We will be sailing on the Mariner - Lima to Buenos Aires on January 8th and would appreciate any wise words regarding; tours, packing advise from those who have done this trip. We are leaving January 2 and doing a pre land trip to Macho Pichu and Cusco before boarding the ship. At disembarkation in Buenos Aires, we spend a couple of days in Iguasu Falls and Buenos Aires. Two weeks to go and we can hardly wait!

To this board - Have a Happy Holiday and continue with the care and respect that is evident among you all.

Hi DD,

Welcome to LCT and thank you for posting. Your kind words about care are respect are appreciated. We want the board to be welcoming and friendly.

The Mariner is my favorite ship, although I have not done the So. American itinerary. There are quite a few on her. You might look at posts refering to BAIL which is the World Cruise on Mariner. Your cruise is a segment of the cruise and you will find some information from the boards as well as those going with you.

I am absolutely no help regarding your itinerary - never been though would love to go one of these days. But wanted to wish you a great time on your upcoming cruise on the Mariner. If you have a fraction of the fun that we had on the MINT cruise, you'll have a fantastic time! Say hi to Felipe, our most favorite bartender!

Masaki

We did the SF to Lima leg last year and had a ball. Machu Picchu is simply amazing and I'm glad you've got two days there. The Nacza lines flyover is interesting, expensive and to be avoided if you are prone to motion sickness. Peru is a very brown country, and there's a massive grid overlaying the characters in the Nacza lines. We went up in a six-seater. The pilot practically had to tip it on its side for us to see the figures. The lady behind me didn't manage the sharp turns. It's about 45 minutes out from the Ica airport with about a half an hour to see the figures. Total trip time was about two and a quarter hours.

Olivia, Ngaire and Todd did just the six days to the Chilean Fjords and found the one restaurant with a webcam down in Puerto Montt. I hope they chime in here.

We are anxious to do the same leg you are doing next year; I look forward to your reviews. Have a wonderful holiday and a great trip. Cheers, Anne

we will be on the same cruise with you and I hope we get to meet! We are joining another couple who are taking the same precruise you are. Maybe we can all get together for a drink. Jean & Clyde

Thank you so much for all the information thus far. Very helpful indeed.

Jean and Clyde, I do hope we get to meet. Our pre cruise will be on our own which was planned by a tour company out of San Diego. We will be in Lima for two nights (a 1:00 a.m. arrival) and then fly up to Cusco, followed by an immediate drop down to the Valley for one night, then to Machu Pichu for two nights, and finally back up to Cusco for two nights before boarding the Mariner in Lima. Are you two and your friends on a ship pre-cruise? If we don't see you on the 'trail', hopefully we will meet up on the ship.

I will 'cruise' on over to the BAIL thread to see if there are any references to this cruise. Thank you for the suggestion, Kathy.

Masaki, I hope Felipe makes good Cosmos, plus a Lemon Drop Martini too.

Anne, I will post upon my return. We did sign up for this a year ahead and glad we did.

Packing is interesting, thus far. One piece of luggage is destined for the cruise and is going to stay in the Lima Hotel (Marriott) while the other tiny one is carrying our things for the land part - including my 'throw away clothes", thus making space for 'special purchases' if any. Lapis doesn't take up too much room.

With best wishes for Happy Holidays.

If you're interested in jewelry, I can highly recommend the work of Carlos Chaquiras. He's got two stores near the Plaza des Armas in Cusco. I'm copying the information from the Frommer's website: The contemporary jewelry designer Carlos Chaquiras, Triunfo 375 (tel. 084/227-470), is an excellent craftsman; many of his pieces feature pre-Columbian designs. You can see them on http://www.carloschaquiras.com

Cheers, Anne

I have to corrrect myself. This year the World Cruise is on Voyager. Last year it was Mariner. So BAIL is on Voyager. Sorry for misinformation.

DD@Sea: We are not taking a pre cruise tour but, as I said before, the friends are but I don't know whether it's with Radisson or not. It will be fun to meet. I can't tell you how much we enjoyed our MINT cruise. The people on this board are the nicest people you will ever meet! I wish a few of them would be going on this one, too, as you would LOVE them!

dd@sea, do not miss a chance to meet Jean and Clyde. Clyde isn't that well behaved, but Jean more than makes up for it. :)

Truly, you can't hope to meet more delightful people.

