Most offbeat excursion ever? Cruise line plans to take passengers into the power plant at Chernobyl
One of the world's newest cruise lines has revealed plans for what may be the most offbeat cruise ship excursion ever: A trip into the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
Florida-based Atlas Ocean Voyages, which is scheduled to debut next year with a single ship, is planning to offer an three-day "Chernobyl experience" excursion in Ukraine that will include a walk into safe areas of the power plant -- the site of the worst nuclear accident in history.
It'll also include a visit to Pripyat, the small abandoned city near the power plant that once housed power plant workers and their families.
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Tourgoers will spend one night within the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, a 1,000-square-mile area around the power plant that is now a restricted area due to radioactive contamination from the nuclear accident, which occurred in 1986.
The excursion will be offered during a 16-night Black Sea sailing that will include stops in Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia and Russia. The trip will kick off July 28, 2021, on the line's soon-to-debut, 196-passenger World Navigator.
"This was something unique we wanted to do," Atlas Ocean Voyages President Alberto Aliberti said Monday during a virtual press event to unveil more details about the line. "They are just starting tourism at a small level."
Indeed, tourism to the Chernobyl disaster site has begun in recent years on a very limited basis, as I saw during a visit to the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone in 2019. Small tour companies based in Kiev, Ukraine, about two hours away, are taking small groups of about a dozen tourists at a time into the area for day tours.
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A handful of visitors also can spend the night in the Chernobyl Exclusive Zone at two small guest houses in the town of Chernobyl, which also is mostly abandoned.
While the area around the power plant complex still is contaminated with radiation, it's considered safe to visit for short periods. Workers involved in the ongoing decontamination of the reactor that melted down during the accident continue to enter the area regularly, though they only can remain in the area for a limited number of days per year.
The Chernobyl tours that Atlas Ocean Voyages is planning will be unusual in that they will include a visit to an interior area of the nuclear reactor complex. Day tours from Kiev typically only include a stop to view the complex from outside of its main gate.
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Only one of four nuclear reactors at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant melted down during the disaster, and it has since been sealed in a way that does not let new radiation escape.
The tours also will be unusual for their size, give the line's ships will be able to hold 196 passengers. While that's considered a very small number of passengers for a cruise ship, it's still a lot of people to take into the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, which is only sparsely visited.
Aliberti said he traveled to Kiev and Chernobyl in 2019 to discuss the visits with authorities. No other cruise line has offered an overnight tour into the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.
"It wasn't hard to negotiate the trip in (to the zone)," he said. "What is important was the size of the group. Because we're a smaller ship, and because we carry fewer guests, we were able to break it up such that our guests will not overwhelm any area."
The tour came up Monday during a discussion of the unusual excursions that Atlas Ocean Voyages is planning for its itineraries. Billed as a "luxe adventure" line, the brand has been designed to offer not just luxury but adventurous and unusual shore excursions, Atlas Ocean Voyages vice president of sales and trade partnerships Brandon Townsley said during the press event.
The Chernobyl experience will be part of a "max shore" line of unusual, mid-cruise overland adventures that will be a highlight of the brand. Offered on some longer sailings, the excursions will last from three to six days and bring such activities as hot-air ballooning over Turkey's Pamukkale’s mineral pools and petrified forest; and glamping under the stars at Jordan's Petra ruins. They'll be offered at no extra charge to passengers.
The press event was held on the first day of a virtual version of the annual Seatrade Cruise Global convention -- the world's biggest gathering of people involved in the cruise industry. It usually happens in Miami in April and draws about 13,000 people.
Aliberti said the line had approached arranging the Chernobyl tour with sensitivity, given what occurred at the site.
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"You have to keep in mind that it is an area of a recent human tragedy," he said. "We have to go into it with (an) attitude of respecting what it is."
Atlas Ocean Voyages announced earlier this year that it would add four more ships to its fleet by the end of 2023.
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There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)Pros
- 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
- 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
- Solid welcome bonus
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
- Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.