2027 travel plans

[Warks]

When I went to book to SCL a few years ago, travel agent found that LATAM didn't release inventory until a month or so after Qantas. So had to wonder if it was worth taking up the early Qantas inventory or wait to LATAM. I took QF, as prices at the time were soaring.

Could you get an award to NZ and then fly LATAM from there? Not sure if there is a NZ tax like there is an Australian one, but may save a bit.

Thanks. That might be worth looking into. I'll add AKL-SCL to my search.

 

[k_sheep]

Feb 2027 - Chile - Patagonia - W-Trek (Torres del Paine National Park). If I keep saying it, it will happen! Can't book anything this early I guess. Have been looking at airfares to Santiago (ex SYD) and with only Qantas-LATAM flying direct it's never going to be cheap. Seems like $2500 in Y is about standard HOWEVER my Hopper app pointed out a wonderful $2000 fare on Air Canada, which, you guessed it, goes via Canada. SYD-YVR-YTO-SCL. Much as I love Canada I don't need to travel twice as far and take more than twice as long to save $500.
Anyway Chile is rather huge (thin but long....) so will need internal flights to get around too which seem reasonable but assume the cheaper ones are Easyjet level service. Will fly to Puerto Montt and then Punta Arenas for the trek.
People diss ChatGPT and I agree it's hopeless at some things but it's come up with a decent looking itinerary for my trip.

Did the trek in 2022. Domestic flights are actually reasonably priced.

If you can swing it, I would recommend doing the full O track. The W is spectacular but crowded. If (when?) I do it again, I would start and end in Glacier Grey and go clockwise. You get the glacier boat trip both ways which is gorgeous. Do the crowded stuff first. Get to Los Torres and it's a bit cheaper to restock food. Then do the top loop in peace.

 

[Warks]

Did the trek in 2022. Domestic flights are actually reasonably priced.

If you can swing it, I would recommend doing the full O track. The W is spectacular but crowded. If (when?) I do it again, I would start and end in Glacier Grey and go clockwise. You get the glacier boat trip both ways which is gorgeous. Do the crowded stuff first. Get to Los Torres and it's a bit cheaper to restock food. Then do the top loop in peace.

I've read about the O-trek and would be interested. Just got to convince others about the longer trek, and I'm not getting any younger so more than 4-5 days might be harder than it used to be for me. Thanks for the tip.

 

[DejaBrew]

For @RooFlyer
Ponant La Dumont D'Urville

View attachment 475490

Looks like @RooFlyer has his boat sorted out. Wonder what ship everyone else on his tour is taking?

 

[k_sheep]

Looking at doing another Antarctica trip Feb 2027 - a friend of ours wants to go and there's not much choice left for 2026. We went December last time so this time want to go a bit later in the season to get further south and hopefully cross the Antarctic circle.

After that .... who knows! Don't even know if we'll be living in Australia then or if I'll make good on my threat to move to Canada or Qatar or ... wherever else will give me a job haha.

 

[drron]

Well we do have a planned 2027 trip now. It is after our usual 4 weeks in Bangkok over Christmas and New Year.
We will fly to HKG and spend a few days then board our last Silversea cruise. It is a 14 day cruise and we have certificate for a complimentary 14 day cruise. A couple of ports in Borneo and finishes in Singapore. straight home from there.
Picked as we have a stop in Sandakan which is high on my bucket list. When working in the Hunter Valley I got to know a veteran. He was very quiet. Initially wouldn't talk about his Army day. He was in fact one of the 7 survivors of the Death March. He did open up and he was tormented by surviving when most others died. I also looked after his wife and even she didn't know that.
It irked me that after his death Veteran affairs would not give his wife a gold card. they had married before he went to war. It took a year but we eventually got it for her.

 

[Warks]

I see QF has SYD-SCL (Santiago) for my window (Feb) for $1598 rtn. Only hope a similar deal appears in a year's time as I'm not going until 2027.

 

[Warks]

Have been alerted to fares under $1400 from AKL to SCL for Feb (2026) on LATAM. I will have to keep my eye on these prices next year looking to go in Feb 2027. The question is how long can I go for and how much can I reasonably do? Have never been to South America but I know the south is huge so don't want to set my sights too high. That said, you never know if you are going to be back so I'd just have to go see Iguazu Falls if in the same part of the world. I've been to Victoria Falls in full flood (and also in the dry) so would love to see these.

 

[JohnM]

Recently locked in a lazy live-aboard sailing trip at Ningaloo in April 2027: The Vessel

Will likely do a week or two in north island NZ in January-February.

Keeping an eye on a trip to Madagascar probably in about August. Need to see how the political situation plays out after the October uprising.

 

[RooFlyer]

That said, you never know if you are going to be back so I'd just have to go see Iguazu Falls if in the same part of the world.

Plan to see both the Brazilian and Argentinian sides. From Brazil, you see the whole width of the falls and from Argentina you sit above the falls - both are spectacular.

You can fly into one side and then get a car and be driven across the border across to the other side and then you can fly out from that other side. Or go back to the side you started with.

 

[Warks]

Plan to see both the Brazilian and Argentinian sides. From Brazil, you see the whole width of the falls and from Argentina you sit above the falls - both are spectacular.

You can fly into one side and then get a car and be driven across the border across to the other side and then you can fly out from that other side. Or go back to the side you started with.

Good tips. Will have to make sure I remember to get the visa for Brazil!

 

[MELso]

Time for this thread!

I'll kick off with a booking on a Ponant cruise Reykjavik to Glasgow via the Faroe and Shetland Islands and the Hebrides in June. Been wanting to do this since @VPS reported on it a few years ago, but always too expensive.

The wild archipelagos of the North Atlantic : from 18 June 27 to 29 June 27 | PONANT Australia

The wild archipelagos of the North Atlantic : from Glasgow, Scotland (United Kingdom) to Scotland. Duration: 12 days, 11 nights on board. Theme: Discoveries

au.ponant.com

I'll tack a week into southern Portugal onto this. Originally scheduled for mid 2026, that got cut as that overall trip became too long.

Nice! I've got an Iceland and Greenland cruise planned for August 2027 on Holland America which, while they slug me with a solo supplement, is still about half the price of Ponant per night.

(Sadly, the friend I usually cruise with got bored with Ponant's on-board activities and disliked the 'Frenchness' of it the one time I tried them.)

 

[RooFlyer]

Sadly, the friend I usually cruise with got bored with Ponant's on-board activities and disliked the 'Frenchness' of it the one time I tried them.)

Yes, I’m not a big user of activities on board activities and I did have one bad experience with the Frenchness of it all. I cancelled one cruise on the basis of that.

But overall they go to places I want to go with no single supplement on small ships so I suck it up. My first cruise with them wasin the Kimberley and was excellent and non-French and I’m about to start one through the eastern Indonesian archipelago and hope we’re far enough away from France again for it to be not too French.

 

[MELso]

Yes, I’m not a big user of activities on board activities and I did have one bad experience with the Frenchness of it all. I cancelled one cruise on the basis of that.

But overall they go to places I want to go with no single supplement on small ships so I suck it up. My first cruise with them wasin the Kimberley and was excellent and non-French and I’m about to start one through the eastern Indonesian archipelago and hope we’re far enough away from France again for it to be not too French.

Oh yes, I do try and persuade her back, but no dice so far.

But if we do Antarctica (or we win the lottery and do the Arctic on Le Commandant Charcot), then Ponant's a prime candidate...

 

[fletty]

Hoping to convince some friends for a quick golf trip in Scotland some time in 2027, especially if I can manage 1x J or F CR to get there.

 

[Pushka]

We are trying to add the Ashes to our list.