Staff
Thank you for making us your expedition leaders of choice
Below you will find the staff that conforms Albatros Expeditions, both in our Copenhagen Headquarters and On Board. An amalgam of knowledge from different regions, whose passion is exploring the world... and sharing their expertise to ensure that every journey abides to the high standards of quality and service that define Albatros Expeditions.

Anders Ellemann Kristensen
Anders Ellemann Kristensen
Originally from Denmark and now residing in China, Anders is the General Manager of the Albatros Travel Office in Beijing. He is responsible for marketing, sales and the daily management of Albatros Groups operations in Greater China.
In 2006, Anders took to the road as a guide for Albatros Travel, being the first to run back to back Beijing - New Delhi road and train trips over the Tibetan Plateau. This evolved into a passion for remote areas and in time, Greenland, Svalbard and the Antarctic Peninsula were added to Anders ‘another day at the office’ locations.
Anders has a M.A in Chinese from Aarhus University, a B.A in Philosophy from the University of Southern Denmark and a Graduate Certificate in Business Administration (HD 1) from Aarhus University. In his spare time, he enjoys running and spending time with his family.

Andrea Bagi
Andrea Bagi
Originally from Hungary, Andrea finished her education in Denmark in the fields of Tourism, Economics, and Marketing. Her passion lies in sustainable tourism marketing, so she was thrilled to start working in a company that puts a great emphasis on personal connections, respects culture & nature, and offers once-in-a-lifetime experiences.
In her free time, she enjoys being out in nature, trying out water sports, and getting to know new cultures and their cuisine, which she will then TRY to recreate in her own kitchen for her friends.
While she often travels to Budapest to visit her family, she makes sure to journey to a new country every year and broaden her horizon. Some of her bucket list destinations are New Zealand and Japan.

Anne Marie Hashiba
Anne Marie Hashiba
Born in Japan to a Danish father and a Japanese mother, Anne Marie grew up in Southern Jutland. Anne Marie lived in California as a young adult and started her passion for Airline and Travel industry in Los Angeles.
Now residing in Yokohama with more than 25 years of experience in the field, she works in the Sales team for Albatros Expeditions. She is fluent in Danish, English and Japanese, and also knows some German.
In her spare time when not travelling with work, Anne Marie enjoys spending time with her family and friends, exploring new destinations and learning about other cultures, as well as tasting great local food.

Charlotte Hansen
Charlotte Hansen
Originally from Nuuk, Greenland. Been living in Denmark since 2004. Have always worked within the tourist industry. Started as receptionist at Greenlandic tourism, travel consultant in few different companies in Greenland and Denmark, flying as cabin crew for 13 years, and now employed as Product Coordinator at Albatros Arctic Circle and Albatros Expeditions. Appreciating family time with my little family, loves to travel, loves to experiencing local food and cultures, loves the nature and is always up for new experiences.

Derek O'Brien
Derek O'Brien
Derek grew up in Dublin but has lived in Bali, Hong Kong, Montreal, and now Copenhagen. Currently, studying for a Master in Sustainable Tourism at Aalborg University, he is particularly interested in the relationship between aviation and tourism.
Since a visit to the Northwest Territories of Canada, Derek has developed a strong interest in polar/Arctic regions and the challenges of tourism in this remote and relatively unexplored part of the world.
Outside work, he loves getting to know his new home in Copenhagen and trying to learn the Danish language. Travel is naturally a big passion of his, Greenland is next on his bucket list but a trip to Hawaii is also on the horizon. New Zealand is somewhere he would love to return to within the next few years.

Greg Carter
Greg Carter
Greg has been in the Travel and Polar industry for 15 years and is known for his previous life as the co-founder of Chimu Adventures. He has extensive experience in the Polar Regions, particularly from a product, contracting, sales, and marketing point of view.
He is actively involved in Antarctic Heritage via the Mawson's Huts Foundation in Australia and is a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.
Greg is a self-confessed "Viking Nerd" who loves Iceland, and Greenland has been on his bucket list for two decades. He is passionate about everything from the polar bears in the Arctic, through the feeling of being in an Attenborough documentary in South Georgia, to the spectacular beauty of the Antarctic Peninsula.
He is excited to be a part of a family-run company with whom he has worked closely for over a decade before. He looks forward to operating with Albatros Expeditions to grow their presence in the market, with two brand new state-of-the-art ships.

Lene Guldmann
Lene Guldmann
Originally from Aarhus, Jutland on the west part of Denmark, Lene is now a Copenhagen resident.
Lene has more than 20 years of experience working in the individual leisure and tourism industry with focus on building strong B2B relations, high customer service, sales and production. She joined the Expedition team in 2018.
Traveling has always been very important for Lene, who is constantly looking for new adventures. In her spare time, she loves all kinds of sports, a good book and time with friends and family.

Maria Romina Frassa
Maria Romina Frassa
Originally from Argentina, but also of Italian descent. Maria obtained her BA in Tourism and Hospitality and a registered Tour Guide of Buenos Aires City.
She has worked in the tourism industry, especially in cruise lines companies, for more than 10 years. Maria has experience as a customer services specialist, group coordinator, and event manager.
She currently lives in Warsaw, Poland, and collaborates with Albatros Expeditions as Cruise Advisor.
She has a great passion for tourism and customer services. Maria is interested in visiting new places and cultures. Her hobbies are exercising, walking or bicycling around the city, swimming, reading tourist books, and learning new languages. So far, she speaks perfectly in English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, a little in French, and she is currently pursuing Polish.

