Hollydays and travel deals to Britain’s Falkland Islands

December 17, 2008 – 2:06 pm

The Falkland Islands have a raw, unspoilt quality which entices locals and tourists back time and again.

Visitors to the islands – consisting of two main islands and over seven hundred smaller ones – are spoilt for natural choice with more than 227 species of identified birds, as well as whales, dolphins, elephant seals, sea lions, delicate flora and rugged geographical formations.

They also have more sunshine hours than the UK making a visit, despite the distance, well worth considering.

Here travelbite.co.uk takes a look at what is happening over the course of 2009 and makes a few suggestions on when to visit.

January

Gentoo and rockhopper penguin chicks start to hatch early in the year. Lucky holidaymakers might also see sea lions mating.

Head to one of the outlying islands, such as Sea Lion Island or Saunders Island, for the best viewing opportunities while sampling true laid back island life.

February

Gentoo penguin parents will be foraging for food for their chicks, while Magellanic penguin chicks will be leaving their burrows for the first time.

In 2009 it will also be possible to follow in the footsteps of Charles Darwin during the bicentenary of his birth. Guests are invited to visit the settlement of Darwin on East Falkland, which is named after the famous naturalist who spent some time here during his travels in 1833 and 1834.

Darwin’s waterfront setting makes it the ideal location for watching wildlife such as night herons, ruddy-headed and upland geese, and blackish oystercatchers. Also, make sure to catch the special commemorative exhibition at the Falkland Islands Museum in Stanley.

March

During March Sports Week marks the traditional end to the sheep shearing season in Camp (a Falklands’ term for the countryside, derived from the Spanish word campo).

After five months of hard labour on the farms, it’s seen by islanders as a time to relax and celebrate the gathering of another year’s wool clip. Visitors can just spectate, or join in the programme of horse racing, sheep and dog trials, barbecues and children’s events.

March 15th will also see islanders and visitors take to their marks for the world’s most southerly marathon – Stanley Marathon.

The world’s most southerly AIMS-certified marathon takes place around Stanley, taking in the fantastic views of the capital.

Next year will be the fourth year the event has been organised by Standard Chartered Bank and proceeds go to Seeing is Believing, the bank’s charity for visually impaired people.

June

As the winter starts, the Liberation Day Parade commemorates the end of the Argentine occupation in 1982 and the Islanders’ deliverance by British Forces. A thanksgiving service is held, followed by a parade and a moving ceremony is then held at the Liberation monument in the capital Stanley.

For something less somber, braver members of the Falklands’ population take a mid-winter dip in the chilly waters of the South West Atlantic – probably something for guests to witness from the shore.

A fundraiser for local charities, the event takes place at aptly named Surf Bay some four or five kilometres east of Stanley.

August

Falklands Day, taking place in mid-August marks the first recorded sighting of the Islands on August 14th 1592 by English sea captain John Davis in the ship Desire.

The month also marks the return of the gentoo penguins to the Falkland Islands, who come to begin building their nests.

September

The following month the annual Crafts Fair will be held in Stanley and displays the work of local weavers, leather workers, photographers and other artists. Particularly interesting is the horse gear, whose origins lie in the 19th-century gaucho traditions.

Again for the naturalists, September is a great time to visit as the Magellanic penguin, black-browed albatross, southern giant petrel and southern elephant seal are among the species that return to the Falkland Islands for the summer.

The islands are also a tremendous place for a fishing holiday.

Few places can offer true wilderness fishing like the Falklands. Remote, unspoilt, pristine waters, stunning backdrops and strong runs of fish make the Falkland Islands one of the last great wilderness fishing experiences in the world.

Anglers can choose an itinerary of coastal estuaries, deep, isolated rivers and fast running streams. Brown trout common to northern Europe were introduced to the Falklands more than fifty years ago. This fast growing migratory fish quickly adapted to local conditions and now provides some of the finest fishing around.

December

It might be the end of the year, but it’s when new life starts on the Falkland Islands as the Magellanic penguins and black-browed albatross are among the other species whose eggs hatch this month.

On Battle Day, December 8th, the Falkland Islands also remember those lost – on both the British and German sides – in the South Atlantic at the Battles of Coronel and the Falkland Islands in 1914 and the Battle of the River Plate in 1939.

Finally, between December 26th and 28th, a Christmas horse race has been held at Stanley race course since 1912 and the event has become an exciting country race meeting with top class locally and internationally bred horses battling it out for a number of high value and status prizes.

Many Falklands residents enter their own horses and other side-events held at the meeting include bull riding, sheepdog trials and a gymkhana…

More Information

Visitors seeking to reach the Falklands can do so on the weekly LAN flight from Chile or the charter flight operated from RAF Brize Norton by the Ministry of Defence twice weekly.

There are also over 40 international tour operators offering tailor-made packages and escorted tours to the Falkland Islands. Click here for more information.

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SOURCE:
“A year in the Falkland Islands”
Tuesday, 16 Dec 2008
By Chris O’Toole
http://www.travelbite.co.uk
http://www.travelbite.co.uk/feature/south-and-central-america/falkland-islands/a-year-in-falkland-islands-$1255073.htm