Back from South America! Any questions?

[fin]

It sounds wonderful, On our Crown trip, it was not available. WE had an overflight on a Lanchile 767 which flew fairly low over the continent but did not land.

 

The weather was such that we really did not know for hours whether we would be able to make the trip or not.

[chezbo99]

It sounds like an amazing trip to Antartica, but I'm still saving for the cruise itself! I'm convinced this should be our next cruise--hopefully next year!!

[JuneauGal]

We have just returned from our South America cruise from Santiago to Buenos Aires on the NCL Sun. If anyone would like any information we are willing to try our best to answer questions.:)

 

How does the Internet cafe work? Is it crowded or enough terminals to get in easily? Are there hair dryers in the bathrooms? Did you go to Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego in Ushuaia? If so, were you happy with this shore excursion? Has anyone gone to the Alerce Mountain Lodge outside Peurto Montt? How about COlonial del Sacramento outside Montivedeo. Wondering if this is worth it. We are on the Norwegian Sun, 2/1/2009. Thanks!

[DMH15]

I figured this might be a once in a lifetime experience so I decided to just go for it. I hope it does not get cancelled but whatever happens will be fine.

[buckeye82]

How does the Internet cafe work? Is it crowded or enough terminals to get in easily? Are there hair dryers in the bathrooms? Did you go to Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego in Ushuaia? If so, were you happy with this shore excursion? Has anyone gone to the Alerce Mountain Lodge outside Peurto Montt? How about COlonial del Sacramento outside Montivedeo. Wondering if this is worth it. We are on the Norwegian Sun, 2/1/2009. Thanks!

 

We used the ship internet cafe periodically. It is convenient but expensive. There were usually open terminals (the cafe has 15-20 in an open lounge in the atrium area of the ship). If you bring a laptop with wireless access you can purchase time from the ship network (same price) and connect from several wireless spots on the ship.

 

In our balcony room, we had hair dryers in the bathroom; I do not know if this was the case for all cabin types on the SUN.

 

We went on an excursion that included Tierra del Fuego National Park (along with a Beagle Channel Cruise). It is a pleasnt park but the cruise was - in our opinion - the better part of that excursion.

 

We did not go to the Alerce Mountain Lodge or to the Colonial del Sacramento.

 

I hope your trip is as great as ours was!

[S&B]

Buckeye.

Can you tell me a little more about your excursion on the Beagle Channel and the trip to the park. We are also on that excursion. Did you get to see the lighthouse? the end of the park sign? the post office? How much time did you have to wander around town afterwards? Did you enjoy the Beagle Channel or was it more like we will see when we sail away.

We are also thinking about taking a taxi to the park. It all sounds so very exciting.

 

Thanks for all your suggestions and help. :)

[buckeye82]

Buckeye.

Can you tell me a little more about your excursion on the Beagle Channel and the trip to the park. We are also on that excursion. Did you get to see the lighthouse? the end of the park sign? the post office? How much time did you have to wander around town afterwards? Did you enjoy the Beagle Channel or was it more like we will see when we sail away.

We are also thinking about taking a taxi to the park. It all sounds so very exciting.

 

Thanks for all your suggestions and help. :)

 

 

Go Gators...

 

The groups taking the combination excursion (Beagle Channel cruise and National Park) were split into several groups: some started with the cruise and others with the park. We started with the cruise and boarded the channel cruise boat right from the NCL SUN. Those starting with park took a tender to shore.

 

The cruise was quite nice - a large ship with tables and comfortable seats and large windows. As we passed small islands with sea lions, cormorants, etc., people could walk outside and the boat would stop. A naturalist provided information and answered questions. This was a good way to see a variety of wildlife quite close up.

 

We went right up to the lighthouse.

 

We exited the boat and boarded a coach bus to tour the park. We spent most of the time in the park at two or three stops to see views of the forest and various lakes. We drove past the train station, did not stop at the post office.

 

The bus dropped us off at the tender station and we walked into town for shopping. There are numerous signs with distance markers and 'end of the world' language which attract many photographers!

 

For us, this was a cold and blustery day. On the cruise, I was very glad to have gloves, a hat, and several layers!

 

We enjoyed the channel cruise. Although we had a balcony stateroom and spent many hours enjoying the scenery, there is something very nice about a smaller, closer encounter.

 

In retrospect, a combination of the channel cruise and a taxi in the park might have been a good combination.

 

When do you leave for your cruise?

[S&B]

Thanks Buckeye,

We leave February 1 from Buenos Aires so there is not much time left. We fly out one week from today and spend three nights in BA.

 

How much time did you have to walk around town after the excursion? We are there from 7-2.

 

Thanks for the "Go Gators". Years ago it was all about the "Sooners". Because they came to the Orange Bowl so many times I just thought it was a set deal! I am a Florida native, not many of us around. :)

[Montecitoharve]

We were on the Sun in December; amazingly smooth sailing around the Horn, but we were probably lucky.