Melissa Waidner
Melissa Waidner
Born and raised in Germany, Melissa spent a few years living in California and Florida in her young ages where she also fell in love with the tourism and cruise industry. Followed by that she was working onboard various cruise ships sailing the 7 seas, before she started a land-based career within the sales team of an international cruise company.
Now residing back in Germany, Melissa joined Albatros Expeditions in 2021 and is part of the international sales team. She is fluent in English, German and knows some French.
In her spare time Melissa enjoys spending time with her family and friends, exploring new destinations whenever possible, learning about other cultures as well being part of a local music orchestra in her hometown.

Michael Bishop
Michael Bishop
Michael, originally from the United Kingdom, has been living in Sweden for the past thirty years. He truly embraces his Nordic home.
During his time in Sweden, Michael has worked as a teacher and wilderness guide, discovering many remote parts of Sweden and Norway.
Michael’s passion for adventure and his interest in the Polar regions began as a child, reading books about Shackleton and Scott. That Michael now works with expeditions in these amazing regions is a dream come true.

Michael Hjorth
Michael Hjorth
Michael has been with Albatros since 2002 – all the time with keen interest and expert knowledge in polar regions and small ship adventure. He is originally from and continues to reside in Copenhagen, but is often traveling.
Small expedition vessels has always been in the DNA of Albatros, and Michael has been producer of voyages all around the North Atlantic, along Baltic coasts, Kamchatka, into the Arctic Canada, Greenland, Pacific – and of course to Antarctica.
A geologist of education and longtime mountaineer, Michael has worked and climbed all over Greenland, and as an avid photographer has supplied our programs with stunning photos.

Philip Stack
Philip Stack
Mexico, Cuba, China, Greece, Turkey – he’s been there and been there thoroughly. Swedish mother, Irish father, brought up in Denmark. Needless to say that Philip was but a mere boy when his path towards entanglement in the addictive web of charter tourism began. Breaking a sweat under the burning sun, Philip has guided many a Dane, Swede and Norwegian through everything from the maze of treacherous markets vendors in Beijing to the pitfalls of Havanese cuisine before finally settling down with the Albatros family. He now roams the halls in Toendergade planning voyages for Albatros Expeditions. Philip knows a little bit about everything and is the perfect go-to-guy if you are in dire need of nerdy information or just a fun chat – he WILL make you laugh!

Pia Lindehammer
Pia Lindehammer
Pia resides south of Copenhagen and has been in the travel industry for the whole of her working career.
She has been in operation and handling departments at Albatros Travel for 12 years and joined the Expedition team at the beginning of 2022.
Traveling around the world is a passion of hers, but she also enjoys adventures, like "simple camping."
In her spare time, she enjoys being out in nature and everything that has to do with water sports. She loves to take a cold swim during the winter and enjoy the seas surrounding Denmark in a kayak or a sailboat during the summers. Simply everything that is aligned with the ocean makes her happy, so being at Expedition is just perfect for her.

Rashidah Lim
Rashidah Lim
Rashidah graduated with a Degree in Accountancy from Nanyang Technological University and worked in KPMG. Afterwards, Rashidah decided to go the unconventional route and pursue her passion for dance, and has been working as a professional dance instructor and performer. She now has over 10 years of experience under her belt, and is often featured on national TV, newspapers and magazines. Rashidah was once selected to demonstrate some dance moves to the ex-President of Singapore, and be a leader in the introduction of Zumba, which has now grown to be one of the most popular form of exercise. She has in the past performed for renowned celebrities and brands such as Nike, Adidas and Sephora.
A keen interest in learning about different cultures, as well as gaining new experiences, has led Rashidah across the globe and allowed her to connect with people from various parts of the world. She discovered her love for polar regions, and has worked as an expedition guide in the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and Antarctica. Rashidah is tri-lingual in English, Chinese and Malay. She is positive and sociable, and enjoys meeting new people with a smile. When not on board one of our vessels she is busy selling our Polar voyages to agents in all of South East Asia.

Sebastian Arnoldus
Sebastian Arnoldus
Sebastian holds a master's in Finance & Accounting from Copenhagen Business School and worked with Private Equity before returning to Albatros Expeditions.
He spent almost three years in Greenland working in finance and in his spare time, he did a lot of small expedition adventures on his own boat. He did a lot of hunting, fishing, hiking, skiing and fell in love with the Arctic.
In Albatros, he gets to work with numbers and interesting people, a fantastic product in a challenging industry in a family-owned company. What's not to like?
He is married to Nana, and they live in Copenhagen with their toddler, Matheo who keeps them busy and happy. He tries to limit the number of hobbies but finds many outdoor activities interesting. In recent years, he immersed himself in fishing, hunting, and biking.

Thomas Olufson
Thomas Olufson
Thomas is an Emergency Medical Technician, Firefighter, Maritime Security Officer, Urban Search and Rescue Specialist, Rescue Diver and Coast Lifeguard, Kayak and Fitness Instructor, with a Masters in Disaster Management from the University of Copenhagen and experience in the military. He has long experience working as an expedition guide arranging trips and hikes to the mountains of Tanzania, Ethiopia and the Alps of Italy, as well as to the Arctic. When living in Greenland, Thomas used to work as a Travel Coordinator and Hotel Manager in a small Greenlandic city. He was active in the Thule US Air Force Base in north Greenland as a fitness Instructor and arranging trips for the military.
Since 2012, he has managed cruise expeditions and trips to the west coast of Greenland, Svalbard and Iceland. There, he has guided tourists on different types of boats, expeditions, and dogsled - with his own 13 dogs - to the Inland ice, taking care of the runners on the Albatros Polar Bear challenge Marathon in Greenland.
Besides from his work at Albatros, Thomas has seven years of experience working in the humanitarian and security sector, mainly as a Global Safety advisor. In more than 15 countries he has participated in different missions; putting up camps in north Uganda for the UN, Relief, logistic and camp management in Haiti after the Earthquake, as Maritime Security Officer and as a Safety Advisor and trainer in Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Jordan, Nigeria and most of East Africa. He is fluent in Danish, English and some Swahili.

