Grand Voyage 2025 - Grand South Pacific Expedition

When booking cruises from Fremantle, Perth, there is only one main cruise terminal, built in 1962 the Victoria Quay Cruise Terminal at Fremantle is where all cruises from Fremantle will depart. Fremantle is a day-out destination with historic buildings, eateries, tourist attractions and ferries up the Swan River to the City, and off-shore to Rottnest Island. Cars can set-down passengers and find long-term parking nearby. Read more about Fremantle, Australia

The Abrolhos Islands lie about 60 kilometers west of Geraldton, on the Western Australian coast, and consist of 122 islands clustered into three main groups: the Wallabi Group, Easter Group and Pelsaert Group, which extend from north to south across 100 kilometers of ocean. The area is home to an abundance of wildlife including sea lions, dolphins, migratory whales and sea birds. The extensive coral reef system stretches for a hundred kilometers and is home to many species. Read more about Abrolhos Islands, Australia

The Abrolhos Islands lie about 60 kilometers west of Geraldton, on the Western Australian coast, and consist of 122 islands clustered into three main groups: the Wallabi Group, Easter Group and Pelsaert Group, which extend from north to south across 100 kilometers of ocean. The area is home to an abundance of wildlife including sea lions, dolphins, migratory whales and sea birds. The extensive coral reef system stretches for a hundred kilometers and is home to many species. Read more about Abrolhos Islands, Australia

Located on the western coast of the Peron Peninsula 831 km north of Perth, Denham is the westernmost town in Australia, and is named in honour of Captain Henry Mangles Denham of the Royal Navy, who charted Shark Bay in 1858. Today Denham survives as the gateway for the tourists who come to see the dolphins at Monkey Mia, which is located 23 km north-east of the town. The town also has an attractive beach and a jetty popular with those interested in fishing and boating. Read more about Denham, Australia

Exmouth is a small town situated just north of the Tropic of Capricorn, and north of Perth. It has an average winter temperature of 25 deg. and a summer average of 35 deg. Read more about Exmouth Gulf, Australia

The Montebello Islands are an archipelago of around 174 small islands (about 35 of which are named) located 128 km off the Pilbara coast of North West Australia. Montebello is Italian for Beautiful Mountain. The islands were economically significant for pearl fishing from the end of the nineteenth century until the outbreak of the Second World War. Read more about Montebello Islands, Australia

Talbot Bay encloses the 800, rugged and sparsely vegetated islands of the Buccaneer Archipelago in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. The major attraction, drawing thousands of visitors each year, is the Horizontal 'two way' Waterfall' that results from massive tidal movements that cause a waterfall effect as water banks up against one side of a narrow coastal gorge, then hurtles through, sideways, up to 5 metres high, to be repeated again on the turning tide! Naturalist David described the Horizontal Falls as "One of the greatest wonders of the natural world". Read more about Talbot Bay, Australia

The Montgomery Reef is Australia's largest inshore reef system covering more than 300km2, near the mouth of the Sale River off the Kimberley coast of West Australia. At high tide you see very little of the Reef but as the tide drops rapidly away a raging torrent of water, cascading off the top of this 400ha reef erupts, as miles of surrounding reef appears to slowly rise out of the ocean. Read more about Montgomery Reef, Australia

Freshwater Cove, aka Wijingarra Bard Bard, lies in the heart of Worrorra country in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Within an 85 km radius are the famous Horizontal Falls, Sale River, Montgomery Reef, and Kuri Bay for pearl farming. The waters offer great fishing, from open sea to creeks, including barramundi. Read more about Freshwater Cove, Australia

Read more about Ashmore Reef, Australia

Hunter River has its headwaters in the Kimberley region of Western Australia and flows into the NE corner of the beautiful Prince Frederick Harbour and York Sound. The river was named in 1820 by the explorer Philip Parker King, after the surgeon, James Hunter, on the ship the Mermaid. Lined with green rainforest, mangroves and soaring red cliffs, the scenery is truly spectacular. Read more about Hunter River, Australia

Swift Bay, in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, is an inlet to the fractured coastline, 12 kilometres west of the Mitchell River inlet. The flat rocky shoreline, with little vegetation, does have a number of sandy beaches, and deep to the SW of the bay mangroves line the shoreline. In the waters of the bay are of course salt-water crocodiles you’ll see from your Zodiak. Read more about Swift Bay, Australia

Vansittart Bay lies 530km WSW of Darwin, on the Kimberley coast of Western Australia, facing the Indian Ocean. A small stream, low rock platforms, and the sparse Truscott-Mungalalu Plateau face the bay. This is a protected large bay with numerous small islands and secluded coves that offer plenty of fishing. Read more about Vansittart Bay, Australia

King George River enters Koolama Bay and the Timor Sea from the Gardner Plateau in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. The 112km river was named after King George V in 1911 by the English explorer Chas Conigrave after a privately funded expedition in the area. Over many thousands of years the river has cut back into the plateau creating stunning sheer walls and majestic waterfalls at the end of several canyons. Read more about King George River, Australia

