Thinking of going to South America and Antarctica on Princess ?

[Gracie115]

19 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

Sweet ! And a White Christmas to boot . We are thrilled for you guys . You may want to get in touch with Patrick Watts or Estancia if you're thinking of Volunteer Point on the Falklands ASAP . At Punta Arenas we liked the trip to Torres del Paine and Princess also offers a landing in Antarctica - at a steep price . We don't normally like to go when the weather down here is so nice but we were glad that we did and we hope that you enjoy it as much as we did or more . 😊

 

Thank you for the info on the tours at the Falklands, Estancia was already booked by we are now confirmed with Patrick Watts!!  Don't know whether we will spend the money for the landing in Antarctica, it IS indeed steep and from what I'm reading cancels about 30% of the time.  

 

[scubacruiserx2]

58 minutes ago, Gracie115 said:

 

Thank you for the info on the tours at the Falklands, Estancia was already booked by we are now confirmed with Patrick Watts!!  Don't know whether we will spend the money for the landing in Antarctica, it IS indeed steep and from what I'm reading cancels about 30% of the time.  

 

 

Patrick Watts is considered to be the the larger and most highly regarded of the two and they usually fill up first , so great choice ! We didn't feel the need to make the landing on the continent and we did 2 visits to Torres del Paine , once from Punta Arenas and once from El Calafate and,they were both great . If the Antarctic flight doesn't fly it goes to Torres del Paine .

Edited November 20, 2019 by scubacruiserx2

[Gracie115]

1 minute ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

Patrick Watts is considered to be the the larger and most highly regarded of the two and they usually fill up first , so great choice ! We didn't fill the need to make the landing on the continent and we did 2 visits to Torres del Paine , once from Punta Arenas and once from El Calafate and,they were both great . If the Antarctic flight doesn't fly it goes to Torres del Paine .

Did you go to Torres del Paine on a ship excursion, private tour or on your own?  If a private tour do you remember who it was with?

 

We also don't feel the need to land on the continent so doubtful we will spend the money to do so.

[scubacruiserx2]

Just now, Gracie115 said:

Did you go to Torres del Paine on a ship excursion, private tour or on your own?  If a private tour do you remember who it was with?

 

We also don't feel the need to land on the continent so doubtful we will spend the money to do so.

 

The first time was the ship's tour the second time was before the cruise when stayed in El Calafate and we used Tours by Locals 

[Gracie115]

9 minutes ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

The first time was the ship's tour the second time was before the cruise when stayed in El Calafate and we used Tours by Locals 

Ok, thanks

[scubacruiserx2]

8 minutes ago, Gracie115 said:

Ok, thanks

 

Here's a link to our first visit there from the Zaandam . It begins at post # 66 .

 

 

 

[scubacruiserx2]

Proud parent

 

 

It's hard not to crow when you're this happy

 

 

 

I don't know where junior gets it from

 

 

 

Edited November 20, 2019 by scubacruiserx2

[scubacruiserx2]

On the run

 

 

[scubacruiserx2]

We didn't bring our winter jackets and with the wind , chill and a little rain we decided to head back toward the car 

 

 

we took a little detour toward the beach

 

 

a few other birds near there

 

 

Upland geese

 

 

 

a pit stop

 

 

This was affixed to the ladies room . It says that King penguins can dive almost 1000' (300 M) deep

 

 

 

[MicCanberra]

8 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

Patrick Watts is considered to be the the larger and most highly regarded of the two and they usually fill up first , so great choice ! We didn't feel the need to make the landing on the continent and we did 2 visits to Torres del Paine , once from Punta Arenas and once from El Calafate and,they were both great . If the Antarctic flight doesn't fly it goes to Torres del Paine .

We used Patricks tours and it was great, of course they all travel as a convoy in case someone got bogged (which happened numerous times). X didn't offer a landing but Rosie wouldn't have wanted to do it, and I didn't need to do it as we were very close to most highlights the area has to offer already

[scubacruiserx2]

After warming in the car we had a bite to eat before paying Nyree our fee in British Pounds . There are no ATMs on the island so we brought it with us . We decided to return more scenic route with another vehicle along for safety .

 

 

We requested a photo stop here and the ground was a bit soft

 

 

This is a good reason not to DIY  here looking for penguins 

 

 

When the 2nd vehicle tried to pull the car out , he also became stuck . 

 

 

 

We threw a line to them and Kurt pulled them right out together . Good job Kurt !

[scubacruiserx2]

Our TA called us today about the Princess Anniversary sale and it saved us 20% on our upcoming cruise .

[scubacruiserx2]

Another photo stop

 

It was beginning to look familiar now

 

 

 

We returned to Stanley about 3 pm and drove past a number of the sites like this whale gun and skeleton

 

 

We had about an hour before the last tender and wanted to walk a little so we thanked Kurt for a job well done and  said goodbye .

 

[scubacruiserx2]

 

Christ Church Cathedral

 

 

and it's whalebone arch

 

 

We wanted to have a pint and some fish and chips but we didn't think that we would have time

 

 

We did pick up a few things for the grandsons and didn't realize that we gave Pounds Sterling and received Falkland Islands Pounds as change

 

 

You can see that Christ Church , King penguins and sheep appear on the currency

 

 

Both denominations photos are the same fore and aft but the color is different

 

 

 

[jimbri]

Wonderful photos.  Thank you for sharing.

[scubacruiserx2]

1 hour ago, jimbri said:

Wonderful photos.  Thank you for sharing.

 

Thank you and you're welcome . We felt privileged to see it while we can . It's a shame that the major cruise lines will be restricted from Antarctica in less then 2 years .

Edited November 21, 2019 by scubacruiserx2

[scubacruiserx2]

As we went to the loading area we noticed another boarding area behind ours

 

 

 

 

They we heading out to the Resolute

 

 

 

Edited November 21, 2019 by scubacruiserx2

[scubacruiserx2]

Back on board for a rainbow

 

 

And a couple of RAF Typhoons made their presence felt

 

 

 

The last tender got back around 5:30 PM

 

 

And we soon followed the Resolute out to sea

 

 

 

 

[MicCanberra]

I am just glad that we got there when we did.

[scubacruiserx2]

21 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

I am just glad that we got there when we did.

 

Yes us too . We think that it was our favorite pre cruise stay and cruise .

[scubacruiserx2]

Our day at sea was fairly routine but we noticed that it was getting warmer and the sea was a different color

 

 

A pretty afternoon at sea with Punta Tombo on the brain

 

[scubacruiserx2]

Here come the sun in Puerto Madryn

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Video clip :

 

 

 

[MicCanberra]

3 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

Yes us too . We think that it was our favorite pre cruise stay and cruise .

It remains my favourite destination.

[scubacruiserx2]

 

 

 

Welcome to Puerto Madryn

 

[scubacruiserx2]

13 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

It remains my favourite destination.

 

We have been to South America before but Antarctica was a once in a lifetime visit for us .