Luxury cruises to Antarctic ‘still on’

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32450, 10 November 1970, Page 17

Luxury cruises to Antarctic ‘still on’

(New Zealand Press Association) AUCKLAND, November 8. The American luxury cruise ship Lindblad Explorer will definitely be making further trips to the Antarctic, said its South Pacific representative, Mr R. G. Stevenson, today.

A report that an arbitration case between her owner, Lindblad Travel of New York, and the Holm Shipping Company, Ltd, could jeopardise the planned voyages was described by Mr Stevenson as a “lot of nonsense.” “The proposed trip, leaving from Bluff on February 6, is still on,” he said. Mr Stevenson said: “A

claim for $15,000 has been made by the Holm Shipping Company. My company has counter-claimed for $60,000.” The Holm Shipping Company said on- Friday that Lindblad Travel still owed it money for the charter of the Magga Dan two years ago. Captain J. F. Holm, the managing director of the Holm Company, said that the matter had been in the hands of the company’s solicitors for the last two years. Satisfactory progress was now being made towards recovery of the amount claimed. 1 Difficulties had resulted in dealing with a United States company, he said. The Danish freighter Magga Dan had been chartered by the Holm company and rechartered to Lindblad Travel to make several cruises to Antarctica in 1967 and 1968. The arbitration was taking a long time to bring to a hearing, said Captain Holm. It was possible that because of the matter the proposed voyage of the Lindblad Explorer could encounter difficulties in New Zealand, he said. The Holm Shipping Company is still working on the possibility of establishing a floating hotel, able to accommodate more than 100 persons, at McMurdo Sound. The company was still working on the possibility of a combined operation with Air New Zealand, flying persons to Antarctica and using a ship as a floating hotel, Captain Holm said. The company has several ships in mind which would meet the requirements, and provide enough accommodation for the passengers of a DCS. The ship would stay in Antarctica during the summer. Weekly flights would be made from New Zealand to the ice.