MV Ortelius is an ice-strengthened vessel currently employed for expedition-style polar cruises by owner and operator Oceanwide Expeditions. She was originally named Marina Svetaeva and was built in Gdynia, Poland, in 1989 as a special-purpose vessel for the LLC RN-Sakhalinmorneftegaz.

Oceanwide Expeditions is a Dutch company specializing in expedition-style voyages to Antarctica and the Arctic. Deploying its own fleet of ice-strengthened vessels, Oceanwide emphasizes small-scale, flexible tours that provide passengers close contact with polar wildlife, landscapes, and historical sites. Tours usually take place in regions only accessible by sea, with little to no infrastructure. The locations visited are first reached by ship, after which expedition guides take small groups of passengers to landing sites by way of Zodiac Milpro RIBs, enabling safe cruising and maximum shore time.