Cruise lines never cease to improve and expand their onboard offerings, hoping to have en edge on the competition. Whether that’s Cunard organizing fencing and archery lessons at sea, MSC equipping its newest ship (MSC World America) with a unique and terrifying over-water swing ride, or Royal Caribbean opening the largest waterpark at sea onboard the upcoming Star of the Seas, cruise lines try hard to differentiate themselves from the lot and attract more travelers to their ships. In this effort from cruise lines to stand out, Viking, Scenic, and Seabourn have gone as far as possible and now offer their guests the chance to explore the ocean’s depth on board their own mini submarines.
Neptune II. Photo: Scenic Cruises
These Cruise Lines Have Their Own Submarines and You Can Take a Ride in Them
Viking’s submersibles
Photo: Viking
Photo: Viking
- Price: A ride on board one of Viking’s submarines costs $499 per person.
- Where: At the time of writing, Viking guests can take submarine rides in Antarctica, Canada, the Great Lakes, and the Chilean Fjords. However, starting next summer, when Viking begins sailing in the Arctic, the submersibles will also dive in Greenland and Arctic Canada.
Viking has been offering its guests submarine rides since 2022, when the cruise line launched its expeditions ships: Viking Octantis and Viking Polaris. Both ships are equipped with a pair of submersibles named after The Beatles: John and Paul are on board Viking Polaris, and George and Ringo are on board Viking Octantis.
Viking’s submersibles were all designed and manufactured by Dutch company U-Boat Worx. U-Boat Worx has launched no less than 60 submarines in the company’s 20-year history.
Submarine rides are extremely popular with Viking guests. In an email, a spokesperson for the cruise line says that “[…] nearly all of the scheduled dives planned for voyages are fully booked ahead of embarkation day. When schedules allows for additional availability, some guests book the experience twice.”
But the submarines are not only for the enjoyment of guests. Viking’s Expedition Team, which includes scientists and submarine pilots, also benefits from the observations made during dives for their research.
“In 2022, guests saw a rare Stygiomedusa gigantea, known as the giant phantom jellyfish, during a submarine dive in Antarctica,” the spokesperson explains. “Prior to this, the giant phantom jellyfish had only previously been observed in the deep ocean waters,” she continued. The Viking Expedition Team’s findings were written up in the scientific publication, Polar Research.
Rules, requirements, and procedure
The Hangar. Photo: Viking
The Hangar. Photo: Viking
Unsurprisingly, there are rules to follow and requirements to meet for guests to take a submarine ride during their Viking cruise. The cruisers who wish to dive on board one the submersibles need to attend mandatory lectures led by the submarines’ pilots. They also have to take an agility test to see how they fare in tight spaces, and must be weighed.
Viking’s submersibles can only accommodate up to six guests at a time, and all of them are assigned a dive time, a number for entering the vessel, and an assigned seat. All guests must wear the provided neoprene booties during the dive, and all must leave their large cameras or equipment behind so that the acrylic windows of the submersible don’t get scratched.
The submersibles are kept in The Hangar, a section of the ship where tenders and other equipment are stored. On dive day, the doors of The Hangar, located on the sides of the ship, open and the submarines are lowered into the water with cables. The pilots then guide the submarines to the dive locations and guests are taken there by Zodiacs. Each guest enters the submersible from the top by numerical order.
Once the submarine is submerged, the guests’ seats rotate towards the windows for a better view of the surroundings. The experience lasts around one hour, with 30 minutes under water.
Scenic’s submarines
Neptune II. Photo: Scenic Cruises
- Price: A ride on board one of Scenic’s submarines costs approximately $1,000 per person. Submersible experiences can only be booked while onboard.
- Where: Antarctica, South Georgia and the Falklands, the Ross Sea and East Antarctica, the Arctic, the Chilean Fjords, and Greenland.
Scenic owns two ultra-luxury Discovery Yachts for their ocean voyages: Scenic Eclipse I and Scenic Eclipse II, both of which are equipped with one custom-designed submersible each: Neptune (2022), and Neptune II (2024), respectively. While Neptune can hold a maximum of six guests, Neptune II can accommodate eight travelers at a time. Both submersibles can dive down to 328 feet beneath the surface, and offer clear underwater views thanks to large, ultra-clear acrylic spheres.
Rules, requirements, and procedure
According to a spokesperson for Scenic, submarine rides are “subject to regulatory approval, availability, weight restrictions, medical approval, and weather, ice and tidal conditions” that will be shared and determined while on board the ship.
Each submersible is kept in a storage area inside the ship and dispatched through a door on the side of the vessel on dive days. It is then lowered down into the water via a winch system. Guests are transferred to the submarine by Zodiac, and crew members help each guest access the vessel from the top. Guests are asked to be either barefoot or in socks while inside the submersible in order to keep the vessel in good conditions.
Seabourn’s submersibles
Photo: Seabourn
Photo: Seabourn
Photo: Seabourn
- Price: A ride on board one of Seabourn’s submarines starts at $900 per person. Seabourn’s submarine expeditions are usually fully booked.
- Where: The Arctic, Antarctica, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. Submarine rides are dependent on currents and visibility conditions and cannot be guaranteed.
Seabourn’s ultra-luxury purpose-built expedition ships, Seabourn Venture and Seabourn Pursuit, are home to two submersibles each. The cruise lines has been offering submarine rides since 2022, when Seabourn Venture launched. Seabourn Pursuit started operating in 2023.
All of Seabourn’s submersibles can accommodate up to six guests (three on each side of the vessel), and can dive down to 984 feet below the surface.
But the cruise line’s submarines are not only there for the enjoyment of the guests. According to a spokesperson from the cruise line, Seabourn has been helping the work of Dr Susanne Lockhart, a research associate at the California Academy of Sciences, and her project Southern Ocean Citizen Submersible Initiative (SOCSI). Lockhart utilizes video footage from Seabourn’s submarines to identify and monitor vulnerable marine communities, and make proposals for their protection.
Seabourn’s submarines are custom-built by U-Boat Worx, the same Netherland-based manufacturer that built Viking’s submersibles.
Rules, requirements, and procedure
All the guests wishing to take a ride on one of Seabourn’s submarines must be physically able to pass through a narrow hatch and walk down and up a steep vertical ladder. Guests as young as eight years of age can ride in Seabourn’s submarines, but all those under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
For safety purposes, prior to the submarine ride, guests are weighted along with the equipment their want to take with them on the submersible.
All guests partaking in submarine expedition during a Seabourn cruise must remove their shoes and wear special socks during the ride.
Each submarine launches by being lowered by cables into the water from the ship. Once the submersible has been taken to the desired location, passengers are brought by Zodiac to board through a hatch located on top of the vessel.
All of Seabourn’s submarines are equipped with 4K underwater video camera system that will record the experience. 