Timea Kovacs
Timea Kovacs
Originally from Romania of Hungarian ethnicity, Timea currently lives in Copenhagen and continues to work in the travel industry, which she is most passionate about.
To kick start her journey in tourism, she attained a bachelor's in Cultural Tourism in Romania and after graduation started working as a Travel Consultant specialized in South-East Asian destinations. During this time, Timea has also been a tour leader in China and Japan and grew even more fond of Japanese culture. Soon after relocating to Denmark, she pursued a master's in Sustainable Tourism Development at Aalborg University and became very interested in tourism workforce research.
Now working at Albatros Expeditions, she believes she found the perfect opportunity for her to learn about destinations she only heard great stories about and to work in a company that matches also with her values concerning sustainability.
When she is not experimenting with Japanese recipes and painting, in her free time Timea can be most probably found in a museum or drawn into a Haruki Murakami book.

Tina Bentsen Schou
Tina Bentsen Schou
Originally from and currently residing in Copenhagen, Tina has a business education, but has been devoted to the travel industry since 1995. She started as a hotel receptionist, then worked for a large charter travel agency where she sat in several job functions: travel-consultant, sales-support, web-support & supervisor, and has been employed by Albatros Travel as a product coordinator in areas such as: Greenland, Iceland, Norway and Svalbard.
Tina loves to travel, to experience the world, tasting the local food and learning about each place’s culture and history. Recently, her focus has become exploring the Nordic Regions. In her spare time, Tina likes to be with her family, embark on other various projects, as well as all kinds of outdoor activities like cycling and hiking.

Zenia Ina Stavnshøj Torp
Zenia Ina Stavnshøj Torp
Originally from a suburb north of Copenhagen, close to the sea and forests, and currently residing in Copenhagen. Zenia has a Master's degree in Communication and has been devoted to the travel industry since 2017 in different positions – travel consultant, product & quality, marketing, and legal compliance.
Zenia is very social and spends most of her time in the company of friends and family. She dreams of exploring even more of the world and appreciating learning about new cultures and experiencing different countries. Being active is very important to her and she is often to be found in a Crossfit box or on the climbing wall. She once completed a marathon on rollerblades in Berlin, and primarily uses her bike to get around.

Andrew Miller
Andrew Miller
Born and raised in Toronto, Canada, Andrew has been traveling since the age of 12.
He has made his career as an international photographer, including 15 years at sea, and several cross-continent motorcycle trips. As a teenager, he delivered the local paper. Grabbing his camera whenever he could, he had it ready when a North American Black Bear made an unusual trip into his city neighbourhood.
Instead of just delivering the paper, his photograph was on the front page. He has been working as a professional photographer ever since.
In his 15 years abroad, Andrew has spent a lot of time in the Baltic region, Australia/New Zealand, and has lived in the Philippines and Mexico.

Alejandro Ursino
Alejandro Ursino
Founder of USH Magazine, Alejandro has been working on several projects connecting the communities from all over the world with valuable content through his Magazine, Social Media and all the marketing tools available so people can have access to great and motivational stories.
He’s started as a Graphic Designer, traveled to Colorado, USA, where he worked at The Aspen Times among other publications. After some Awards on his work, he decided to drive a Kombi throughout 14 countries to Mar del Plata, ARG., he’s home town. Tire of been part of a superficial media world decided to start his own production agency and try to make a difference. Now with thousands of followers and readers, the concept of International Culture Collective makes more sense, publications like National Geographic and BBC are participating in he’s projects, also WWF, PEW among other organizations.
Now he is on a new journey, sharing new stories and experiences with you, so you can become the next story. Find his work at the library on board.

Amanda Hunter
Amanda Hunter
Born in New York to an Italian mother and Danish father, Amanda grew up in the San Francisco bay area. She has experience working as an International Student Travel Guide throughout the South Pacific region as well as teaching marine biology in a variety of outdoor and interactive settings.
While studying at Oregon State University to earn her degree in Fisheries and Wildlife Science specializing in Marine Science, Amanda spent a semester studying abroad at Murdoch University in Perth, Western Australia where her desire to see the world began. Following this semester, she involved herself in a variety of international experiences.
Her passion for the ocean, wildlife, travel, and conservation is what led Amanda to become involved with Albatros Expeditions in 2018 as an Expedition Guide. She is excited to share with others the magic of our natural world and to guide guests through ‘once in a lifetime’ experiences in the Antarctic and the Arctic regions.

Asger Pjetrusson
Asger Pjetrusson
Born and raised in Denmark surrounded by the sea, Asger is a devoted sea kayaker.
Training in rough water in winter, Asger enjoys the tranquillity of mirror-like water in the summer only interrupted by whales breathing and the sound of icebergs calving in the horizon.
Be it guiding, instructing, playing, or practicing Greenland rolls, Asger is a firm believer that time spent paddling is time well spent. Asger has been guiding kayak tours in West Greenland and is currently training for the highest sea kayak certification available in Denmark.

