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Cruising South America Wasn’t What I Expected (Or Planned)
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Jan 28, 2025
I cruised around the base of South America for 14 nights on Holland America Oosterdam, and in this video, I explore all the things I wish I had been told me before going that would have meant I was better prepared and got even more from the trip. For bonus & exclusive content (including videos, articles, eBooks and more) become a channel member or patron: --------------------------------------------------- * Patreon Patron: https://www.patreon.com/tipsfortravellers * YouTube Channel Member: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_qE-Obs2ocdmPXY0TIU-cw/join Check out my cruise-themed T-shirts and products: --------------------------------------------------- * T-Shirts: http://bit.ly/TFTStore * Mugs, notebooks, hoodies etc: https://www.teepublic.com/stores/tipsfortravellers?ref_id=22354 My social media: --------------------------------------------------- * Blog: https://www.tipsfortravellers.com * Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/garybembridge * Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tipsfortravellers * Instagram: http://www.instgram.com/garybembridge * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bembridge
View Video Transcript
0:00
most passengers were really fretting
0:02
about cruising around Cape Horn at the
0:04
base of South America it's where the
0:06
Pacific and Atlantic smashed together
0:08
and is renowned for being one of the
0:10
roughest most treacherous parts of the
0:13
world to cruise in I was apprehensive
0:15
too as on my last trip there it was
0:18
really rough although this time as we
0:20
arrived the wind suddenly died down the
0:23
sea calmed and the sun came out this was
0:26
typical of so many aspects of my cruise
0:29
around South America this constant
0:31
unpredictability threw up so many things
0:33
that I had neither expected nor prepared
0:37
for as you will find out if you're new
0:40
here welcome aboard I'm Gary bembridge
0:41
now I had booked myself on a two-week
0:44
cruise from valparaisio Chile around the
0:48
Cape Horn ending in Buenos Aires via the
0:51
Falkland Islands on Holland America
0:52
Amsterdam and that in itself caused the
0:56
first big kind of misunderstanding
0:58
because the trip was with a mainstream
1:00
Cruise Line Hull in America and on the
1:03
ship type that usually sells in popular
1:05
cruising regions like the Caribbean
1:07
Alaska and the Mediterranean I
1:09
approached the trip initially as if it
1:11
was just a regular trip to a busy
1:14
popular Cruise region but it is not it
1:17
was different and it needed a unique
1:20
approach one that was closer to an
1:22
expedition rather than a regular Ocean
1:24
Cruise as I came to appreciate and you
1:27
will see I knew it would be a long and
1:29
tricky Journey flying from the UK to
1:31
join the cruise but once there I found
1:33
the ports were not as slick resourced
1:36
convenient nor run as smoothly as in the
1:39
big cruising regions like the Caribbean
1:41
Mediterranean Alaska from Santiago where
1:44
I flew into to Valparaiso the
1:46
embarkation Port was a good hour and a
1:49
half away now the cruise Passenger
1:52
Terminal for check-in was really hard to
1:54
find because the ship stock some
1:56
distance away deep within the freight
1:58
area and my transfer there really
2:00
struggled to find where we had to check
2:02
in now once there it was chaotic they
2:05
were not really used to dealing with
2:06
cruise ships regularly the port agents
2:09
seemed ill-prepared luggage Handover was
2:11
messy they were late opening the
2:13
check-in and they didn't organize it
2:15
properly it really was a mess now
2:17
talking to other people that I know who
2:20
selled other other South American ports
2:22
they've always had the same experience
2:24
so be ready now during the trip I found
2:27
the ports were mixed inability to deal
2:30
with us and those we could dock in were
2:33
working container ports including in the
2:35
big cities of Montevideo and even Buenos
2:38
Aires in other ports we had to Tender in
2:41
and in some literally was just a shed
2:43
like Porto chambuco for example another
2:46
thing anyone thinking of doing this
2:48
itinerary needs to appreciate is while
2:50
my cruise was 14 days it was only
2:53
scheduled to call into seven ports so
2:56
roughly half of the days are sea days
2:58
now on this trip my ports were due to be
3:01
Porter Mont Puerto chabuka Punta Arenas
3:04
in Chile Port Stanley Montevideo and
3:08
Juanes Aries however as I learned
3:10
successfully calling into all ports
3:12
every trip is unpredictable we were the
3:16
only cruise out of the seven operated in
3:19
that season by Holland America that got
3:21
into all scheduled ports this is largely
3:24
due to Wind and Sea conditions with both
3:27
Stanley in the Falkland Islands having
3:29
one of the highest risks of all the day
3:31
before and after us for example other
3:34
cruise ships could not get in now I'll
3:36
come to see days later as there are some
3:38
specific quirks to understand here too
3:40
but more about the ports first now those
3:44
passengers used to the Caribbean
3:46
Mediterranean or Alaska cruises had
3:48
assumed that self-touring and exploring
3:51
was going to be easy appealing and the
3:53
thing to do like in those regions but it
3:55
was not and I saw many people miss out
3:58
on several fronts me included now first
4:02
except for the big cities of Montevideo
4:04
and Buenos Aires the best and musty
4:07
sites are not close by the ports so not
4:10
only did an Excursion get me to those
4:12
but it also removed the stress of
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traveling independently an hour or two
4:16
hours away from a foreign Port where I
4:19
didn't speak the language and therefore
4:21
was constantly having to worry about
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getting back in time for departure it
4:25
removed that stress my best support
4:27
experiences were where I went on the
4:31
Cruise Line tours for example the tour
4:33
in Porto Mont Chile Lake todos Los
4:37
Santos with a beautiful Lake Cruise
4:39
overlooked by a snow-capped volcano and
4:42
a Petra Hawaii Falls and Rapids in
4:45
ushire as the town itself is not
4:47
particularly interesting taking the
4:49
train to the end of the world to tour
4:50
