degrees. This is the list we send with every proposal, with the reasons.

In short

Three facts shape the bag. Arctic summer days sit between zero and 10 degrees, wetter than they are cold. The charter flight to the ship has a luggage limit, typically around 20 kilograms. And the parka and boots are waiting in your cabin.

What the ship provides

  • The parka: a polar expedition jacket to keep, on every line we sell. Ponant, Swan Hellenic and Quark give a full parka; Aurora a three-in-one polar jacket. Do not bring your own.
  • Boots: insulated rubber boots on loan for the Zodiac landings, sized at check-in. Bring thick socks, not boots.
  • Walking poles, snowshoes, dry suits for kayaking: on board where the activity is offered.
  • Water bottles: most ships give you one; bring your own if you prefer.
Hikers silhouetted on a ridge against layered mountains in golden haze at Hvalsey, South Greenland, on a Swan Hellenic SH Vega expedition cruise
Jagged mountain ridge streaked with snow under cold blue twilight along Kangerlussuaq Fjord, West Greenland, on a Swan Hellenic SH Vega expedition cruise

The layers

Base

Merino or synthetic thermals, top and bottom, two sets. No cotton anywhere near your skin: it holds the damp and the cold with it. A merino T-shirt doubles as the base on warm July days.

Mid

A fleece or light down jacket for under the parka, and a second lighter one for the ship. The parka is warm enough that on most June and July days a thermal and a fleece beneath it are plenty.

Outer, and the one item that matters most

Waterproof overtrousers, fully seam-sealed, that go on over your other layers and over the boots. Zodiac spray and wet landings make them the single most used thing you pack, and the one item the ship does not provide. Rain jackets are unnecessary; the parka is waterproof.

Hands, head and feet

  • Gloves: two pairs. Thin liners you can work a camera and a phone in, and insulated waterproof outer gloves for the Zodiac. Photographers bring a third pair.
  • A warm hat and a neck gaiter: the wind off the ice, not the temperature, is what reaches you. A buff over the face on a Zodiac cruise is the difference between an hour and twenty minutes.
  • Socks: merino hiking socks, several pairs, and a thin liner pair for long walks in the ship’s boots.
  • Shoes for the ship: comfortable with a grip; the decks are wet. Smart-casual shoes for the evening on the Ponant ships.
  • Sunglasses and sunscreen: the glare off ice at midnight is the real hazard of the Arctic summer. Category 3 or 4 glasses and a high-factor sunscreen, plus lip balm.
Traveller embracing a Greenland sled dog on a rocky hillside in West Greenland, with a second dog behind, on a Swan Hellenic SH Vega expedition cruise
Wide view of guests forming a curve on the frozen fjord beneath jagged peaks, seen from deck 9 of PONANT's Le Commandant Charcot at Qernertivartivit, East Greenland
Expedition guide in a red jacket sitting on the rocks with a playful white sled dog in Qeqertarsuaq, Disko Island, West Greenland, on a Swan Hellenic SH Vega expedition cruise

For the deck and the Zodiac

  • Binoculars: 8x42 is the right compromise between magnification and a steady image from a moving Zodiac, and since the 300-metre rule in Svalbard they are no longer optional. Ships carry some to borrow; your own are better.
  • A dry bag: a 10- to 20-litre roll-top for the camera and the spare gloves on every landing.
  • A small backpack: that fits the dry bag, the water bottle and the second layer you take off on a hike.
  • Hand warmers: for the September aurora watches and the ice days on Le Commandant Charcot.
  • Seasickness remedies: only the Iceland and Greenland crossings need them; ask us which cabins ride a swell best.

For the camera

A 100 to 400 millimetre lens or longer for bears and walrus at the legal distance, a wide lens for the ice, double the batteries you think you need because the cold halves their life, and a cloth for spray. Phones work for most of the Arctic; they do not work for a bear at 300 metres. Our photography guide goes into the detail.

Close view of sculpted iceberg ridges in soft pale blue light at the Ilulissat Icefjord, West Greenland, on a Swan Hellenic SH Vega expedition cruise
Lone iceberg beneath dark cliffs in moody light in the Bear Islands, Scoresby Sund, East Greenland, photographed on a Swan Hellenic Greenland expedition cruise
Aerial view of icebergs scattered across the fjord at Gurreholm in evening light, Scoresby Sund, East Greenland, on a Swan Hellenic Greenland expedition cruise

For the ship

  • Clothes for the evening: smart casual on every ship, a jacket for the gala dinners on the Ponant ships, nothing formal anywhere.
  • Swimwear: for the pool on Le Commandant Charcot, the sauna and outdoor jacuzzis on the Swan Hellenic and Aurora ships, and the polar plunge, if you dare.
  • Power adapters: European two-pin for Norway, Iceland, Greenland and the Ponant and Swan Hellenic ships; North American for Canada. Most cabins have a USB socket; a multi-adapter with USB covers everything.
  • Medication and a copy of prescriptions: the ship’s doctor is for emergencies, not refills. Pack a week more than the voyage.
  • A book, not a screen: the satellite Wi-Fi works for messages, not for streaming, and the Arctic is better without it.

What to leave at home

Your own parka and boots. Umbrellas. Cotton. Formal wear. Drones, which are banned in the Svalbard reserves and in most national parks. More than one pair of jeans. And anything you cannot carry up a Zodiac ladder in one hand.

Guests in blue expedition jackets walking the snow-dusted gravel slopes of Beechey Island on a Swan Hellenic Arctic Canada cruise

Questions we are asked about packing

How cold does it actually get?

Between zero and 10 degrees by day across the season, below zero in the wind on the pack ice and at the Pole. Inside the ship it is 21 degrees all day, which is why the layers matter more than any single warm thing.

Is there laundry on board?

Yes, on every ship we sell, as a paid service or self-service on Swan Hellenic. A fortnight’s voyage needs a week’s clothes.

What is the luggage limit on the charter?

Typically around 20 kilograms checked and a cabin bag, confirmed by the line in the final documents. The parka and boots stay on the ship, which is why the limit is workable.

Do we need waterproof trousers if we are not hiking?

Yes. They are for the Zodiac, not the hike. Every landing starts with a wet step from the boat, and every cruise along a glacier front has spray.

The full list arrives with your proposal, tailored to the ship and the month. Start with when to go or the destinations.

Made to measure

Tell us your Arctic, we build the rest

One Australian specialist matches the month, the coast, the ship and the stateroom to the way you travel, with flights from Australia and our own offers included.