Reviews
Sometimes the best way to learn about a guide company is to read reviews from previous participants. Below you'll find dozens of reviews. If you'd like to speak with a reference directly let us know.
"If you are contemplating a trip of a life time to either of the Poles, North or South, I would strongly suggest that you contact Rick Sweitzer and his team of fellow experts at PolarExplorers to discuss how to accomplish these challenging trips of a lifetime. I speak from experience. On January 3-5, 2017 I journeyed from our Antarctic base to the Geographical South Pole at 90° S. On April 13, 2017 I travelled from our floating polar ice camp to the Geographic North Pole at 90°N
For both journeys I entrusted myself to PolarExplorers, acknowledged experts in this limited field. This decision was made after a very long and careful review and consideration of every travel option, and every company in the field. PolarExplorers had the track record, the personnel, and the reputation I was looking for. They delivered on the logistics and experience that they had committed to - completely.
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This unsolicited testimonial has been provided simply to ensure that if you are seriously considering one or both of these trips, you cannot cut corners in your thinking or planning or who you select. Do your own research. This will inevitably lead you to review PolarExplorers' record, its programs, and its team members. Compare them against others. You simply cannot take such travel for granted. You want to be in the more trusted and competent hands possible.
The PolarExplorers team are all experts in their fields, and just as importantly very personable and engaging individuals. They care about what they do and this shows in every detail. Polar and extreme travel is their passion and vocation. They have earned these few words in this letter from a very satisfied client and now friend.
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There are many unique aspects to consider when contemplating Polar travel. If you would like me to expand upon what I have said herein, simply contact me at your convenience. If you can enjoy the same experiences I had, then I would be very pleased indeed. To state that these are trips of a lifetime is an understatement."
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-William Mcarthy, North Pole Flight & South Pole Flight
More Reviews
Thank you Rick, Annie, Keith, Taylor, Eric and Chris for making this an enjoyable experience. 1st rate leadership, well managed program. Eric was a great leader for our group bringing friendship, common sense and a positive attitude each and every day. Encounter with polar bear was handled professionally and without risking either animal or clients. Rick, you run a well oiled machine and I have appreciated being a part of 2017 South Pole and North Pole Ski the Last Degree experiences. The last 30 hours of the trip proved to be epic and will long live in my memory. Two thumbs up!
People ask me why do you do these trips? Hard to explain but easy for me to understand. Most people will never see the views or experience the challenge that I have been fortunate to face, I hope that I will have the opportunity to challenge myself again and again. Iceland is a wonderful jewel! Thank you Annie and Nancy!
Many thanks for a great trip. It was well planned and executed. You handled the entire experience very professionally an attribute that was appreciated by our entire team.
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A fantastic experience & wonderful trip. Eric and Annie were marvelous guides. This trip was superb as was South Georgia. I'm so happy to have had this magnificent adventure with PolarExplorers in Iceland. Rob and Eric were terrific companions. I'm looking forward to skiing to the South Pole with PolarExplorers next January.
This was an experience never to be forgotten and etched into my memory forever. Thanks a million to the two Chris’s and to the dog team for all the efforts, enthusiasm, energy and positive attitude. This was an extreme adventure and lived up to all the excitement and unknown that Rick and Annie told me about. I’ve done some hectic things in my life and extreme situations and this ranks right up there. A truly professional team and good, good people. Many thanks and all the best.
I'd like to thank you for convincing me originally that I would really enjoy the North Pole ski trip and that I'd be more than capable of getting there - with the help and guidance of some great guides. Well, now that I've been home a few days and had a chance to reflect. I'm still smiling hugely. This has probably been the one experience in my life that has cemented more than any other that the real fun is the journey and not the destination. Getting to the pole was brilliant, but the trip there, with some fantastic folks, was what made it. So a huge thanks to you all - you, Rick, Keith, Dirk, Nancy and all the team. I really had a blast.