MarnaLou

Anne, thank you for the information on the web site. I think I need a bib to catch my drooling after looking at the jewelry. That was very kind of you and I appreciate your sharing this site. I was thinking of buying a slide (pendant) for my dear neighbor who is feeding our cat, picking up mail and newspapers, plus paying some bills for us while we are gone for 30 days. Her husband just bought her an omega (gold on one side and silver on the other). Now she needs a new 'bauble' for it. This will be perfect!

Jean you come with high 'recs' from MarnaLou, We will look for you and Clyde, and for sure share a drink. Nineteen days of bliss will be wonderful.

Deanna

ML: I agree Clyde is a hand full but Jean oh so sweet - Joanna

We are going on another ship sorry, end of January, Buenos Aires to Rio.. Can't wait. Have been researching this like a mad woman.. if you have any q's ask- perhaps have found that answer.

Oh, I loved Clyde and Jean on MINT. My daughter Joanna was on the lower age of the "scale" and they on the higher, and we all had the best time! At the Captain's dinner "my" Joanna (not that lady above, she is not my mother, but my friend) was seated on one side of him, and Jean on the other. I have a great picture of them, which I have still not sent. (Sorry, Jean, it will get to you eventually). Clyde is a retired gentleman lawyer, I was just crazy about both of them! Oh, and Jean is a master seamstress which none of us ladies here could even hope to match!

Welcome to LCT, Deanna. I took this same cruise last year and it was wonderful. Packing was a challenge (all those temperature changes)! If you have any questions, ask away. We took all of our excursions through Radisson. Somewhere on this board, I posted a long review (which I never finished). If you're interested, try using the search feature and key in Mariner - Lima to Buenos Aires. Or, if you are REALLY interested and can't find it, I'll search it out for you.

Deanna - ask Felipe to make you a Todd cosmo. He'll know what it means. :) And I completely agree about Clyde and Jean. Amanda and I got to have lunch with them one day purely by accident and we loved that meal and the time that we spent together.

Masaki

Deanna:

You will have an amazing time on this itinerary. Machu Pichu is so mystical - you're lucky to be able to stay there when all the tourist leave at the end of the day - I'm told sunset and sunrise are very special there. Along with Anne's jewlery recommendations, I found some beautiful alpaca sweathers in a small shop just across from the Monesterio Hotel. Everytime I wear one of them I get compliments on the design and colors.

Your visit to Igauzu and BA will be great too! The falls are so incredible - hopefully there will be lots of rainfall before your visit. There are also butterflies everywhere you look.

It will be fun to hear from you as you explore these special places.

Welcome dd@sea! We sailed on the Mariner last fall around South America for 57 days. From Lima, you can expect the daily temperatures to fall, and get down right cold in the fjords. In Ushauia, a good tour was inland to the park. Going around the Cape was exceptional, since we had clear weather, but very cold again. If you visit in Camarones, go to the penguin colony, It was well worth it. By the time we got to Argentina, the weather warmed up. We had a super tour out to the Pampas for an excellent barbeque.If you have time in Buenos Aires, don't miss the tango show in the evening in town. You will thouroughly enjoy Iguazu Falls, but expect very humid and hot weather.I am writing this on the fly, so if you have more questions, feel free to ask.
Bill and Mary Ann

They are "that" famous that the ship makes them in his honor? Then perhaps they should be called the Toddmo

They are "that" famous that the ship makes them in his honor? Then perhaps they should be called the Toddmo

My husband and I did the circumnavigation of South America in Fall of 2003 (not the later one that went up to Manaus on the Amazon). You will just have to pack, and wear in layers; it is spring there, but it can be cool -- or it can be as hot as hades. Just try to layer, if necessary and ENJOY. Welcome to the board.
M.

dd@sea: Don't believe everything you read here!! Marsha, you devil.--Thanks Masaki it goes both ways, I hope you know. The cosmos you can believe!! That's what made Clyde such a handful!! I, of course, was a perfect lady. Thanks, Joanna. Let's all do it again.

