Arrive in Santiago, the charming capital city of Chile, where you
will met your private driver and transferred to the Lastarria hotel, remain
at leisure to relax or explore the city on your own.
Enjoy a one night stay in a Junior Suite.
At the convenient time your driver will be waiting for you at the hotel to take you
back to Santiago Airport.
You will board a national flight to Punta Arenas. The flight lasts about 3,25
hour. Upon landing, your driver will be waiting for you to transfer the Australis cruise. The drive takes about 15 minutes.
Check in at 1385 O’Higgins Street (Arturo Prat Port) in Punta Arenas between 13:00 and 17:00 (1-5 PM) On the day of your cruise departure.
Board the M/V Stella Australis (6 PM).
After a welcoming cocktail reception hosted by the captain and his crew, the ship departs for on of the remotest corners of planet Earth.
During the night you will cross the Strait of Magellan and enter the
labyrinth of channels that define the southern extreme of Patagonian. The twinkling lights of Punta Arenas gradually fade into the distance as we enter the
Whiteside Canal between Darwin Island and Isla Grande de Tierra del
Fuego.
By dawn the ship is sailing up Admiralty Sound (Seno Almirantazgo), a spectacular offshoot of the Strait of Magellan that stretches nearly halfway across Tierra del Fuego.
The snowcapped peaks of Karukinka Natural Park stretch along the north side of the sound, while the south shore is defined by the deep fjords and broad bays of Alberto de Agostini National Park.
We go ashore at Ainsworth Bay, which harbors copious bird life and a colony of southern elephant seals which can sometimes be spotted from the Zodiacs. Two guided excursions are available: one is along the edge of a stream, peat bog and beaver habitat to a waterfall-and-moss-covered rock face tucked deep inside a pristine sub-polar forest; the other is a more strenuous hike along the crest of a glacial moraine.
Both afford views of Marinelli Glacier and the Darwin Mountains.
Leaving Ainsworth Bay behind, we sail west along the sound to the Tucker Islets. After lunch, we board the Zodiacs again for a close-up view of the Magellan penguins that inhabit the tiny islands. More than 4,000 penguins use Tucker as a place to nest, give birth and nurture their chicks. Many other bird species also frequent the area including king cormorants, oystercatchers, Chilean skuas, kelp geese, dolphin gulls, eagles and even the occasional Andean condor.
In September and April -- when the penguins live elsewhere -- this excursion is replaced by a short walk to a glacier at nearby stunning Brookes Bay.
Overnight we sail around the western end of Tierra del Fuego via the very narrow Gabrial Channel, Magdalena Channel and Cockburn Channel. After rounding the remote Brecknock Peninsula, Stella Australis tacks eastward and enters the Beagle Channel again.
By morning we are entering Pia Fjord and boarding the Zodiacs for a shore excursion to Pia Glacier. After disembarking we take a short hike to gain a panoramic view of the spectacular glacier, which extends from the mountaintops down to the sea or a longer much more difficult walk up a lateral moraine of the old Pia Glacier.
No one knows for certain how the hulking mass of snow and ice got its feminine moniker, but one theory says it was named for Princess Maria Pia of Savoy (1847-1911), daughter of the Italian king.
Back onboard the ship, we continue east along the Beagle Channel through an area called Glacier Alley. Living up to its name, the passage features a number of impressive tidewater glaciers flowing down from the Darwin Mountains and Darwin Ice Sheet on the north shore. Most of them named after European countries -- Holland, Italy, Germany, Spain and France.
During the early morning we navigate the narrow Murray Channel between Navarino and Hoste islands and drop anchor at historic Wulaia Bay, one of the few places in the archipelago where the human history is just as compelling as the natural environment.
Originally the site of one of the region’s largest Yámana aboriginal settlements, the bay was described by Charles Darwin and sketched by Captain FitzRoy in the 1830s during their voyages on the HMS Beagle.
This area is also renowned for its mesmerizing beauty and dramatic geography. After a visit to the Australis-sponsored museum in the old radio station -- which is especially strong on the Yámana people and European missionaries in the area -- passengers have a choice of three hikes (of increasing degrees of difficulty) that ascend the heavily wooden mountain behind the bay.
On all of these you will be strolling through an enchanted Magellan forest of lengas, coigües, canelos, ferns, and other endemic fauna to reach a panoramic viewpoint overlooking the bay.
Before leaving Wulaia Bay, drop something into the wooden mail barrel inside the museum – letters or postcards meant to be hand delivered by future travelers – an ancient mariner tradition revived by Australis.
In the afternoon we cruise across Nassau Bay into the remote archipelago that includes Cape Horn National Park. Weather and sea conditions permitting, we shall go ashore on the windswept island that harbors legendary Cape Horn (Cabo de Hornos). Discovered in 1616 by a Dutch maritime expedition -- and named after the town of Hoorn in West Friesland -- Cape Horn is a sheer 425-meter (1,394-foot) high rocky promontory overlooking the turbulent waters of the Drake Passage.
For many years it was the only navigation route between the Pacific and Atlantic, and was often referred to as the "End of the Earth." The park was declared a World Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 2005.
The Chilean navy maintains a permanent lighthouse on the island, staffed by a lightkeeper and his family, as well as the tiny Stella Maris Chapel and modern Cape Horn Monument.
The following morning we sail into Argentine waters and dock in Ushuaia, the world's southernmost city.
Arrival at 08:30 a.m. and 9:30 am according to date of departure.
Upon arrival you will be greeted by your guide who will help you to
drop off the luggage and begin a one hour of city tour in Ushuaia,
before your transfer to airport, your guide will leave you in a
restaurant for lunch. (at client expenses)
At convenient time, transfer to the airport.
16:00 Flight with Dap Airlines from Ushuaia to Punta Arenas.
(Ushuaia airport is located 10 minutes from the dock.)
On your Arrival in Punta Arenas, your driver from Explora hotel will
be waiting for you to transfered at the hotel.
Transfer to Puerto Natales lasts about 4 hour.
Check in at Explora Hotel.
Enjoy your four nights stay at Explora in a Exploradores Suite
and excursion with their all inclusive program.
Get an inside perspective of Patagonia’s wilds, choosing between your property’s array of guided expedition tours and activities, including horseback
riding, trekking, kayaking, mountain biking and birdwatching.
Enjoy your four nights stay at Explora in a Exploradores Suite
and excursion with their all inclusive program.
Enjoy your four nights stay at Explora in a Exploradores Suite
and excursion with their all inclusive program.
At convenient time, check-out from Explora and head to Punta Arenas Airport in a regular transfer to board your national flight to Santiago.
At your arrival, your private driver will be waiting and transferred to
your hotel.
Day at Leisure.
Enjoy a late check out at the hotel, (if high season, same room is not guaranteed for late check out, otherwise A room is confirmed for your late check out)
At the convenient time, check-out from the hotel and head back to
Santiago Airport in a private transfer for your International flight.
Farewell Chile!
