Kuril Islands
15 Days - Sylvia Earle
Draped across the north Pacific Ocean from Hokkaido, Japan, to Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula, the 22 islands and 30 islets of the Kuril Islands form a necklace of active volcanoes and sea-sculpted coastlines waiting to be explored. Nutrient-rich waters washing this ‘Pacific Rim of Fire’ teem with marine life, from sea otters to harbour seals, Steller sea lions to orcas, Dall’s porpoise to beaked and sperm whales. The islands form a natural ‘flyway’ for migratory birds including both horned and tufted puffins, whiskered and rhinoceros auklets and exquisite little murrelets. You’ll Zodiac into flooded calderas, beneath soaring bird cliffs, to landings where brown bears fish for salmon. The fittest may even attempt to attempt to climb a volcano. Every day brings new adventure.
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Home » 15 Day Sylvia Earle: Kuril Islands
Itinerary Highlights:
- Marvelling at the sun-kissed beauty of snow-capped volcanoes, slowly revealed by rising sea mists
- Supercharged birdwatching along a migratory flyway alive with Siberian ruby throats, rough legged buzzards, snow buntings, spectacled pigeons, tufted puffins and rhinoceros auklets
- Zodiac cruising through waters boiling with Steller sea lions and pups, thousands of crested auklets and into the flooded caldera of Broutana Bay, an abandoned, secret submarine base from Soviet time.
- Trekking through a kaleidoscope of landscapes, from megaherb and coniferous forests to grasslands, lava fields and the flanks of active volcanoes. Watch for brown bears and cubs, and historical remains of Ainu (indigenous Japanese) settlements and World War II battles.
Itinerary Overview:
- Day 1: Tokyo
- Day 2: Fly to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy for embarkation
- Days 3-4: Russkaya Bay & Vestnik Bay
- Day 5: Shumshu Island, Atlasova Island
- Day 6: Onekotan Island
- Day 7: Ekarma Island; Shiashkotan Island
- Day 8: Srednego Islands; Lovyshki Island
- Day 9: Yankicha Island
- Day 10: Brat Chirpoyev, Chirpoy Island
- Day 11: Bliznecy Island, Novokuril'skaya Bay (Urup Island)
- Day 12: Tyuleniy Island
- Day 13: Moneron Island
- Day 14: Korsakov
- Day 15: Disembark in Otaru
![map](../../images/image_local/90319/web_standard_Arctic-Kuril-Islands-map.jpg)
Day 1: Tokyo
Upon check-in at Hotel Nikko Narita Airport, reception staff will provide you with your expeditions cabin tags. Please fill out the luggage tags clearly, showing your name and cabin number to allow us to deliver your luggage to your cabin ahead. At our voyage briefing, enjoy a welcome drink and meet fellow expeditioners, before spending the night in preparation for your charter flight to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy.
Accommodation: Hotel Nikko Narita Airport
Day 2: Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy
Board our charter flight to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy to embark the Sylvia Earle. After boarding, there is time to settle into your cabin before our important safety briefings. This evening meet your expedition team and crew at the Captain’s Welcome Dinner.
Day 3-4: Russkaya Bay & Vestnik Bay
Lush valleys and snow-capped volcanoes welcome you to Kamchatka’s east coast, where brown bears feast on berries and salmon. In Vestnik Bay, we explore the coast of Utashud Island by Zodiac, home to shy otters, Steller sea lions, seabirds and Kamchatka brown bears. Rounding Cape Lopatka, Kamchatka’s most southern point, you land in Kambalnyi Bay, to stretch your legs beneath the magnificent, 2,161m volcano, Kambal'naya Sopka. Across Kuril Strait, cruise kelp beds off Shumshu Island in search of curious otters ferrying pups, and the bobbing heads of spotted seals. Explore the bird cliffs of Ptichi Islands alive with puffins.
Day 5: Shumshu Island, Ataslova Island
Ashore, on Shumshu, a peaceful river snakes through grassy wetlands where lady-slipper orchids and wild roses bloom. On Atlasova, you land beneath a wind-sculpted hill of volcanic ash to explore remains of a Soviet gulag in the shadow of a near-perfect 2,339m volcano, Alaid, the highest in the Kurils. You’ll watch for nesting cormorants, buzzards, Eurasian wigeons, and tufted ducks, while peregrine falcons sometimes soar above the beach.
Day 6: Onekotan Island
Hike across Onekotan’s tundra, as it wakes to summer, and through bonsai pine forests to Black Lake, watching for red foxes and remains of Ainu dwellings. From Onekotan Island, we explore the coastline of nearby volcanic Kharimkotan or Makanrushi Islands by Zodiac.
Day 7: Ekarma Island, Shiashkotan Island
Explore Ekarma, sanctuary to many birds, including puffins, auklets, fulmars and cormorants. Sea otters swim just off the northeastern cape. Vast nesting colonies of storm petrels and remains of Ainu villages await you on Shiashkotan.
Day 8: Srednego Island, Lovyshki Island
Zodiac cruised around the rugged columnar stacks of the Srednego Islands, home to thousands of nesting seabirds including northern fulmars, guillemots, black-legged kittiwakes, and whiskered auklets. Nearby Lovyshik Islands are small, often fog-bound, rocky islets where you are approached by boisterous Steller sea lions northern fur seals.
Day 9: Yankicha Island
Intriguing and beautiful, this uninhabited island hides a flooded volcanic caldera of emerald green waters. Accessible by Zodiac only at high tide, the lagoon, offers you fumarole fields, hot springs and bubbles rising from the sea floor. Walk to the crater rim in search of blue foxes, while at dusk, watch as spectacular concentrations of crested and whiskered auklets stream back from the sea.