Barbara Post
Barbara Post
Barbara was born in Austria and has always had a sincere passion for nature and mountaineering. Therefore, the biology study in Innsbruck fit perfectly to her interests. During her bachelor study program, she already worked for several scientific projects on cold ecosystems (Alpine region, Arctic) as well as the tropics (Central America). During this time, she developed a strong passion for the lives of animals, especially invertebrates.
She finished her Master of Science/Zoology with writing a thesis about a water bear species, a tiny resilient multicellular animal, living on the surface of glaciers.
In 2012 the freshly graduated zoologist entered the world of tourism as a passionate nature guide and ever since joined many expedition cruises in cold regions (Arctic, Antarctica) and warmer climes (South America, Southeast Asia, Australasia, Oceania).

Brian Seenan
Brian Seenan
Brian started his career as a Geologist searching for the source of alluvial diamonds in the Congo. As an Oil Industry Specialist with IBM he worked with oil companies around the world selecting and installing IT systems to optimize the search and production of hydrocarbons.
His expertise in project management took him into troubleshooting and delivering major projects. He is a competent marksman and has handled weapons for over 30 years.
His spare time is spent sailing, skiing and walking in the Scottish Highlands where he indulges his enjoyment of photography, and he is also a published author. Latterly, Brian has been working as an expedition team member on cruises in The Arctic, Central and South America and New Zealand, specifically as geologist and Zodiac driver.

Christophe Gouraud
Christophe Gouraud
Christophe was born in France and has been passionate about birds since he was a child. After spending five years in Canada studying ecology, Christophe went to Alaska. He lived on the tiny Middleton Island as a research assistant to study the ecology of seabirds. He explores polar and tropical regions since 2007 and joined many cruises from Svalbard to the Russian Far East, from Antarctica to South Georgia, and from Amazonia to the West Indies.
Christophe also worked with birds as a biologist field worker in Morocco, United Arab Emirates and Kazakhstan. Christophe found another way to travel by inventorying collections of birds that have been collected worldwide during the 18 and 19th centuries.

David Macdonald
David Macdonald
David has had a varied career as a geologist in some of the most remote parts of the world. He grew up on the edge of the Scottish Highlands, leaving him with a lifelong love of wild places and a serious interest in rock. He graduated in geology from Glasgow University and joined the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) as a geologist, working on the island of South Georgia for two long field seasons and gaining a PhD from Cambridge for his research. Over the next four years, he worked on projects in Sabah and the New Guinea highlands.
David rejoined BAS as a team leader, doing five more Antarctic expeditions: three in the Antarctic Peninsula and two in the Transantarctic Mountains. He reached the South Pole, courtesy of the US Navy (but not by ship) and was awarded a Polar Medal in 1987. In the 1990s, he was Chief Geologist of an Arctic research organisation based in Cambridge University. He managed frontier projects across the globe, with personal expeditions to Spitsbergen, Siberia, Sakhalin, Patagonia, and the Falklands. In 1999 took up his present post as professor at the University of Aberdeen, working on projects in Russia, California and Brazil. In his spare time, he reads, dances, and makes and restores furniture.

David Reid
David Reid
For over twenty five years, David has been involved in the Arctic expedition and travel business.
Since moving from Scotland to the Arctic, he has led, organized or participated in more than three hundred Arctic and Antarctic expeditions, trips and projects. In that time he has travelled thousands of miles by dog sled, ski, snowmobile, boat, kayak, ship, foot and most recently became the first person to cross Baffin Island by fat tire bike. He has completed eighteen successful expeditions through the Northwest Passage and guided over seventy trips to Churchill, Manitoba.
He was recently honoured by Canada Goose by becoming a “Goose Person” (one of only 50 people chosen across Canada) and share in the 50th anniversary of this great Canadian company.

Emil Larsen
Emil Larsen
Emil is a Danish biologist who was raised near the Wadden Sea.
When he is not working as a guide, he lives in Odense and works in the Danish Environmental Protection Agency. Starting as a trainee on training ship Danmark, he crossed the Atlantic twice and has since worked as a deckhand on large sailing ships around northern Europe, from Finland to France.
Emil has a lot of Arctic and marine experience from living on Svalbard for roughly a year and sailing the waters around Greenland as a scientific assistant for the Greenland nature institute for three seasons. Living on Svalbard means arranging all from cabin trips to snow scooter trips, while keeping safety aspects a main priority.

Emma Hansen
Emma Hansen
Emma (Emmarentia) Hansen was born and raised in the stunning Lowveld area of Mpumalanga, South Africa, adjacent to Kruger National Park.
Growing up on a farm, wildlife, animals and nature have always played an integral part in her life. After a chance cruise in 1998, she switched careers and literally ran away to sea. Moving to Durban, where she
completed her commercial skipper’s ticket, she joined the large cruise liners operating in the Indian Ocean, as a Zodiac driver. In 2007, her move to ‘Small Ship Cruising’ as an Assistant Expedition Leader greatly
enlarged her geographical knowledge base and she is now a veteran of the globe, including the polar regions. “No matter how many times you visit, the polar trips knock you out. The fabulous scale of the Norwegian
landscape and the 24-hour daylight are like another world. In the Antarctic you see this amazing contrast between the bumbling behaviour of seals and penguins on land, versus their sheer grace in the water. You are surrounded by a landscape made entirely of water in liquid and solid forms and you are amazed at how beautiful that can be.”
“People often ask, ‘What’s your favourite destination?’ and that’s difficult. My answer is that there are three “g’s” - and then a fourth. There’s the gang (of staff), the guests and the geography. It’s my job to create the chemistry so all three coalesce, and when that happens then wherever we are, is great.”

