Cry for help from CC staffer!

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Hi everyone! I've been a lurker on this forum lately and it is time to come clean and introduce myself. My name is Melissa and I'm the associate editor here at Cruise Critic. I'll be onboard Regal Princess February 11-24, and I'm planning out my excursions and in-port activities .... and I'd love some advice.

 

I'll be staying in Buenos Aires for one night before embarking and taking a private tour, but that's about all that is set in stone! I haven't decided where I should see penguins (and I love penguins). Would you recommend Punta Arenas (Otway Bay), Puerto Madryn (Punta Tombo) or Port Stanley? Are they that much more magnificent in one port but not the next?

 

Thanks for being a part of our community ... I look forward to your feedback!

 

P.S. I will surf on over to the "Roll Call" but if anyone on this thread is on my sailing, let's plan on a Cruise Critic coffee/wine/lunch get-together!

[coiran]

Hi Mellissa - we will be along with you - we have a rol call going - we should plan on meeting for sailaway somewhere -.

Tours

We are doing Iguazu pre ceuise and will be at the Hilton the night before the cruise.

We are doing Princess tours in Montivedeo and Puerto Madryn.

Port Stanley we have a private tour to Gypsy Cove.

Punta Arenas we have a tour lined up with Turismo Nuevo Mundo for the Otway Penguin Preserve.

Puerto Montt we have a tour with GV tours

At the end we have a tour m- stay - tour and transport to the airport with Turismo Nuevo Mundo.

Ron

[Keith1010]

Hi Melissa, I was in South America last year and saw the Penguins at the Otway Penguin Reserve. I haven't seen them in the other areas that you mentioned, but some folks on our tour said that they had seen penguins before and they thought that the Otway Penguin Reserve was the best they had seen.

 

Other than one building when the bus first drive up there is no other commercial building there or anywhere near there which is nice.

 

We walked about two miles in total and saw so many penguins. We walked on a path and the penguins would just come up there very close to the path sometime walking in front of us. It was a lovely day and I highly recommend this excursion.

 

When we were in Buenos Aires we saw a Tango Show. It was quite good between the singing, dance and the music so it might be something that you would want to look into.

 

What other ports will you be stopping at.

 

I was to South America one other time on a business trip. To sea it by cruise ship was wonderful. It is breathtaking and you can see so many areas that have not been developed and likely will not be for 100's of years to come. Thanks goodness.

 

Keith

[Host CMLA]

I'll be staying in Buenos Aires for one night before embarking and taking a private tour, but that's about all that is set in stone! I haven't decided where I should see penguins (and I love penguins). Would you recommend Punta Arenas (Otway Bay), Puerto Madryn (Punta Tombo) or Port Stanley? Are they that much more magnificent in one port but not the next?

Hi Melissa. I did the South America cruise in 2002. I recommend Punto Tombo for penguins. Eat king crab at Sotito's in Punta Arenas and do a walking tour in Port Stanley. I wouldn't recommend putting all your eggs in one basket for Port Stanley because weather could stop you from making it there at all. I have a review I can post if you're interested.

[GMONT01]

Cecilia, I would be interested in your review of South America. We will be cruising there in March. Where in Punta Arenas is the restaurant Sotito's. We love King Crab. Thanks.

[xpcdoojk]

We really enjoyed the Che` Tango show in BA. We went to Otway, and the Penquins are of the Magellanic variety (not the ones in the March of the Penquins). They are cute and you can get within 10 feet of some of them.

 

Feel free to email me for information about our trip.

 

jc

[xpcdoojk]

Cecilia, I would be interested in your review of South America. We will be cruising there in March. Where in Punta Arenas is the restaurant Sotito's. We love King Crab. Thanks.

 

It is downtown about a 10 to 15 minute cab ride from the ship. It is on Bernard O Higgins street about 3 blocks south of the main square.

 

We ran out of energy and ate on the ship that night. The local that was our guide on our HAL excursion recommended another place next door to Sotito's even more highly. Unfortunately, I couldn't get the rest of the group or my wife to participate that day.

 

jc

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Thanks everyone! Cecilia, I'd love to see your review!

