Puerto Madryn - Punta Tombo

We went to Punta Tombo with Tours By Locals. Yes, we were concerned about the two hour ride up and back too. However, whether on a private tour, ones by the ship company or a group tour everyone wound up there about the same time and left the same time. I did have many concerns about the long trip too. It is worth the trip!!!!

Did you go to two places to see the penguins? If so, which was better???

We saw Magellanic Penguins at Punta Tombo and Magdalena Island but by far, IMHO, the best place to see penguins is the Falkland Islands at Volunteer Point. We saw King, Gentoo and Magellanic Penguins. Incredible experience!! They were amazing and you got so close to them! It was the highlight of our cruise! That said, we actually took a ship excursion to Magdalena Island by speedboat and that was a fantastic experience because the 32 people on the boat were the only people on the island while we were there. Just as we were leaving, the ferry of 250 people was just arriving. When we went to Punta Tombo (on a private tour) it was crowded with tour buses and people so it really wasn't the same experience until later when the buses started to leave.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

Can those who visited Magdalena Island please comment on the boat ride there? I'm seeing quite a few mixed reviews on experiences - I realize this is highly variable based on weather but what was your experience?

What company/mode of transportation did you use (small boat versus ferry)? Was it easy to embark and disembark? Were there any facilities onboard (restroom, beverages, etc?). How long was the ride? And most importantly, how rough was it?

A few groups on my roll call are using Solo Expediciones - it's significantly less than the cruise tour but it appears they use a small boat. Is it rough? Any pics of the boat itself, whether inside or outside? Did they drop you off at the port after or did you have to walk back?

Thanks in advance!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Can those who visited Magdalena Island please comment on the boat ride there? I'm seeing quite a few mixed reviews on experiences - I realize this is highly variable based on weather but what was your experience?

 

What company/mode of transportation did you use (small boat versus ferry)? Was it easy to embark and disembark? Were there any facilities onboard (restroom, beverages, etc?). How long was the ride? And most importantly, how rough was it?

 

A few groups on my roll call are using Solo Expediciones - it's significantly less than the cruise tour but it appears they use a small boat. Is it rough? Any pics of the boat itself, whether inside or outside? Did they drop you off at the port after or did you have to walk back?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Our boat was very crowded, in fact there were not enough seats. Most wear life jackets taking up even more space. They served a little small water or drink of sorts and a cookie so don't expect much of any food. I do not believe there is a restroom on the boat however there was one on the island. Our trip over was quite rough but most were seasoned cruisers on this type of trip and did fine but not all. Please keep in mind this trip is highly dependent on weather so make sure you have another option in mind for Penguins in case it doesn't happen.

Our boat was very crowded, in fact there were not enough seats. Most wear life jackets taking up even more space. They served a little small water or drink of sorts and a cookie so don't expect much of any food. I do not believe there is a restroom on the boat however there was one on the island. Our trip over was quite rough but most were seasoned cruisers on this type of trip and did fine but not all. Please keep in mind this trip is highly dependent on weather so make sure you have another option in mind for Penguins in case it doesn't happen.

Wow that doesn't sound pleasant... I'm shocked they run boats on such a rough ride without everyone having seats... almost sounds like its worth the $200 extra to take the cruise excursion on the ferry?

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

We were on a speedboat which was actually operated by Solo Expediciones, although we booked it through Princess Cruises. There was a restroom on the boat and the boat was not open air so you don't get wet or cold. The ride took about 40 minutes. After we left Magdalena Island, we motored over to Marta Island to view a Sea Lion and Cormorant colony. You cannot set foot on the island but we got close enough to see the animals, on land and swimming in the water, including baby sea lions (so cute!). We were fortunate that we had good weather; I braced myself for a rough ride but it was very smooth. I would say that other posters' comments were true, though; the trip and experience is very weather dependent. Our guide was fabulous - a Science teacher who was very knowledgeable and dynamic. If you have good weather, I highly recommend the excursion. We liked it better than Punta Tombo but that's because we practically had the island to ourselves!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

