Day 11/12 - Disembarkation King George Island and Return Home
Guests Board Antarctica Airways on King George Island
Sadly, today is our last day aboard Silver Endeavour and we are scheduled to disembark at around 1:30pm. The weather is very cloudy and foggy when we wake up this morning, but we have been assured that the weather will clear by early afternoon.
We are asked to vacate our suite by 8am so that housekeeping can get the rooms ready for the next group of guests embarking later today. Our large checked luggage, as well as our roll aboard bags were placed outside our suite last night before 11pm and have been collected for transfer ashore later today.
We enjoy a leisurely breakfast at The Restaurant. When Rickee ordered banana pancakes, she was informed that they were out of bananas! Remember, the ship was expecting fresh provisions yesterday, so supplies of fresh fruit and vegetables are running low.
Unlike most cruise lines that offer no form of entertainment or activities on disembarkation day, Silver Endeavour offered a lecture this morning by resident historian and expedition team member, Mitya, on the history of the whaling industry.
Mitya Lectures On Whaling Industry
This was a very informative lecture and I was unaware that you can still, to this day, order whale meat in some restaurants in Iceland! Mitya claims that the whale meat is very tasty.
Whale Meat Still Available At Some Restaurants In Iceland
By 1:30, the fog has begun to lift as predicted, and conditions look promising for the planes to be landing today. Guests begin gathering in the Mudroom to put on life vests, boots and other gear for the short Zodiac cruise to King George Island.
Guests Gear Up In Mud Room
The seas are very choppy this afternoon and the Zodiacs are getting bounced around quite a bit as guests board the inflatable boats.
VERY Choppy Waters When Boarding Zodiacs Today
The Zodiac cruise to the “beach” only takes a few minutes and soon we are being loaded onto small vans for a short drive to what is jokingly referred to as the “King George Hilton”, to wait for our plane to arrive. There is no “airport” on King George Island. It is basically a dirt runway with some military hangars and equipment.
Van Ride To King George “Hilton”
These vans are pretty small and cramped, so bringing roll aboard luggage onto the Zodiacs, then into these vans, can create a real hassle for people trying to get seated in the vans. And honestly, the overhead bin space on the BAE jets used by Antarctica Airways is quite limited compared to larger aircraft. Our advice is to go ahead and check your roll aboard luggage.
Not A Good Idea To Bring Roll Aboard Luggage
Soon we arrive at the facility which has been constructed to protect guests from the elements until the planes arrive. The “facility” is actually several shipping containers that have been combined to provide a makeshift shelter. They are far from elegant, but they are heated, dry and keep you out of the harsh winds.
Silversea has set up a table with coffee, water and tea for guests inside the facility, and, there are plenty of chairs for guests to relax in.
Coffee and Tea Available
After about an hour, we got word that the first plane was about to land, so many guests went outside to watch.
Rickee and I were on the first plane to depart (there are three planes chartered for the flight to Punta Arenas). These BAE jets are uniquely designed for short runway takeoffs and landings and have reinforced air frames.
Silversea and DAP (the company operating the Antarctica Airways flights) have reconfigured the interior space of these aircraft to provide guests with additional legroom. Only four seats are assigned in each row of 5 seats, delivering even more spaciousness. Silversea refers to this as “Business Class” seating and, while not what we would call traditional Business Class, the seats are very spacious and comfortable.
DAP Antarctica Airways BAE Jet Configured For Extra Legroom
Shortly after takeoff, guests are served a very nice lunch with cheese, salad and charcuterie. It was very good. A variety of wines are offered as well as Pisco Sour, a traditional Peruvian cocktail.
Light Charcuterie Snack Served on Flight
Once we landed in Punta Arenas, guests line up at a desk to receive their hotel room keys for the overnight stay. Every step of the way, there are Silversea representatives on hand to answer questions and to give instructions. All of our luggage will be delivered to our hotel room.
By the way, the large waterproof boots provided to guests by Silversea are to be left on the airplane, so make sure you pack a pair of shoes in your backpack or hand luggage. Guests are able to keep the parkas as a souvenir, however, we decided to leave ours. We don’t really need parkas in Texas!
Guest Reception At Punta Arenas Airport
Motor coaches are waiting to take us on the 30-minute drive to our hotel.
We arrived at Hotel Cabo De Hornos in downtown Punta Arenas at around 7:00pm. A Silversea hospitality desk is available in the lobby and the hostess greets us when we arrive. She informs us that dinner is being served at 7:30 in the lobby restaurant and that it is included in our stay. We were not expecting that!
Cabo De Hornos in Punta Arenas
We went to our room to drop off our hand luggage and jackets. Our room is on the top floor of the hotel (hence the slanted ceiling). The room appears to be recently remodeled with new furnishings and carpet.
Room At Cabo De Hornos
We were among the first to arrive at the restaurant for dinner and were amazed to find a massive buffet. I don’t recall ever seeing this many salad choices on any buffet! As for hot dishes, we had a choice of chicken, beef, fish and pasta. Wait staff brought us a choice of red or white wine. It was a very nice meal, and it was all provided by Silversea.
Complimentary Buffet Dinner
We were instructed to leave our luggage outside of our hotel room before midnight, which we did.
Luggage Left In Hallway
The next morning, coaches returned us to Punta Arenas airport to board the flight to Santiago.
Security Line At Punta Arenas Airport
We assumed that we would be returning to Santiago on the LATAM A321 that brought us to Punta Arenas initially, so we were surprised to learn that, in fact, we would be flying to Santiago on the DAP Antarctica Airways planes! Had we known this, we would have left our roll aboards outside our room last night. However, we lucked out and found enough overhead bin space to store our rolling bags on the plane.
Soon after takeoff, we were served a delicious, and filling breakfast with sandwiches, pastries and fresh fruit.
Breakfast Served On DAP Antarctica Airways Flight
The three-hour flight to Santiago was quite comfortable on the chartered BAE jet and, when we landed, we were able to claim our luggage as we walked into the terminal. Because these are charter flights, they do not park at the main airport terminal, so things move much more quickly.
Arrival In Santiago
We were not informed until we landed in Santiago that Silversea has procured a day room at a local hotel for guests. Guests with early flights back to their home country are offered a bus ride to the main international airport while those of us with late flights have use of the day room.
When we arrive at the Hilton Garden Inn Santiago Airport, we are once again surprised to learn that Silversea is providing individual day rooms for guests. When we heard about a day room, we assumed it would be a large meeting room at a hotel where you could place your luggage while you roam around the lobby or pool of the hotel until you leave for the airport.
Getting Day Room Key At Hilton Garden Inn Santiago
Having an individual day room where we could relax and get some much needed sleep before our 10-hour overnight flight was a huge bonus. Thank you Silversea for going the extra mile.
About To Board Flight From Santiago to DFW
We took a shuttle from the Hilton to the airport and arrived at about 7:00pm. Getting through immigration and security here can take some time, so plan on being at the airport at least 3 hours before your flight. On top of that, prepare for gate checks of all hand luggage as you walk down the jetway. Nevertheless, our 10-hour flight ended up only taking 9 hours and we landed at DFW airport at 4:45am.
What an amazing adventure this cruise has been. Now we will begin working on our review videos for Silver Endeavour. Make sure you subscribe to our YouTube channel so you will be notified of our upcoming videos.
