Seabourn Pursuit is designed and built for diverse environments to PC6 Polar Class standards and includes modern hardware and technology that will extend the ships’ global deployment and capabilities. It will carry two custom-built submarines, 24 Zodiacs, kayaks, and a 24-person expert expedition team whose role is to engage guests throughout each voyage.
Day 1 Darwin
Darwin
Soak up Darwin's balmy weather and the melting pot of food and cultures in the city's many outdoor festivals and markets. Then explore the region's dramatic history - from World War II air raids to Cyclone Tracey - in the museums and galleries. Sail Darwin harbour at sunset, cruise next to crocodiles and bushwalk through monsoon forest. Swim in the crystal-clear waterholes of Litchfield National Park and visit the colourful communities of the Tiwi Islands. This vibrant, tropical capital has a youthful energy you'll find hard to resist.
Five ways to discover Darwin and its surrounds:
1. At festivals, markets and on the harbour In Darwin, the action happens outside - in markets, parks, by the beach or on boats. You can join the locals with a crate and a plate of sizzling satay at The Mindil Beach Sunset Markets from May to October. Or watch them build boats out of beer or soft drink cans at the annual Darwin Beer Can Regatta in July. At the Deckchair Cinema from April to November you can watch movies under a canopy of stars with a drink from the bar and a picnic dinner. Soak up Darwin's tropical weather with a harbourside dinner at Cullen Bay Marina or a sunset harbour cruise complete with a history lesson.
2. With wildlife and in tropical parklands
Cycle past orchids and bromeliads and traditional Aboriginal plants in George Brown Botanic Gardens. Swim, have a sunset barbecue and explore sacred Aboriginal sites at Casuarina Coastal Reserve. In Berry Springs Nature Park, you can spot birds in monsoon forest and fish in the crystal clear swimming holes. Get up close to fish, birds-of-prey, nocturnal animals and reptiles in the Territory Wildlife Park, a 45-minute drive from Darwin. Have a close crocodile encounter at Crocodylus Park, the Darwin Crocodile Farm or on a crocodile cruise along Darwin's coastal fringe and rivers.
3. Hot on the heels of history
Learn more about Darwin's rich Aboriginal heritage in the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory. Here you can also relive the tragic Cyclone Tracy which hit Darwin on Christmas Eve in 1974. See the Chinese Temple it nearly destroyed in Litchfield Street. Darwin endured 64 Japanese air raids in World War II, and you can watch dramatic footage of the bombings and visit the bunker where Top End defense strategy was planned at East Point Military Museum. See original B52 bomber planes at the Aviation Heritage Centre and a network of walking trails leading to World War II oil tunnels around the Wharf Precinct. In Myilly Point Historical Precinct you can see some of the few surviving cottages designed by architect B.C.G Burnett in the colonial style popular before World War II.
4. Under the waterfalls of Litchfield National Park
Make time for a day trip to the waterfalls and plunge pools, wildlife and birdlife, ranges and rainforest of Litchfield National Park, a one-and-a-half hour drive from Darwin. Swim in the crystal-clear swimming hole at the base of Florence Falls and bush-walk through monsoon rain-forest to Walker Creek. Picnic next to roosting fruit bats at Wangi Falls and see sweeping valley views at Tolmer Falls. Take a wildlife cruise on the Reynolds River, part of a working cattle station. Explore this Tarzan landscape with traditional Aboriginal owners the Wagait people or peer into a pastoral past in the ruins of Blyth Homestead.
5. On a trip to the Tiwi Islands
Join in the excitement of the Tiwi Islands Grand Football Final, held every March in Nguiu. Browse and buy Tiwi art, distinctive for its strong design, decorative features and vivid colours. Take billy tea and damper tea with Tiwi ladies as they demonstrate traditional weaving and painting. Then watch them perform a traditional dance and a smoking ceremony to clear bad spirits. Catch big barramundi on a fishing tour on the Tiwi coast. You'll find a warm welcome and a lush landscape of rainforest, beaches and rock pools on Melville and Bathurst Islands, together known as the Tiwi Islands. Explore them on a day or overnight tour, traveling a 20-minute flight or two-hour ferry from Darwin.
Day 2 At Sea
Day 3 Ambon Island
Ambon island, known for its sun, sea, and spices, is the capital city of Maluku, Indonesia. Undoubtedly the greatest attraction in Ambon island is the diving and snorkeling. The highlight of diving in Ambon is its underwater garden. Coral growth here is amazing. Large size sea fans, barrel sponges and table corals are abundant. Visitors also have the opportunity to visit white sandy beaches, museums, the nutmeg factory, and local plantations.
Day 4 At Sea
Day 5 Kokas
Day 6 Misool Island
Day 7 Yenwaoupnor
Day 7 Mansuar Island
Day 8 Manokwari
Day 9 Cenderawasih Bay
Day 10 Cenderawasih Bay
Day 11 Jayapura
The capital of Irian Jaya (Papua), this busy seaport was founded by the Dutch in 1910. Surrounded by steep hills and the Teluk Yos Sudarso Bay, this picturesque town is a perfect place to stop for lunch while watching the ships come into harbor.