Day 10: Brat Chirpoyev, Chirpoy Island
Evocative mists often engulf Chirpoy islands, lifting to reveal dramatic basalt columns of Brat Chirpoyev as you approach by Zodiac, surrounded by thousands of northern fulmars, kittiwakes, the odd puffin and sea otters. Otherworldly roars herald the Steller’s sea lion colony on Chirpoy, with the promise of a hike up the flanks of an active volcano when you land.
Day 11: Bliznecy Island, Novokuril'skaya Bay (Urup Island)
Urup offers 120 kilometres of stunning volcanoes, lush vegetation, lakes and rivers. Cruise the ‘Twins’, a geological wonderland of twisted basalt sea cliffs, hike to Japanese bunkers with spectacular views and tufted puffin nests. On the west coast, you may Zodiac through basalt tunnels of Petroskov Rocks.
Day 12: Tyuleniy Island
Meaning seal in Russian, Tyuleniy attracts as many as 250,000 individuals that gather here each summer during their breeding season. You’ll be greeted by a cacophony of barks as you approach the island by Zodiac. Search the sea cliffs for nesting black-legged kittiwakes; crested, whiskered and rhinoceros auklets; tufted puffins, common and thick-billed murres, and ancient murrelets.
Day 13&14: Korsakov
At Korsakov, at the southern tip of Sakhalin Island, we clear Russian customs for entry into Japan. For much of its history, control of Korasakov oscillated between Japan and Russia, until the town was ceded to the Soviet Union at end of World War Two. You might explore the port town while the Sylvia Earle finalises its exit clearance before departing for Otaru, Japan.
Note: Today you will cross the international date line, therefore loose a day
Day 15: Otaru
Disembark in the harbour city of Otaru, Hokkaido. Transfer to Sapporo to continue your journey.
Cabin Details
Aurora Triple Stateroom
22.67m2 (244ft2) located on deck 3, 2 single beds, private en-suite bathroom, porthole window, desk area, closet space, room-controlled thermostat, safe & 42" flat-screen TV.
Aurora Superior Stateroom
20.1-22.3sqm, located on deck 7, french balcony, double bed, private en-suite bathroom, desk area, 42" flat screen TV, room-controlled thermostat, safe, closet space.
Balcony Stateroom (C)
21 - 24.8sqm (cabin + balcony), located on deck 4 & 6, twin or double bedding, private en-suite bathroom, floor to ceiling window, desk space, closet space, private balcony, room-controlled thermostat, safe & 42" flat screen TV.
Balcony Stateroom (B)
21 - 24.8sqm (cabin + balcony), located on deck 4 & 6 (fore and aft), twin or double bedding, private en-suite bathroom, floor to ceiling window, desk area, closet space, private balcony, room-controlled thermostat, safe & 42" flat screen TV.
Balcony Stateroom (A)
21 - 24.8sqm (cabin + balcony), located on deck 4 & 6 (close to internal stairs/elevator), twin or double bedding, private en-suite bathroom, floor to ceiling window, desk area, closet space, private balcony, room-controlled thermostat, safe & 42" flat screen TV.
Superior Balcony Stateroom
30.5 - 40.2sqm (cabin + balcony), located on deck 4, twin or double bedding, private en-suite bathroom, full size window, desk area, closet space, private balcony, room-controlled thermostat, safe & 42" flat screen TV.
Junior Suite
38.9sqm (cabin + balcony), located on deck 7, twin or double bedding, private en-suite bathroom, full size window, desk area, closet space, private balcony, room-controlled thermostat, safe, 42" flat screen TV & separate lounge area.
Captain's Suite
44.5sqm (cabin + balcony), located on deck 4, twin or double bedding, private en-suite bathroom, full size window, desk area, closet space, private balcony, room-controlled thermostat, safe, 42" flat screen TV & separate lounge area.
Sylvia Earle Deckplan
![deck plan](../../images/image_local/75187/web_standard_210817-SE-A3-Deck-Plan3.jpg)
Specifications
- Cabins: 71
- Number of passengers: 132
- Decks: 8
- Length: 104m
- Year Built: Launching in 2021
- Speed: 10-12 knots
Whats included?
- One night’s hotel accommodation at Hotel Nikko Narita Airport including breakfast on day 1
- Charter flights: Tokyo-Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy
- Transfer from airport to pier in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy on day 2
- Transfer from Otaru pier to Sapporo airport on day 15
- Onboard accommodation during voyage including daily cabin service
- All meals, snacks, tea and coffee during voyage
- Beer, house wine and soft drinks with dinner
- Captain’s Welcome and Farewell reception including four-course dinner, house cocktails, house beer and wine, non-alcoholic beverages
- All shore excursions and Zodiac cruises
- Educational lectures and guiding services from expedition team
- Complimentary access to onboard expedition doctor and medical clinic
- A 3-in-1 waterproof polar expedition jacket
- Complimentary use of muck boots during the voyage
- Comprehensive pre-departure information
- Port surcharges, permits and landing fees
- Gratuities for ship crew
What’s not included?
- International or domestic flights not mentioned in the itinerary
- Transfers not mentioned in the itinerary
- Airport arrival or departure taxes
- Passport, visa, and vaccination charges
- Travel insurance or emergency evacuation charges
- Hotels and meals not included in itinerary
- Optional excursions not included in the itinerary
- Optional activity surcharges
- All items of a personal nature including but not limited to: alcoholic beverages and soft drinks (outside of dinner service), laundry services, personal clothing, medical expenses, gratuities, Wi-Fi, email or phone charges
Notes
Optional Activities:
- Sea Kayaking: US$870/AU$1200 per person
- Scuba Diving: US$940/AU$1300 per person
- Snorkelling: US$580/AU$800 per person