Federico Perez Campanelli
Federico Perez Campanelli
Federico Perez Campanelli was born in Argentina. He has been involved working with NGOs that support environmental conservation and positive social impact. His passion has lead him to train and study in diverse professional fields where the common thread has been caring for people, nature and life.
He is also a certified Mountain Guide and for 11 years Federico has been leading expeditions up Aconcagua Mountain in the South American Andes. He is a Lifeguard and Rescue Swimmer and he has volunteered his professional service at humanitarian rescue organizations working in open sea.
Federico holds a technical degree in Civil Protection and Emergencies and continue studying. He currently works in Search and Rescue teams and is a Wilderness First Responder trainer.
Traveler, music and book lover, Federico is always looking for new answers to life.

Gerard Baker
Gerard Baker
Gerard is a renowned author and artist, with an education in Botany and Zoology, and an MA in International Politics and Environmental Management. He is also a fully trained Michelin chef and speaks English (his native language), French and Spanish.
His impressive biography includes having authored 15 books, creating documentaries for the BBC, writing for The Times newspaper, and being a stamp designer and beekeeper on his spare time. Gerard has more than 20 years working in Antarctica, and has overwintered 4 times with the British Antarctic Survey filling roles in both science support and conservation projects.

Guillaume de Remacle
Guillaume de Remacle
After travelling the world working in Asia, Oceania and South America in various environmental projects, Guillaume ended up in Antarctica as a wildlife monitor at Port Lockroy.
Spending four-month on this British base gave him the opportunity to learn a lot about the Antarctic Peninsula, and specifically about Penguins and other Antarctic birds.
Now a bird specialist, Guillaume has been working as an Ornithologist for two years, sharing his knowledge and experiences with Albatros Expeditions Guests.

Jacqueline Deely
Jacqueline Deely
British born Jacqueline has spent the majority of her adult life in the USA and now makes California’s central coast home. An accomplished freelance wildlife photographer and certified California naturalist, her journey to a career in expedition travel began in Seattle, Washington where she was introduced to small-ship cruising, working behind the scenes in administrative and sales management roles.
An onboard assignment escorting a professional photographer in Alaska opened her eyes to new and exciting possibilities beyond the confines of the office. After moving to California in 2000, she began her formal education in photography, while working in executive administration in the high-tech world of Silicon Valley. After visiting Antarctica for the first time in 2013, she was so enthralled by the experience, she left the corporate world to pursue her dream of becoming a professional wildlife photographer and has never looked back.
In 2016 she was hired as a photographer in residence in the polar regions and has been returning annually ever since.
When not traveling, Jacqueline can be found at home with her husband and cat, cycling, hiking, photographing along the California coast, or out in her kayak in the early morning hours.

Jamie Watts
Jamie Watts
Jamie is a marine ecologist and expedition leader, who spends as much time as possible in
Earth’s most spectacular ecosystems. After two years overwintering with British Antarctic Survey on South Georgia from 2004, Jamie has been full time on expedition ships across the globe, logging over 370,000 miles and 2850 days on ships at sea, including 221 expedition voyages. Jamie presents on marine and polar wildlife, global-scale ecology and human ecological footprints, and has written for magazines and websites around the world. Jamie has dived and free-dived from under the ice at the North Pole to the Antarctic, and has logged 1700 dives. He is father to twenty-year old Alex.

Jeff Nagel
Jeff Nagel
Jeff was born in Connecticut, not far from New York City. He grew up sailing and spending his summers on Long Island Sound, until snowier sites beckoned. After obtaining a communications degree from the University of Denver, Jeff moved to As-pen, Colorado and began his life as a guide. He spent the next twenty years guiding guests among the snowy peaks of the Rocky Mountains, down the frothy rivers of the American West and further afield.
Since 2013, Jeff has worked as a polar guide, becoming a firearms master and expert in safe operations in polar bear country. Jeff loves to be out in the rugged elements of the polar regions, spotting wildlife and sharing his love for the wild with his guests.

Jes W. Gravgaard
Jes W. Gravgaard
Jes has more than 40 years of experience as a Naturalist, Meteorologist and Specialist in bird studies and also has an education as an Atmospheric and Space Science Assistant. He has worked with Denmark’s Ministry of Environment and the Danish Ornithological Society; studied various species of sea birds, sea animals and whales in the North Atlantic; and conducted a 3-month study of migratory birds of prey and storks in Egypt in order to investigate the relationship between wind patterns and migration.
Jes is fluent in Danish and English and is a trained meteorological weather observer, who worked for 11 years with the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI), operating radiosondes to measure meteorological data for air traffic in Greenland. Following a number of encounters with polar bears and walruses, while on Zodiac boating trips and dog sledding expeditions across thousands of miles in Greenland, he became hooked on the Arctic. Inspired by these experiences, he studied walruses in Dove Bay for the Greenland Fisheries Research Institute. Jes has travelled much of the world, especially in Africa, Northern Europe and South America. He has been fortunate to spend time in Antarctica, including landings at six different stations and Half Moon Island.

Jesper Juul Hansen
Jesper Juul Hansen
Jesper is an outdoor enthusiast. He loves spending time in nature and to share his enthusiasm with people.
He used to be a coast life guard and rescue diver before relocating to Svalbard to drive dogsled. Here he realised that he has a real talent for thriving in thewilderness. Born in earlier times he probably could have become a wonderful trapper and explorer of the Greenlandic north east coast.
Besides guiding for Albatros he works with logistics and safety for research institutions in the Arctic region. Jesper has a background in the Danish military in Greenland and a degree in philosophy and economy from Copenhagen where he also lives.