[Host CMLA]

I flew through the night to Buenos Aires and landed at 10:30 AM on the third of March. I have to say that the Buenos Aires airport isn’t one of the better examples of efficiency and customer friendliness. The customs and immigration line is congested and confusing. The baggage claim isn’t very easy to maneuver. You have to wait in another line to have your baggage x rayed before you can leave the baggage claim area. Once I got out of the secure area I was confronted with masses of people holding up signs for this party or that party. There are no defined areas for people waiting for people. It’s a free for all. I did find the cruise line rep and handed my luggage off to the porters to take it to the ship. After being awake all night, I could have done without the hectic nature of the Buenos Aires airport. The group of us that arrived on my flight got on the bus for the trip to the pier. On the way we got some information about Buenos Aires. To be honest, I was exhausted. I didn’t sleep for a minute on the plane and I don’t have any real clear recollection of any of the information I heard. I just wanted to be on the ship and get a nap. When we got to the pier, it was still pretty early and they had just started letting people get on board.

 

After boarding, I went to my room and dropped off my carry on bags, I went to lunch. At that lunch, I met Shary and Barbara from Las Vegas. I got to know them during the trip and we did some tours together. After lunch, I went to my room and took a nap. I slept through the life boat drill. I was very tired. I got up around 6 PM and got ready and went to dinner.

 

On March 4 we were in Montevideo, Uruguay. Montevideo is the capital of Uruguay and the country’s commercial, industrial and cultural center. That morning it was rainy. I didn’t have a tour planned. I got off the ship and took the shuttle to a local leather factory. From there I went to a sweater factory and bought some souvenirs. I didn’t see any of the surrounding areas. On March 5 we were at sea. I was happy to have a day to relax and catch up on some sleep.

 

On March 6 we were in Puerto Madryn, Argentina. The big thing to do in Puerto Madryn is to go to the Punta Tombo Penguin Reserve. It sounds simple enough but it was a journey. Instead of doing the ship’s tour, Shary, Barbara and I hired a car with an English speaking guide and we went on our own. Punta Tombo is about 3 hours away by car. We made it in two hours. Raoul, our driver, drove 160 km an hour on the paved road. We were on the paved road for about 40 minutes. Then you turn onto a dirt and gravel road where we did 100 km an hour for an hour and twenty minutes. FINALLY we made it to Punta Tombo. There are approximately 750,000 Magellanic penguins at this reserve. They’re everywhere and they’re accustomed to humans so it was easy to walk among them. You couldn’t walk two steps without running into a penguin. They were molting when we were there so you could see them scratching away to shed their fur/feathers. Before leaving the reserve we stopped at the little gift shop/cafe and bought souvenirs and ate lambs meat empanadas. The benefit of getting our own guide was as we were leaving the reserve the ship's tour was just showing up. We got to be there without all the crowds and be on our way to see other things sooner. After we left there, we went to the town of Trelew and to the Paleontology Museum to see the dinosaur bones recovered from the area. Then we went to Puerto Madryn and got a tour of the city. After that, we asked our guide if we could do a little shopping, go to the post office and go to a grocery store to buy sodas and water to bring back to the ship. We had a wonderful day. The guide we had spoke excellent English and we saw everything there was to see. On March 7 we were at sea again.

 

On March 8 we anchored in Port Stanley, Falkland Islands. It was a magnificent day. The weather was spectacular. It’s such a huge deal that the weather was good because leading up to Port Stanley, the captain was preparing us for terrible weather and the good possibility that we wouldn’t get to stop at all. As a matter of fact, during the whole season that the ship was doing South America, the ship had only been able to stop at the Falklands once. So to have the most beautiful day was like a gift from the weather gods. The captain even commented that evening that in his five years of cruising South America he had never had weather as good as we had that day. We anchored instead of docked because there isn’t a dock area per se in Port Stanley. I took the tender over at around noon. Because the ship could never guarantee that it would stop in the Falklands there were no ship organized tours. Once on the small pier area you could take tours offered but I didn’t. It was such a glorious day that I just wanted to walk around the island. Port Stanley is really a nice quaint town. All the buildings are painted in bright colors. When you look at the buildings along the waterfront you see a kaleidoscope of colors. I walked, I shopped and I went to the post office. I really enjoyed this day.

 

On March 9 we cruised around Cape Horn. The feeling of cruising around the very tip of a continent and being in a place traveled by so many explorers was special to me. I felt like I was initiated into a private club that not everyone gets to be a part of. It was a picturesque day even though the seas did get rough and it did rain off and on.

