Tour Information
2014 CABIN DESCRIPTION & PRICES:
Heritage Suite: $15,000.00 USD pp
Heritage Suite: has a large lounge area, a separate bedroom with double bed, a single bed in the lounge, writing desk, wardrobe, drawers, and fridge. There is a private bathroom with shower, toilet and washbasin. There are large forward and side facing windows with great views. Capacity: 2. Shared: $15,000.00 USD pp, Sole Occupancy: $30,000.00 USD pp
Mini Suite: $14,000.00 USD pp
Mini Suite: has a small bedroom with a 3/4 bed and a single bed in the lounge, wardrobe, drawers, a desk and a private bathroom with shower. Toilet and washbasin. This suite has windows. Capacity: 2 Shared: $14,000.00 USD pp, Sole Occupancy: $28,000.00 USD
Superior Plus: $13,500.00 USD pp
Superior Plus cabins: Cabins have two lower berths, wardrobe, drawers, a private bathroom with shower, toilet and washbasin. These cabins have windows. Capacity: 2 Shared: $13,500.00 USD pp, Sole Occupancy: $27,000.00 USD
Superior: $12,400.00 USD pp
Superior cabins: Cabins have one bunk (an upper and lower – two), wardrobe, drawers, a desk, a private bathroom with shower, toilet and washbasin. These cabins have windows. Capacity: 2 Shared: $12,400.00 USD pp, Sole Occupancy: $24,800.00 USD
Main Deck: $11,000.00 USD pp
Main deck cabins: Cabins have two lower berths, wardrobe, drawers, a desk, washbasin. The nearby showers and toilets are shared with other Main deck cabins. Capacity: 2 Shared: $11,000.00 USD pp, Sole Occupancy: $22,000.00 USD
Main Deck Triple: $10,000.00 USD pp
Main deck triple cabin: This cabin has one bunk (one upper and one lower) and one lower berth, wardrobe, drawers, a desk and washbasin. The nearby showers and toilets are shared with other Main deck cabins. Capacity: 3 Shared: $10,500.00 USD pp
Additional charges: Landing Fees; $500.00 USD pp
Deposit requirements: 25% of total cabin price is due at the time of booking. The remaining 75% of total price is then due 100 days prior to departure.
Cancellation and refund policies. Cancellations received more than 180 days before departure date will receive a full refund less a $750.00USD per person administration fee. For cancellations received from 179 days to 91 days before your embarkation the full deposit will be forfeited. The full expedition fee is forfeit if your notice of cancellation is received within 90 days of your departure date.
Included Items: Fares include all shipboard meals throughout the voyage including snacks, coffee and tea; all shore excursions and activities throughout the voyage by Zodiac; program of lectures by naturalists and leadership by experienced expedition staff; and all miscellaneous service taxes and port charges throughout the program.
Excluded Items: Fares do not include tips to ship staff; airfare, whether on scheduled or charter flights; pre- and post-cruise land arrangements; transfers to/from the vessel; passport and visa expenses; government arrival and departure taxes; meals ashore; baggage; travel (trip cancellation) insurance or personal insurance (both strongly recommended); excess baggage charges; and all items of a personal nature such as laundry, bar, beverage charges, and telecommunication charges. Any hotel nights and transfers before embarkation will be charged separately.
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Note: The information presented here is an abbreviated version of our formal General Information for Cruises to the Sub-Antarctic Islands of New Zealand and Australia. Its purpose is solely to give readers a sense of what might be involved if they take this tour. Although we do our best to make sure that what follows here is completely accurate, it should not be used as a replacement for the formal document which will be sent to all tour registrants, and whose contents supersedes any information contained here.
ENTERING AND LEAVING NEW ZEALAND: New Zealand authorities require a passport that is valid for at least three months after the date you are intending to depart New Zealand. Visas are not required for US and Canadian citizens, but may be needed by citizens of other countries. Please contact your nearest New Zealand embassy or consulate if you have questions.