Josef Jensen
Josef Jensen
As a kid growing up in Denmark, Josef heard many stories about Greenland. From an early age, he became fascinated with the polar regions, the first explorers and the people who live there.
Josef has a great passion for outdoor activities and is a keen orienteering runner, fisher, hunter, shooter, sea kayaker and polar swimmer. Since 2013 he has combined his passion for outdoor activities and fascination with the polar regions by working in tourism in Greenland.
He has worked as a hiking guide in West Greenland as well as doing lectures on culture and history. In the Swiss and Italian Alps, he has guided extended hiking trips. He has worked as an ice camp manager in Eqi, and a Zodiac driver on an expedition ship in North and West Greenland as well as Antarctica. Currently Josef works as a medical doctor and lives in Nuuk, Greenland.

Juan Cascallares
Juan Cascallares
Juan was raised in Buenos Aires suburbs, where he developed a keen interest for nature and wilderness. As soon as he turned 18, he started guiding at the local natural reserve long starting his university studies. Juan also coordinated educational camping trips with schools.
He couldn´t be anywhere but the wild. He started working as a guide in Antarctica in 2016, and passion for the job grew instantly. Juan participated in two whole seasons, and is looking forward to more. He is almost a self-made interpretative guide, and enjoys each natural topic about polar regions, while he has also recently obtained his WFR accreditation.
In his free time, he enjoys painting watercolors as much as going back to the woods

Kevin Burke
Kevin Burke
Kevin Burke was born in Baffin Island in Canada’s arctic.
He spent his childhood in variouslocations in northern Canada, settling in Churchill, Manitoba, on the western shore of Hudson Bay.
Churchill is known as the polar bear capital of the world where Kevin has worked for over 30 years as a tour guide/bear guard.
Kevin has worked on several cruises in the Arctic and Antarctic in many capacities from expedition leader to lead zodiac driver.

Lisa Pettenuzzo
Lisa Pettenuzzo
Lisa has over 20 years’ experience in the polar regions through work adventures ranging from fishing, mining to tourism: commercial fishing King Salmon in the Bering Sea; navigating thru remote tundra across Canada’s Arctic gold prospecting; assisting mountaineering expeditions to summit Denali; working at a basecamp facilitating tourism and research below the Ellsworth Mountains in Antarctica.
In her personal time, she finds herself hiking though the Arctic mountain ranges, travelling to northern Siberia to learn the culture of the Evans Peoples, on surf expeditions on the coast of British Columbia and backcountry ski touring from her home in the Selkirk Mountains. She just completed a master’s degree in Polar Law, having studied in Iceland, Greenland and Norway. Topics included; Antarctic Law and Policy, Law of the Sea, Societies and Cultures in the Arctic, Maritime Industries and Resources Law, Arctic Development Economics.

Lise Drejstel
Lise Drejstel
Lise is a Danish educated outdoor guide since 2014, specializing in sea kayaking, hiking, wild camping, and backcountry skiing. A large part of the education took place in Jotunheimen, Norway.
In 2016, she become Divemaster in the Dominican Republic, which allows Lise to guide underwater as well. The outdoor education has given her the opportunity to go on long-term adventures in Norway, Svalbard, and Greece as a kayak guide and as a photographer, onboard expedition ships, and onshore. Lise loves being out in nature and sharing beauty with other people.
In her spare time, Lise often finds herself in her kayak out on adventures with friends, or out running.

Luis Turi
Luis Turi
Luis Turi is originally from Patagonia. Born in Neuquén city, in the north of Patagonia, he is now living in Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego the last 25 years.
Luis loves the outdoors and nature, and really enjoy the work traveling in the wilderness, guiding interesting people in that amazing places.
Luis has guided and traveled to many places, like Antarctica, Ladak in north India, Greenland, South America (Peru, Ecuador, Chile, Brazil, Argentina), and, of course, in the wonderful Patagonia.
When he is not sailing or guiding, Luis is writing, developing inventions with scrap or planting trees in remote impated areas of Tierra del Fuego Island.

Luyang Zhao
Luyang Zhao
Born in Beijing, China, Luyang moved to Chile with his parents when he was still a teenager. He studied Cultural Tourism in the University and then got a MBA, but he discovered his true passions when he started working as a freelance translator and guide, showing people the amazing polar regions. Lu is really passionate about history of both Arctic and Antarctic. Luyang is fluent in English, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese, and he prefers to be called “Lu”.

Marc Jansen
Marc Jansen
Marc has over 4 years of experience working at sea. After finishing his master’s degree in International Business & Foreign Cultures he spend a year in China studying this fascinating ancient culture while traveling all around China & Asia.
Marc fell in love with the sea when he did a research expedition on a small wooden boat sailing through the Amazon river helping researchers observe the “pink river dolphin”. Soon after that he started his adventure managing the hotel part on-board floating luxury liners sailing the seven seas.
When not on board ships Marc divides his work as a wildlife guide & outdoor educator in Antarctica, Iceland, Alaska and Canada.

