South America

Thanks to the city’s preservation of its diverse cultural past, UNESCO declared Quito the first of its World Heritage sites in 1978. The city is beautifully situated in an Andean valley at 2,850 metres (9,350 ft), making it the second-highest capital city in the world. Take a look around this marvellous city before spending the night at a centrally located hotel.

After breakfast, we drive north to the equator and visit the Inti Ñan Museum. Afterwards, we ascend Teleférico – one of Quito’s most popular attractions, offering spectacular and easily accessible views of the city. The ride lasts only 10 minutes but takes you to an altitude of 4,050 m (13,300 ft). At the top, the lookout offers visitors incredible views of Quito, the surrounding valleys and snow-covered volcanoes (along with coffee, snacks, and oxygen for the short-of-breath). Bring a sweater or light jacket - it can get chilly up there!

Return to the city to enjoy lunch in Quito´s charming colonial quarter. The afternoon sightseeing reveals some of the reasons why Ecuador's capital earned its honour as UNESCO´s first World Heritage site. Dinner will be served at the hotel where you will spend the night.

Experience the protected ecosystem of the Galapagos.

After breakfast, we depart the hotel and drive to Quito Airport for our flight to the Galápagos Islands (via Guayaquil).

Upon arrival at Baltra´s airport, we meet the local representative and board a bus for the short transfer to Itabaca Channel, which separates Baltra Island from Santa Cruz Island. Here, we board a small ferry that crosses the azure waters of the channel to Santa Cruz, a journey that takes about five minutes.

On the other side, we travel through a rural agricultural area surrounded by wild landscapes and many different species of flora and fauna. We may well spot the finches that are famous for being the basis of Darwin’s theory of evolution.

See the famous Galápagos land tortoises in their natural environment and learn how private ranches help protect these special creatures and their habitat. Tortoises of all different ages and sizes gather here: small young ones with shining carapaces and older ones with weathered and worn shells. Lunch will be served in the highlands.

Afterwards, we continue to our hotel in the town of Puerto Ayora. Once settled, we walk to the nearby Charles Darwin Research Station, which hosts educational museums on both the history and development of the Galápagos Islands, and protection of their natural heritage. Native giant land tortoises can also be observed. Many different tortoise species exist in the Galápagos and the station is the only place where most of the species reside at one site.

The afternoon is at your leisure to explore small yet picturesque Puerto Ayora and its many shops with local arts and crafts. We later enjoy dinner at the hotel´s cosy restaurant.

Breakfast at hotel. We have two full days to tour one of the nearby, uninhabited islands by boat.

Please note that only one of the four islands listed below will be visited per day:

Bartolomé Island, famous for Pinnacle Rock and Galápagos penguins; or South Plaza Island, home to a colony of land iguanas; or Santa Fe Island, known for having the islands´ most sea beautiful coves; or North Seymour Island, considered a microcosm of the entire archipelago; or Floreana Island for a tour around the island to see tortoises and sea lions, and with some luck marine iguanas; or Isabela Island to visit a Tortoise Breading station and a walk to see four species of mangroves and lagoons with flamingos and migratory birds.

The visits are regulated by the Galápagos National Park and we are notified of permission 30 days prior to the visit. Regardless of the islands we visit, lunch is served on board the vessel during the tour.

Later, we have dinner at the hotel and overnight.

Breakfast at hotel. We then transfer to Baltra airport for the flight to mainland Ecuador. En route to the airport, we stop at 'The Twins' or 'Los Gemelos' - two impressive volcanic depressions in the highlands of Santa Cruz Island.

A packed lunch is served on the flight from Baltra Island to Lima (via Guayaquil). At Lima airport, we meet our local representative who transfers you to your hotel in the city. Dinner and overnight.

Enjoy breakfast at the hotel.

After check out, we transfer to the ship taking in a 'Half-day Lima Highlights Tour', including a visit to the city´s historic centre, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The tour´s highlights include Casa Aliaga, a nearly 500-year old mansion built for one of Pizarro’s lieutenants, and Santo Domingo Convent, the best-preserved colonial building in all of Lima. The tour finishes at the quayside in Callao, where MS Fridtjof Nansen or MS Roald Amundsen stands ready to continue the expedition at sea.

Pelicans and cormorants in the Ballestas Islands.

From Paracas, we explore the nearby uninhabited Ballestas Islands. The shores here have a range of wildlife, including sea lions, turtles, dolphins, pelicans, Peruvian boobies and Humboldt penguins. Paracas is also the near to Pisco valley, the site of mysterious Nazca lines and geoglyphs, which you can see on an optional excursion.

As we sail further south, enjoy our lecture programme, the fresh salt air, and all the amenities the expedtion ship has to offer.

Arica enjoys a constant desert climate and is one of the driest cities in the world. Walk along beaches, visit San Marcos Cathedral, or hike El Morro cliff for views over the port city. The local San Miguel de Azapa Archaeological Museum contains artefacts from the Chinchorro culture and some of the world's oldest mummies.

Welcome to a slice of paradise by the Pacific, complete with palm trees and promenades. As one of Chile’s top seaside cities, Iquique is a hive of activity all year around. Shoppers stream to the duty-free Zofri Mall while maritime enthusiasts will be enthralled by a tour of La Esmeralda corvette that hails from the War of the Pacific. Our main plan here is a visit to the nearby abandoned saltpeter mining town of Humberstone in the Atacama Desert, a UNESCO site and history you can literally walk through.

Back in Iquique, head along the boardwalk of La Costenera next to the sands of Playa Cavancha and admire the scenery of the city skyline on one side and parasailors and surfers on the other. Baquedano Street showcases 19th century Georgian architecture and leads to Astoreca Palace and a photogenic clock tower at the centre of town. You’ll also find many a chic café where you can indulge in local coffee culture or sip on a traditional creamy mango sour. A Chinatown has sprung up around the mercado, marrying Peruvian and Chinese flavours to invent unique chifa cuisine. Aside from a variety of seafood dishes, you’ll definitely want to try chumbeque, a dessert that blends fried thin dough with fruity caramels.

We are drawing near the end of your cruise, so maybe spend your last full day at sea kicking back and relaxing before your expedition cruise is over in a couple of day. Or maybe you’d rather spend a couple of hours in the gym to be fit for fight once you get back home. Whatever you do, there’s still time to enjoy your leisure aboard the ship. The Expedition Team will recap the highlights of your adventure and if you like, you can attend the Art Workshop and make art inspired by some of the places you have seen on your adventure.

Perched on ocean terraces, La Serena is blessed with beautiful sandy beaches all along Avenida del Mar and beyond. You’ll find that Chile’s second-oldest city has a distinct and purposeful neo-colonial look and feel to it. Modern buildings sit interspersed with classic architecture, such as the 30 or so carefully restored stone churches, some of which are 350 years old. If the churches, while charming, start to look the same to you, a helpful hint is to distinguish them by their different styles of belfries.

Aside from wandering the beaches, promenades and plazas, you can also stroll through manicured public gardens like the Japanese-inspired Jardín del Corazón or shop for arts and crafts at Recova Market. The archaeological museum houses pre-colonial artefacts while the hidden lane of Patio Colonial near Balmaceda is the place to go for chilled-out cafés and eateries.

Our expedition ends in the seaport of Valparaíso. Built on steep hillsides overlooking the ocean, the UNESCO-protected city is a maze of monuments, churches, historical funicular lifts, cobblestone alleys and charming plazas. Arrange to stay longer to explore more or join a Post-Programme to Easter Island, famous for its mysterious statues of giant heads.