Lindblad Expeditions

Very satisfied. We look forward to our next expedition!

Just travelled on Lindbad’s expedition to Costa Rica, Monte Verde and Panama.
Best time of my life! The booking was super easy, I never had to go call any agents. everything was done online. I was pleasantly surprised to find a car and greeter at San Jose, Costa Rica airport there to receive me, even though I arrived a day early.
The tour was well planned, the meals were great and the company was amazing!
We went to national parks, saw animals in their natural habitats, swam, snorkelled, went kayaking, hiking, bird watching, taking pictures. All excursions were included so I never saw my wallet or needed to pay for anything for the entire trip.
We had a National Geographic photographer in board, Michael Melford. amazing teacher and amazing experience travelling with a professional who was so patient and kind to help everyone with their picture taking, no matter what level they were at.
Only thing I would recommend and it is not an issue for 99% of travellers is that the age group is much higher than expected. Probably around 60. But if you are looking for party city, and young people who stay up all night and sleep in all day. not your trip.
If you are looking to enjoy nature, enjoy taking pictures, hiking and making a lot of new friends, this one is for you. I would highly recommend it for families with kids 10 years and up (or whatever Lindblad recommends) .
Would definitely travel more with this company!

Thinking about taking a trip of a lifetime? Find another tour operator. These guys get a lot of positive reviews from publications like Conde Nast Traveler and Travel & Leisure for their environmental stewardship and delivering a unique experience, but the experience of dealing with their back office staff just trying to get to your voyage doesn’t live up to the hype.
I booked a trip to Antarctica with Lindblad about 5 months prior to my planned departure, and excitedly began anticipating the trip. However, my excitement did nothing but diminish after the original phone call to book it. First, Lindblad was slow to process some of my original paperwork, so I had to send it to them twice. Then, a week after accepting my final (non-​refundable) payment for the trip, they canceled the voyage which I was supposed to sail on, purportedly due to «mechanical» issues with their brand new ship Explorer (although I suspect it was actually due to low booking numbers for that particular voyage, since the Explorer was at the time currently being used for other voyages at sea with seemingly no difficulties). So then I had to go through the hassle of re-​booking my trip to another date — new dates off of work, new airfare to Miami, new pet sitter, etc. Then, when it came time to process the last part of my paperwork and send me the final boarding documents, they lost my paperwork again and refused to send me the travel documents or propose any solution for the problem that resulted from their completely disorganized staff. With less than one week to go prior to departure I was still waiting and calling every few hours for a status update on my documents and a request that they help me find an alternative solution, but you wouldn’t know it since the staff doesn’t take customer dissatisfaction seriously and doesn’t return phone calls.
For a once-​in-​a-​lifetime experience such as this with a top rated tour company, and with as much money as you have to pay for it, I expect to receive high quality service and to be treated with respect. Lindblad definitely doesn’t deliver. I would never book another expedition with them again.