Live from Silver Origin in the Galapagos July 6th to 13th (with pre and post-voyage adventures in the Amazon and Andes)

[jpalbny]

3 hours ago, RyanJCanada said:

Thanks very much! On the subject of future cruise reports, we almost forgot to mention the 'mystery cruise' that we booked while aboard the Origin - Tahiti to Valparaiso in October 2025, including stops in Easter Island and Robinson Crusoe Island. There are good fares available on that sailing if anyone's looking for an extended expedition cruise through the South Pacific.

 

Good luck! A big reason that we didn't visit Rapa Nui by cruise ship is because landing there can be iffy.

 

It is a very special place to visit.

[highplanesdrifters]

19 hours ago, RyanJCanada said:

But the next one up for us will be the 40 day from Puerto Williams to Cape Town in February 2025. 

 

Great itinary.  Double hit on South Georgia, sweet.

[RyanJCanada]

On 8/3/2024 at 9:04 AM, highplanesdrifters said:

 

Great itinary.  Double hit on South Georgia, sweet.

One of the big reasons we opted for that cruise… all of the expedition staff speak so highly of South Georgia we knew we had to prioritize it.
 

And there’s also the fact that they moved our original booking to October 5th. I’m sure it would be ruggedly beautiful that early, but I’m not sure we would’ve actually made landfall.

Edited August 6 by RyanJCanada

[highplanesdrifters]

8 hours ago, RyanJCanada said:

One of the big reasons we opted for that cruise… all of the expedition staff speak so highly of South Georgia we knew we had to prioritize it.
 

And there’s also the fact that they moved our original booking to October 5th. I’m sure it would be ruggedly beautiful that early, but I’m not sure we would’ve actually made landfall.

 

Oct. 5th?  Wow, that's really pushing the season.

 

I picked our return to Antarctica and C2C this year because it had 5 days in South Georgia. Due to weather we only got 3. What a 3 days they were!  We hit Shag Rock which I didn't even know existed.  What a highlight and wildlife extravaganza. The lost weather days were spent in Tristan. Major bonus. 

 

You get 5 and then 3 in South Georgia, wowza.  Very jealous.

 

Wishing you the calmest of seas. 

[jpalbny]

4 hours ago, highplanesdrifters said:

We hit Shag Rock which I didn't even know existed. 

 

We only did a sail-by. Our Captain apparently knew that it existed, and refrained from hitting it. 😉 

[highplanesdrifters]

19 hours ago, jpalbny said:

 

We only did a sail-by. Our Captain apparently knew that it existed, and refrained from hitting it. 😉 

 

You cracked me up! That deserves more than a smiley face.

[RyanJCanada]

Small (and off topic) favour to ask... has anyone sailed Ponant and have a Yacht Club number? We're looking at booking our first cruise with them and hope to get the 500 Euro /stateroom referral bonus, but require a sponsor's Yacht Club number to do so. If so, please contact us at unknownlongitude@gmail.com. I believe the sponsoring person will also get a similar bonus.

 

More on that here - Ponant benefits | Ponant

[jpalbny]

Ryan, I'll send you an email with more details, but it might be better for you to see if you can get a status match with Ponant (if you have status with any other cruise lines). Those discounts can be much higher than the referral bonus.

[highplanesdrifters]

23 minutes ago, jpalbny said:

Ryan, I'll send you an email with more details, but it might be better for you to see if you can get a status match with Ponant (if you have status with any other cruise lines). Those discounts can be much higher than the referral bonus.

 

Yes to status match!  Thanks to the heads up from @jpalbny we are now Grand Admiral status on Ponant. Saved 10%!

[RyanJCanada]

12 minutes ago, highplanesdrifters said:

 

Yes to status match!  Thanks to the heads up from @jpalbny we are now Grand Admiral status on Ponant. Saved 10%!

We only have 27 days on Silversea so we may only be eligible for the welcome bonus - but we've gone ahead and submitted our status match request, so we'll see what Ponant has to say... Doesn't seem to be any way to qualify for the referral bonus via online booking, and their offices are closed on Sundays, unfortunately.

[jpalbny]

1 hour ago, RyanJCanada said:

We only have 27 days on Silversea so we may only be eligible for the welcome bonus - but we've gone ahead and submitted our status match request, so we'll see what Ponant has to say... Doesn't seem to be any way to qualify for the referral bonus via online booking, and their offices are closed on Sundays, unfortunately.

 

Seems as if you've done more than that! I had also wondered if you've cruised other lines before moving to Silversea. All good either way; there are lots of ways to save on their fares.

 

1 hour ago, highplanesdrifters said:

 

Yes to status match!  Thanks to the heads up from @jpalbny we are now Grand Admiral status on Ponant. Saved 10%!

 

Welcome to the club! That status match is paying off big-time for them. We have three booked and are looking at a fourth for next June.

[RyanJCanada]

21 hours ago, highplanesdrifters said:

 

Yes to status match!  Thanks to the heads up from @jpalbny we are now Grand Admiral status on Ponant. Saved 10%!

 

Looks like we can only apply one referral per stateroom. @highplanesdrifters are you interested in a referral bonus for our second room? If so, please e-mail your name and Yacht Club number to unknownlongitude@gmail.com. No worries at all if you'd prefer not to for any reason!

[highplanesdrifters]

35 minutes ago, RyanJCanada said:

 

Looks like we can only apply one referral per stateroom. @highplanesdrifters are you interested in a referral bonus for our second room? If so, please e-mail your name and Yacht Club number to unknownlongitude@gmail.com. No worries at all if you'd prefer not to for any reason!

 

I was going to offer. Sadly looked at the rules and I'm not eligible to help you yet.  My first sail doesn't happen until February.  I'd suggest a post on the Ponant boards. Friendly group over there. 

 

I'm excited to start sailing on them.  So many new itineraries! And they've got the JP seal of approval.

Edited August 12 by highplanesdrifters

[RyanJCanada]

And... we're booked with Ponant! Thanks so much to @jpalbny for the referral, and to everyone else who offered to help.

 

The cruise we've booked is The Far North - Spitsbergen to Iceland in August 2026, in case anyone was curious. It's perhaps the best deal we've seen on Svalbard.

 

We'll also be aboard during the 2026 solar eclipse, which should be interesting - though the sky is likely to be cloudy in that part of the world.

[jpalbny]

You and your family will enjoy it! The wildlife density is nowhere near to that of the Antarctic or the Galapagos but the thrill is in the hunt. The landscapes are amazing and there is a lot of history in Svalbard which makes for interesting stops.

 

We now have four Ponant cruises booked so I hope you enjoy your journey as much as we will!