National Geographic Quest is a state-of-the-art, purpose-built expedition vessel made for exploring coastal waters, shallow coves, and fast-moving channels where wildlife congregate while sailing with the luxury of supreme comfort. Spacious cabins, open decks for wildlife viewing, and specialty tools for exploration make it the ideal platform for sailing in the remote areas of Alaska, the Pacific Northwest, Costa Rica, Panama, and Belize.
Designed with decades of expedition experience in the region, National Geographic Quest more than comfortably accommodates 100 guests in 50 cabins. Her twin expedition craft landing platform allow passengers to rapidly get on and off the ship to take advantage of wildlife sightings and to ensure you maximize your time off the ship exploring. Created with a shallow draft, Quest draws only nine feet of water allowing her to sail into places where much larger ships cannot go.
National Geographic Quest Staterooms
National Geographic Quest comfortably accommodates 100 guests in 50 outside-facing cabins. Cabins are efficiently designed, with sizes ranging from the 136-square-foot category 1 to the 185-square-foot category 5 suite. Twenty-two of the 50 cabins feature small balconies with floor-to-ceiling sliding doors that bring in the spectacular views and ample natural light. Twelve cabins connect via internal doorway access allowing families to combine their rooms. Plus, all category 5 suite cabins can accommodate a third person on a convertible sofa bed.
Every cabin has two portholes, a large window or balcony, Wi-Fi access, and temperature controls. Bathrooms are modern and stocked with botanically inspired hair products, soap, and shower gel, plus a hairdryer. Every room has outlets and USB outlets for charging your camera gear or electronics, and space for luggage storage.
Life Aboard National Geographic Quest
- Dining: Food served aboard is fresh, local, and delicious, and sourced from suppliers who share our values of sustainable use whenever possible. Meals aboard are almost always served in the dining room, located aft of the lounge deck. When weather conditions allow, lighter fare may be served on the observation deck. There is no assigned seating and our dining room accommodates the entire expedition community in a single seating. During meals your expedition leader, naturalists, and any guest speakers aboard will join you.
- Public Spaces: National Geographic Quest was designed with 50 years of expedition heritage. The ship features a specially-designed, open bow and an observation deck for gathering to watch for wildlife or enjoy an evening cocktail with friends in the open air. An elevator access all decks, and public restrooms are available on every deck.
- Bridge: You're invited to the ship's bridge to see the calm business of navigation unfold. Ask the watch officer questions about navigation. Or, help yourself to the ever-ready binoculars to scan the horizon for whale spouts. There may occasionally be times when the bridge must be restricted to shipboard personnel only.
- Lounge: The lounge is the heart of the expedition community, where cocktail hour and Recap are held each evening. It's also where you'll gather for presentations, photography talks, and guest speaker presentations. Seating design takes advantage of the wrap-around windows for an optimal view, and boasts multiple high-definition screens for slideshows and videos. Forward lounge doors provide direct access to the bow. There's also a small reference library and board games and cards are also available.
- Bar: The bar is typically open from 11 a.m. until one hour after lunch begins and from 5 p.m. until closing. A variety of beverages are available for purchase including wine by the glass or bottle, cocktails, specialty drinks, and spirits. There is also a 24-hour self-service beverage station with coffee, tea, soft drinks, beer, water, ice, and snacks. The drinking age aboard the ship is 21.
- Sun Deck: Morning stretch classes are held in the open air of the sundeck, located aft on the observation deck. After stretch class the deck is set with tables and chairs, and lounge chairs.
- Fitness Center: Conveniently located on the lounge deck, the fitness center is outfitted with two treadmills, exercise bikes, elliptical machines, exercise bands, and sets of small hand weights to use as well.
- Wellness: Making daily discoveries and exploring the wild world is naturally uplifting. Add to that a variety of wellness treatments available aboard, as well as outings led by your wellness specialist, and you'll find your expedition relaxing as well as revitalizing. Massages, body treatments, natural facial treatments, and hand and foot treatments are all available in the LEXspa. You will have the opportunity to sign up for a treatment once on board.
