Live From the Sapphire, 30-Day Antarctica/SA B2B, Jan 20 - Feb 19

[Ken the cruiser]

Day 29 - Feb 17 - Puerto Montt, Chile

 

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Here’s the excursion we are going on tomorrow.

 

[azbirdmom]

1 hour ago, hpeabody said:

Here is a link to my itinerary.  https://www.princess.com/cruise-search/details/?voyageCode=H435 

 

I didn't realize that the Sapphire would be running the Antarctica trips to / from Buenos Aires and dropping the start / end at Valparaiso / San Antonio.  That actually would be more desirable to us since during both of our trips down there we encountered the roughest seas sailing off the coast of Chile.  It was even worse than the Drake or going around the Horn.

[hpeabody]

@Ken the cruiser @EDVM96  Thank you so much for all this info.  I am really looking forward to this cruise.  It's my replacement for 2021 cruise that was cancelled due to the pandemic.  My cabin is on Baja at the very aft starboard side (not aft facing) I call it "The Cave"  I've had that cabin on Sapphire twice before and loved it.  I hope you think it should be good vieweing.  This balcony should have some protection from the wind.  But I do love the wrap around deck on Sapphire, so I expect if I can take the weather I will be out on deck a lot.  Sorry your cruise is coming to an end.  Safe journey home.

 

ETA, Can I ask a quick question. When overnight in Buenos Aires can we go out off the ship in the evening of the overnight.

Edited February 17 by hpeabody

[EDVM96]

35 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Here’s the excursion we are going on tomorrow.

 

I took the same excursion in 2017. 😄

We had very bad weather then, Osorno Volcano not showing up in the clouds, no emerald colors on the eponymous lake. But it was nice, anyway.

Hope you have better luck tomorrow.

Oh, and of course there was this union strike in Chile. They blocked the harbor gate, so just 1 tour bus could leave every 30 minutes or so.

That was a strike from Puerto Montt harbor workers loading and unloading cargo ships. But they used us, a cruise ship. Captain of the Crown was pissed off and went 2 hours early.

 

Edited February 17 by EDVM96

[EDVM96]

21 minutes ago, hpeabody said:

Can I ask a quick question. When overnight in Buenos Aires can we go out off the ship in the evening of the overnight.

As far as I remember, the mandatory bus shuttles from ship to terminal in BA port don't run between 11:00 PM 6:00 AM. But this info may be outdated,

Edited February 17 by EDVM96

[Ken the cruiser]

6 hours ago, EDVM96 said:

I took the same excursion in 2017. 😄

We had very bad weather then, Osorno Volcano not showing up in the clouds, no emerald colors on the eponymous lake. But it was nice, anyway.

Hope you have better luck tomorrow.

Oh, and of course there was this union strike in Chile. They blocked the harbor gate, so just 1 tour bus could leave every 30 minutes or so.

That was a strike from Puerto Montt harbor workers loading and unloading cargo ships. But they used us, a cruise ship. Captain of the Crown was pissed off and went 2 hours early.

 

That was definitely a memorable excursion, but not in a good way! Hopefully, the weather will be a little more friendly for us as the morning progresses.🤞

 

[RHDZ]

Ken, thank you for a wonderful review. We are booked on the same cruises next Jan/Feb but starting in BA and second cruise will end in Santiago. I have taken many notes but have a few questions.

Are there washers/dryers on board for us to use?

Did you need visas for any of the countries you visited?

Thank you!! 

[effinaround]

15 hours ago, Golden Gater said:

Ken - We will be on the March 4th cruise from BA to Los Angeles in a port side cabin.  Will we be able to see many glaciers from our cabin or do we need to go out onto a forward location?   Thanks for posting all your beautiful pictures!

GET

OUT 

OF

THE 

CABIN!!!!

 

I can't say this loudly enough.  There is so much to see on all sides of the ship. You'll gain a better appreciation if you are mobile and move around the ship. I enjoyed every second of our cruise and there was just so much to see. There were some mornings where I walked bow to stern from promenade deck to the upper decks to get a different viewpoint. The lighting and the angles changed every few seconds it seemed like and I have so many fabulous photographs.  For me it really was a trip of a lifetime and I really wanted to make the most of it. I'd encourage anyone taking this cruise in the future to dress appropriately, get outside, and move around the ship when passing such breathtaking scenery.    

