Best itinerary in South America?

[dbh62ark]

Hello,

 

My husband and I are considering South America for an early 2006 cruise. We are very motivated by itinerary and don't care nearly as much about the ship or a particular cruise line, so for those who have gone, I would love to hear opinions about the best itinerary to choose. And we do want one that includes the fjords.

 

Thanks in advance,

Donna

[Aussie Gal]

We are going on the Regal Princess in January, 2006. It is a wonderful itinerary taking 21 days but it has been booked out for months. I think you will find that a lot of the ships are already full.

 

We booked the Regal in early July, 2004 to be sure of our cabin. Good luck.

 

Jennie

[dbh62ark]

Thanks, but I have a travel agent that has group space booked on 14 different sailings, so availability is not a problem for us. That's one of the reasons why I would like some advice on itineraries. We would be interested in the 14-16 day itineraries.

 

Donna

[Aussie Gal]

Donna,

 

You are lucky that your TA has so many berths available. I am sure she could also help you with your decision.

 

Otherwise all you need to do is go back over this Board and find the many reviews that have been written. Most ships do seem to go to similar ports and what you need to work out is which particular ports you would like to see and whether you want to leave from Buenos Aires or Rio.

 

With our trip there was no decision as we knew we wanted to leave from Rio, finish up in Valpariso and go via Antarctica plus see the Falklands. We just had to find a ship and it was between HAL and Princess. Princess won out because it was leaving around the dates we had in mind.

 

Jennie

[etkyeoh]

Hi Aussie Gal,

 

I am planning for the same trip and would like to know how is your flight arrangement (eg for Australia to Rio, Santiago to Australia).

 

I am from Singapore and I have problem finding suitable flight through Sydney or Los Angeles.

 

Thanks

 

Etkyeoh

[xpcdoojk]

Hi, best is so subjective as to be ... well there is no single best. :D We chose to do the HAL Rotterdam 16 day because it included Rio de Janeiro instead of the regular Buenos Aires to Santiago of the other lines 14 day offerings. Some people want to visit Antartica so to them the best would include Antartica, which greatly reduces your sailing options. We are booked on the Nov. 20, 2005 sailing and I was checking the HAL site yesterday and all categories are listed as closed. So I guess it is sold out or all but sold out.

 

Have a great trip, whatever you decide. Another thing about a trip to South America is that there are several places that really cry out for a pre or post stay. We are doing a few days before the cruise to visit the Iquasso Falls and a few more post cruise to visit Peru and specifically Macchu Pichu. So my 16 day cruise is really a 24 day vacation.:D

 

I wish I could add the Galapagos and Easter Island to my itinerary, but I am afraid my employer would discover that they didn't need me if I could be gone for 2 months. As it is I will be working via my laptop and the internet on the ship. Don't cry for me Argentina, because I won't be killing myself, working.;)

 

jc

[dbh62ark]

Yes, I realize that this is all subjective, but what I'm looking for is the educated opinions! From those who have been there and know more than me. I see some great advice in this area on the Europe boards and was hoping to get some here. We want to keep it in the 2-week range for the cruise so that we can do the pre- and postcruise stays and won't be able to take over 3 weeks for sure (work).

 

I think you already know this, but some of the sailings that appear to be sold out are not because group space is being held by travel agents, so for anyone else that is still looking, please don't be discouraged because there is still a lot of availability (we've been checking and there's a lot that's still wide open).

 

So what were the favorite ports? And please keep those opinions coming! :)

 

Thanks,

Donna

[xpcdoojk]

Logistically a 14 day cruise will limit the amount of pre and post stays you can do and keep missing working to less than 3 weeks. The only way in my opinion is to do a cruise over the holidays. If there is a cruise that combines Xmas and NY then you may be able to do some pre and post activities. As I said going to and from Iguasso from either Rio or Buenos Aires you need at least 3 days. Same with MP. I would say you will be hard pressed to accomplish this as it is a very limiting schedule. That is how my 16 day cruise becomes a 24 day vacation with the travel to and from calculated in and doing the absolute minimum time in order to visit Iguasso and Macchu Pichu.

 

 

jc

[dbh62ark]

see below

[dbh62ark]

Logistically a 14 day cruise will limit the amount of pre and post stays you can do and keep missing working to less than 3 weeks.

 

jc

 

Sorry--I guess I have not been specific enough (good grief--I have never had so much trouble communicating on these boards!). We will be gone from work for 3 weeks and will be traveling around 23-24 days total. If you read my post above, I didn't say that we wanted to be gone less than 3 weeks. :) We will mostly likely do a few days pre- and post-cruise, but my question is not about pre- and post-cruise stays (although I may ask about that later).