The new Darwin cruise ship terminal at Fort Hill Wharf is adjacent to the convention centre, only one kilometre from Darwin’s CBD. Modern amenities, hotels and parking are there, plus a mini-market with beautiful local productions – Aboriginal art and crafts, diamonds and opals, and eateries, distinctive of the Top End. Darwin is a home port for the small luxury vessels Coral Princess and Coral Discoverer that explore the Kimberley coast to Broome. Read more about Darwin, Australia

The new Darwin cruise ship terminal at Fort Hill Wharf is adjacent to the convention centre, only one kilometre from Darwin’s CBD. Modern amenities, hotels and parking are there, plus a mini-market with beautiful local productions – Aboriginal art and crafts, diamonds and opals, and eateries, distinctive of the Top End. Darwin is a home port for the small luxury vessels Coral Princess and Coral Discoverer that explore the Kimberley coast to Broome. Read more about Darwin, Australia

Triton Bay lies on the south coast of the West Papua province of Indonesia. If you picture Papua New Guinea as a flying duck, then Triton Bay is just under its “neck” – does that make sense? The Bay is surrounded by tropical rain forests, rising on one side to a 1060m peak. Read more about Triton Bay, Indonesia

Read more about Sebakor Bay, Indonesia

Read more about Ali Island, Papua New Guinea

Madang is the capital of Madang Province and a port on the north coast of Papua New Guinea. It was settled by Germans in the 19th C, then under Australian administration from 1919, and occupied by Japanese 1942-1944 when the town was virtually wiped out. Today its population of 24,000 includes many expatriates, and the city is the base for many NGOs and business branches. Read more about Madang, Papua New Guinea

The Vitu Islands are located in the Bismarck Sea north of New Britain, a part of Papua New Guinea in the SW Pacific. The islands are volcanic ocean peaks arising from very deep water and fringed with reefs, hence not atolls. Formerly called the French Islands, they are also known as the Witu Islands. Read more about Vitu Islands, Papua New Guinea

Rabaul is a town on the Gazelle Peninsula in East New Britain province, Papua New Guinea. A busy commercial centre, it is situated on Simpson Harbour, a sheltered inlet of Blanche Bay. Almost the entire old town of Rabaul is buried under volcanic ash, the result of a volcanic eruption in 1994, and one is in awe of the scenery, which resembles an alien prehistoric landscape. Read more about Rabaul, Papua New Guinea

Kennedy Island (colloquially known as Plum Pudding Island, though the correct local name is Kasolo Island) is an island in the Solomon Islands. It was named after John F. Kennedy. Read more about Kennedy Island, Solomon Islands

Santa Ana Island is a raised coral atoll in the Makira-Ulawa Province of the Solomon Islands, east of Papua New Guinea. Port Mary, situated on a small bay of the same name on the SW of the island, is the main town. Each cruise ship Zodiac that arrives at the beach landing is greeted by a fierce “welcoming committee”, composed of local men, masked and mud-smeared, dressed in warrior costumes and brandishing spears, shields, and machetes. Read more about Santa Ana Island, Solomon Islands

Champagne Bay is located to the NE of the island of Espiritu Santo in Vanuatu (New Hebrides until 1980), an island nation located in the South Pacific. The archipelago of Vanuatu lies at the centre of the other island groups Fiji, New Caledonia and the Solomon Islands. Espiritu Santo is the largest island in the nation; and its highest peak is Mt Tabwemasana at 1879m. Read more about Champagne Bay, Vanuatu

Ambrym is an island in the archipelago of Vanuatu (formerly known as the New Hebrides) in the South Pacific. It remains volcanically active, with two volcanic cones Benbow and Marum that still rumble away, and smaller vents and fractures that ooze steam and lava. The centre of the island is dominated by a massive 1900 year old 12 km diameter desert-like caldera that hosts multiple craters. Read more about Ambrym Island, Vanuatu

Lautoka is situated on the western side of Viti Levu, the largest island in Fiji, and just 20 km north of Nadi. The Fiji archipelago lies just to the western side of the International Date Line. Lautoka is Fiji's second largest city. Read more about Lautoka, Fiji

Lautoka is situated on the western side of Viti Levu, the largest island in Fiji, and just 20 km north of Nadi. The Fiji archipelago lies just to the western side of the International Date Line. Lautoka is Fiji's second largest city. Read more about Lautoka, Fiji

Read more about Fulanga Island, Fiji

Vava'u, and the other 40 odd islands that make up this stunningly beautiful group, is situated in the north of the Kingdom of the Tongan archipelago in the South Pacific. Despite now being easily accessible, it still remains off the beaten track of mass tourism. Neiafu, the tiny capital on Vava'u, is perched above the Port of Refuge Harbour, a delightful natural harbour regarded by many as one of the most beautiful in the world. Read more about Vava'u, Tonga