deep into the Tierra del Fuego National
4:53
Park amazing
4:55
and in Port Stanley in the Falklands the
4:58
tour that took me well over an hour out
5:01
of the small town to roam at the bluff
5:03
Cove penguin reserve and hear all about
5:05
the war that had been fought in the
5:07
lands around it again amazing however in
5:10
Porto chabuko I decided to self-explore
5:14
bad choice it was a tiny little town
5:16
with the only attraction actually being
5:18
some tents with local handicrafts I
5:21
missed out on the beautiful Patagonian
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scenery the Aiken Del Sur private Park
5:25
kayaking horseback riding all a few
5:28
hours away in puta Arenas a big city
5:31
with varied architecture if you didn't
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go to tournament exploring some small
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museums like the Naval Museum the
5:38
magdalenus museum now while those people
5:40
on tours were out seeing penguins that
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were tracking through beautiful
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landscapes for example in Monteverde on
5:46
Buenos Aires it was absolutely easier
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and rewarding to self-explore in
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Montevideo literally across the road was
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the carnival Museum there was a
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beautiful Food Hall A 25-minute Walk To
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Independence Square in Buenos Aires I
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got the Hop On Hop of bus right from the
6:01
port I got off to visit ever perron's
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tomb in the massive Recoleta Cemetery
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got to see the column theater The
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Enormous Obelisk at Plaza del Maya I
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wandered around the remarkable florianus
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Gloriana much easier and simpler but
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mostly more than any other region I've
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cruised in I felt excursions were key to
6:22
getting the most of this itinerary if
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you don't like Cruise Line ones make
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sure instead you pre-book Alternatives
6:29
there is limited capacity in most ports
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and I had very wisely booked excursions
6:35
way ahead now those who waited until
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they're on board found most of them were
6:40
actually sold out I met many people who
6:43
were really disappointed because they
6:45
did not get to see what they've actually
6:46
come on the trip to see be it the best
6:49
penguin colonies in the Falklands or
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that volcano I mentioned near Porto Mont
6:53
and in most ports there were not any or
6:57
many independent options Dockside as an
6:59
Alternatives unlike the Caribbean
7:00
Mediterranean Alaska they were not a
7:03
stream of independent tour operators
7:05
right there at the port with lots of
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options it was mostly taxi drivers who
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would offer some sort of deal to take
7:11
you around the site I also found
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probably due to less infrastructure and
7:15
options the excursions were expensive I
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totted up a bill of just over one
7:22
thousand two hundred dollars for the
7:23
excursions that I went on and as I
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mentioned I didn't go in every single
7:26
port way more per tour than other
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regions I found many people on board
7:30
were shocked by how much they had to
7:33
spend on those chores I guess another
7:35
factor in the price is many excursions
7:37
are longer than in other regions and
7:40
involve multiple forms of Transport for
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example coming back to the Puerto Mont
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Lake enforce store I mentioned it was a
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seminar Excursion because it was an hour
7:49
and a half to get there an hour and a
7:50
half back at a boat trip it had lunch
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included so it's longer and just so much
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more cost involved the tours also by the
7:56
way make for a long and tiring day
7:58
because they are long tours but what was
8:00
the surprise is the sea days were tiring
8:03
too as I mentioned roughly half the trip
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was C days now if you do one that
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includes Antarctic Scenic cruising that
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will mean even more sea days now this
8:11
threw up some challenges of its own
8:14
first while I was comfortable with the
8:16
line I'd Chosen and I knew what to
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expect
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I spoke to others not used to you know
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on America they wanted much more
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entertainment on sea days there were
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much more going on the evenings than
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Holland America as a line office Holland
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America and looking at the other lines
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doing these itineraries they actually
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focus on two key things immersing guests
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into the region and Scenic cruising on
