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Yendegaia, Patagonia

Exploring Chilean Patagonia: Peaks, Glaciers, and Fjords

Example 10 Day Cruise aboard National Geographic Explorer
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Patagonia is an awe-inspiring landscape that stretches across the Andes from the Atlantic to the Pacific and down to Cape Horn. Explore it expedition-style aboard the National Geographic Explorer - an authentic expedition ship. On this 10-day voyage, you are sure to enjoy up-close encounters in wild, virtually inaccessible lands.
Karukinka, PatagoniaCondorCape HornYendegaia, Patagonia
Highlights
  • Venture into incredible wildlife reserves for up-close exploration
  • Transit the legendary Beagle Channel and take in the view of Cape Horn
  • Kayak and Zodiac cruise the breathtaking Chilean fjords
  • Explore the urban gems of Buenos Aires and Santiago.
  • See massive glaciers, dramatic fjords, soaring snow-covered peaks
Activity Level: Relaxed
Involves minimal physical effort and is typically associated with leisurely activities. Activities are low-intensity or last less than a few hours each day.
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Full Itinerary

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Day 1: Buenos Aires

  • 1 Lunch
Arrive Buenos Aires, Argentina’s capital, and check in to the excellent Sofitel Buenos Aires Hotel before having a guided overview of the city, seeing its Beaux-Arts palaces and the famous balcony forever associated with Eva Perón.

Day 2: Buenos Aires/Ushuaia/Embark

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Fly to Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world. Join a catamaran cruise of the Beagle Channel before embarking National Geographic Explorer.

Day 3: Cape Horn

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Today we visit Cape Horn, near the southernmost tip of the South American continent, named in 1616 for the Dutch town of Hoorn. These waters are famously difficult to navigate, and over the centuries have been the graveyard of many ships—which before the opening of the Panama Canal had to round the cape to sail between the Pacific and Atlantic. Of course, we’ll use our modern equipment and decades of experience to explore safely. Weather permitting, we’ll take our Zodiacs ashore and walk to the top of a hill for panoramic views and to see the memorial placed there in 1992, showing an albatross in silhouette.

Day 4: The Beagle Channel & Yendegaia

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Sail the Beagle Channel, named after HMS Beagle. The ship, commanded by Captain FitzRoy, surveyed the region between 1826 and 1830 and returned in 1833 with Charles Darwin on board. On seeing the area, Darwin wrote: “It is scarcely possible to imagine anything more beautiful than the beryl-like blue of these glaciers, and especially as contrasted with the dead white of the upper expanse of snow.” We continue to Yendegaia, a stunning wilderness that covers 95,000 acres on Tierra del Fuego. This newly established national park was formerly a private reserve. See and learn about its subantarctic beech forests, along with stunning mountains and wild rivers. There are walking trails for us to explore, amid some of the most sublime landscapes to be found anywhere.

Day 5: Seno Parry

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Wild and beautiful Parry Fjord was “discovered” as a happy accident on our 2013 Patagonia voyage. It has towering Chilean peaks, beaches, a valley, streams with trout, and southern beech forest. You’ll have the chance to walk here if you wish—to ford a stream and stroll a moss-covered plateau or explore the rich forest, which has flowering shrubs that add a touch of color under the shaded canopy. Or examine the shoreline from our Zodiacs, looking for seabirds roosting on nearby cliffs and ledges and soaring over the fjord. You may find black-browed albatross and perhaps even leopard seals.

Day 6: Tierra del Fuego: Karukinka Natural Park

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Tierra del Fuego is one of Patagonia’s crown jewels. We visit its newest and largest protected area: Karukinka Natural Park. Established in 2004 through a gift from Goldman Sachs, Karukinka is one of the largest donations ever made for conservation. We’re thrilled to have special permission from the Wildlife Conservation Society to visit this private reserve, which spans 1,160 square miles and harbors endangered culpeo fox, Andean condors, and many other kinds of wildlife. We may explore Jackson Bay, backed by a skyline of rugged mountains, and look for wildlife including black-browed albatross that nest on one of the nearby small islands. We may walk a trail to a lovely waterfall, and look for elephant seals resting not only on the beach but also high in the grass meadows and even in the small river draining the valley inland. Look for the Andean condors, albatrosses, grebes, petrels, fulmars, shearwaters and many other birds that inhabit this otherworldly realm.

Day 7-8: Exploring the Chilean Fjords & White Narrows

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
During these days you’ll be treated to the spectacular features of an active glaciated landscape with hanging valleys and tributary glaciers. This region was navigated by Ferdinand Magellan’s expedition, and it took most of November 1520 for his ships to find a way through the maze of channels that lie between the continental mainland and Tierra del Fuego to the south. Among our many possibilities are exploring Estero las Montañas, with a chance to go for an adventurous walk to a lake through beautiful muskeg and forest, with cypress trees coated with many species of lichens; and Bahía Ainsworth in Seno Almirantazgo, where we may go out by Zodiac and kayak and look for elephant seals. Be on deck to look for condors and other wildlife as our ship transits the breathtaking 200-foot-wide White Narrows, a dogleg between unforgiving rock bluffs, on our way into Puerto Natales.

Day 9: Puerto Natales/Disembark/Santiago

  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch
Disembark in Puerto Natales, drive to Punta Arenas and fly to Santiago, connecting to your overnight flight home.

Ship/Hotel

National Geographic Explorer

National Geographic Explorer's dining room.
Relax in the luxurious sauna aboard the National Geographic Explorer.
Relax in the National Geographic Explorer's lounge.

Dates & Prices

My Preferred Start Date

Per person starting at
National Geographic Explorer's Category 1 Cabin.
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Cat 1
Main Deck with one or two portholes. #301-308
National Geographic Explorer's Category 2 Cabin.
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Cat 2
Main Deck with window. #317-320, 335-336.
National Geographic Explorer's Category 3 Cabin.
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Cat 3
Main Deck with Window #313-316, 321-328, 337-340,342, 344, 346, 348, 350.
National Geographic Explorer's Category 4 Cabin.
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Cat 4
Upper and Veranda Decks with Window. # 103-104, 107-108, 201-202, 204-207, 210, 212, 217, 226, 228.
National Geographic Explorer's Category 5 Upper Deck Cabin.
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Cat 5
Upper Deck with Balcony. #209, 211, 214, 216, 218, 220-222, 224.
National Geographic Explorer's Category 6 Cabin.
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Cat 6
Veranda Deck Suite #101-102; Upper Deck Suite with Balcony #213.
Luxurious Catagory 8 Suite
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Cat 7
Upper Deck Suite with Balcony. #215, 219, 230.
National Geographic Explorer's Category SA and SB.
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Cat SA
C Deck Solo - Cabins 309-312, 329-334. Single cabins with window.
National Geographic Explorer's Category SA and SB.
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Cat SB
Upper and Veranda Decks with Window. #105-106, 203, 208.

Notes

Travelers under the age of 18 save $500 per person.
Included
  • 7 Breakfasts, 8 Lunches, 6 Dinners

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Everything was amazing! The planning with Adventure Life went smoothly. The actual trip was fantastic! One of the best trips I have experienced. The cruise staff members were knowledgeable and attentive. I will be writing more about this on the blog!
Justin Chappelle

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