Conrad Combrink, Silversea's Senior Vice President of Expedition, Destination and Itinerary Management, will host the Silver Endeavour's maiden voyage to Antarctica on November 21, 2022.
Silversea Cruises, the leading ultra-luxury and expedition cruise company, has unveiled its list of experts who will be attending the maiden voyage of the new Silver Endeavour℠, the world's most luxurious expedition ship.
Departing from King George Island on November 21, 2022, the Silver Endeavour 's maiden voyage will welcome historians, marine biologists, anthropologists, naturalists, and filmmakers, among others, who will enrich guests' experiences with informative lectures, workshops, and excursions as they journey deep into Antarctica. To celebrate this historic voyage, Conrad Combrink, Silversea's Senior Vice President of Expedition, Destination, and Itinerary Management, will accompany travelers throughout the seven-day cruise and flight.
“The world’s most luxurious expedition ship, the Silver Endeavour, has expanded Silversea’s polar offering—the most diverse in ultra-luxury expedition cruising—to provide entirely new experiences for guests,” says Conrad Combrink. “This being my 78th voyage to the continent, I’m thrilled to join our guests as we fly on an exclusive DAP Antarctic Airways flight, chartered by Silversea, directly to Antarctica and board the Silver Endeavour on King George Island, before spending seven days exploring this icy landscape.”.
Our industry-leading expedition team will design an exceptional list of experiences to showcase the best of the continent's icy landscapes and captivating wildlife during the Silver Endeavour's inaugural season, while Captain Niklas Peterstam and his crew will ensure exceptional service at all times.
The White Continent via the “Antarctica Bridge”
For the Silver Endeavour’s inaugural voyage, Silversea guests will fly directly to Antarctica in business class comfort via the company’s Antarctic Bridge flight-cruise offering, embarking on King George Island on November 21, 2022. Some of the destinations guests will experience include Antarctic Sound, where travelers will be greeted by towering ice formations as they approach the northernmost point of the Antarctic Peninsula.
Guests will have the opportunity to explore the landscape with hiking, Zodiac, and kayaking excursions organized by the expedition team. They will spend their days exploring the Antarctic Peninsula, with sightings of vast penguin colonies and other wildlife, including whales, various bird species, and seals. Following in the footsteps of famous explorers, Silversea plans to stop in the South Shetland Islands before returning to King George Island, where guests will board a flight back to Punta Arenas.
“The world’s most luxurious expedition ship, the Silver Endeavour, has expanded Silversea’s polar offering, the most diverse in ultra-luxury expedition cruising, to provide entirely new experiences for guests,” says Conrad Combrink.
AN INDUSTRY-LEADING TEAM
Captain Niklas Peterstam, who has served aboard Silver Endeavour since September 2021, will welcome guests as Captain for the ship's inaugural season, along with his senior officers and an experienced crew. Furthering Silversea's destination leadership, the company's industry-leading expedition team will enrich the voyage with themed workshops, lectures, and guided tours. Led by Expedition Leader Marieke Egan, the team will embark prior to sailing and remain on board for the duration of its inaugural Antarctic season.
In addition to enjoying the presence of Silversea executive Conrad Combrink, guests sailing aboard on the Silver Endeavour's maiden voyage will also enjoy lectures on Ernest Shackleton and HMS Endeavour from Nicholas Crane, the former president of the Royal Geographical Society.
Conrad Combrink, Senior Vice President of Expedition, Destination, and Itinerary Management at Silversea.
Since Silversea Cruises became the first ultra-luxury cruise line to offer expedition voyages in 2008, Conrad Combrink has been responsible for creating and coordinating many aspects of the company's expedition program, with the goal of delivering unique guest experiences across all seven continents. As Senior Vice President of Expedition, Destination, and Itinerary Management, Conrad leads a multinational, diverse, and passionate team tasked with creating authentic and unique destination experiences.
His work encompasses an active role in the strategic planning of all Silversea itineraries, program development, community engagement, and regulatory processes. In addition, Conrad oversees the shore experience program in more than 900 destinations, as well as all aspects of changeover operations. Conrad and his team lead the development of Silversea's itinerary for more than 350 voyages, visiting all seven continents. He has an inspiring passion for expedition and cruise travel, which has taken him to more than 150 countries across all seven continents.
Marieke Egan, expedition leader
, grew up in the Netherlands but spent much of her time in the foothills of the Swiss Alps, learning to cross glaciers long before she could tie her shoelaces. Developing her adventurous spirit, she took up speed skating, winning medals at the Dutch National Championships. After completing a bachelor's degree and a career in psychiatry, she decided to explore the world, feeding her soul with new adventures. She trekked extensively through the Himalayas of Nepal and the high Andes in South America.
Marieke emigrated to Tasmania, where she found her calling as a naturalist, developing and sharing her knowledge and love for the wilderness. This continued with forays into the Kimberley region of Tropical Australia, leading 4x4 expeditions. Today, she enjoys sharing the best of nature, from the lowest to the highest reaches of the world, thriving as an expedition leader in the expedition cruise industry, traveling from Antarctica to the tropical Seychelles, Indonesia and the Pacific Islands to Greenland, Svalbard, and the Russian Far East of the High Arctic.
Captain Niklas Peterstam, Captain of the Silver Endeavour.
Captain Niklas Peterstam began his maritime career in 1979, transitioning to expedition cruises in 1991 and sailing to areas including Antarctica, the Arctic, and the Russian Far East, among others. After gaining experience at the helm of larger ships in Asia, Captain Peterstam returned to Europe to deliver three mega-cruise ships from a shipyard in Germany. He spent several seasons with renowned cruise lines, both onshore and at sea, until 2018, when Captain Peterstam returned to the position of Captain full-time. Captain Peterstam has been aboard the Silver Endeavour since September 2021 and has already completed voyages to Antarctica on board the ship.
Nicholas Crane, former president of the Royal Geographical Society,
is an author, geographer, and cartographic expert. He has received the Royal Scottish Geographical Society's Mungo Park Medal for outstanding contributions to geographical knowledge and the Royal Geographical Society's Ness Award for popularizing geography and the understanding of Great Britain. From 2015 to 2018, Nick was the elected president of the Royal Geographical Society. Nick has presented several acclaimed television series on BBC2, including Map Man, Great British Journeys, Town, Britannia, and Coast. He has also been the main presenter on more than 80 BBC films.