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PolarExplorers, This was a fantastic experience way beyond my expectations. Thank you so much for your support, hard work, and commitment to our safety and enjoyment of the journey. These memories will remain with us always.
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To my new friends at PolarExplorers. I long to go to the south Pole and follow in the steps of the great man, the Boss, Ernest Shackleton, my hero. I was introduced to PE and agreed to take part in the Shakedown in Svalbard which has just completed as I write this not over dinner with guides Keith and Eric. These guys are inspirational; they have provided fantastic input and given so many tips ahead of our venture South. They are a credit to PolarExplorers and I would recommend them to anyone considering a polar expedition. We have learned a lot, we have made good friends; we have had a great time. So thank you and see you in Chile next December!
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Dear PolarExplorers, Thank you very much for this amazing trip and perfected service. Thank you to my four friends for coming with me! See you soon in Equador!
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To the PolarExplorers team! You are truly the best in the world at what you do. Thank you for a “once-in-a-lifetime experience.” It will definitely change my life. Until we meet again!
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I decided to celebrate my 80th birthday at the North Pole. With the help I received from Annie in the panning and Rick to carry out the actual exploration I accomplished my mission. May the South Pole be the next exploration?
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Having now returned from the South Pole I thought I would convey my thanks to Polar Explorers for a trip of a lifetime. We had the opportunity to see other expedition groups operating alongside us and I can tell you that PE is streets ahead of the competition. You guys operate at a different level and I would recommend you to anyone based on my experience. You are the most professional, the most experienced, you make an effort to integrate and know your client and are the best fun to be with. Eric dealt with all our issues quietly and effectively and nothing was of any trouble to him. He really wanted us to "enjoy not endure" and was constantly going out of his way to ensure that we all maximised the experience. Eric was always there with helpful but discrete advice and we genuinely would not have been able to do it without his support. I wanted you to know that you have two great guys in Keith and Eric and that they did your company proud throughout our adventure.
Thanks once again for all of the help and guidance that you gave me during the trip. You, and indeed all of your team, made the trip perfect. It couldn’t have been better (except perhaps for some positive drift). Many of the situations we faced were unfamiliar, and at times a little scary, but you and Chris gave a really high level of confidence due to your own confident and decisive approach, and the great deal of experience that you clearly have. I did a lot of shopping around to find the right trip, and I am 100% confident that I found the right one. I don’t believe that any other operators could have measured up to PolarExplorers.
Coming into this trip, having experience with PE and the guides, I had no reservations about the quality of the people and leadership of the expedition. I felt that the preparation was as thorough as any expedition I have participated in. Once en route, on the icecap, I found the conditions to be so unlike anything I have experienced, it was truly an adventure in every sense of the word. From variable surface conditions, ever changing terrain, and unexpected encounters with polar bears in camp and a 24 hour final push that ended in an open water lead with only 2 miles (!!) left to go to the Pole.... I never lost confidence that we would reach the goal. This was truly a trip with the best people I've met in a place I will never forget. Thank you PE, Rick, Keith, Annie and Eric, for making this an excellent culmination of my Grand Slam.
It was truly a wonderful trip, and I thoroughly enjoyed each aspect of it. Hard to think of how cold it was up there when we are already in the 90’s down here. You have a great company and terrific people there, and I am sure I will have the chance to be with you all again in the future. If you need a reference to speak to any potential clients, feel free to have them contact me. I will be your greatest cheerleader.
I could easily describe my experience of the last two weeks, no, the last six months in a purely physical sense. I’d give so much credit to the PolarExplorers program and how it gears up a seemingly average person to face something extraordinary, and gush with the descriptions and compliments without any exaggeration. But you all know that story. You know how fantastic a service you deliver. In silence you may not have perceived it, but this expedition has moved mountains within me…
If I had more time I could write an essay about what the trip meant to me, what it resulted in, how it felt, what the most important ingredients were etc etc... Which I genuinely sense I will end up doing which you may keep for yourselves or use to help more people understand the sheer power of a trip like this.