With pure graditude, thank you to you all for the information you are sharing. I am busy now, trying to organze my info in the ports etc. I have labeled gallon ziplock bags with info for each place. Machu Pichu is now getting filled with other highlights, thanks to Anne, Margo and the others.
Packing is going to be a challenge, as I earlier stated the cruise luggage is staying behind at the Lima Hotel and then again at the Buenos Aires Hotel. This time, my husband chose, and he may regret it, to leave his tux and accessories behind and go with a dark suit for formal nights. I hope he will not be sorry for his decision.
Bill and Mary Ann, thank you for the info on Buenos Aires and the Falls. We were in Buenos Aires in January 2000 for a three night pre cruise; B.A. to Barbados. We did the Pampas excursion and that was delightful as was the tango show. We will try to visit some other sites this time. Plus I want to go back to our favorite steak place down the water/warehouse area. I wished I could remember the name of it - but I will recognize it when I see it. The falls are high on our list as we did not take time then to see them. I think I need mosquito repellent, with deet, for there.
Thank you everyone for your kindness and dearth of helpful hints, etc.
Deanna

We cruised from B.Aries to Valparaiso 2 years ago. I have a 13 page report of our private excursions in each port and a friend who conducts tours based in Santiago.
if you will e-mail me I will FAX the report.

Claudia - well, Todd personally trained Felipe to make Todd cosmos to his exacting standards. :D I would certainly hope that Felipe remembers how to make them!

Masaki

While we're on the subject, has anyone been on an Amazon cruise north from Manaus? We are booked on the Mariner 2/12. Any info to share?

Thanks,

Jim

Jim: We did the Manaus to Ft. Lauderdale last Feb. We began our trip in Buenos Aires and went up the Amazon to Manaus and then back down to Ft. Lauderdale. We thought going up and back down the Amazon was overkill. But It is without doubt a voyage not to miss. I guess we thought because the Amazon is so wide you really don't get a feel for the rain forest and the animals and birds. I think if you only went one way on the Amazon (either up or down) it would be a better experience. Just one person's opinion.

My SE (spousal equalivant) and I have done South America or parts of it three times and never get tired of it. The fjords of Chili are spectacular and make Alaska look sick. On a future trip join the ship earlier so you can hit northern Peru. Out of Salverry you can go to the LORD OF SIPAN ruins and museum. It is spectacular. The wealth of the tomb is second only to that of King Tut. Also the Moche ruins are much older than the Inca of Macchu Pichu which is a new culture.
McKeever

P.S. I have short term memory loss, I guess, but I wanted to add that we were on the same trip as Marinergal and her spouse. Wonderful Trivia captain!
McKeever

Do you mean that I was a wonderful trivia captain, or was it someone else on the team or another team? We also had two Brits on the team, and sometimes they were extremely valuable, as they had heard some of the questions before i.e. on a world cruise, and did remember what was wrong, so we were able to eliminate choices. Despite the fact that there were so many extra events for the circumnavigators, I am not positive about your identity. Apologies for that.
M.

We are packed, the car is loaded for the airport as we are leaving in the morning at 4:45 a.m. for a 6:30 a.m. flight to Dallas and then a looooooong lay over of 5 hours before flying to Lima. The adventure begins and I thank you all for your input. As soon as we get on board (the 8th), I am on my search for Jean - so we can meet - and then on to find Filipe to have him make me a Todd cosmos. Happy New Year y muchsima gracia por todo.

dd@sea,

Enjoy your trip and cruise on the Mariner. Hope you will report for us.

Betty

dd - have a wonderful time! Hope to hear from you on board. Say hi to Felipe from me!

Masaki

Hey, Marinerga! Good to hear from you. Yes. the best Trivia Captain we have ever had. We went out in a BLAZE of GLORY with a perfect score. By the way, Pauline and Doug were originally from New Zealand and she is really excentric and great. Have you made any plans for the September Mariner trip?

I never thought of myself as trivia captain. Do say hello to Madame Defarges (from Tale of Two Cities). I used that nickname because she was always walking around with her needles and wool. I assume her scarf is long done. Funny thing was that when we arrived home my friend (who knits without looking) was making a royal blue one for me. So next trip, I'll have it with me.

The September Mariner trip is being moved -- for various reasons, we cannot start in Hong Kong. Am not quite sure when we will board. You have my private email (I'm fairly sure), so give me a line or two.

Best to you.
M.