 

So I still need some general advice advice on itineraries and am still hoping to hear from some passengers who have been and have some advice to offer (liked this, wish I had done that, etc.) regarding itineraries.

 

Thanks,

Donna

[Aussie Gal]

"So I still need some general advice advice on itineraries and am still hoping to hear from some passengers who have been and have some advice to offer (liked this, wish I had done that, etc.) regarding itineraries. "

 

 

Donna,

 

You need to do what we have all done previously and what I mentioned in my post above and that is to go back over this Board and read all the information from the C.C's. who have done a cruise around South America. There are loads or reviews. It just takes a little time to research it. We have all done this ourselves and that is how we know what we want to do.

 

It is exactly the same as the Europe Board, there is plenty of information available, in fact there is so much more than when I first started to read about the different cruises as the Board had just been changed and all the old material had been lost.

 

Jennie

[Aussie Gal]

Etkyeoh,

 

We are going a funny way to Rio. We are using Qantas F.F. points and the only way we could get seats, and this was 355 days out, was to fly to Hong Kong, spend a couple of days there and then fly to Los Angeles and on to Miami. From there fly to Rio. Coming home is a lot easier as we will be flying out of Quito (we are going to the Galapagos Islands as well) to L.A. Have a weekend there and then fly direct to Melbourne. We are going First Class all the way so it won't be so bad!

 

If we had not used our F.F. points we would have flown Lan Chile from Melbourne via Auckland to Santiago and then would have had to fly to Rio. It is a much quicker flight of course - only 13 hours to Santiago - but it is very heavily booked around December/January as a lot of Chileans who live in Australia go home for Christmas.

 

Hope this helps you a little.

 

Jennie

[Bill S]

Donna: we did a 21-day SA/Antarctica cruise on HAL from Valparaiso to Rio via Antarctica. It included the Chilean fjords and a 3-day itinerary along the Antarctic peninsula. I cannot tell you which itinerary is best, as we have only done that one SA cruise; but, I will say that the 3 days in Antarctic waters was the highlight of our cruise. I would strongly recommend that if you are considering a South America cruise, then consider one that includes Antarctica. It was definitely our cruise of a lifetime . . . . . . at least, so far!

Our itnerary after departing Valparaiso was: Puerto Montt; Puerto Chacabuco; the Chilean fjords; Straits of Magellan & Punta Arenas ( we did the St. Magdalena Island Penguin Excursion--great); Beagle Channel and Ushuaia; rounding Cape Horn and Drake Passage; Antarctica cruising for 3 days; Falkland Islands; Buenos Aires; Montevideo and ending at Rio (2 days).

 

Hope this helps!

[dbh62ark]

Yes, that definitely helps and is just the kind of information I was looking for. :) Did you like Rio or Buenos Aires better in South America, or were they different but equal if you were rating them?

 

Thank so much,

Donna

[Lvteks]

Hi,

We are booked for the Jan 8 Valparaiso to B.A. I want a post-cruise excursion to Iguazzu (sp???) Falls. B.A, is closer. It does not have the Antarctica phase but pricing was a consideration. I know the cruise shows closed in many categories, however I think this is a T.A. holding period and some should open up.

 

Aussie Girl has contributed much to my education om several boards and she has taken time so often to help out. You've had great responses. I am helping my DH through knee surgery, nine days ago ,so must be brief. I will watch this thread in case I can help make your trip a truly wonderful experience. BTW we have about 20 already signed up for the CC party on the Infinity. Look for the "Jan 8th Infinity around Cape Horn" Some really neat members are going. :)

 

Blessings,

[dbh62ark]

Hi,

I am helping my DH through knee surgery, nine days ago ,so must be brief. I will watch this thread in case I can help make your trip a truly wonderful experience. BTW we have about 20 already signed up for the CC party on the Infinity. Look for the "Jan 8th Infinity around Cape Horn" Some really neat members are going. :)

 

Blessings,

 

Thanks so much, that is very sweet! Best wishes to your husband with his recovery. My mother had one done a few years ago and will have the other one done in the next couple of years.

 

Donna

[juliejoe]

Donna,

 

Other than beginning/ending in Rio vs Buenos Aires I don't think the itineraries are much different. Either you add Antarctica & the days it takes to do it, or you don't. There are of course repositioning cruises that would include other ports, but I think you are asking about the South America itineraries. Pick a cruiseline you like, look at their itinerary and it is likely VERY similar to that of another cruiseline.

 

Other differences are pre and post cruise choices. Many who have included Iguazzu Falls have loved it and it is easier to do the falls from Buenos Aires.

 

Julie

[Bill S]

Donna: I cannot really compare BA and Rio, because we really did not see much of Buenos Aires. We opted to take "A Day on the Pampas" excursion out on an estancia a couple of hours outside of Buenos Aires.

