South America Cruise

[Bsanr]

My husband and I are planning a South America Cruise and we are trying to decide between Princess and Holland America. We have many Princess Cruises under our belly but have never cruised Holland. The itineraries are very similar but it seems that Holland has better scenic cruise days- Glacier Alley, Canal Sarmiento and the Chilean Fjords. Can anyone tell me if Princess Cruises by these sites also or is it a Holland thing? Any advice/opinions welcome!! 

[capriccio]

We did LA to Rio on Princess in December 2016/January 2017.  It was one of our favorite cruises.  I think the scenic cruising may vary depending upon direction but I do remember getting up by 6:30 am to watch the narrated sail through Glacier Alley to Ushuaia.  We were thankful that we had a fully covered balcony on the port side of the ship since it was drizzling and all the Glaciers are on that side.   We thought all the sailing from the Pacific to the Atlantic was incredibly scenic. 

 

Whichever line you chose, make sure the itinerary includes a port stop in the Falkland Islands (and then just hope the weather cooperates and the tenders aren't cancelled)!

[fishywood]

For most of the time the ship spends in Patagonia and the Cape Horn area there is only one route that all ships take. How much "scenic cruising" is done is almost entirely weather dependent. 

That said, size of the ship also is a determining factor. HAL uses the 61,000 ton 1400 passenger Zaandam on this route if I am not mistaken. Princess will use Coral Princess (91,000 tons, 2000 passengers) the next two seasons. This is a significant improvement as Coral is within the size parameters for the Antarctica passbys unlike the larger and larger ships Princess had been sending to the Cape the past few years.

My one South America cruise was on a different line (not HAL or Princess) that I will never sail again. But I would also never sail a ship as large as Royal Princess that went 'round the Horn just a few months ago when redeploying to the west coast. Two thousand passengers calling at those small tender ports is overwhelming; never do I want to be there with nearly double the number.

[Reina del Mar]

Sailed  Emerald Princess from San Antonio, Chile around Cape Horn to Buenos Aires in January 2018.

 

Very interesting and enjoyable cruise.

 

Lots of tender ports but weather cooperated and we visited all ports.

 

Would recommend.

[skynight]

We have been to the Chilean Fjords on Princess cruises. It will mention them in the itinerary as Amalia Glacier. I am thinking that Glacier Alley are the four glaciers you see when approaching or leaving Ushuaia in the Beagle Channel. We did this on our two Princess S.A. cruises. It looks to me like Canal Sarmiento is in the fjords near Amalia Glacier. We probably also saw this while in the fjord area. I did remember seeing more than one glacier.

Edited May 8, 2019 by skynight

[SeaDog-46]

I was on Zaandam from BA to Vancouver in March 2017.

The route the cruise ships take is not always the same as it depends on where they are coming & going to - as well as tides & weather.

Historic Magellan Straits & Beagle [HMS Beagle] Channel are used but not always in full.

Glacier Alley is Beagle Channel & we did it from the west prior to Ushuaia.

Princess have a disadvantage in Argentina as the locals remember the Falklands war & sometimes penalise Princess as they fly the UK red ensign. Tendering at Ushuaia when others use the pier.

No cruise ships "rounds the horn".  This is a maritime saying & means going from 50 deg.south in one ocean to 50 deg. south in the other ocean - without using the straits or channels - ie using Drake Passage.  You will just pass by Hornos Island & Cape Horn if the weather is not too bad.  We did it the next morning after Ushuaia & went right around the island before turning west using the Pacific Ocean before re-entering the Chilian Canals & visiting El Brujo glacier the next day. None of the crew had been there before.

HAL would be better than Princess for South America.

[skurvish]

I was recently on the HAL Zaandam to South America and it was a great trip. I highly recommend selecting a cruise that goes all the way to Antarctica as it is an amazing place and one you will never forget. Most cruise lines will stop sailing to Antarctica as of January 1, 2022 due to new regulations so if you want to go you best do it soon. Also, if you do select a cruise that goes to Antarctica do an eastbound one so you hit the Chilean Fjords before Antarctica. If you hit them after they won't seem as majestic.

[SeaDog-46]

As skurvish has said - the new IMO Polar Code will come into full force on 1st Jan. 2022.   But it will effect currect cruise ships before that date as they renew there certificates.  New certificates will not include the current Ice Class some vessels have.

See Wikipedia & Google.