Cruise Patagonia: Tierra del Fuego and Cape Horn - 17 days

Arrive in Santiago at the start of your holiday. We will meet you on arrival and escort you to your hotel.

Meals: None

Overnight: Hotel in Santiago

Tailor Your Holiday: Tailor your holiday by adding an extra day in Santiago to allow for a Santiago City Tour or a winery tour with our Concha y Toro Winery Tour. Please enquire for further details.

This morning we will escort you to Santiago airport for a flight to the city of Punta Arenas in the heart of Patagonia. If you are travelling on a clear day (and have a window seat) you will have the chance to admire the stunning landscapes of Patagonia during the journey. On arrival in Punta Arenas you will meet your guide before travelling deep into Torres del Paine National Park and onward to the Rio Serrano Hotel which will be your full-board home for the next few days. This region is famous for its iconic granite towers and is one of the most popular destinations in Patagonia due to the beautiful wildnerness and stunning scenery.

Meals: Breakfast, Evening Meal

Overnight: Rio Serrano Hotel, Torres del Paine National Park

Tailor Your Holiday: If you would prefer alternative accommodation in Torres del Paine we work with a selection of hotels within the National Park and options include Tierra Patagonia, Singular Patagonia and Patagonia Camp. Please enquire for further information.

Enjoy the benefits of your full board inclusive package at your lodge in Patagonia and choose from a range of excursions including scenic walks, hikes, horse riding and overland vehicle journeys all within the incredible Torres del Paine National Park. The lodge guides will be more than willing to help advise based on your specific interests.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Evening Meal

Overnight: Rio Serrano Hotel, Torres del Paine National Park

Enjoy a further day of fully inclusive excursions from the range of options provided by your lodge.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Evening Meal

Overnight: Rio Serrano Hotel, Torres del Paine National Park

Leave Torres del Paine behind to return by road first to Puerto Natales and then Punta Arenas. On arrival at Punta Arenas we will escort you to the cruise vessel to check-in, meet the crew and enjoy your first dining experience on board the vessel. During dinner the cruise will depart leaving Punta Arenas behind and you set forth across the Strait of Magellan and onward into the maze of waterways that form this region of the end of the world.

Meals: Breakfast, Evening Meal

Overnight: Stella Australis Cruise Ship or Ventus Australis Cruise Ship

You will awake this morning to find the cruise ship navigating through Admiralty Sound before anchoring near Ainsworth Bay. From here you will travel by zodiac to go ashore at the bay to enjoy a walk through the pristine forest to admire the spectacular views of the Darwin Mountains and to spot wildlife which can include beaver, condors and other birdlife. After lunch the cruise vessel will navigate to Tuckers Islets where you will enjoy a zodiac excursion to spot the incredible birdlife which can be seen here which includes Magellan penguins (from October to March only), cormorants, condors and eagles. Penguins are seasonal visitors so when penguins are not present enjoy a scenic walk to a glacier at Brookes Bay.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Evening Meal

Overnight: Stella Australis Cruise Ship or Ventus Australis Cruise Ship

Overnight the cruise vessel has navigated through the channels of Tierra del Fuego back into the Beagle Channel and eventually into the Pia Fjord. Here the vessel will anchor and you will depart once again by zodiac to go ashore near the base of the majestic Pia glacier to enjoy simply breathtaking views of this little-visited glacier. You have the option of enjoying a short hike up the hillside through the native forest for panoramic views from a higher vantage point. In the afternoon the cruise will navigate through a part of the Beagle Channel known as glacier alley where you can observe a stunning collection of glaciers that flow down from the Darwin Mountains ice-sheet into the channel from both sides.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Evening Meal

Overnight: Stella Australis Cruise Ship or Ventus Australis Cruise Ship

Charles Darwin travelled through this region on board his famous Beagle voyage and this morning you will go ashore at Wulaia Bay, a place that was visited by Darwin during his expedition. The bay is beautiful and is home to small museum managed by the cruise ship that showcases the history of the bay and the Yamana indigenous people that once lived here. You then have the choice of three hikes (easy / medium / difficult) up the hillside behind the museum through Magellan forest to admire the nature and for more splendid views of the landscape. Later cruise through the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Cape Horn National Park and to Cape Horn itself where if fortune is on your side and the weather is sufficiently calm you will go ashore on the zodiacs to visit Cape Horn, the most southerly point of land in the world before Antarctica. On the island there is a tiny chapel, a monument and a lighthouse staffed by a member of the Chilean navy.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Stella Australis Cruise Ship or Ventus Australis Cruise Ship

