Falkland Islands
Falklands Wildlife Holiday
15 days from £4,850pp
Includes: accommodation & meals, activities & internal flights as stated, guiding.
Overview & Highlights
On this 15 days adventure you will get to visit five of the most wildlife-rich islands in the Falklands archipelago, encountering an abundance of incredible sights such as colonies of the black-browed albatross, up to 5 species of penguins, the Falklands flightless steamer duck, one of two birds which are endemic to the islands and lots of raptors and smaller passerines.
Elephant and fur seals, sea-lions, dolphins, orca and minke whales can be spotted here, their mournful cries carried on the incessant winds. The Falklands really are a wildlife paradise.
- Visit nesting colonies of king, gentoo and rockhopper penguins
- Abundant wildlife & stunning scenery
- Close up encounters with elephant and fur seals
- Inter-island scenic flights by small aircraft
- Birds including black-browed albatross, giant petrels, raptors & other sea birds
- Professional guides
“A trip to the Falklands must be near the top of every bird and wildlife enthusiasts wish list – also a superb way to view huge penguin colonies without travelling to peninsula Antarctica!“
The Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) lie 500km east of the coast of Argentina. Many people know a bit about their history, but few are aware of the wilderness beauty of this remote archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean. Wind swept hills and sandy beaches are home to a huge variety of wildlife. Indeed, the fauna outnumbers the human population by 10-1.
Port Stanley, the capital, resembles a small English town fifty years ago, with squat, white, pitched roofed cottages, an Anglican seafront church and familiar red phone boxes. Along rocky coves lie the wrecks of ships abandoned a century ago from an era when the islands were a port of call for passing ships before the opening of the Panama Canal. Nowadays, around 3,000 islanders remain British in outlook and descent, adhering to British laws and buying British goods.
This itinerary is available October to March
- Day 1: Stanley Arrive independently at Mount Pleasant Airport and transfer to Stanley. The rest of the day will be at leisure.
- Days 2-4: Fly to Sea Lion Island. Introductory Land Rover tour. Spend time observing and walking amongst the large colonies of elephant and sealions on the beach. See gentoo and Magellenic penguins plus skuas and southern giant petrels. Orca and Commerson’s dolphins can be seen from the shoreline.
- Days 5-6: Fly to Bleaker Island. Bleaker is perfect for walking and self-exploration. Lots of ground nesting birds, geese and black-necked swans, plus colonies of penguins and shags. Take care not to walk too close to nesting southern giant petrels!
- Days 7-9: Fly to Carcass Island. Lots of land and sea birds can be seen including Cobb’s wren, tussock birds and black-throated finches. Look out for Commerson’s and Peale’s dolphins, often to be seen in the surf. Enjoy a full day excursion to West Point Island. Here you will walk or ride to Devil’s Nose, home to large mixed colonies of black-browed albatrosses and rockhopper penguins. See turkey vultures, military starlings or Falklands thrush and striated caracaras.
- Days 10-12: Fly to Pebble Island, named for its multi-coloured pebbles on eastern beaches. This is the third largest of the offshore islands. Two full and one half day guided wildlife tours. Colonies of rockhopper, gentoo, magellenic and macaroni penguins, king and rock shags, giant petrels and striated caracaras to be seen, along with black-necked swans and ground nesting birds. Also aircraft wreckage from 1982 conflict and memorials.
- Day 13: Fly back to Stanley. Try one of the local pubs and take time to visit Stanley Museum.
- Day 14: Full day 4×4 excursion with packed lunch to Volunteer Point to see the largest colony of king penguins on the islands, plus more gentoos and other birds. Pass through an area of stone runs, a unique geological feature described by Charles Darwin. The area near Stanley also includes battlefield sites from 1982.
- Day 15: Transfer to Mount Pleasant airport for your journey home
This is just one example of a holiday to the Falkland Islands. We can tailor make your journey to include other destinations such as South Georgia and Antarctica, or time on mainland South America.
A few impressions…
“We woke to snow on the hills …Welcome to a Falklands summer! After clearing the local grass landing strip of sheep, we took a small plane to Sea Lion Island. Incredible to sit amongst thousands of penguins, with elephant seals and a few sea lions. We also toured the memorial sites and it was great to spend some time with our daughter in Stanley”.
Christine and Ian B
Let us begin the journey that will create memories to last a lifetime.
