TAHITI TO EASTER ISLAND MARQUESAS, TUAMOTUS & PITCAIRNS October 10 – 29, 2019 | 20 Days | Aboard the Island Sky MARQUESAS MAP NOT TO SCALE ISLANDS Wildlife Highlights Nuku Hiva Hiva Oa • Photograph the exquisite Marquesas Fatu Hiva with their sky-piercing volcanoes, lushly- carpeted canyons, and chiseled bays. PACIFIC Apataki Puka Puka OCEAN • View Easter Island’s giant volcanic stone statues, or moai—representing deified Papeete ancestors, oral traditions suggest they TUAMOTU Puka Rua TAHITI ISLANDS ‘walked’ from the quarry to their stone platforms along the coastline. Henderson EASTER ISLAND Ducie • Meet the residents of tiny Pitcairn Island; Pitcairn most are direct descendants of the PITCAIRN ISLANDS HMS Bounty crew. • Visit Henderson and Ducie Islands, NUKU HIVA home to rare and endemic bird species, from Murphy’s and Phoenix petrels to the Henderson Island crake and Stephen’s lorikeet. • Enjoy excellent snorkeling and diving nearly every day to discover healthy reefs teeming with colorful, tropical fish. • Itinerary .................................... page 2 > • Flight Information ...................... page 3 > • Ship, Deck Plan & Rates ............ page 4 > • Featured Leader ........................ page 5 > • Know Before You Go ................. page 5 > WHITE TERN EASTER ISLAND Monday – Wednesday, October 14 – 16 Itinerary MARQUESAS ISLANDS Considered one of the most beautiful island groups in the South Pacific, the Marquesas lie farther from a continental Based on the expeditionary nature of our trips, there may be ongoing coast than any other islands in the world. Unlike other enhancements to this itinerary. Polynesian islands, the Marquesas have no surrounding reefs or placid lagoons. Their wide, deep bays are havens for Thursday, October 10, 2019 vessels such as ours. DEPART USA / PAPEETE, TAHITI Spend three days exploring this dazzling collection of islands Board your independent flight to Papeete. Arrive in the late whose breathtaking vertical peaks reach into the clouds, while evening and transfer to our hotel. carpets of lush tropical vegetation drape cliffs and canyons that descend to sea-sculpted bays. Friday, October 11 Countless Sooty, White, and Bridled terns circle tiny, rocky PAPEETE / EMBARK ISLAND SKY pinnacle islets. Zodiacs bring you ashore on a variety of Relax during a morning at leisure, then join a tour of Papeete, islands, to be greeted by dancers and drummers adorned the capital of French Polynesia’s largest island. Pass by in leis and tapa cloth. On walks you may see petroglyphs orchards of papaya as you drive along the stunning coast. or tiki figures—representing deified ancestors—flanked by Visit the renowned Museum of Tahiti, which traces the islands’ banyan trees, fragrant plumeria, blooming orchids, and history. Birders will seek a variety of native birds including silvery waterfalls. Open-air craft markets display baskets, shell Gray-green Fruit-Dove. Embark the Island Sky this afternoon. jewelry, and wooden carvings. Birders search for the endemic Nuku Hiva Pigeon and Marquesan Swiftlet. Though the islands lack fringing reefs, snorkelers and divers will discover colorful fish against a backdrop of sheer walls and dramatic arches. Saturday, October 12 APATAKI, TUAMOTU ISLANDS Though remote and sparsely populated, the far-flung Tuamotus Thursday, October 17 comprise the world’s largest atoll chain. With few visitors, and PUKA PUKA, TUAMOTU ISLANDS little industry, the dazzling lagoon of Apataki offers a pristine Delightful music and dancing welcome you to this idyllic underwater landscape for snorkelers and divers to explore. island—the first land sighted in the Pacific by Europeans. Birders will thrill to the site of Red-footed Booby, Lesser Visit the small village whose residents raise taro, bananas, Frigatebird, noddies, terns, Blue Lorikeet, and Tuamotu Reed- and coconut palms for copra (dried coconut). Birders search Warbler. for Brown Noddies while snorkelers and divers explore the fringing reef. Sunday, October 13 AT SEA Attend informative lectures, and from the ship’s viewing decks we’ll scan the seas for Wedge-tailed and Tropical shearwaters. VICTOR EMANUEL NATURE TOURS | TAHITI TO EASTER ISLAND: MARQUESAS, TUAMOTUS & PITCAIRNS < 2 > Friday, October 18 Thursday & Friday, October 24 & 25 PUKA RUA AT SEA Coconut palms and breadfruit trees cover the beautiful islets Relax on deck and enjoy the ongoing lecture series as you that surround Puka Rua’s lagoon. Garland-bedecked dancers cruise toward Easter Island, a World Heritage Site and one greet you in the tiny village whose 150 hospitable inhabitants of the most mysterious places on earth. earn a living selling copra. Witness the process of coconut drying, visit a local crafts market, or stroll along the lagoon’s shores to search for Pacific Reef-Heron and White-capped Fruit-Dove. Saturday & Sunday, October 26 & 27 EASTER ISLAND, CHILE Spend two full days exploring Easter Island. View the intriguing stone heads, moai, built on massive stone platforms at Tahai, Saturday, October 19 along with nearly 400 monolithic statues in