 

How cold did it get and how rough was the ride around the Horn?

 

Thanks

 

d man

[buckeye82]

Thanks Buckeye,

We leave February 1 from Buenos Aires so there is not much time left. We fly out one week from today and spend three nights in BA.

 

How much time did you have to walk around town after the excursion? We are there from 7-2.

 

Thanks for the "Go Gators". Years ago it was all about the "Sooners". Because they came to the Orange Bowl so many times I just thought it was a set deal! I am a Florida native, not many of us around. :)

 

I think we had at least an hour to shop around. It was all very close to the tender area.

[Zeno]

We live in South Fl. so we had a direct flight on AA from Miami to Santiago, though very late at night. Everything was going smoothly and then we pushed back from the gate and stopped, and the pilot came on the speaker and said the dreaded words, "a warning light has come on and we need to return to the gate." Well, this is not what you want to hear when you have been planning this trip for a year. We watched out the window as a mechanic came and did something to the wing on our side of the plane and after about 20 mins. we were pushing back again. It took forever to get off the ground. (who knew there was so much traffic so late at night (by now I suppose it was Sunday morning)). Long story short we were late getting into Santiago and that was only the beginning of a long day!

 

We had to pay the entry fee, which some people seemed surprised about. The line was very long and finally a worker told us to go downstairs to pay. We hurried down only to find an equally long line which we were now at the end of. We had brought cash to pay, but it seemed that the credit card machines were working just fine. Then it was off to another long line for passport control. When we got to the luggage area the luggage had all been set aside and we found our bags with little problem. As we got in another long line to go through customs (everyone needs a customs paper! I was filling mine out as I stood in line) we saw the NCL Rep and he came over to check us off on his clipboard. He gave us stickers and that helped other Reps identify us and show us the way out and to the shuttle. Of course a shuttle had just filled so we got on another and had to wait as it filled up. The ride to the port was just under two hours and was pleasant. I am sure I dozed a little. I think we were all starving as we had breakfast on the plane and it was now after noon.

 

We arrived at the port and went inside the terminal. Where were the check in counters? Where were the mazes of people in line? We were given a number (27). We discovered that it was our number in line to get on a shuttle to the ship. We were told to have a seat and we did. We soon realized that they were on number 21. But we were anxious and it just didn't feel right to not be checking in. Finally we realized that reps were walking around and "pre-checking in" passengers. I got someone's attention and she came over to look at our tickets and passports and gave us a pre-boarding card. Now they were on number 22! So we browsed around. There was a bar and a kiosk selling Chilean wine. We had some samples and passed the time nicely. Finally, they called our number and we went through security and onto the shuttle. Finally! We were on board. It was after three o'clock. We got on the ship and were directed to a dining room where we were very quickly officially checked in. We went to our cabin and we were starving. But guess what? It was time for the emergency ship drill!

 

So that was our experience with embarkation!

 

Your embarkation sounds earily familar to one we once had - delayed

flight, arrive starved, drill scheduled before we had a chance to eat and by the time the drill was over it was only 20 minutes until dining room opened

for dinner - so we missed lunch entirely and made pigs of ourselves at dinner.

 

We live in Canada - so I am sure we would likely have to switch planes - it would be a long and tedious flight but the cruise sounds incredible - maybe next year.

Thanks for info.

[cheryldecember]

Donna,

I believe you must be the co-worker my friend Brooke told me about -all your posts seem to confirm this...Thank you for the heads-up about this site - I logged on last night and have picked up all sorts of information! In fact, I can't drag myself away. My husband and I are going on the same cruise sailing March 15 - we'll be anxious to hear what you have to say about your trip. Hope it's great!

Cheryl

Dallas

[kikiz]

We will be on the Sun for the 18 day South American cruise in April. I know it will be their fall, but does anyone have any idea what the weather will be like. Some people are telling us because we are close to the equator it will be warm, but when we checked out the internet we saw temps as low as the upper 50's. I get cold easily and have no clue what to pack!

[JuneauGal]

We will be on the Sun in April for an 18 day cruise from Santiago to Los Angeles. Do you remember the cost of the different alternative restaurants?

Carolyn

 

Sushi restaurant was $15/person. We ate there twice and it was delicious. Italian "Il Adagio" (orsomething like that) was $10/person. The only meal that was so-so for me. East meets West steakhouse was $15/person, I believe, and the food was very good and the service was FABULOUS. I can't remember if there was another one! We were on the Feb. 1-5 cruise, BA to Val. We were first-time cruisers and we loved the cruise. The weather around Cape Horn was clear and fabulous. Bring warm layers of clothes! Any other question, let me know. JuneauGal

[BlBart]

It may be cool there but by the time you get to northern Chile and Peru it

will be quite warm.