Experiences
Helicopters and Submersibles on an Expedition Cruise.
Rare, expensive, and worth understanding before it decides which ship you book — not something we've done ourselves.
A handful of expedition ships carry their own helicopters or submersibles, giving guests aerial views of ice fields and coastlines, or dives to depths a mask and fins can't reach. It's rare, expensive, and heavily restricted by region — banned outright in Svalbard and the Galápagos, and tightly regulated in Antarctica. We haven't done either ourselves, and say so plainly below.
What it was like for us.
Firsthand: we haven't flown in a shipboard helicopter or dived in a submersible on any of our voyages. Where we haven't done something, we'd rather say so than describe it secondhand — the same approach we take on where we've sailed. Everything on this page comes from researching what these operators actually run, not from our own seat in the cockpit or the cabin.
What does a shipboard helicopter or submersible programme involve?
Shipboard helicopters run flightseeing tours over coastlines and glaciers, and in some regions land on the ice itself. Submersibles carry a small group of guests, usually three to six, in a pressurised acrylic sphere to depths of up to 200 metres, piloted by a dedicated marine specialist. Both are launched directly from the vessel — a helipad and hangar, or a stern marina — rather than booked as a separate excursion ashore.
What is provided, and what does it require of you?
The ship supplies the aircraft or submersible, the pilot, and all safety briefings and equipment — noise-cancelling headsets for helicopter flights, and the pressurised cabin itself for a submersible dive. Nothing needs to be brought beyond warm layers for a helicopter flight; submersible dives happen in ordinary clothing since the cabin stays dry and climate-controlled.
No certification is required for either activity, but both are capacity-limited: a ship might have two helicopters or two six-guest submersibles for several hundred passengers, so seats are usually allocated by lottery or added at a premium during booking rather than guaranteed. Weather, sea ice, and wind decide daily whether flights or dives happen at all, and cancellations are common enough that neither should be the sole reason to book a voyage.
Which regions and ships offer this?
Quark Expeditions runs twin Airbus H145 helicopters aboard the Ultramarine, with flightseeing and heli-landings on the Greenland Ice Sheet. Scenic operates dual Airbus H130 helicopters and its own Scenic Neptune submersibles aboard the Scenic Eclipse ships. Viking operates six-guest Triton submersibles aboard the Octantis and Polaris in polar and Great Lakes waters. Helicopter flightseeing is banned outright in Svalbard under Norwegian environmental law, and both helicopters and submersibles are banned in the Galápagos to protect the national park. In Antarctica, helicopter flights must stay above 2,000 feet and 0.75 nautical miles from wildlife concentrations under IAATO guidelines, and submersible dives require an environmental impact assessment.
Which lines run helicopters and submersibles.
| Operator | Programme |
|---|---|
| Quark Expeditions | Two twin-engine Airbus H145 helicopters aboard the Ultramarine, operating from dual shipboard helipads and hangars — flightseeing, heli-landings on the Greenland Ice Sheet, and alpine hiking and kayaking excursions reached by air. |
| Scenic | Dual Airbus H130 helicopters with glass cockpits for flightseeing and remote landings, plus the Scenic Neptune submersibles — Triton-built, diving to 200 metres under a 270- to 360-degree acrylic dome — aboard the Scenic Eclipse ships. |
| Viking | Twin six-guest Triton 660/2 submersibles aboard the Octantis and Polaris, diving to 200 metres in polar and Great Lakes waters. Viking doesn't yet have its own page on this site. |
| Seabourn | Retired its passenger submarine programme aboard the Seabourn Venture and Seabourn Pursuit in March 2026; voyages now focus on Zodiac operations, guided kayaking and land excursions instead. |
Ponant's Le Commandant Charcot carries a helipad and helicopter, but strictly for ice reconnaissance and safety rather than scheduled passenger flightseeing.
More on the ship, and elsewhere.
If aerial or underwater access matters to your choice of voyage, it's worth reading alongside wildlife viewing and diving and snorkelling, which cover the in-water alternative most ships actually offer. Back to all experiences.
Written by your expedition advisor
Chris Commisso · Expedition Expert
Signature Travel Expert
Chris and Erika have sailed ten expedition voyages and toured seven more expedition ships. Favorite explorations so far: Antarctica, Svalbard, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Alaska, the Galápagos, the Scottish Hebrides, Churchill and French Polynesia.
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