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If anyone has questions about the Falklands...

Gixer

By Gixer,
in South America

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On2CDWrld

On2CDWrld

Posted
Posted (edited)

Jason,

 

First of all thank you very much for your kind efforts to answer all the requests. Let us know if you would be pleased with some trifle from the outside world. Please post a list of ships also due in port that are not shown on cruisett.com. As the season passes could you note the visits of the various vessels, weather and penguin reports? And thanks again,:)

 

les

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dileep

dileep

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Thanks Dileep for the video not only for Bluff Cove but the many other videos and photos from your travels you have shared. One question:

Was Jason your shuttle driver before/ or after you got to the 4 x 4's?:)

 

Our bus driver was Trudi McPhee both ways and her son Mark drove the Land Rover.

We were on the Minerva on Jan 6 and docked at FIPASS.

Edited by dileep
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DougH

DougH

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Great video, thanks for posting. I'm doing the Bluff Cove tour this year, last time did Volunteer Point. No quite as nice a beach but still looks like a neat excursion. Sure answers the question of how many penguins are there :)

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  • 3 weeks later...
Randy H

Randy H

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My wife and I, along with two of her sisters and her brother and wife visited the Falklands last January.

 

We had booked a Volunteer Point trip with Patrick Watts… We would book with Pat again… Stanley was a wonderful bit of Britain in the South Atlantic.

 

If there was a negative it was problems getting ashore for independent excursions on the tenders… we got off on the first tender… some were delayed for 2 hours as the ships excursion passengers took priority.

 

We got very lucky and rode with Patrick, and so waited for the late passengers. I used the time to explore the town…

 

The drive was wonderful, exciting… its paved road for a bit, then good gravel road, then lesser gravel road, then overland over the moors… For those asking about 4wd rentals, you couldn’t do this on your own… (I own a 4wd and have done 90+ miles across the desert many times…) I wouldn’t try this one without a guide. Some guests were upset by the bad roads, others embraced them… it was truly an adventure… Your mileage may vary…

 

The Volunteer Point penguins were great, Kings (lots, thousands) Geentoos (lots, thousands) and Magiantic (hundreds)… We saw local geese and vultures as well as sheep (lots of sheep)

 

The guides were great… the trip took all day so we didn’t get time in town afterward, but Patrick took us for a drive to see the Lady Elizabeth and other ships, as well as the crew blowing up land mines.

 

I worry about the saber rattling from the Argies… based on past experience I suspect the Brits will stand up and defend the islands, but it is scary.

 

Go there if you can, you will enjoy the trip. If you can book Patrick Watt.

 

My blog report at http://randyhees.blogspot.com/2010/01/blind-in-coolest-place-on-earth-south.html

 

My photos at http://picasaweb.google.com/RandyHees/FaulklandIslands#

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  • 2 weeks later...
Tapbuster

Tapbuster

Posted
Posted

Hi Gixer,

Marilyn and I (Mick), hope to be in the Falklands on 4/2/2010, and would like some hint , tips on what to see and how to get around. My brother ( now Air Marshal Sir) was stationed on the Falklands during the first lot of problems, has recommended that we go see the penguins. Hope you can help.

Regards Mick

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jasonflk

jasonflk

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You are on the Last cruise ship of the season and therefore some of the penguins are likely to have left (rockhoppers and Magalenics). However the good news in the Falklands is that Gentoo penguins and King penguins stay in and arounmd the Falkalnds all year.However thoose tours can only be done via the ship. I also hear the very popular Voultenteer trip might not happen as the track is being closed at the end of march due to all the bad weather we've been having lately.

 

You might want to look on http://www.falklandislands.com for some local tour guide who might be able to take you round some of the battle fields etc.

 

Hope that helps

 

Jason

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Salish Sailor

Salish Sailor

Posted
Posted
Jason

 

Are the current Argentinian 'difficulties' affecting cruise ships' visits to the Falklands?

 

I'm just back from the Norwegian Sun's Feb. 28th cruise. We had no problems getting to and from the Falklands (at least as far as we passengers knew). Also had good enough weather to tender in and out of Stanley and take the NCL excursion to Bluff Cove Lagoon (where there were two pairs of king penguins along with the gentoos), on the rough and rutted track over the peat, in a Land Rover. I understand that a week before they had not been able to do that, however, due to large quantities of rain. Those who were going with Patrick Watts had frustrations over the tendering, as the first priority for tenders is those on the ship's excursions, and that meant most of us who got off the ship there, as there are not many other options.

 

Was fun to have a cider in a pub (...as long as you can handle the smoke) and do some shopping in the tourist shops and grocery store. Also connected by Internet from there, although Internet connection was pricier from there than some places (but still a lot cheaper than on the ship!) Oh, and U.S. dollars were widely accepted, in fact we never had a need to get local currency in *any* of the ports.

 

Jason, I asked if you were driving that day, but they said you were 'sunbathing on another island' ;-). I asked to have greetings delivered to you! :-) Our Land Rover driver was 'Crocodile Dundee'; don't remember the name of the van driver, but he was an older gent.

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jasonflk

jasonflk

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It appears that the argentines don't want to ruin their cruise ship industry in the southern regions and therefore it appears that no ship has had any issues.

 

Sorry I was on holiday, got to take a break now and then, we were on Bleaker island and had some wonderful weather, almost the best all season. Got to see rockhoppers my favourite penguin and had a nice relaxing time.

 

Your bus driver was Ruddy, I'm the young boy in the team, and your rover driver was Kieth. Most pubs allow smoking but millers along John street is smoke free.

 

Glad you seemed to enjoy it we've only got two more ships this season, hopefully next season will bring better weather been a bit wet this year :-)

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IECalCruiser

IECalCruiser

Posted
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The rain has certainly caused problems this year with the travel over the peat bogs. We were with Patrick Watts to Volunteer Point on February 22 and the conditions were very difficult. Two hours from the farm over the peat there and 2 1/2 hours back over the peat to the farm. That doesn't count almost and hour each way over paved and gravel roads. There were many times that a vehicle had to be pulled out of the bog. The trip had to be very hard on the vehicles.

 

As far as Volunteer Point, even in the wind and rain that was with us all day it was still a wonderful sight with large groups of Kings, Gentoos and Magellanics. Glad the seas were calm and we were able to tender in. Princess treats people with independent tours much better and it is not difficult to make it in an early tender. You just need to get in line for tender tickets early in the morning. All of Patrick's group was off in good time.

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  • 1 month later...
mconthehighseas

mconthehighseas

Posted
Posted

Jasonflk and/or Gixer, I have a question that I am sure you can help me with. We will be on a cruise to the Falklands this coming December. My husband and I would like a private tour of the battlegrounds. When should we start trying to contact tour guides? I don't want to bother anyone too soon, but I don't want to miss out on a wonderful opportunity.

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