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sea days it's not about programs packed
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with other activities even on sea days
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there are very few lines that do this
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itinerary and it seems to mostly be the
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more classic premium luxury lines like
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Holland America princess and Viking
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they're catering for adults they're on
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ships without lots of bells and whistles
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that they send down there the focus is
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very much on the destination it's not
9:03
about varied onboard activities and you
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need to bear that in mind that's why on
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all the sea days the main activity were
9:10
really detailed poor talks given by
9:12
Kevin the cruise and travel director he
9:14
was an Argentinian he knew the region
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Imports in depth they were amazing
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really detailed talks packed out the
9:21
other activity was actually just taking
9:23
in and watching the incredible scenery
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you might be in the crow's nest out on
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the deck and even on some days we're
9:29
allowed onto the bow of the ship it was
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open for sightseeing it also by the way
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meant that many of the sea days were
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early starts there weren't days to relax
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and lie and slowly get up I was up
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between 6am and 7 00 am on most sea days
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to see things like the beautiful Amalia
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Glacier in the Sacramento Channel Chile
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at the five glaciers in Glacier alley in
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the Beagle Channel
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but it was also the case even when
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cruising through the Chilean fjords
9:57
itself you know looking at the sights
9:58
the mountains looking for dolphins or
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whales that popped up at various times
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and of course again as I mentioned we
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had that Cape Horn sea day viewing so
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the sea day experience is a key part of
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the trip now if you want a cruise to be
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entertained and lots of activities on
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sea days this is not what this region is
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about it's about immersion and it's
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about spending time out looking at the
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sites it was overall a tiring trip
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versus other regions I've been on
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because in addition to the early sea day
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starts many excursions were early starts
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too I had for example one meeting at 6
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15 a.m in the morning the other thing
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that threw me and other guests way more
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than I expected and was at times a
10:39
challenge was the weather it was
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unpredictable
10:43
colder and wetter than I had thought it
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would be even though I'd actually
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checked all the temperatures and weather
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before I went now while cruising here
10:52
happens in their summer the volatility
10:54
impacted the trip in a couple of ways
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now as it was summer you know I think of
10:59
South America as being really hot in
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summer now before I went for example
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many people asked me if I booked the
11:04
retreat this is that paid for area on
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America small Cabanas Sun lounges you
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lay about in the sun you have lunch
11:11
there now I'd done that on my Mexican
11:13
Christmas cruise but I didn't book The
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Retreat because I looked at the way that
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I knew was going to be cold for periods
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of the trip it was going to be like five
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degrees Celsius 41 degrees Fahrenheit
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many days in fact what I found is the
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retreat was totally closed the lounges
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and the tables were securely lashed down
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because the winds would have literally
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swept them away
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though despite that chilliness it was
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actually then 30 degrees Celsius 86