[Mary loves to travel]

1 hour ago, effinaround said:

GET

OUT 

OF

THE 

CABIN!!!!

 

I can't say this loudly enough.  There is so much to see on all sides of the ship. You'll gain a better appreciation if you are mobile and move around the ship. I enjoyed every second of our cruise and there was just so much to see. There were some mornings where I walked bow to stern from promenade deck to the upper decks to get a different viewpoint. The lighting and the angles changed every few seconds it seemed like and I have so many fabulous photographs.  For me it really was a trip of a lifetime and I really wanted to make the most of it. I'd encourage anyone taking this cruise in the future to dress appropriately, get outside, and move around the ship when passing such breathtaking scenery.    

I strongly second this!!

 

We had a lovely midship port side balcony, and it was great, especially for dawn viewing of Glacier Alley. 
 

BUT we also dressed very warmly and spent several hours each day out and about - top decks, above the bridge, promenade deck.  
You miss too much confining yourself to your cabin.   

[Coolcruise02]

Thank you for this informative review and beautiful pictures!

[Ken the cruiser]

8 hours ago, RHDZ said:

Ken, thank you for a wonderful review. We are booked on the same cruises next Jan/Feb but starting in BA and second cruise will end in Santiago. I have taken many notes but have a few questions.

Are there washers/dryers on board for us to use?

Did you need visas for any of the countries you visited?

Thank you!! 

Thanks! My DW checked the deck plan on the web site and it appears there are laundry rooms on decks 5, 8 (with entrances from either hallway), 10 (one on each side), and 12 (one on each side). We went and took pictures of the one on deck 10 on the starboard side. Unfortunately, that’s all we know as we get unlimited laundry so we don’t use them.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 17 by Ken the cruiser

[RHDZ]

Thank you for checking! You are the best!

[azbirdmom]

51 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

My DW checked the deck plan on the web site and it appears there are laundry rooms on decks 5, 8 (with entrances from either hallway), 10 (one on each side), and 12 (one on each side).

 

They are also on decks 9 and 11 unless they took them out.  I thought I recalled them being on most decks.  Here's the deck plans showing locations.

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

21 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Here’s the excursion we are going on tomorrow.

 

We arrived at Puerto Montt and dropped the anchor around 6 am.

 

 
After having a tasty buffet breakfast, we headed to the theater to get our tour stickers, and it wasn’t long before we were heading to the tender as we were tour #1. On the tender ride over, we looked back and saw the Sapphire Princess still all lit up!

 

 
As the sun was just starting to rise,

 

 

there was a greeting committee of Gulls waiting to welcome us ashore! 😂

 

  
After we quickly made it through Customs, which equated to folks having their bags and backpacks checked by the local agents, we headed to our bus and were on our way shortly after that! 😁

 

 

Here is a map of the area and our tour destination is the Vicente Perez Rosales National Park.

 

 
Here are some photos taken along the way. Off in the distance you can see the Osorno Volcano with its top covered in clouds.

  

 

 

We then drove along the river that originates from the Emerald Lake where the catamaran is waiting for us, along with 7 other tour buses coming from the ship that have the same lake cruise included in their tour! 😂

 

 

Luckily, we were the second bus there and were able to secure to seats next to a window, with this view being our initial one.

 

 

Once everyone was onboard and seated, the boat made a u-turn, and we were off.

 

 
Then, magically, all of the clouds had disappeared and there was the Osorno Volcano in all its glory!! 😁

 
But a few minutes later the clouds started to temporarily form again, but would later disappear.

 

 
These photos were taken as we continued our 40-minute cruise around a small part of the lake.

 

 

 

 

 
Then it was time to head back to the pier and drive over to the Petrohue Falls!

 

 
When we arrived at the location, it was about a 10-minute walk to the Falls that had some pretty landscape along the way.

 

 

Scottish Broom

 

 
Osorno and Puntiagudo Volcanos in the distance.

 

 

 

 

 

 
We were at the Falls for about an hour before it was time to head to Puerto Varas for lunch and about 45-minutes of free time afterwards.

 

[Ken the cruiser]

12 minutes ago, azbirdmom said:

 

They are also on decks 9 and 11 unless they took them out.  I thought I recalled them being on most decks.  Here's the deck plans showing locations.

 

 

Thanks for catching that oversight! It did seem odd that they didn’t have laundry rooms on decks 9 and 11.