Mariam Pousa
Mariam Pousa
Mariam is a conservator of Cultural Heritage and originally from the coast of Ushuaia, Argentina. She has a Masters in Preservation of Artifacts from Nautical Archeology and a prolific background in History of exploration and preservation of the historical sites. A multitude of opportunities have allowed her to pursue her passion for exploring the wilderness herself, as well as working as scientist on the field. Growing in Ushuaia, surrounded by mountains and great nature, Mariam has developed a deep love for the mountains and nowadays also works as Mountaineering Instructor for Guide Trainees.
She is fluent in Spanish and English, understands French, and has worked as an expedition guide in the Patagonian Andes, and Chilean Fjords. Other expeditions have led her to the Alps, Central America Andes as well as working in logistics for adventure film crew in UK and Spain. During her spare time, Mariam is also an avid skiier and sports climber.

Marieke Egan
Marieke Egan
Born in Europe, Marieke spent much of her time among the foothills of the Swiss Alps, learning to cross glaciers before she could tie her own shoelaces. Developing her adventurous spirit, she took up speed skating, winning medals in the Dutch National Championships.
In 2006 Marieke moved to Tasmania where she found her true calling in the Guide/Naturalist role, developing her knowledge and love for pure wilderness and sharing this with international guests from around the globe.
Marieke’s appetite for new experiences and wilder places have drawn her to explore the incredible beauty of Polar environments only accessible through Expedition Cruising.
Today, she enjoys sharing nature’s best from the bottom to the top of the world, from icy Antarctica, to wildlife havens on Sub-Antarctic Islands, to New Zealand & Australia, to tropical Seychelles, Indonesian & Pacific Islands, to high Arctic’s Greenland, Iceland, Svalbard & Russian Far East.

Melina Pelzmajer
Melina Pelzmajer
Melina was born and raised in Argentina, who discovered her passion for nature, specially for mountains and volcanoes, during her childhood and travelling with family. Later on she pursued this passion studying Geology at the University of Buenos Aires. Since then, she has participated in several field surveys, including the Patagonian Andes, Antarctica and Weddell Sea. While in college, Melina discovered her second passion working as a bartender in hotels and restaurants, interacting with travelers and cultures from all over the world. Melina is currently learning French; partially due to the fact that she loves Frrench films and music. In her spare moments, Melina enjoys spending time with her family and friends, skiing during the winter, travelling whenever possible to new destinations, and experimenting with new recipes at home and restaurants.

Mikaela von Koskull
Mikaela von Koskull
Originally from Korpo, in the southwestern Archipelago of Finland, Mikaela inherited her love and respect of nature and sea, from a long line of seafarers in her family. She started her career graduating as Radio Officer from Mariehamn Maritime Institute, working on merchant ships, followed by ship´s purser on passenger ships . Slowly she gained seamiles and experience to follow her real dream:To become a professional yachtswoman on sailing yachts!
These yachts have taken her around the world several times, participating in races like the Volvo Ocean Race, Jacques Vabre and Jules Verne. Having spent so many miles and years on fast, extreme yachts, both in the Northern and Southern Hempishere, she now enjoyes being part of similar expeditions , although on somewhat slower ships.
Since 2009 she has been working as a tour guide, mainly in Europe and Africa, as well as zodiac driver in Svalbard and Greenland. When not enjoying her two favourite areas, the North and the South Pole, Mikaela enjoyes being at home on her small farm in Portugal, riding her horse or hiking in the Alentejo countryside.

Nadine Smith
Nadine Smith
Nadine is a proud Londoner, and has for the past ten years worked in High Jewelry management. For names such as Cartier, Tiffany and Bvlgari on London’s Bond Street, where she became a certified pearl specialist. This was before falling in love with the sea and traveling around the world selling jewelry and managing onboard boutiques on both Large and small cruise lines.
Apart from a love of all things that sparkle, Nadine likes nothing more than experiencing the unknown, whether it be food, new cultures or say… Antarctica!

Neill Drake
Neill Drake
Neill began his journey to becoming an Antarctica Expedition Guide in 2015 when he sailed as a passenger on a last minute whim. He immediately felt a connection with Antarctica and knew it couldn’t be a “once in a lifetime” trip. Maybe it has to do with his last name being Drake, and his commute to work is the Drake passage...but it most likely has to deal with his passion for creating content that will help breed a new generation of Antarctica Ambassadors that will be the voice of conservation of preservation in a time more voices need to be heard.
Drake, once exclusively a Photography guide has become a knowledgeable general naturalist.

Phillip Hunter
Phillip Hunter
Phil hails from Catalina Island in California. Having been exposed to life on the water at an early age, Phil followed a life-long passion and graduated with a degree in Marine Ecology from UC Santa Barbara. During his time in the university, Phil began working as a kayak guide at California’s Channel Islands National Park as a sea cave kayak guide and naturalist. From that instant he was hooked on the capacity to share the natural world around him with others. He stumbled upon expedition cruising world and began his first couple sea-going seasons in Southeast Alaska. He’s since worked for a number of seasons in Svalbard and the Antarctic Peninsula as a kayak master, lecturer, rifle handler, and zodiac driver.
Phil is an avid traveler outside of work and spends a lot of time on the road. In his opinion, time on the water is time well spent.

Rene Olsen
Rene Olsen
Renè Olsen grew up on the west coast of Norway, with the north sea, deep fjords and big mountains all around him, making him experience all the toughest nature has to offer allready from young age. He early on knew he wanted to be a guide outdoors and allready at age 16 did he's first guideschool.
He's later spent time guiding in the mountains as well on the sea in Norway and North America.
With he's time from the Norwegian army, experience from guiding on 3 continents, and also handling boat's on the Norwegian coast as a skipper, in Svalbard and on the mainland, he'll be sure to keep you safe and also entertain you, while out adventuring together.

