ethan1171

4 hours ago, schnapperin said:

Sadly counties in Europe are still recording record numbers daily - UK‘s number are coming down but Europe is more than the UK

Yes - but trends are coming down. https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/weekly-trends/#weekly_table

+12% for all of Europe vs. +50% last week. Clearly it is slowing down - for now. Same for Argentina.

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/argentina/

@Sitti - many airlines would only allow a cloth or medical mask -check on the one you have because i have seen incidents of people not allowed on the plane if they have a mask with valves

Also - omicron seems to have peaked and is coming down rapidly both in US and EU - and seems Argentina should follow in the upcoming weeks. I do not have a crystal ball to know exactly what would happen but not all is lost yet.

Not that I want to excuse Ponant - but this is the current reality with the unpredictability of managing covid across the cruise industry.

Actually Ponant seems to be doing much better canceling two days before. There are multiple postings with Oceanwide and Quark and Atlas etc canceling the day of the cruise is scheduled to depart

I called Ponant to get an update and indeed seems Boreal has cases and will cancel the next trip.

Lyrial has had no cases - and will proceed as planned.

scopolamine patch works great - however many people have complained for side effects e..g vertigo after they remove it - so you may want to try it before the cruise. However if it does not have side effects - it works really great.

I always have extra mezicline OTC with me just in case.

Also i have found out for moderate sea conditions the wrist band works great.

SS should provide you with waterproof rubber boots that you will use on wet landings - no need to being hiking boots - save the space. good warm shoes with good grip for wearing on the ship would be great. My advise so you can maximize what you are packing is to bring shoes that can be used in other occasions, eg flights airport sightseeing in ushuaia santiago BA etc - if you do plan to do hiking in the region on your own then good idea to bring them

Likely they have COVID cases on board which might require quarantine - so they are proactive about it?

Although this season in Antarctica is seeing a lot of cancellations and pulling out of the season from the other operators - we do not have a clear idea how Ponant will proceed. Apart from the cancellation with Comandant Charcot Jan 8 and the Austral Jan 14, the rest of the trips across all their 4 ships in Antarctica are currently confirmed for the rest of Jan/Feb/Mar.

Very eager to see how this will play out for Ponant in the upcoming days. Are they going to persist and limp through all the covid operational issues or they will pull out as well? Or maybe Argentina will decide for them by shutting everything down? 🤔

@AussieBoyTX - do you happen to have a link to the French language Ponant groups? I did not know they existed. Thank you!

Just emailed you. Thank you!!

Not the best of news - but not a surprise. There is a lot of action taken currently to update the quarantine protocol Argentina put in place Jan 1. I am not sure when it will be modified but I hear soon. Meanwhile seems a lot of the ships are currently impacted and it is wrecking havoc with everyone's plans but this pandemic should have taught us by now not to take anything for granted and that plans can change anytime.

On a personal note - I am very happy our Antarctica cruise is not until Feb 19 - so we have some time to figure things out, even if it ends up to cancelation.

As much as I understand the frustration and disappointment for those passengers underway and or in Chile on the Jan 8 cruise - I hope nobody was surprised that this could really happen and they have a Plan B or C for making the best out of their trip to the region.

7 hours ago, Sitti said:

 

Your upcoming Antarctica cruise, does it happen to be "The Ross Sea"?

We are on Emblematic Antarctica with Le Lyrial Feb 19 - Mar 2.

Thank you for sharing these details with us. And the advice on a all-Seychelles two-week itinerary - I will take that into consideration since your trip gave us great ideas for the future for a similar itinerary.

Do you know what was the protocol followed for those passengers tested positive? Did they have to isolate in Zanzibar / Tanzania for 10 days or more? Did Ponant provide any sort of assistance / hotels etc. to make this easy on these passengers or they were disembarked and left on their own to figure it out? Also wandering if you had thought about it and had a Plan B in case of a positive result? Like spending 2-3 more weeks in Tanzania / Zanzibar before being allowed returning back to the US?

