HOW TO SELL PATAGONIA BY SHIP
PATAGONIA Cruise
BY ANNA SELBY While taking a cruise has become an
increasingly popular holiday option for UK travellers, many are now looking beyond the tried and trusted Med or Caribbean itineraries. Expedition cruises have a sense of
adventure that you don’t find on big cruise liners – they're accompanied by knowledgeable guides and talks on board rather than shows and swimming pools. Clients are based on small ships and can discover pristine environments where the big ships can’t go, not least in remote Patagonia at the foot of South America. In fact, some destinations are so
remote that the only access is by boat. During my whole time on board the Stella Australis, for example, I saw only one other ship and that was off Cape Horn heading for Antarctica. Patagonia is an area shared by Chile
and Argentina. Chilean Tierra del Fuego is uninhabited and its sounds and fjords are a protected area. To ensure they retain their pristine state, only those passengers on Chilean ships are allowed to disembark. So, other than their fellow passengers, your clients won’t see a soul. But, like us, they will see some of the
most extraordinary sights the world has to offer – mountains and glaciers, whales and dolphins, colonies of penguins and the solitary wandering albatross soaring on the bird world’s most massive wings. The air is pure, the silence is palpable, and the light has such clarity, you get to experience real life in high definition. Against this calm and majestic background, the days are surprisingly action packed. And, close as we were to the South Pole, the temperature was a mild 11C. That said, the weather in this part of the world can change very rapidly and cold weather kit and good walking boots are recommended.
General Information
TIME ZONE: GMT -4 (Chile) VISA: Not required by UK citizens LANGUAGE: Spanish GETTING THERE: Patagonia stretches across the southern tip of Chile and Argentina. Fly to Punta Arenas in Chile via Madrid and Santiago or to Ushuaia in Argentina via Buenos Aires. CONTACT:
www.australis.com
Our first stop was Ainsworth Bay. The Marinelli Glacier stands guard across the other side of the water while elephant seals, doing their best to look like boulders, bask in the sunshine. The 120 passengers split up into small
groups, each with their own guide, and roamed the beach before heading inland to discover the local flora and fauna, taste wild berries and visit a beaver dam. Back on the bay waiting for the small zodiac boats to transfer us back onboard, a bar was set up serving whisky with a sliver of blue ice straight from the glacier. Later that day we made for an islet full of Magellanic penguins, snow white upland geese and cormorants. At Cape Horn we met the sole Chilean naval family who still live there and speculated on a life of such incredible isolation. As we left, a dazzling double rainbow dropped into the sea next to the rocky outcrop that has been the downfall of so many sailors. The ship sails through the arm of the Beagle Channel known as 'Glacier Alley' which must be among the world’s most majestic panoramas. At Pia Glacier, the zodiacs negotiate
Top: a spectacular Patagonian landscape; a sextet of penguins
www.sellinglonghaul.com • June 2012 13
PATAGONIA Top Selling Tips...
• Mix it up... “A Patagonia cruise can be combined with two other natural wonders – the Torres del Paine National Park in Chile and Argentina’s Los Glaciares National Park. And, for a contrast, there are two vibrant Latin American cities to add to the mix – Santiago and Buenos Aires. Not bad for the end of the world!”
ANNA SELBY Travel writer
the ice floe and drop passengers opposite the Glacier to listen to the creaking and groaning of the ice, and at Wulaia Bay passengers tread in Charles Darwin’s footsteps and see the last remnants of the Yamana tribe who lived their whole lives in canoes.
Where to book it Many UK tour operators specialising in Latin America
feature this Cruceros Australis three- or four-day cruise priced from $1,258pp. The itinerary runs between Punta Arenas in Chile and Ushuaia in Argentina. Cruises operate between September and April aboard two vessels, the Via Australis and the Stella Australis. Cruises are all- inclusive and feature locally-sourced food, traditional entertainment and informative presentations. See:
www.australis.com
MC MARCUS
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