various states of EXPEDITION STOP completion at the spectacular volcanic tuff quarries. Visit the Today, conditions permitting, explore one of the many ceremonial center of Ahu Vinapu, and at Ahu Tongariki visit uninhabited Tuamotu Islands and enjoy swimming, the largest ceremonial site. Drive to the Rano Kau volcano snorkeling, or diving. A sighting of the Tuamotu Sandpiper, to view the giant caldera, home to a sprawling lake dotted one of the world’s rarest shorebirds, is possible today. with small floating reed islets, and the ceremonial village of Orongo, dedicated to the fascinating “birdman” cult. Red- tailed Tropicbirds and Polynesian Storm-Petrels may be seen in Sunday, October 20 the offshore waters. AT SEA Spend a day at sea as the ship continues towards the remote Pitcairn Islands. Join naturalists on deck to search for a variety Monday & Tuesday, October 28 & 29 of seabirds and marine mammals. EASTER ISLAND / DISEMBARK / SANTIAGO / USA After breakfast disembark the Island Sky and enjoy a short tour before heading to the airport for your afternoon flight to Monday, October 21 Santiago; arrive in the USA October 29. PITCAIRN Remote, enchanting, and tiny at six miles around, volcano- crowned Pitcairn was the fabled hideout of the HMS Bounty mutineers in 1790. Step ashore and visit with the 50 hospitable inhabitants of Adamstown, who are the direct descendants of Flight Information the nine mutineers and 18 Polynesians, or go off in search of birds such as Blue-Gray Noddy and Pitcairn Reed-Warbler. You will need to purchase airfare from your home city/Papeete and Easter Island/Santiago/home city. Please call 800-328-VENT (8368) or 512-328-5221 to learn more about air arrangements. Tuesday, October 22 HENDERSON Sheer limestone cliffs surround this elevated coralline island, a World Heritage Site, pockmarked by caves and blowholes. Henderson’s astounding natural selection has produced ten endemic flowering plants and four endemic species of land birds, including the Henderson Island Crake and Stephen’s Lorikeet. There will also be an opportunity to snorkel or dive in the marinelife-rich waters. Wednesday, October 23 DUCIE This small, uninhabited, and rarely-visited atoll is rimmed in white sand beaches that in turn surround a crystalline lagoon. As you walk along the shore, witness a vast variety of seabirds—tens of thousands nest here, including Murphy’s and Phoenix petrels, Masked Boobies, frigatebirds, and Red-tailed Tropicbirds. Underwater forays bring you face-to-face with legions of rainbow-hued fish in the warm, clear waters. © Rodica Woodbury VICTOR EMANUEL NATURE TOURS | TAHITI TO EASTER ISLAND: MARQUESAS, TUAMOTUS & PITCAIRNS < 3 > The Island Sky Deck Plan EXPLORER DECK The all-suite Island Sky is a spacious 603 601 600 100-guest expedition vessel. Public spaces Sun Deck Beauty 602 OWNER’S SUITE include a large lounge, elegant bar with Center 604 piano, library, single-seating dining room, and a rear sun deck where meals are served ERIKSON DECK in pleasant weather. All suites have an ocean 511 509 507 505 Outdoor Cafe view and feature a sitting area, en suite Bridge 512 510 508 506 bathroom, flat-screen television, spacious Bar wardrobes, small refrigerator, and dressing table. MARCO POLO DECK 427 425 423 421 419 417 415 The Club 428 426 424 422 420 418 416 414 Library COLUMBUS DECK 347 345 343 341 339 335 333 331 Lounge Reception 348 346 344 342 340 338 336 334 342 MAGELLAN DECK 261 259 257 255 Doctor Restaurant 262 260 258 256 254 Rates CATEGORY 1 $20,680 CATEGORY 4 $27,280 OWNER’S SUITE $40,780 CAT 5 / SOLO $29,880 CATEGORY 2 $22,380 CATEGORY 5 $29,880 CAT 2 / SOLO $22,380 Solo Travelers: No Solo supplement in select categories CATEGORY 3 $25,180 CATEGORY 6 $33,880 CAT 3 / SOLO $25,180 (limited availability)! Scuba Diving is available on this expedition for an additional cost of $500 per person. Limited to 16 Advanced Open Water (AOW) certified scuba divers. You must complete two open water dives within the 12 months prior to the trip’s departure. INCLUDED: NOT INCLUDED: • Daily activity options including cultural tours, nature walks, • Airfare from your home city/Papeete and snorkeling, and Zodiac cruises Easter Island/Santiago/home city • All gratuities • Excess baggage charges • All accommodations • Airport arrival and departure taxes • World-class lecture and expedition team • Transfers for independent arrivals and departures • All onboard meals and group meals ashore, including soft • Passport and/or visa fees drinks, beer, and wine with lunch and dinner • Travel insurance • All entrance fees, taxes, and landing and port charges • Arrival and departure transfers on group dates • Items of a personal nature such as laundry, alcoholic beverages (other than listed at left), and other incidentals • Gift certificates for recommended expedition gear and reading materials • Email/Internet/fax/telephone charges • Medical expense coverage and emergency evacuation insurance A 25% per person deposit will secure your space on this expedition. All rates are per person, based on double occupancy, unless otherwise noted.