Thanks to the whole PolarExplorers staff for a most incredible experience. The Arctic is such an incredible place and your extraordinary support provided us the luxury of enjoying it to its fullest.
I had a fantastic time on the last degree expedition. The landscape was incredible, the organizing was superb. Everything worked. Great team approach and an incredible experience.
Ryan and Nancy (our guides) were excellent - safe, cautious, deliberate, helpful and fun... I'll remember reaching the Pole, my team mates, a very positive impression about the PolarExplorers operation and the Russians and Norwegians
Well Chaps, another great experience with PolarExplorers. I love the PolarExplorers ethos. Over the last four years my two trips with the PE team have been two of the highlights of my life.
To PolarExplorers, Thank you all for a fantastic experience, impressive to the end! Never to be forgotten! I thank you all for a truly unforgettable positive life experience. Most especially I wish to express my sincere appreciation to PE Guides Maher and CP for their tireless, aggressive leadership and support. Especially for this ol’ man.
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It’s difficult to put into words how much the past 10 days have meant to my dad and I. This has certainly opened a door to a new passion for me. Our guides could not have been more informative and clued in and entertaining throughout the trip. It was a pleasure and a privilege to do this trip with you guys.
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The most amazing trip of my life. Annie and Eric are a testament to the company. This was one of the best weeks of my 48 year old life.
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Another brilliant PolarExplorers experience. I volunteer as a PE ambassador to spread the word of the professionalism and experience that you provide.
Thank you! Since I was a child I always dreamed about doing the North Pole. Getting there and finding an amazing selection of vodka, a golf club and Santa (!) was simply amazing & 5 stars. Annie, your help with the preparations was wonderful and it was great to see you in Longyearbyen! Eric, thank you so much for your help in making sure that all my kit worked! The boots were great :) And Keith, every time I use my GPS I will be thinking of you. I cannot believe how simple it is after speaking with you for only five minutes! Kudos for assembling such a great team. Thanks to all of you!
Never has being cold felt so awesome. Even without knowing what to expect. Journeying to the Pole blew any preconceptions away.
Another brilliant PolarExplorers experience. I volunteer as a PE ambassador to spread the word of the professionalism and experience that you provide.
​This trip was an amazing experience that I feel lucky to of been a part of! The glacier was beautiful and the cherry on top was our last night when we had panoramic views of the mountains and could see the ocean. Everything was well-planned and well-executed.
This was a great introduction to the world of polar exploration and would is a fun adventure even for people who aren't training for a bigger expedition.
To our fabulous guides - Annie and Keith, inspiring leadership over our 3 day preparation for the North Pole. I came here with a degree of nervousness but after the first day was totally comfortable with the support and learning experience. Great preparation for the "big event" in April and I feel loads more confident that a) I have made the right decision to do this with PolarExplorers and b) that I can succeed! Thank you Annie, Keith and the team at PolarExplorers.
I would like to thank Annie and Keith for a wonderful and cool training / preparation experience. This has been a phenomenal learning experience and will help me to fine tune for the North Pole expedition. I would like to acknowledge and thank my team mates for allowing me to share in this experience with them and for their kindness and generosity.
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These expeditions are defined by the team that you are with. Two great guides in Keith and Andrew and the rest of the gang, Niall & Patch, Henry & Martin were brilliant. The other team member, an Aussie called Lindsay redefined what I thought of Aussies!! A human dynamo, a great chef and best of all the guy who always volunteered for bear watch duty! What a great tent mate! All emotions were pulled on when it looked like we would not make the North Pole due to open water, but wonderful guiding made crossing it successful and mission accomplished... Thanks!
Organizing and leading a full North Pole trip are monumental tasks, and it is essential that the trip be well organized and expertly led to have a chance at success. Because of the great job that the Polar Explorers team did in organizing and outfitting our trip, and because of Lonnie Dupre's expert leadership, we were able to achieve the Pole. Polar Explorers is among the very few outfitters who can pull off such a trip.