- Global Gallery: Discover the talent of local artisans in the places National Geographic Quest ventures in the ship's global market. The global market is a collection of items made by local residents in the places Lindblad explores. It is conveniently located on the ship's lounge deck. You may find silver jewelry crafted in Alaska, woven baskets from Panama, paintings and books by your naturalist staff, plus expedition clothing and other essentials. Every item purchased in the global market contributes to the Lindblad Artisan Fund, which supports artisans in communities around the world to develop their potential more effectively and successfully. Five percent of all National Geographic Quest's global market sales will be earmarked for this fund, and the Lindblad-National Geographic Fund will match dollar for dollar what is raised through these earmarks.
Exploration Activities on National Geographic Quest
- Expedition Landing Craft: A fleet of expedition landing craft is used to land in places that would otherwise be inaccessible. With 8 of these boats and two loading stations used every time you disembark, guests are able to transfer off the ship quickly, so you can be out on adventures, not idly waiting. The expedition landing craft are 19 feet long, powered by four-stroke outboard engines, and are capable of comfortably carrying 10-12 people. They are widely recognized as the safest and most versatile small boats afloat.
- Remotely Operated Vehicle: Capable of reaching 1,000 feet, far beyond the range of any Scuba diver, the ROV allows you to literally view parts of the undersea that are as unexplored as the moon. Chances are you, like many guests, will be struck by how surprisingly colorful undersea life is in these unlikely places. And this glimpse may fundamentally change how you view the ocean.
- Kayaks: National Geographic Quest is equipped with 24 two-person kayaks - a fleet large enough to ensure everyone who wants to can paddle at every opportunity. Consequently, prior kayaking experience isn?t necessary - many guests have their first kayaking experience in extraordinary locations. A custom-designed floating platform allows deployment of kayaks from the ship, or any location - including far from shore. Kayakers are usually free to explore where they want within boundaries set by the undersea specialist and officer of the watch.
- Underwater camera: An undersea specialist will dive often during your expedition, even in Alaska, with cold-water gear, to shoot high-definition, Cousteau-like footage of the deep. Colorful nudibranchs, swimming, plant-like crinoids, and mysterious fish with antifreeze blood that thrive in the frigid sea will give you an entirely new appreciation of the marine environment.
- Video microscope: Naturalists will use the video microscope to help explain all elements of the environment, including tiny organisms that are the building block of the marine ecosystem. Spellbinding live views of krill at 80x magnification fills the high-definition screens in the lounge with vivid detail, and fills every onlooker with a sense of wonder at the importance of otherwise unobservable creatures.
- Hydrophone: This underwater microphone is deployed to listen to the vocalizations of marine mammals. Real time transmissions of their eerie, haunting sounds can be broadcast through the ship or recorded for later playback. Few experiences in nature are as captivating as watching humpback whales feed close to the ship as their vocalizations play through the ship's PA system.
- Snorkeling gear & wetsuits: On warm weather itineraries where there will be snorkeling, you'll select a mask, snorkel, fins, and wetsuit that remain yours for the duration of the expedition. There's no need to pack and tote your own gear, although guests who prefer to are welcome to bring their own.
Services Onboard National Geographic Quest
Every cabin and public area on National Geographic Quest offer Wi-Fi. Connecting to the Internet costs between $.40 and $.75 per minute, based on how many minutes you purchase. Satellite phones are available for phone calls at additional charge. Stay in touch with the news back home through a condensed version of The New York Times printed aboard each day.
- Photo kiosks for photographers: Photo editing stations are available in the ship's lounge for sorting and transferring your photos. They are equipped with a digital media readers and USB outlets. Bring along an external hard drive or USB drive (or several) to store and back up your photos. Use of the photo kiosk is complimentary, on a first-come, first-serve basis.
- Always-open drinks: Reusable bottles for water are in your cabin when you arrive. The lounge offers hot coffee and tea, plus filtered water, ice, and soda 24 hours a day.