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degrees Fahrenheit in San Diego when I
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flew in and Montevideo and Buenos Aires
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at the end of the trip were up to 35
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degrees Celsius 95 degrees Fahrenheit so
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that huge range of temperatures means a
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big suitcase in fact what's close to do
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with rain cold and incredibly hot days
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you need to be ready for the variety but
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what I hadn't preempted nor had many
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people was the impact of the wind the
12:00
wind created swells and for much of the
12:03
trip the sea was much rougher than I
12:06
expected now people were expecting Cape
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Horn as I mentioned to be bumpy
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but it was bumpy from the minute we left
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Valparaiso and it stayed bumpy for most
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of the trip the open decks were
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frequently closed due to the wind
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including even on Cape Horn Scenic
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cruising day that now that bumpiness of
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the sea the swells meant that Production
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shows were even canceled on two of the
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nights
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winds also impacted excursions in Punta
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Arenas I'd booked actually a boat
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Excursion to Magdalena Island to see a
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very famous penguin Colony now we
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arrived actually at the boat to find the
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Harbor Master had abruptly closed all
12:45
scholarship activity going out to things
12:47
like the islands due to the wind now as
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I mentioned wind and weather did not
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stop us getting into any ports but in
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some we were warned to listen out for
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the ship's horn calling us back before
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scheduled all the board time now the
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captain actually did this in Port
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Stanley because the wind was Rising it
13:04
was making tendering rough and more
13:06
difficult and we actually left over an
13:08
hour before schedule it did rain much
13:11
more than I expected both on the sea
13:13
days and when we were out on tours I was
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really glad I packed a good raincoat
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another thing that threw some was
13:19
currency and money partly as we went to
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three different countries Chile the
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Falkland Islands and Argentina and of
13:25
course all have their own currencies and
13:27
the US dollar which I'm used to being
13:29
easily accepted in many places the
13:31
Caribbean even parts of Asia was not
13:33
accepted widely here now most stall
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holders shops taxis and so on expected
13:38
to be paid in local currency and quite a
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few surprisingly didn't take kind of
13:42
credit or debit cards now I hadn't
13:45
wanted to take varying currencies and
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have some left over so I arrived with
13:49
none planning to get some on the ship
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but I found once on the ship while they
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did change the Chilean currency not at
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very good rates they didn't do
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Argentinian currency because that's very
14:00
complicated it's all different exchange
14:01
rates as I discovered and they didn't do
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the Falkland pound so with hindsight
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what I wish I'd thought through more is
14:08
in each board what I would need money
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for so I was better prepared with
14:11
currency and brought that along but now
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thinking about and taking everything
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into account
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am I actually glad that I went on this
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trip the history Landscapes glaciers
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volcanoes Penguins the culture in those
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big cities will stay with me for years
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and years and years so absolutely yes
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this was an amazing trip now will I do
14:31
this itinerary again probably not it was
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definitely a once in a lifetime
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experience so if you're going like me
14:38
make sure you make the most of it as it
14:40
is incredible now if you want to know
14:42
about other incredible cruises I think
14:44
you should do watch this video of the
14:46
best 11 I have done around the world see
14:49
you over there
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