Aitutaki - aka Araura, Ararau, Utataki - is one of the Cook Islands, 250 km north of the main island, Rarotonga. Bounded by a triangular barrier reef, Aitutaki boasts one of the most famous lagoons in the world and which is home to a large number of fish, hence making it a favourite spot for snorkelling and scuba diving. The lagoon is four times the area of the main island, and inside the lagoon are fifteen islets each its own paradise. Read more about Aitutaki, Cook Islands

Palmerston Island is a coral atoll in the Cook Islands in the Pacific Ocean about 500 km northwest of the most populous Cook Island, Rarotonga. Palmerston Island was charted by James Cook in his second voyage in 1774. A true atoll, it consists of two dozen sandy islets on a continuous ring of coral reef enclosing a lagoon, all seated on the top of an old volcano rising 4000 m from the ocean floor. Read more about Palmerston Island, Cook Islands

Bora Bora is an island in the Leeward group of the Society Islands of French Polynesia. The mysteries and romance associated with the words Bora Bora bring an almost mystical presence to the island; it is arguably the most famous island in the world. Part of the allure has to be its almost unbelievable beauty. Read more about Bora Bora, French Polynesia

The city of Papeete (Tahitian Pape'ete; pop. 27,000) is the capital of Tahiti, the largest of the French Polynesian Islands. With its pleasant warm tropical climate, city-lovers will enjoy Papeete's chic shops, specialist stores and boutiques, together with the lively mix of French, Polynesian, and Chinese cultures. Read more about Papeete, French Polynesia

The city of Papeete (Tahitian Pape'ete; pop. 27,000) is the capital of Tahiti, the largest of the French Polynesian Islands. With its pleasant warm tropical climate, city-lovers will enjoy Papeete's chic shops, specialist stores and boutiques, together with the lively mix of French, Polynesian, and Chinese cultures. Read more about Papeete, French Polynesia

Rangiroa, also known as The Endless Lagoon, is a coral atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago of French Polynesia. It lies 325 km to the NE of Tahiti. The lagoon is 80 km long and rather narrower, with two main sea passages to the ocean at the northern end. Read more about Rangiroa, French Polynesia

Fatu Hiva - aka Fatu Iva - is the southernmost and most isolated of the inhabited Marquesas Island in French Polynesia. Fatu Hiva is the island of superlatives: the furthest south, the wettest, the lushest, the most isolated, and the most authentic. Hanavave Bay on Fatu Hiva is one of the most beautiful bays in the world, and it is surprising that it has been able to remain an untouched paradise. Read more about Fatu Hiva, French Polynesia

Tahuata is the smallest of the inhabited Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia in the Pacific Ocean. Situated 1400 km to the NE of Tahiti, the jagged island rises to a height of 1050 m. Isolated without an airfield, the 700 or so inhabitants are reached by boat from nearby Hiva Oa. Read more about Tahuata, French Polynesia

NOTE: Tenders to shore are infrequent. Locals from the island do come out to the anchored ship. Pitcairn Island (pop. Read more about Pitcairn Island, Pitcairn

NOTE: Tenders to shore are infrequent. Locals from the island do come out to the anchored ship. Pitcairn Island (pop. Read more about Pitcairn Island, Pitcairn

Most cruise ships make a scenic pass of the island, and as few as 30% tender successfully to shore, there being no harbour and the weather is problematic. (Serious sight-seers arrive by air from Chile mainland.) One of the most isolated islands in the world, this triangle of volcanic rock in the South Pacific is 2,300 km off the west coast of Chile. It is intriguing, its history is as unclear as it is mysterious. Read more about Easter Island, Chile

Most cruise ships make a scenic pass of the island, and as few as 30% tender successfully to shore, there being no harbour and the weather is problematic. (Serious sight-seers arrive by air from Chile mainland.) One of the most isolated islands in the world, this triangle of volcanic rock in the South Pacific is 2,300 km off the west coast of Chile. It is intriguing, its history is as unclear as it is mysterious. Read more about Easter Island, Chile

Robinson Crusoe Island, with its ragged and mountainous topography, is the second largest of three islands in the Juan Fernandez Archipelago, situated 670 km off the coast of mainland Chile. It is a place that recalls stories of castaways, pirates and prisoners. It is an isolated volcanic mass rising out of the cold currents of the South Pacific Ocean. Read more about Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile

Robinson Crusoe Island, with its ragged and mountainous topography, is the second largest of three islands in the Juan Fernandez Archipelago, situated 670 km off the coast of mainland Chile. It is a place that recalls stories of castaways, pirates and prisoners. It is an isolated volcanic mass rising out of the cold currents of the South Pacific Ocean. Read more about Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile

Santiago is the capital of Chile, 90 minutes drive from its port Valparaiso. Santiago has easy access both to ski slopes just 50 km to the Andes, and beaches 100 km to the Pacific. Chile's steady economic growth has transformed Santiago into one of Latin America's most modern metropolitan areas, with dozens of shopping centers and impressive high-rises. Read more about Santiago (Valparaiso), Chile