Seabourn Expeditions' environmentally friendly, battery-powered submarine carries just seven people; six guests, three each in two clear acrylic spheres, plus the highly trained pilot who is sat in between the two spheres, guiding the journey. 

Before heading down to the bottom deck of the ship, we had to watch the submarine’s safety video to ensure that we understood how to get in and out of the zodiac, and submarine. After we watched the video, we went down to the bottom deck to wait for the zodiac to arrive. We had our life jackets on and shoe covers so that we didn’t damage the submarine. We then boarded the Zodiac and set off to the submarine which only took about 5 minutes.

Once we arrived, I became very nervous as the wind started to pick up, which created small swells. The pilot of the submarine showed us how to get from the boat to the submarine and where to place your hands and feet when going down into the submarine. We had to sit on the edge of the ladder and swivel our bodies around, whilst holding onto the two handles. Once we were in position, we could go down the ladder, and get into the submarine. You had to bend down and tuck your head whilst getting to your seat as it was quite a small area. As such, it’s important to note that this excursion requires you to be fairly able-bodied and confident in your manoeuvrability. Once everyone had taken their seats, the pilot came down and locked the hatch.

The pilot spoke to us about the oxygen tanks, which last 4 days, if anything unlikely was to happen. The submarine also stocks 4 days’ worth of food and drink. When the pilot was in position, he could tell that a few of us were nervous, he explained the whole procedure of what he was doing and made sure we all understood how to respond if he was to faint - don’t be alarmed, though! Interestingly, the submarine automatically comes up to the surface if the pilot does not touch any buttons or interact with the systems for 10 minutes. The pilot also explained that there is a button for the customers in the submarine to hold down, to speak to the surface when in doubt. This helps the customers feel a bit more comfortable and calm, knowing that everything is incredibly safe.

The pilot began to do all of his checks, and speak to the surface regarding co-ordinates and pressure levels. Once this was completed, he turned our seats around to face the sphere; and we started to descend. The water was very green which lit up the submarine the whole way down, and the pilot talked us through what he was doing. The pressure inside of the submarine didn’t affect any of us and he took it nice and slow.

On the way down to the seabed, we saw loads of jellyfish! Once we reached the seabed, the pilot turned on the lights which helped us to have a clearer vision of what was down below.  They are equipped with underwater LED floodlights, imaging sonar that acts as a second set of eyes, and an advanced underwater tracking and navigation system. We saw movement on the pilot’s screen, and it was a flounder fish. This was amazing to see in its own habitat and it was curious about our vessel, so it stayed with us for quite a while. We were down on the seabed for around 30 minutes looking at the many types of fish, starfish and huge seashells. It was such an amazing experience to be down there in our little bubble. Getting back up to the surface took less than a minute and you couldn’t feel any movement which was incredible.

The whole excursion lasted about 45 minutes, from getting into the submarine via the Zodiac to emerging on the surface. This really was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I would recommend this excursion to any customer aboard Seabourn Venture - especially if you are in select destinations where you are likely to see incredible wildlife.

Interested in experiencing this one-of-a-kind adventure with Seabourn Expeditions? Give the team a call today on 0161 513 8200 to find out more!