Anybody know why....

[tequilasunrise]

Port side balconies for Santiago to Buenes Aires are so much more popular than starboard? Looking at Star Princess, Feb. Is the view better of something important? Starboard promenade the smoking area?

 

Thanks for your input!

[Astro Flyer]

I sailed in the reverse direction & starboard had the best possibility of viewing land which would be port for your cruise.

[Colo Cruiser]

I sailed in the reverse direction & starboard had the best possibility of viewing land which would be port for your cruise.

 

 

I agree. ;)

[Pam in CA]

Better fiord and glacier viewing. Unlike Alaska, the ship does not turn around for equal viewing.

[tequilasunrise]

Thanks all, I figured it was probably something like that!

[paul929207]

We turned around in Amelia Glacier and sailed both ways around Cape Horn to give everyone a view.

[benjoon]

We couldn't decide so we booked an Aft cabin for Valparaiso to Rio in December. Our first Aft and our first Princess cruise. So excited and counting the days.

[5:00_Somewhere]

We couldn't decide so we booked an Aft cabin for Valparaiso to Rio in December. Our first Aft and our first Princess cruise. So excited and counting the days.

 

Good for you. We just did the reverse itinerary this past January, and it was spectacular. If you have time to fly in early and do some sightseeing, I highly recommend it. Santiago is beautiful, and Valparaiso is surprisingly interesting and pretty! And, of course, you HAVE to stay to see Rio after you disembark: stunning. But, of course, Buenos Aires was spectacular, as well, and we loved ... well, to be honest, just about everything; even the sea days! :) You will have a great time!

 

To the OP, just as the others have said, for your itinerary, the Port side will offer views of the coastline for the majority of your journey, and all the glaciers in Glacier Alley will be on the Port side. Our Captain DID completely circle Cape Horn once, but did not spin around and circle the island the other direction as someone above said.

 

I'm so excited to think about others taking this amazing trip. Happy sailing, all!!!

Edited August 26, 2015 by 5:00_Somewhere

[emmak8]

Looking forward to this amazing voyage.

[Grego]

We frequently study the routing map and decide which side of the ship we pick based upon the track the ship takes for the best land views.

[rockdoctor]

We couldn't decide so we booked an Aft cabin for Valparaiso to Rio in December. Our first Aft and our first Princess cruise. So excited and counting the days.

 

Good choice. You will not be disappointed. Not only do you view both port and starboard views, but you get the sight and sound of the ship's wake.

[sawtooth]

On the Star from Santiago to Rio we had a port side cabin. It was lovely viewing glaciers. However, unless pulling into ports, you are quite a distance from land so it's not as if you are in a small speed boat cruising close into shore.

Wonderful cruise, and any cabin on the ship would make me happy.

[Kinkacruiser]

Definitely the fiords and glaciers not quite as impressive after you've seen the Alaskan offering, but still very pleasing. If you don't have a portside cabin, then you'll need to be on deck.

Edited August 26, 2015 by Kinkacruiser

[Astro Flyer]

We turned around in Amelia Glacier and sailed both ways around Cape Horn to give everyone a view.

The captain also rotated our ship 360° at Amelia Glacier but the conditions were too rough to sail around Cape Horn & we remained in the Beagle Channel.

Definitely the fiords and glaciers not quite as impressive after you've seen the Alaskan offering, but still very pleasing. If you don't have a portside cabin, then you'll need to be on deck.

I've been to all of the Alaskan glaciers available on a cruise and to me the string of glaciers sailing west from Ushuaia were even better but that's merely my opinion. ;)

[5:00_Somewhere]

On the Star from Santiago to Rio we had a port side cabin. It was lovely viewing glaciers. However, unless pulling into ports, you are quite a distance from land so it's not as if you are in a small speed boat cruising close into shore.

Wonderful cruise, and any cabin on the ship would make me happy.

 

I just wanted to note that, for us, we could see land/coastline for at approximately half the time we were sailing. During the portion of our cruise sailing along the Pacific Coast of Chile, though it was foggy much of the time, when the fog lifted a bit we could definitely see the coastline and the mountains in the distance. We could always see the coastline while sailing in the Beagle Channel, of course; also when sailing in the Rio de La Plata between Buenos Aires and Montevideo. However, we were too far out to sea to see much of the coastline while sailing between Buenos Aires and Rio, and between Montevideo and the Falklands. But I would still estimate that we had views of some type of coastline during more than half our cruise, so the choice of balcony made a difference for us.

Edited August 27, 2015 by 5:00_Somewhere