We were on a speedboat which was actually operated by Solo Expediciones, although we booked it through Princess Cruises. There was a restroom on the boat and the boat was not open air so you don't get wet or cold. The ride took about 40 minutes. After we left Magdalena Island, we motored over to Marta Island to view a Sea Lion and Cormorant colony. You cannot set foot on the island but we got close enough to see the animals, on land and swimming in the water, including baby sea lions (so cute!). We were fortunate that we had good weather; I braced myself for a rough ride but it was very smooth. I would say that other posters' comments were true, though; the trip and experience is very weather dependent. Our guide was fabulous - a Science teacher who was very knowledgeable and dynamic. If you have good weather, I highly recommend the excursion. We liked it better than Punta Tombo but that's because we practically had the island to ourselves!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

I am pretty sure the cruise lines use the same company. They always mark prices way up. There was a large group of people who joined us. There may have been a bathroom on the boat but I didn't dare get out of my seat because it was so crowded. There was definitely one on the island and most used it.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Hmm now I'm confused! I thought that I had read that Celebrity uses the huge ferry (which I also saw pictures of) - perhaps that's not the case though?

Does Solo have more than 1 boat? I wonder if they use different boats for the cruise excursions versus the privately booked passengers?

If you had to book again (and not knowing how the weather would be..) - would you book via the cruise line or with Solo? (Or some other reputable mode of transportation?)

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Hmm now I'm confused! I thought that I had read that Celebrity uses the huge ferry (which I also saw pictures of) - perhaps that's not the case though?

 

Does Solo have more than 1 boat? I wonder if they use different boats for the cruise excursions versus the privately booked passengers?

 

If you had to book again (and not knowing how the weather would be..) - would you book via the cruise line or with Solo? (Or some other reputable mode of transportation?)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Sorry didn't want to confuse you and perhaps they do have a different vendor. I was on Celebrity but booked through Solo but didn't see any other boats that day. The boat was good size but I wouldn't call it huge. There is a picture on their website so if it doesn't look like Celebrity's perhaps they are different

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Thanks for the clarification! The boat I saw a picture of was at a dock directly beside Solo's boat (which looked like an enclosed zodiac?). It was VERY large as it was a car ferry (no cars on that run, obviously - I don't think the penguins would appreciate that! Lol!). I read that it was about a 2 hour boat ride - so likely slower than that with Solo's speedboat but maybe calmer as well in rough water. I wish I could find that photo/review now...

The lack of seats for every passenger with Solo does have me quite concerned. I can hardly maintain my balance on a subway or bus, let alone a rocky speedboat! [emoji848]

Do you by chance have any pictures from your excursion with solo? Particularly of the boat (outside or inside) or the pier/mode of getting in/out? Probably wasn't worthy of any memory space on your devices given all of the penguin pictures that you probably took! [emoji1]

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Just checked the trip advisor photos. It appears that they sometimes use the ferry and sometimes the small boats? All of these pictures popped up (including 2 that appear to have been taken inside the ferry - everyone lined up in seats with life jackets on).

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Yup on further reading it appears to be quite unpredictable as to what boat you get! Some said there were 2 boats, one slightly larger than the other, so the last bus-load had to get on the smaller boat. Some commented on it calling it a "capsule of death", and comments were made about the conditions being like an hour in a washing machine, waves crashing over top and water leaking into the doors/windows. Most of these comments were about the ride back after conditions had deteriorated.

Nobody really mentioned the ferry so I assume that's what the cruise line uses (perhaps since it's slower it didn't arrive until you had left?).

I survived the infamous "hurricane cruise" last month on the Anthem of the Seas relatively unscathed but somehow I don't think I would do well on this one IF it is a rough day. That uncertainty alone with regards to the weather makes me think I should take the safer route and book through the ship.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Princess also offered the ferry; shore excursion options for Magdalena Island included the two hour ferry (I am not sure but I heard the ferry is not totally enclosed so it could get chilly depending on the weather) and the speedboat to Magdalena Island. You might be able to see a photo of the speedboat on Solo Expediciones' website. Our boat was yellow. The boat was full but everyone had a seat. When are you going to be there? I know the later in the season, the penguins start migrating. But we were there mid-February and there were many penguins on the island including older chicks. The guide told us that the chicks were born later than usual this year but were molting more quickly.

