Captain Cook Cruises Fiji has announced MS Caledonian Sky will wrap up her Fiji charter and depart Fijian and Southern Pacific waters in November this year, following the completion of her season in the region. MS Caledonian Sky’s full cruise schedule – including seven-night sailings to the Lau archipelago, and the remote north, three- and four-night sailings to the Yasawa and Mamanuca Islands and 14-night expeditions to Tonga – will conclude with the final departure at the end of October this year.
Travellers can make the most of the rare chance to explore Fiji’s remote outposts by expedition ship with the extension of the popular ‘sail seven nights for the price of four’ special for the remainder of the season. Solo travellers will also enjoy twin share rates on all cruise departures until the end of the season.
Bookings on the ship’s remaining departures this year are strong; with just a limited number of suites left, travellers keen to join MS Caledonian Sky’s remarkable expeditions are encouraged to contact reservations to reserve their place onboard.
MS Caledonian Sky’s last voyage in the region will be the seven-night Ultimate Lau and Kaduvu expedition sailing from Lautoka on October 26 this year. MS Caledonian Sky will then set sail from Fiji.
Captain Cook Cruises Fiji will continue to operate its highly successful day and dinner cruise experiences including visits to the company’s own Tivua Private Island in Fiji.
Having elevated the luxury expedition cruise offering in Fiji to a level never seen before, MS Caledonian Sky’s twelve-month season in Fiji has offered guests a rare glimpse into the remote, ‘real’ Fiji. Her voyages have produced outstanding feedback from guests, the travel industry and media who have experienced her groundbreaking expeditions in the region.
Over the next four months, travellers will have the chance to join seven-night expeditions to Fiji’s Remote North, Northern and Southern Lau Islands which will operate until end-October with two special Southern Lau and Tonga 14-night expeditions to experience the whale migration departing on August 17 and 31 this year. The cruise company’s popular cruises to the Yasawa and Mamanuca island groups will continue to operate per the cruise’s calendar, offering a shorter break to explore Fiji’s pristine waters and vibrant coral reefs.
MS Caledonian Sky’s itineraries cover over 90 of Fiji’s 333 islands. This is the last chance for guests to experience some of Fiji’s most remote locations and villages by small expedition ship, where larger vessels cannot venture. Some villages recently opened to visitors for the first time ever including the Lau Islands of Matuku, Cicia, Bulyia and Vanuavatu, where guests and the ship’s crew were greeted with enthusiastic singing by the village choirs followed by tours and a refreshing swim to view coral reefs and marine life. Vatulele’s 5000-year-old rock art, red prawns and gorgeous lagoon have been rediscovered with the first visit by tourists since 2012.
Captain Cook Cruises Executive Chair Allison Haworth West said it had been an honour and a privilege for the extended family at Captain Cook Cruises Fiji to respectfully share the extraordinarily remote undiscovered Fijian destinations and cultures with guests to date this season.
“We are honoured to have been able to provide the benefits of tourism in a considered and sensitive way to the people of the outer islands of Fiji who otherwise have had very little contact with the outside world, and we look forward to continuing to do this until November,” Mrs Haworth West said.
“Our Fijian expedition team has done an extraordinary job pioneering education and sustainability in remote Fiji in a way never done before that will leave a lasting legacy,” she said.
“We are keen to reassure booked and future-booking guests that the wonderful experience on MS Caledonian Sky will continue as always. With generously inclusive rates, all cruises offer dining and selected drinks along with marine-based adventures with Marine Biologist guided glass bottom kayaking, paddle boarding, snorkelling, and guiding by the Expedition Team in ten Zodiac boats to discover pristine coral reefs and remote villages,” she said.