The prospect of visiting South America and cruising the Chilean Fjords was something we had on our bucket list. This was our second cruise on the Éclipse and fourth Celebrity cruise.
Embarkation: took a Port transfer with Vasalfa Turismo from our hotel the 4 Points Sheraton in Providencia, Santiago to Valparaiso for a tour and then onto the Port of San Antonio. Our guides Christian and Ashton were excellent and ensured our personal safety and our luggage was secure. Check in was quick, note all passengers had to surrender their passports at check in. Passports were returned to all passengers later in the cruise. The Port of San Antonio and Celebrity need to design another gangway, as this one was too steep and supported by sea containers as a base.
Ports : Puerto Montt, Chile is a tender port. Tendering was ok overall. Booked our own tour at the Pier, went to Petrohue Rapids and the Chilean Lake District with a stop in Puerto Varas. Two sea days were next where we cruised through the Chilean Fjords & The Straits of Magellan. A third sea day was added due to inclement weather conditions in the South Pacific Ocean, which resulted in the cancellation of our next Port of Punta Arenas, Chile. The ship rocked and swayed all night as Captain Michael let the storm system pass ahead of the Éclipse.
Clean, well maintained and comfortable bed.
Toured the city on foot and took taxis. Lot's of stark concrete buildings.
Big clean impressive city. Stayed 3 nights post cruise. Enjoyed the food and culture.