Tauck not allowing travelers to swim in hot springs or ocean in Antarctica??
I read that Tauck does not allow their travelers to swim in the hot springs or water at Deception Island? This is one of the highlights of the Antarctica Trip. Why would Tauck do this? Anyone know if this is true and why?
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You do understand that Tauck do not own, let alone control, Antarctica, don't you? There are very strict International rules for all aspects of human intervention & interaction in Antarctica & the sub-Antarctic. My guess is that would include swimming in the waters of and adjacent to Deception Island. There are very strict rules and protocols for the decontamination of any materials that land on Antarctica or its ice shelfs or the adjacent waters and that's after defining exactly what can land. Judging by the smell of the stuff I walked my boots & walking pole through this year, not to mention the complete decontamination process of my clothes before I left the ship in the first place, I don't think your body would appreciate the re-boarding "cleansing" process terribly much ... even if Tauck was so all-powerful as to have made the rules in the first place.
Even Tauck, or more logically the Captain of the ship Tauck uses for this Antarctic expedition, has to follow international protocols under the Antarctic Treaty System.
However, unless there has been a change in the last 2 years, visitors are allowed to swim in the thermally-warmed water in Deception Island. This was an option for all in 2012 on the A&K expedition we were on. Also not likely to be a Le Ponant restriction since we were on Le Boreal...sister ship to the Le Austral/Le Soleil ships that Tauck has been using. We didn't do it...it would have taken time away from exploring the island and Neptune's Lookout.
While you do always have to go through a boot wash when returning to the ship (to avoid interisland cross-contamination), there was no unusual requirement for those who swam...though they'd want to shower off since this is, of course, a salt water swim. As I recall, the A&K expedition crew provided towels ashore and gathered them up in plastic bags to return to the ship for washing.
For the OP: where did you hear of this as the Tauck policy? If not directly from them, I'd suggest confirming it.
No explanation provided with the statement.
Wow! Maybe they are just curious.
As stated in the OP's reference, it appears it was Compagnie du Ponant which made the change. In that case it would likely affect all tour operators who use their ships (like my aforementioned A&K).
In any case, I'll reiterate my earlier suggestion that there are more interesting things to explore on Deception Island.
Steve in PA