Ascension Island, St Helena and Cape Town

It's not everyone who wants to spend so much time at sea or, indeed, can spare the time. For these folk we suggest that you cut out sailing from Portland to Ascension Island (see tour 165a) and, instead, fly to the latter with the Royal Air Force from RAF Brize Norton. You then have a couple of nights on Ascension - with tours included so that you can see a little of this fascinating place - before joining the Royal Mail Ship St Helena when she arrives in Ascension from Portland.

Our small Island Holidays group is escorted by a tour manager/leader who is on hand to ensure all the arrangements run smoothly and also to be on hand to help to identify the birds and marine animals which you will see during your trip.

It's just two nights on the ship from Ascension to St Helena and, when you go ashore, there's a week long programme which has been prepared exclusively for the Island Holidays group and which takes in all aspects of St Helena's history, natural history and culture. We even visit the distillery and plant a tree in the Millennium Forest. All your tours are included in the cost of the holiday.

While we're on the island the RMS will do its shuttle run back to Ascension and then we rejoin her for the five-night sail to Cape Town. Upon arrival we have a short programme to explore a little of the Western Cape and the city itself - it's not wise to plan to fly back the same day the ship is scheduled to arrive just in case of delays. Again all this is included in the cost of the holiday, as is the return flight - there are no hidden extras.

Alternative St Helena Tours

• Tour 170 • Jan. & Feb 2012
  London • Cape Town • St Helena • Cape Town • London
• Fully Updated 2011-2012 RMS St Helena Schedule
• About St Helena tourism

Your Itinerary

Sunday 23rd October
Our Royal Air Force flight leaves Brize Norton in Oxfordshire in the late evening. Please note that you will not be returning to Brize Norton and it might be advisable to use public transport and a taxi from Oxford rather than take your car - unless you have a really good friend who will take you!

Monday 24th October
We arrive on Ascension Island around 0800 hours. Once we've cleared immigration it's a short 10-minute drive to the Obsidian Hotel which will be our base for the next two nights. We'll have a free morning to freshen up and relax after the journey before setting off to explore the island. The itinerary will be flexible and depend on the local conditions but we will have an excellent introduction to this fascinating place. At some stage during our stay there may be the opportunity for a swim at one of the two "safe" beaches - the sea can be quite rough and the undercurrents are strong.

Tuesday 25th October
We'll set off about 9.30 for a full day tour of the island, including a visit to the Green Mountain National Park. There is a tremendous variety of habitats and scenery on this initially apparently barren island and we'll be in good company to learn much about the island and the conservation work which is going on. Dinner tonight will be at the Obisdian Hotel - where the bar is the centre of the community. Later in the evening we'll go down to Long Beach with our friends from Ascension Island Conservation to watch as Green Turtles come ashore to lay their eggs - a very moving experience.

Wednesday 26th October
The first job of the day is to nip down to the quay to check in our bags for the Royal Mail Ship which should have arrived around 8 o'clock in the morning. We'll then have a free morning to wander around town or perhaps go to the local church if you wish. After an early lunch it's time to board the ship and settle in to our cabins for the beginning of our wonderfully old-fashioned sea voyage.

Your itinerary now follows Tour 165a. The point where the 2 tours meet is marked.

Please note itineraries can be changed without notice and at the sole discretion of your tour leader.