HEALTH: No inoculations are required for this cruise. The Spirit of Enderby carries a medical advisor and a well-equipped medical clinic on the middle deck. The medical advisor is available 24 hours a day in the event of an emergency on board. Our vessel has a small clinic, and a qualified western doctor trained in emergency medicine will be on board during the cruise. In order to insure that our on-board doctor has the information he or she needs, all cruise participants will be asked to fill out a health advisory, to be returned to the WINGS office no later than 60 days before sailing.
PACE OF TOUR: Our routine will vary somewhat from day to day. During days at sea you can sleep until breakfast or be out an hour or two before for some seabirding. The great thing about being on a ship is that you can rest when you want, and even the shore excursions and zodiac cruises are optional (but obviously recommended!). On some landings there may be options for shorter or longer walks, and we will choose the ones best suited to birding (none of them overly strenuous). If in the course of the trip you are concerned about your ability to participate in any particular hike or activity, please consult the ship guides before you start. Zodiac excursions may range from 45 minutes to 2 hours, depending on local conditions.
A reasonable degree of mobility is required for passage on expedition ships, and travelers with significant physical limitations or medical conditions are advised not to participate in these cruises. Please remember that more than rudimentary medical care will be impossible during the course of the cruise. If you have limitations but nonetheless feel you are able to participate in an expedition cruise, please advise us in detail and in writing of the nature of your limitation, and please attach a letter from your physician expressing his or her approval of your participation.
Any condition discovered at or before boarding may, at the sole discretion of the ship’s captain, be grounds for denying the participant boarding privileges or requiring the participant to leave the ship and terminate his or her continued participation in the cruise. People thus excluded are responsible for all expenses associated with getting themselves home. By forwarding a deposit for this cruise, the cruise participant certifies that he or she is in good physical health and capable of performing the normal activities on this expedition.
CLIMATE: The Sub-Antarctic and maritime climate is potentially cool, wet, and windy, but more like the Aleutians or Scotland than the truly bone-chilling cold possible in Antarctica. Only at Australia’s Macquarie Island is real cold a possibility; elsewhere it is wind that is the main concern, combined with the possibility of rain and fog, which can make things cool. Keeping dry is the main concern, but it can be sunny and warm on some days, and sunscreen at these latitudes is recommended. Thermal or fleece pants and top with a windbreaker jacket and rain pants suffice for most occasions, and on board you can also watch from inside the bridge.
TRANSPORT: M/v Professor Khromov, aka Spirit of Enderby, is a modern and comfortable oceanographic research vessel, converted for passenger use and ideally suited for expedition cruising. The Professor Khromov is manned by an enthusiastic and highly experienced Russian crew of around 20; Russian captains are recognized experts in polar navigation. The Professor Khromov has a large bridge and good open deck viewing areas. She carries a full complement of Zodiac craft, excellent for landings and wildlife viewing opportunities. Other public areas include the dining room, a lounge and bar, small library, infirmary, and sauna.
ACCOMMODATION: Please see the complete printed General Information document for a plan of the decks and cabins.
FOOD: Excellent cuisine prepared by our chefs is served in the dining room. The dining room can accommodate all passengers at a single seating. There will be no seat assignments. Our Australian and New Zealand chefs will delight you with international cuisine, prepared with the freshest products available. Our chefs on board can prepare food according to your special dietary needs provided that this information is specified on the booking form in advance of departure date. We regret that kosher, halal, and vegan meals are not available on board.
COMMUNICATIONS: The Spirit of Enderby is equipped with the Iridium satellite phone for phone calls and for receiving and sending emails.
DRESS: Informal throughout.
SMOKING: Smoking is not allowed when the group is gathered for meals, checklists, etc. If any site where the group is gathered has a stricter policy than the WINGS policy, the stricter policy will prevail.
GENERAL INFORMATION AND CONDITIONS OF WINGS TOURS: Please take a moment to read the General Information and Conditions on the WINGS website. This section contains important information about how we conduct tours, e.g., what is included in the tour price, refund and cancellation policies, pace of the tours, and other information that will help you prepare for the tour.
FINAL INFORMATION: Final information with instructions for meeting the group, hotel addresses, etc., will be mailed about three weeks before trip departure. Other news will be communicated as necessary. If you have any questions, please let us know.
Updated: May 2013