Sanne Paarman
Sanne Paarman
Born and raised in Denmark, Sanne today lives in a small village near the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa.
Sanne holds a Bachelor degree in Natural Science and an MBA. She works in educational publishing and has written and edited science high school study books for many African countries such as South Africa, Namibia, Zambia, Cameroon and Rwanda.
Current work on the whale populations of the Southern Seas has taken her to Antarctica for research. Sanne also feels at home in the African bush where she works as a tour leader, guiding groups on safaris in the many national parks of Southern Africa. During her spare time, Sanne enjoys sailing, hiking in the mountains and spending time in the great outdoors.

Sergey Shirokiy
Sergey Shirokiy
Sergey has been working for 6 years for the largest Russian National Park “Russian Arctic” on the remote islands of Franz Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya. He worked as a guide and bear guard on board various expedition ships and nuclear icebreaker. After, he moved to work and to live in a small russian settlement on Svalbard - Barentsburg.
Aside his main job he is voluntarily serving as the vice-chair of the World Commission of Protected Areas in the North Eurasia region.
Sergey’s main background is in history, with master degree in tourist studies from the Arctic University of Norway from 2015 and ecotourism training program from the US Department of State from 2013.

Sladjana Neskovic
Sladjana Neskovic
Sladjana was born and raised in Serbia, who after graduating Hospitality Management College decided to start her career at sea and travel the world as a shop manager on board small luxury cruise lines. During her travels, Sladjana loves learning about other people, customs, nature, wildlife and cruising. When she is not traveling, Sladjana enjoys hiking, cooking and photography.

Slava Nikitin
Slava Nikitin
Originally from Sergiev-Posad, in Russia, Slava studied in the Moscow University of Sports as a teacher of physical education, swimming teacher, rehabilitation, management of sports. Many of Slava’s shoes have been worn out in paths in Russia, Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Australia, the Arctic and Antarctica, with 15 years of experience traveling the World as a photographer, writer, guide and translator. However, it was 2013 that defined his starting point in the cruise industry, when Slava had the opportunity to visit Antarctica on a sailboat. He then worked as an expedition guide in the Arctic and Antarctic Waters, peaking his interest for Polar History.
Known as photographer, travel writer, guide and translator in Russia, Slava often give lectures: How to travel the World, Under sails to Antarctic, Tierra del Fuego: journey on foot with a backpack, Wild life in Patagonia, How to survive in wild, Backpacker's life around the World, among other subjects.

Ted Creek
Ted Creek
Ted grew up in Surrey, in the heart of London’s commuter belt, and has been working to escape into the wilds ever since. Having a scientific bent and a particular interest in the water, Ted went to the University of Plymouth to study Marine Biology and Oceanography. He emerged in 2012, both with a B.Sc and with professional qualifications as a scuba diver. This training not only allowed him to see and become obsessed with life below the waves but also gave him the chance to help with many student projects as a diver, volunteering at the National Marine Aquarium.
Post university, after a short stint working as an event medic, Ted entered the world of ecotourism as a crew and wildlife guide with a company working out of a tiny island south of Oban. Using small speedboats, it was possible to show off not only the fantastic wildlife of the Inner Hebrides but also to highlight the oceanography of the area and its incredible effect on marine life. Tours regularly included venturing into the infamous Corryvreckan whirlpool and explaining the interactions of the local currents and their effects. The need to widen his experience of boats and the sea has led Ted to work on engineering projects involving the use of renewable energies and studies into their effect on the marine life around them. Ted is now an advanced powerboat driver and he is learning more about the marine world with every new contract.

Wan Meng Chieh
Wan Meng Chieh
Wan began his career as an Outdoor Planner in Taiwan, arranging hiking, cycling and diving tours. He has gone to Everest Base Camp twice and luckily survived the severe earthquake in 2015. Wan is skilled in activity preparation, trekking, diving, canoeing, and has previous experience as a Super Capacity R&D Assistant Engineer, English Speaking Tour Guide and Outdoor Development Independent Contractor.
Now, he focuses on outdoor education programs such as LNT and sea kayak in Taiwan and is ready to share the beauty of Antarctica with young explorers in Pacific Asia. He currently works as an Expedition Guide and Language Interpreter for Albatros Expeditions on both Arctic and Antarctic expedition voyages. In addition, he brings small groups to China, Nepal, Alaska and Canada for various outdoor programs.

Werner Kruse
Werner Kruse
Werner Kruse is a well-seasoned traveller and an experienced filmmaker, photographer and expedition guide. He has worked on numerous international productions and produced travel documentaries, including wildlife and expedition documentaries in Africa. His film, The Boy from the Wild, premiered at the Royal Geographic Society in London as well as the Wildlife Conservation Film Festival in New York City. Currently the film is available on Amazon Prime Video.
After completing his studies he travelled extensively, making documentaries all over the world. He explored places such as Petra, Machu Picchu, Great Barrier Reef andRapa Nui, Spitsbergen, Iceland as well as his favourites, the Hawaiian and Tahitian Islands. He is currently based in Cape Town, South Africa, working on TV shows, documentaries, commercials and corporate productions. He frequently travels abroad for various video and photographic assignments.
Werner is extremely passionate about conservation, particularly wildlife and the ocean and supports various environmental causes. His work depicting Gentoo penguins in Antarctica was featured by National Geographic, and his annual return to Antarctica remains a highlight for him. His travels have taken him to 112 countries,
enabling him to capture a richly diverse spectrum images.