We did spend one day in Rio seeing the sights on a HAL-arranged excursion: the beaches; the venue for Mardi Gras; Sugarloaf; and, Corcovado. I'm glad we got to see Rio but in some respects it was disappointing due to all the graffiti that covers most everything. On the second day we took a day trip up to Petropolis, which was up in the mountains and much cooler than Rio. I'll be glad to answer any other questions you might have!

[franu]

Donna, We chose Orient Lines, Marco Polo. They have 2 nights in a hotel, pre cruise. Ours was in Buenos Aires. We elected to take an extension to Iguassu Falls. Although this meant that we were on various planes everyday for 5 days, it was definitely worth it. If you can see the falls, don't miss the opportunity. It was definitely one one the highlights of our trip. I also took the boat ride that goes along the river and under the falls. I chose to sit in the front seat and experience it at the maximum. I chose to wear clothing that dried but you might choose to change later.

 

Buenos Aires is a good city to visit. There is much to see and experience. We then flew to Ushuaia, Argentina to board our ship for the Antarctic portion of the trip. If I live to be 120 years old, I will always consider my visit to the white continent to be the most awe inspiring place I have ever visited. I understand that most cruise ships just sail by but this would not have been enough for me. For me it was important to land there.

 

Unfortunately, I have not seen the Pacific side of South America yet but we did go to the Falkland Islands and up the Atlantic coast of SA and 1000 miles up the Amazon River. I much prefered the southern cities; BA, Rio and Montevideo. In March I will do the Pacific side. I hope that this will be of help to you. If you want more information please feel free to ask and I hope that I can help you.

Fran

[dbh62ark]

Thank you so much for the comments and for taking the time to post them. We are traveling with some friends and are still looking at the various itineraries. All of the options look wonderful and obviously we won't be able to do it all in one trip, so we're in the process of prioritizing. I'm especially grateful for the insight offered on Antarctica and would love to be able to book an itinerary that includes that area.

 

I'll be posting some questions soon and would love to read some more comments too.

 

Thanks again,

Donna

[dbh62ark]

We've had some additional discussions with our friends who will be traveling with us, so I have a question for your or anyone else who might have comments. I noticed that a Holland itinerary that we're reviewing (it looks good if we can't find a way to do Antartica this time) has some references to scenic sailing areas that are not noted on other itineraries. Did you sail into the following areas on your cruise: Darwin Channel, Canal Sarmiento, Cockburn Channel, and/or Romanche Glacier? Do you have any comments on how those areas compare to the other scenic cruising on the trip?

 

If those areas are unique and would add to the overall itinerary for the sailing, that would be a plus. If it's more of the same, that would be nice but might help us to narrow our options. We just can't bear to miss gatherings with family and friends during the holidays, so that helps to narrow things down too.

 

:)

Donna

[Bill S]

Donna: boy, those places don't ring a bell with me. It is entirely possible that we sailed in/through some of those areas, but we saw the Amalia glacier. The day we were there, it was very overcast and raining but what we did see was beautiful and striking. I would think that any part of the Chilean fjords would be worthwhile.

Our cruise spanned both Christmas and New Years--it WAS different and I doubt we will do another cruise over those holidays. HAL did really try to make a the holidays special but for us, it was not the same as being home with family. There were a number of families with kids on-board, however. I hope you can find a cruise that suits your desires and timing!

[etkyeoh]

Etkyeoh,

 

We are going a funny way to Rio. We are using Qantas F.F. points and the only way we could get seats, and this was 355 days out, was to fly to Hong Kong, spend a couple of days there and then fly to Los Angeles and on to Miami. From there fly to Rio. Coming home is a lot easier as we will be flying out of Quito (we are going to the Galapagos Islands as well) to L.A. Have a weekend there and then fly direct to Melbourne. We are going First Class all the way so it won't be so bad!

 

If we had not used our F.F. points we would have flown Lan Chile from Melbourne via Auckland to Santiago and then would have had to fly to Rio. It is a much quicker flight of course - only 13 hours to Santiago - but it is very heavily booked around December/January as a lot of Chileans who live in Australia go home for Christmas.

 

Hope this helps you a little.

 

Jennie

 

Thanks for your infor.

[dbh62ark]

Thanks for getting back with me with the answer regarding the scenic cruising.

 

I wish I could talk my whole family into going with us, but our extended family is large, and there are 4 families involved.

 

We're going to keep looking at this and will be posting some more requests for information soon, but I just wanted to thank you for your time in the meantime.

 

:)

Donna

[Bill S]

Glad to help anytime! That is what CC is all about! :)