 

On March 10 we were in Ushuaia, Argentina. Snowcapped peaks, crystalline rivers, white-ribbon waterfalls and dense woodlands are the backdrop for this southernmost town in the world and the closest city to Cape Horn. It was very cold and windy. I didn’t do a tour. Instead I got off the ship and walked around the whole town. It was a nice place. The mountains that backdrop the city are breathtaking. I did some shopping at a local market and then stopped into a cafe for a coffee as it started to lightly snow. It was peaceful. After leaving Ushuaia, we passed through the Beagle Channel and saw six different glaciers. It reminded me of Alaska only more scenic.

 

On March 11 we were in Punta Arenas, Chile, our first stop in Chile. It was a little cold and unbelievably windy. I spent the day with my friend that I got to know last September on the ship. Her name is Jahaira and she’s from Nicaragua. She’s the sweetest girl and I enjoyed hanging out with her. It was especially nice because she speaks Spanish and she was able to get us cabs and help me when we ordered lunch. We walked around the town and went to a few markets. Then we went to Sotito’s Bar for lunch. I heard from someone that Sotito’s had the best king crab in Chile. Believe me...it was. We both had huge lump crab meat in a bowl with a little cream to keep it moist and then covered with cheese and baked. Oh my goodness!!! It was an amazing meal. We both hated it to end. Sotito’s does have the best king crab in Chile and dare I say anywhere else.

 

On Tuesday, March 12 we passed through the Strait of Magellan and saw the impressive Amalie Glacier. The captain got us up close and personal with the glacier and they even lowered a rescue boat into the water and retrieved some glacier ice.

 

On March 13 we were at sea and you could feel that we were at sea every minute of the day. It was terrible. You couldn’t walk two feet without falling into a wall or bumping into something. Apparently, at this time of year in South America where they’re switching from fall to winter, you get these rough seas.

 

On March 14 we anchored in Puerto Chacabuco. It’s generous for me to say that this is a port or even a city. Puerto Chacabuco is an entry point to the Aysen region. It lies in the eastern end of a very narrow fjord and has replaced Puerto Aysen as the main shipping port and ferry terminal to the area. The best thing I can say about this port is that you’re surrounded by the Andes Mountains. It was rainy all day. There were very few tours to do. I took the tender to the pier just to say I had been there. I walked a block up the pier and back, had my picture taken by the sign for the port, and then went back to the ship. That was it.

 

On March 15 we were in Puerto Montt, Chile. Puerto Montt serves as the principal port for this region and it a gateway for cruising into Chile’s fjords. I decided to go with Shary and Barbara and hire a car. This trip wasn’t as good as what we had in Puerto Madryn but we did see some great things. First we headed to the Vicente Perez Rosales National Park. We went to the Petrohue Falls. The water plunges over hard volcanic rocks to form gushing cascades. From this spot you can also see the enormous Mt. Orsorno. Mt. Orsorno is the perfectly shaped and incredibly impressive snowcapped volcano. From there we went to Frutillar, founded in 1856 by German settlers, it’s noted for its Alpine and traditional German style architecture. Back in Puerto Montt we went to the local crafts market and did some souvenir shopping. It started to rain cats and dogs and we were soaked when we got back to the ship. That night, as we headed back out into the Pacific we experienced 30 foot swells. The ship was rocking and rolling and you could hear things crashing to the floor all over the ship. They even had to cancel that nights show for the dancer’s safety. It was difficult to sleep and many people were sick. I don’t get sea sick but it was annoying to try and do anything with the ship moving as it was.

 

March 16 was the last full day of the cruise. We were at sea. It was rough but not as rough as the night before. I packed and spent as much time as I could with the new friends I had made. On March 17 I disembarked. My flight wasn’t until 9 PM that night so I did the ship’s day tour to keep me busy. We traveled through Chile surrounded by the Andes getting commentary on the wine production in the area. We stopped once for empanadas and wine. Then we got to the city. We got a city tour that covered the President’s Palace, the National Cathedral and the race track that’s in the center of town. We were dropped off at the airport at around 5:30 PM.

[dileep]

Hi everyone! I've been a lurker on this forum lately and it is time to come clean and introduce myself. My name is Melissa and I'm the associate editor here at Cruise Critic. I'll be onboard Regal Princess February 11-24, and I'm planning out my excursions and in-port activities .... and I'd love some advice.

 

Thanks for being a part of our community ... I look forward to your feedback!

 

P.S. I will surf on over to the "Roll Call" but if anyone on this thread is on my sailing, let's plan on a Cruise Critic coffee/wine/lunch get-together!

 

here you go http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=5751467#post5751467