We generally prefer private tours and most of our tours on our Cape Horn cruise were private. However, for this particular excursion, personally (and I stress that this is my personal opinion; others may disagree), I'd go with the cruise offering if you can get the speedboat tour. The reason I say that is this part of the world is very unpredictable weather-wise. On the second day of our cruise, I was told by a bartender on our ship that the weather often impacts ports on this itinerary. He told me it's not uncommon to miss one or more ports due to strong winds, rough seas and/or low tides. We lucked out and made all of our ports but we were late getting to one due to strong winds, and in Puerto Madryn the ship changed the departure time to two hours earlier (not sure why but I think it may have been due to the tides). We were on a private tour there and due to the change in time and the long ride to and from Punta Tombo, the tour operator had to cut out a planned stop in Gaiman in order to ensure we got back to the ship in time. But the ship's tour that had the same itinerary as ours (it was their exclusive tour with a small group - not the one with 40 people) actually got to visit Gaiman and Punta Tombo and just got back later since they didn't have to worry about the ship leaving without them. We did two ship excursions in Punta Arenas - Magdalena Island in the morning and a mountain hike in the afternoon. We ended up getting back to the tender an hour past the all aboard "deadline" but no worries since the ship waited for us (and there was another ship tour to Torres Del Paine that got back even later than we did). For tender ports on this cruise, I thought taking the ship excursion got you to land faster and was less of a concern for the return. In other destinations (Caribbean, Europe, etc.) I wouldn't worry as much but based on tide schedules and very changeable and potentially tumultuous weather conditions on this itinerary, it's more of a consideration. But it's really a personal decision. The ship tours will definitely be more expensive, so that's also an issue - and it depends on the specific tour. The private tour companies we used all guaranteed our return to the ship and said they never missed a ship. Hope that helps!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

We did two ship excursions in Punta Arenas - Magdalena Island in the morning and a mountain hike in the afternoon.

 

 

Who did you book your two tours with? I know about the penguins with Solo Expeditions but which company offered hiring in the afternoon? That sounds like something we'd like to do when we take our Cape Horn cruise next February.

Hi, Susiesan!

We booked both of our Punta Arenas tours with the cruise line (Princess). The Magdalena Island tour I know was operated by Solo Expediciones but I don't recall the name of the tour company that ran the hike. We were driven from the port to a ski resort in the Andes. We took a ski lift to the top and hiked down to the ski lodge. It was fun despite the fact that it was pouring rain the whole time and it was pretty muddy and slippery! It was quite the adventure. But the sun came out at the end and we were greeted with a rainbow! [emoji3] There was a great view of the cruise ship and the Strait of Magellan from the mountain. After the hike, we went into the lodge and had hot chocolate and a piece of cake. It was a fun day! Also between tours we had time to walk around the town, touch the toe of the Magellan Statue in the Plaza de Armas, and stop for lunch. Had a delicious lunch (salmon with king crab and other seafood) at Los Ganaderos, and tried a Calafate Pisco. Yum!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

Hi, Susiesan!

 

. We were driven from the port to a ski resort in the Andes. We took a ski lift to the top and hiked down to the ski lodge. It was fun despite the fact that it was pouring rain the whole time and it was pretty muddy and slippery! It was quite the adventure. But the sun came out at the end and we were greeted with a rainbow! [emoji3] There was a great view of the cruise ship and the Strait of Magellan from the mountain. After the hike, we went into the lodge and had hot chocolate and a piece of cake. I

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

I can see on Princess site under shore excursions the hiking trip you took. It was at a resort called Club Andino. Princess wants $109 to take a walk. That's too much for me. May see if I can take a bus or taxi there after the Magdalena Island trip if there is time. I made a reservation direct with Solo Expeditions for 10:30-3:30 excursion for 2/3 the price of going through Princess.

We are using Solo on our Celebrity Infinity cruise on March 13. They sent me a map and I did notice 2 piers. Does anyone know which pier Celebrity will be using for their tender port? On of the piers, we can walk to Solo and the other one will need a taxi. We have 12 in our group booked with them. We are also going to Punta Tumbo on March 9 and using Sentir Patagonia. They were highly recommended and includes a box lunch for us on the bus.