BSinPNS

SInce you are staying in Civi, you need to arrange a ride early and hope it shows up. We waited and waited for our ride. FInally someone convinced a local to drive us to the port entrance for 20 Euro. Then we humped the baggage to the bus for our ship. Best to make arrangements with the hotel/B&B in advance or as soon as you arrive.

We have done the BsAs to FLL via the west coast and Santiago to BsAs via Antarctica. One needs to know that the port for Santiago is San Antonio - very small and about a 1.5 hour drive from Santiago. The port was closed when we arrived, and the O-dam didn't dock until noon or so. This was not a major problem for those debarking as flights to the north leave in the early evening. At most, they missed their wine tasting opportunity. We sat in a converted warehouse with minimal amenities until about 4 to board. BsAs is much larger, and the port is in town - short taxi ride except for those caught up in the World Cup celebration. The port is a huge industrial port that can accomodate several cruise ships. On our first day, there were three cruise ships in port. Personally, I would start in BsAs as there is so much to do including Iguazu Falls which are not to be missed. It is easier to time your arrival for boarding. The port calls in Montevideo and Punta del Este are not all that exciting and are followed by a sea day to recover.

As mentionied in other threads, suppply chain issues have caused problems with getting the water to the ship. On our recent Oosterdam cruise in South America, the water came in plastic bottles from a factory in Argentina. The good news was it had screw off tops which were handy on excursions. Perrier in screw top glass bottles was included in the HIA drink package.

No naturalist, but concur with the recommendation of Blue Puffin. Great tour. Owner was our guide. Saw a lot more than the HAL excursion.

We just got off Oosterdam in cabin 6089 (veranda). There was an oval shaped "adjustable" table. THe adjustment had not been used in a long time and was not usable. We could have asked the stewards to get some WD-40 and see if that helped, but we didn't. There were two hooks next to the cabinets.

We did this before on an Infinity cruise a few years ago. The trip to Iguazu is a must. I would recommend doing it as a private excursion and allow at least a full day to do one side of the falls. Would have loved to do the Brazilian side, but at that time it was a very expensive visa. There are several agencies that will do all the leg work for you. Eleanor Roosevelt is reported as saying Poor Niagara after seeing Iguazu.

Just off the Oosterdam. The "regular" water served on board is in plastic bottles. I think they want to get away from plastic, but right now the supply chain can't support it. BTW, the water was from South American sources. Perrier, etc. were in bottles or cans.

Rens van Eerten is the voice form above. Haven’t seen him, but he did get us in to see a lot in Antarctica.

Apparently HAL is having supply chain issues as they are selling single use plastic bottles of water on the Oosterdam doing the South America/Antarctica cruises.

We found the comments on the previous BsAs > San Antonio cruise quite helpful, so I plan to make additional comments as we do the reverse. After spending three days in Santiago, we travelled via minivan from the DoubleTree to San Antonio. Scheduled a 0845 departure and got on the road about 0920 for the 1.3 hour drive . We encountered no traffic jams and arrived at the port only to find the O-dam hadn’t made it in yet. The port closed due to bad weather conditions and the ship did not dock until around noon. At the port gate they wanted to briefly (and I mean very briefly) look at our COVID self-test. Completing that meant we got a red sticker permitting us to enter the terminal (large metal shed with a few hundred chairs). Restrooms were clean and there was limited food and drink for purchase. Apparently the HAL busses were held in Santiago or at a gas station on the way. The terminal was overwhelmed when the busses began to arrive. Dubai World Ports (operator) and HAL did a miserable job of keeping us informed. After the ship arrived, it took about 30 minutes for the first luggage and pax to appear. The PA system was virtually non-existent, so that didn’t help. A chaotic boarding of suites began about 4:15 followed by five, then four star mariners. The first general group (#25) began the boarding process about 4:30. One first got in line to check in where they verified your name was on the passenger manifest. Then another line was formed to take a boarding photo and picture of your passport. You were then given a receipt for your passport and got in a line for the security screening. (Bags on a belt for X-ray scanning and walking through the metal detector.) It didn’t matter if you set off the detector or not, you then proceeded to the bus which took us to the ship. As you an tell, there was no checking for VeriFLY or whether you had completed the HAL Navigator app. We were asked to view the safety video on the TV, but the traditional muster drill was held outside under your respective lifeboat at 9:40PM. The captain spoke briefly about safety and the crew demonstrated how to put on a life jacket. Since the ship was late to port, they were not ready to depart before the port closed at midnight meaning our departure was delayed until 6AM on Thursday. This means we will miss Puerto Montt which is a real shame since it is very interesting. Instead we may arrive early in Puerto Chambucco where the big thing is the park bench overlooking the area where the ship anchors.

JIm and others, there are several Agrentinian tour agencies that will arrange the trip to the falls for you including flights and transfers. Drivers and guides are not expensive.

Only down side is if you encounter fog. The fog horn must be sounded at least every two minutes. It's loud. I believe by regulation, is must be heard for at least two miles.

Another option is rental cars. Many of the agencies permit free drops within Florida. The PNS airport is about 18 miles from the Alabama line. MIght want to check fares out of PNS also. AA offers two non-stops to FLL. Delta may be cheaper than MOB, but it's still through ATL. Bob

The aft-facing AQ1 cacbins on deck 11 have very large balconies a good amount of coverage. It's really nice since you have a covered balcony closet to the cabin and uncovered at the end.

Great review. Loking forward to your next adventure. Thanks.

Another vote for Blue Diamond. Great tour.

Our favorite was a B2B from Buenos Aires to Santiago to FLL. Eclipse will be doing something similar after the 23 Alaska season. Great ship and great/diverse scenery.

Tendering on the Edge class is different. The tenders are of a new design, more comfortable and air conditioned. You also use the Magic Carpet. For a video, search for <Celebrity Edge New Tender with Bonnie> on YouTube. Great video.

Don't forget that there are two airports in BsAs. Ezeiza International Airport (EZE) is the international airport from which all the flights to US and Europe depart. Jorge Newbery Airfield (AEP) is the domestic airport. You may need to clarify with VIking the airport they use for the flights to/from the ship.

DW admired the the small tube like orchid holders used in some of the displays. Asked teh florist if they were for sale. Indeed they were. Charged to shipboard account and delivered in original shipping package for transit home. You may want to ask the florist if you can trade the "used" one for one in the original pakaging.