Enjoy your final breakfast on board the cruise ship before departing and meeting your Tierra del Fuego guide who will escort you to your hotel in Ushuaia, the southern most city in the world. The remainder of the day is free for you to adjust to your new surroundings and relax after your Patagonia cruise. Ushuaia city centre is safe, friendly and small enough to be easily explored on foot and is home to a number of interesting sights including the beautiful harbour facing the Beagle Channel, the Argentine Maritime Museum and restaurants specialising in traditional Ushuaia cuisine including king crab and roasted lamb.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Hotel in Ushuaia

Travel into the Tierra del Fuego countryside to enjoy the scenic End of the World Train, the most southern train line in the world. The heritage train line is an important historic landmark in this region, originally built by the prisoners of the penal colony that was the first foundations of what would eventually become the city of Ushuaia. After enjoying the train journey travel deeper into the landscape to visit Tierra del Fuego National Park to admire the stunning lakes, mountains and woodland that form the landscape at the end of the world.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Hotel in Ushuaia

Tailor Your Holiday: Upgrade your excursion to our 4x4 Off-Road Lakes Adventure Tour, a full day adventure through the Tierra del Fuego wilderness visiting Lake Fagnano and including a BBQ steak lunch in a traditional log cabin. Please enquire for further details.

Today fly from Ushuaia to the city of El Calafate, the capital of the glaciers region of Argentina and beautifully located on the shores of Argentino Lake. In El Calafate we will escort you to your hotel for the evening.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Hotel in El Calafate

This morning enjoy a scenic drive from El Calafate towards the UNESCO World Heritage Glaciers National Park providing the opportunity to admire the Patagonian landscape of lakes, forests and snowy mountains. On arrival in the national park you will embark on the Safari Nautico cruise across Lake Rico for an up-close look at the southern face of the Perito Moreno glacier. The boat will stop at a safe distance from the glacier so you can get great views of the wall of ice and if you are lucky the chance to witness falling walls of ice. In the afternoon visit the viewing platforms to spend some time admiring the glacier from a different perspective.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Overnight: Hotel in El Calafate

Tailor Your Holiday: Upgrade your Perito Moreno visit to a Mini-Trekking Excursion to hike over the glacier with crampons (age restricted 10-65 years old). For the most luxurious experience upgrade your cruise to Glaciares Gourmet to extend your cruise and include a gourmet meal. Please enquire for further details.

Enjoy a day at leisure to allow time for you to explore the lovely town of El Calafate. The town center is small and can be easily explored on foot and is home to crafts stalls and boutique shops. If you are interested in nature then flamingos and other birds can often be spotted at Reserva Laguna Nimez which is only a short walk from the town centre.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Hotel in El Calafate

Tailor Your Holiday: Personalise your holiday and add an excursion today instead of a free day. Our Full Day Estancia Cristina Discovery (see photos below) visits this historic estancia and includes a cruise over Lake Argentina spotting icebergs, a gourmet lunch in the estancia, and a 4x4 adventure to a lookout of Upsala Glacier. Our El Chalten Full Day Excursion visits this iconic trekking region. Please enquire for further details.

We will escort you to El Calafate airport for a flight to Argentina's capital city of Buenos Aires where we will meet you and escort you to your hotel. Relax after your journey or explore the area around your hotel - if you would like recommendations of places worth visiting during your free time please just let us know.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Hotel in Buenos Aires

Discover the beauty and magic of Buenos Aires. Observe the symbolic Obelisk on 9 de Julio street before continuing to visit Plaza de Mayo to see the Cathedral and Casa Rosada (and its famous "Evita balcony"). From here continue south to San Telmo famous for its antiques shops and market (Sunday only) before touring La Boca, home to the colourful Caminito Street with its tango dancers and souvenir shops, and Boca Juniors football stadium. Next visit the port district of Puerto Madero and the residential district of Palermo with its large parks and monuments. The tour concludes in Recoleta, one of the most exclusive neighborhoods in Buenos Aires where you will find the famous Recoleta cemetery, elegant cafes and restaurants.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: Hotel in Buenos Aires

Free morning and afternoon in Buenos Aires to explore more of this famous city at your leisure. In evening you will get to experience a night of iconic Argentinian entertainment with dinner at a tango show. Choose from La Ventana in the heart of San Telmo or Tango Porteño near Buenos Aires' famous obelisk.

Meals: Breakfast, Evening Meal

Overnight: Hotel in Buenos Aires

Tailor Your Holiday: Extend your stay in Buenos Aires with an extra night to allow more time to explore the city, or to include a Full Day Pampas Estancia Tour to Estancia El Ombu de Areco, Estancia La Bamba or Estancia Sofia. It is also possible to include overnight stays in the estancias. Please enquire for further details.

At an appropriate time we will meet you at your hotel and escort you to Buenos Aires airport for your return flight home.

Meals: Breakfast

Overnight: N/A