We traveled to Greece and Cyprus a few months ago and I had a similar plan in mind in case of a positive result and not being able to return back immediately. E.g. I had investigated the options on quarantine hotels and had my laptop with me so I can continue working remotely.

Same as Sitti we are on an Antartica cruise in less than a month and a half and I am thinking through the options in case of a positive test? e.g. isolate / quarantine in Ushuaia ? But still would be nice to know if Ponant has a protocol developed for those outcomes?

What an amazing adventure!! So great to see that you are having so much fun despite all that is going on right now - and makes us all appreciate that travel is becoming again accessible and enjoyable. Thank you for the pictures and allowing us to live this cruise vicariously through you. Also you are inspiring me to look into this itinerary after our Antarctica trip with Ponant. Looks awesome so far! Please keep posting!😀

1 hour ago, PaulMCO said:

Thank you Ashley,  this been a very unpredictable year.  We just returned from Argentina and we NEVER boarded Quarks Ultramarine.   Quark cancelled the voyage at the last moment as 4 crew members (later updated to 9) tested positive for COVID.  We are really disappointed.

So sorry to hear! I read the horror stories about Quark canceling from others as well, and how badly they did it. Although it was the right decision - the lack of transparency, not having a plan B, getting into a this sticky situation with their crew, etc etc makes Quark look really bad. Will they be able to recover and continue with the season? I doubt it.

Again - and I posted this in other forums also - in these uncertain times the reliability, safety and honesty of the operator is key. 100 passengers and less, itinerary, landings are important. Safety and an operator that can get you to Antarctica and back safely and reliably is *the* number one priority.

Thank you for the response. We are on with Lyrial Feb 19 - March 2. It seems all 4 Ponant ships are on the Antarctica itineraries currently, Le Lyrial, Le Boreal, L'Austral and the Commandant Charcot. We are on a good start and we feel more and more comfortable about our February Antarctica cruise.

It's useful to get details from passengers on current trips or before ours as it helps with the preparation especially when it comes to COVID procedures

There is a thread / roll call for Tauck/Ponant Dec 7th here:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2735141-tauckponant/

Is anyone on the 11/17 Antarctica cruise either L'Austral or Le Boreal? It would be great to get some insights if you have received your documents from Ponant regarding COVID process, hotel in Buenos Aires, charter flights to USH etc.  And also post here your experiences during the cruise.

Thank you.

9 hours ago, HappyTvlr said:

 but for me it is not a now or never trip but one of many trips I plan on taking if and when things change.  It is clear based on the posts here that some are willing to take the risk, and I really do hope that things go well.  I also hope that when they return they are willing to post and be honest about their experiences.  

Yes - could not agree more with you.

We went through similar thinking before our travels to Europe last month.

2 hours ago, bella c said:

We are booked on Antarctica Jan. 19, 2022 on Ponant with Tauck.  I have read the information and requirements on COVID issues but have a great many concerns .  The  tour has us flying into Buenos Ares.  As far as today it is not really open. 

You can test all you want but if a person is exposed it may not show up for 4 days in which case many, many people will be effected.    Do they have the meds on board to properly deal with Covid complications   

 As I said before these are questions that should be addressed in some form now, not after the fact.

Argentina is scheduled to open up on November 1 - with a lot of process around allowing fully vaccinated travelers, PCR tests prior to arrival etc etc. You can read earlier in this thread the details: https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g294266-i977-k13678627-Borders_Reopening-Argentina.html and of course we will learn a lot more the first couple of weeks in November how things will work out.

Vaccines and especially boosters provide protection - including the newly approved antiviral Merc pill

However traveling is not for the faint of heart right now - especially cruising in Antartica.

Given the concerns you are raising, and how worried, you might consider canceling or postponing. Such a trip to Antarctica is a once in a life time opportunity for many of us and if you have such major concerns you will not enjoy, so you may want to reconsider if the next couple of years is the right timing or putting traveling off for 2023 or later.

