Shore Excursions for Chilean Fjords

[OneSixtyToOne]

 

The shore excursions were posted today on MVJ for our Patagonian Shores and Chilean Fjords expedition cruise aboard the Octantis.

 

We are trying to figure out what to book.

Wondering if anyone has any feedback for the following:

 

Castro

• Churches of Chiloé (included)
• Chiloé National Park
• Villages & UNESCO Churches

 

Puerto Chacabuco

• Puerto Chacabuco & Surroundings (included)
• Rio Simpson National Reserve & Coyhaique
• A Glimpse of Patagonia’s Natural Beauty
• Patagonia Nature in Depth

 

Punta Arenas

• Punta Arenas & Magellan’s Discovery (included)
• Strait of Magellan Park (included)
• Patagonian Andes by Foot (included)
• Strait of Magellan by Kayak
• Patagonian Farm Experience
• Heritage of Patagonia
• Magdalena Island & Penguin Reserve by Catamaran
• Punta Arenas Sights & Patagonian Asado

[rmalbers]

I can tell you the towns aren't really anything special, so that means take your pick on the scenic stuff. 

[SJD117]

3 minutes ago, rmalbers said:

I can tell you the towns aren't really anything special, so that means take your pick on the scenic stuff. 

 

Punta Arenas is a nice regional city, and Castro is a nice regional town. Special? No.

[SantaFe1]

1 hour ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

Magdalena Island & Penguin Reserve by Catamaran

We did this while on the World Cruise.  It was really special!  We also saw quite a few whales.

[dd57]

One of the nice things about Magdalena is the people are restricted to paths with low rope barriers while the penguins roam free.  And there are a lot of them.  We were told that if a penguin approaches the rope, we must stop until the penguin crosses the path.  Not everyone did this and the penguins would patiently wait until everyone stopped and they could cross.

[deec]

I am wondering how often they will be using the "toys" that are on the Expedition Ships.  We did the Ocean cruise around South America and thought is was great but would love to get into some of the smaller bays and fjords.  This should be a great cruise.  I agree Magdalena was a great place to experience the penguins and their smell!

[OneSixtyToOne]

Just now, deec said:

I am wondering how often they will be using the "toys" that are on the Expedition Ships.  We did the Ocean cruise around South America and thought is was great but would love to get into some of the smaller bays and fjords.  This should be a great cruise.  I agree Magdalena was a great place to experience the penguins and their smell!

There are signups listed for the days we are at the glaciers. Zodiac landings, kayaking, and special ops boat.

[deec]

Is there something most days?  I am trying to judge how the Expedition Experience justifies the cost/day above the Ocean Ship cruises.

We are doing Antarctica in January so I will have more appreciation for the small ship after that.

[OneSixtyToOne]

36 minutes ago, deec said:

Is there something most days?  I am trying to judge how the Expedition Experience justifies the cost/day above the Ocean Ship cruises.

We are doing Antarctica in January so I will have more appreciation for the small ship after that.

Not counting embarkation and debarkation days, there are 4 scenic sailing days in the fjords and 1 scenic sailing around the Cape, 3 days are exploring glaciers with the toys, 3 are port days with excursions,  and 1 traditional sea day in the Pacific. 

[sailoroma]

Great information.  Thank you for sharing and a special thanks to OneSixtyToOne for the list of excursions.  We embark on Polaris in Valparaiso on October 28th and excursions will not be posted until September 11th.

[OneSixtyToOne]

20 minutes ago, sailoroma said:

Great information.  Thank you for sharing and a special thanks to OneSixtyToOne for the list of excursions.  We embark on Polaris in Valparaiso on October 28th and excursions will not be posted until September 11th.

You won’t be able to book until September but they should be on your MVJ in about 2 weeks. Ours showed up yesterday and we sail 2 weeks before you. 

[sailoroma]

Thanks for the heads up.  Will mark my calendar and check in two weeks.

[Mich3554]

We did Magdalena Penguin reserve.  There is about a mile walk around the small island where there are tons of penguins and gulls nesting (this was in Dec).  
DH was ff taking pics with his Nikon (and much better lenses) in another direction when I tried to get his attention.  A skua was attacking a gull nest and gulls AND penguins together fought off the skua.  The skua hobbled away to his buddy skua on the side of the path to figure things out.  By the time DH saw what was going on, he missed almost the interaction…..so no pics.  
We didn’t stay near enough t8me there.  I could have gone around again.

[1985rz1]

On 6/30/2023 at 2:32 PM, OneSixtyToOne said:

 

The shore excursions were posted today on MVJ for our Patagonian Shores and Chilean Fjords expedition cruise aboard the Octantis.

 

We are trying to figure out what to book.

Wondering if anyone has any feedback for the following:

 

Castro

• Churches of Chiloé (included)
• Chiloé National Park
• Villages & UNESCO Churches

 

Puerto Chacabuco

• Puerto Chacabuco & Surroundings (included)
• Rio Simpson National Reserve & Coyhaique
• A Glimpse of Patagonia’s Natural Beauty
• Patagonia Nature in Depth

 

Punta Arenas

• Punta Arenas & Magellan’s Discovery (included)
• Strait of Magellan Park (included)
• Patagonian Andes by Foot (included)
• Strait of Magellan by Kayak
• Patagonian Farm Experience
• Heritage of Patagonia
• Magdalena Island & Penguin Reserve by Catamaran
• Punta Arenas Sights & Patagonian Asado

Thank you for posting this list.  We're on the Polaris later, so we will look for the announcement on our MVJ in a couple of weeks.

Edited July 4, 2023 by 1985rz1