[PaulS]

My wife and I are not able to travel right  now, so your trip has been our normal winter vacation. Thanks so much for taking the time to post all of your pictures and commentary. We have looked forward to reading it every day.

If your next trip is already booked, I would like to know when and where so I might follow your future travels.

 

Thanks 

[Ken the cruiser]

On our 20-minute drive to Puerto Varas, we passed quite a few small herds of cattle. The interesting part of this is that none of the beef is sold locally. It is all shipped to Dubai where they get top dollar for it! 

 

 
After a tasty lunch at a hotel, we first walked along the Puerto Varas shoreline where we could see three volcanos off in the distance.

  

 
Osorno Volcano

 

 
Tronador Volcano

 

 
Calbuco Volcano

 

 
As we walked down the shoreline, we came across quite the variety of bird life!

 

 
The elusive Puerto Montt Pigeon on full display!! 😂

 

 

 

 
The bumble bees were all over these flowers!

 

 
I still can’t believe my iPhone SE took this picture! 😁

 

 

 

 
Even the honey bees were out in force today stealing nectar from these beautiful roses!

 

 

 
Then it was time to head back to the ship! Definitely a fun excursion, especially on such a beautiful day it turned out to be! 😁

Edited February 18 by Ken the cruiser

[Mary loves to travel]

Great photos, Ken!

and you’re right - pretty amazing close up of the bumble bee 🐝 

[Ken the cruiser]

14 minutes ago, PaulS said:

My wife and I are not able to travel right  now, so your trip has been our normal winter vacation. Thanks so much for taking the time to post all of your pictures and commentary. We have looked forward to reading it every day.

If your next trip is already booked, I would like to know when and where so I might follow your future travels.

 

Thanks 

Thanks for following along!! Our next adventure is a 22-day Alaska B3B on the Grand Princess starting April 30. It’s an 8-day RT itinerary out of Vancouver followed by a 14-day Voyage of the Glaciers itinerary. As soon as I start the Live From thread for that one, I’ll post the link at the bottom of this thread, so keep following this thread to be notified when that happens.

 

If you haven’t already, please check out my expanded Signature area below. We’ve been on some pretty cool cruises over the last 18 months that I also did Live From threads on that have taken us to all 7 continents! 

[Ken the cruiser]

And we’re off! Next stop is San Antonio, Chile day after tomorrow!!

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Day 30 - Feb 18 - Our last sea day of this awesome 30-day cruise!

 

 

 

[azbirdmom]

Thanks for sharing the pictures of Osorno!  We wound up in Puerto Montt unexpectedly during our January 2020 Antarctica cruise on the Coral Princess.  Long story but we were delayed leaving due to issues with fuel bunkering and by the time that was settled the weather south was so bad that we didn't leave for another day.  That shifted the schedule quite a bit, cancelling Punta Arenas and a day in Antarctica but adding Puerto Montt.  A tour operator that we (and 48 others from CC) ended up using for a tour in Ushuaia got 6 of us a last minute private tour in Puerto Montt.  The weather was awful, torrential rains all day but we did see the falls, just thick clouds beyond them.  The tour guide kept saying if the weather was better you would be seeing X.  Miserable day where we all got drenched but it was memorable and oddly fun.  Anyway seeing your pictures makes me want to go back.  As have pretty much all of your pictures.  Great "live from", thank you so much for sharing!

[Ken the cruiser]

I have to say, we have been super lucky with the weather on this cruise! One day either way at some locations, especially when cruising around the Antarctica Peninsula or visiting Port Stanley, and it could have resulted in a total different experience. We still would have had a great time, but blue sky is always better! 😁

[Carnevale]

On 2/16/2024 at 3:51 PM, brucedodge said:

Carnevale,

Thanks for posting this.  We are also avid dancers. We board the ship March 18th and wonder if either or both of the duos will be on board.

 

Don't know if you've been on Coral, but it has the best dance venues of any Princess ship, with the Wheelhouse near the theater with a bigger dance floor than the usual Wheelhouse, the Explorers, and the aft lounge.  The Island used to have all three, but Princess got rid of the aft lounge on that ship.

Good news - From what I have learned, Fountain Duo will still be onboard when you sail on March 18th so you will enjoy dance time with them as they are very talented. But unfortunately the Moondance Duo gets off when we do - they were a real highlight of this cruise for us.  I have heard that the duo who will replace them are good for dancing.  Hope you have a great cruise!  This has been one of the best ever for us!