Day 12 Vanimo
Day 13 At Sea
Day 14 Garove Island (Witu Islands)
Garove Island is the largest of the Witu (Vitu) Islands, and contains the Garove volcano, which has a three mile caldera that opens to the sea.
Day 15 Duke of York Island
Day 15 Rabaul
Rabaul and it's Harbor is to the New Guinea islands as the Metro is to Paris. Tokua airport is the gateway to the islands region. Rabaul is surrounded by friendly native villages and the local dialect is called Kuanua and its people are called Tolai's.
Day 16 At Sea
Day 17 Gizo
A small town that consists primarily of a main street on the waterfront, Gizo is an ideal location for visitors seeking unique and diverse diving experiences.
Day 18 Honiara
Known as the "Happy Isles," the Solomons are one of the best-kept secrets in the Pacific. These are islands of great natural beauty from jungle-clad peaks and active volcanoes to dashing waterfalls, misty rainforests, turquoise lagoons, and brilliant coral reefs. The islands' variety of cultures and customs is also striking. In Honiara, backstreet quonset huts and an occasional, rusty wreckage provide grim reminders of World War II; over 25,000 Japanese and American soldiers were killed or wounded on Guadalcanal. Honiara has been the capital of the Solomon Islands since Tulagi was devastated during World War II.
Day 19 At Sea
Day 20 Vanikoro
Day 21 Ambrym Island
Called the 'Land Before Time' - Ambrym is one of the few places on Earth where you can see the seething active lava lakes in the heart of twin volcanoes, for Ambrym Island is the remains of a huge volcano plunging into the surrounding Pacific Ocean.
Day 22 At Sea
Day 23 Lautoka
Lautoka is sited in the western side of Viti Levu, the largest island in Fiji, and approximately 250 km from Suva, the capital. The city is surrounded with the blue Pacific Ocean on the western side and green gold sugar cane together with pine trees on the other sides. This side of the island is more diverse. One of the prime shopping areas nearby is the town of Nadi.
Day 24 Kadavu Island
Day 25 At Sea
Day 26 Vavau
This is a place where pressures are washed way by the gentle lapping of the sea on stunningly beautiful white coral sand beaches and the whisper of the trade winds through lush green coconut plantations. On the main island of Vava'u is located the group's tiny capital Neiafu perched above Port of Refuge Harbor, unquestionably one of the most beautiful natural harbours in the world. Neiafu and its surrounding villages are home to about a third of Vava'u Islands overall population of about 20,000. The majority of the Vava'u people live in small villages dotted on the islands throughout the group. Try to visit Swallows Cave and Nuku Island while you are there.
Day 27 Nuku Island
Day 28 At Sea
Day 29 Apia
Cradled along Upolu's northern shore lies the peaceful township of Apia. Picturesque thatched-roof "fales" blend into the emerald-hued countryside. Jagged mountains rise above deserted beaches where trade winds sigh on coconut palms. Banana groves and bread-fruit trees gently ripen in the moist, tropical climate. Western Samoa's friendly, carefree islanders will welcome you and proudly show you the former home of their adopted son, Robert Louis Stevenson. This is a contented island where traditional ways hold despite the passage of time.
Day 29 Cross International Dateline
Travel across the International Dateline and step forward or backward in time one day.
Day 29 At Sea
Day 30 At Sea
Day 31 Aitutaki
This magnificent and remote island is the stuff of which dreams are made. It is a triangular-shaped almost-atoll consisting of three volcanic and 12 coral islets (motus). It was probably first settled around 900 AD and one of the great legendary Polynesian discoverers was Ru who named it Utataki Enua O Ru Ki Te Moana. Roughly translated, this means The Leading of a Cargo of People by Ru Over the Ocean. It can be inferred Aitutaki was, therefore, the ultimate destination, and it still is today.
Day 32 At Sea
Day 33 Raiatea
Tahitians believe Raiatea to be the sacred birthplace of their gods and their religious and cultural beginnings. The most important and well-preserved religious site in all of Polynesia is here. It is from these shores that ancient Polynesian explorers are said to have ventured to the far off lands of Hawaii and New Zealand. Second only in size to the Island of Tahiti, Raiatea is today the trading center of the leeward islands. Raiatea is unique in that it has the only navigable river in Polynesia - the Faaroa. The rare, white gardenia called Tiare Apetahi only grows on the slopes of Mount Temehani and nowhere else on Earth! Mount Temehani is also the supposed birthplace of Oro, one principal god of Polynesia. There is a large, protected lagoon around Raiatea and its sister island Tahaa, which produces wonderful beaches and the perfect location for sailing, big game fishing, and diving.
Day 34 Maroe Bay, Huahine
Day 35 Papeete
Papeete, the modern and bustling capital of Tahiti and Her Islands, contains
government offices, Gendarmerie, hospitals and clinics, banks and many other
services dedicated to serving the population of the islands as well as tourists
who come for a life-enriching experience to these magical islands.