Our ship Le Lyrial with Ponant  for the Feb 19 cruise out of Ushuaia left Portugal today and is heading to South America.

We are healthy, fully vaccinated, will get the booster soon, and are 100% comfortable to go on the trip and enjoy Antarctica. We had some interesting moments during our trip to Europe last month at busy airports and such - but we were smart with using masks and social distancing and not only stayed  safe - but also really enjoyed our travels.

I can't wait to finally go to Antarctica in February!!... and if for some reason (delta++ / Argentina reconsiders / Ponant cancels etc) we are prepared to change to 2023 or later.

--ethan

Awesome! Antarctica here we come! 

Here is the latest news on Argentinean boarders reopening:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g294266-i977-k13678627-Borders_Reopening-Argentina.html

September 21: elimination of isolation for Argentines, residents and foreigners who come for work and are authorized by the immigration authority.

October 1: authorization of entry of foreigners from neighboring countries without isolation. Opening of land borders at the request of governors (with safe corridors approved by the health authority with a quota defined by the capacity of each jurisdiction).

Between October 1 and November 1, the entry quota is progressively increased in all secure corridors, airports, ports and land borders.

November 1 entry of all foreigners is authorized.

The following will be required for entry into the country

Complete vaccination schedule, with date of last application at least 14 days prior to arrival in the country.

Negative PCR test within 72 hours prior to boarding, or antigen at the point of entry until defined by the health authority.

PCR test at day 5 to 7 of arrival until defined by the sanitary authority.

Thank you so much for these notes! We are booked on Le Lyrial Emblematic Antarctica in February so it is exciting to read about your experience. And it is good to see that apart from a few minor necessary COVID related  "annoyances" the rest of the cruise seems to be enjoyable.

I have been a bit more successful getting through to the airlines lately via their social media teams than regular phone lines - e.g. United / BA etc have the ability to message them and I have been able to get fast and reliable answers from them. I have not tried Delta but you can message them here: https://www.facebook.com/delta ... or on both their web site or app you can use the live chat - delta.com “Need Help” messaging interface

Our Ponant cruise is not until February '22 - but we are traveling to Europe in September on a land trip. Our first trip since the start of the pandemic. My spouse and I are vaccinated and comfortable to start traveling again - even if the regulations are not very clear and constantly changing.

However my advice is to keep in mind that international and cruise travel will not be the same as it was before the pandemic. It will take many years to get a new sense of normalcy and ease. But it is still feasible and enjoyable - as long as you allow plenty of wiggle room for the unexpected and to deal with new regulations. Lots of buffer time between flights - connections - cruises, long term accommodations for working remotely if you can not come back to US immediately after the trip.

For example part of our plans now is to think what we need to stay for two more weeks if something goes wrong? Or what if the country goes back to red? etc. etc. Plan A, B and C

Helps to set the right expectations and think in advance through implications of travel during the pandemic - to avoid stress and surprises.

What happens if the tests are positive? Do you have to quarantine at Keflavik for two weeks before you can return back to US?

Yes - the news are promising. And I agree with some of the responses I got on TripAdvisor that there are still a lot of unknowns, but at least now the door is open ... I am getting a lot more optimistic for my Feb '22 expedition trip.

Antarctica Season is short - so not many options regarding timing: Nov - Feb with Xmas/New Years dates being most expensive due to demand.

Antarctica is expensive due to the logistics involved! A *very* important aspect is how big is the expedition ship. If you are looking for an expedition and landing in Antarctica and maximizing time on land, a small ship is what you need to look for - less than 100 people. 

There are a full range of options for 10-14days starting at $8000/pp all the way to double or quadruple that.

A few options to consider would be Hurtigruten, Polar Latitudes, Quark, Silverseas, Ponant

Take a look here for an exhaustive lists of providers, comparisons etc:

https://antarcticafaqs.boards.net/

But if you are looking for a drive by with Princess or HAL - it is a very different discussion