Itinerary – Departing Monday 5th July 2010
Weather prospects for this event
strongly favour Polynesia so our Total Solar Eclipse Tour will be based
in Tahiti with observation from the islands of Anaa or Hikueru.
The programme includes flights from London to Papeete with a stay on
the islands of Tahiti and Moorea, and a special charter flight to Anaa
with accommodation on this remote coral atoll. Extensions to the
programme include an extended stay in French Polynesia, a stopover in
Los Angeles with a visit to Mount Wilson Observatory, a tour of both
islands of New Zealand, and a choice of "round the world” itineraries.
Your midday flight to Tahiti will be from London with an en route
stop and overnight in Los Angeles. Arrival in Tahiti is late evening
the following day. Your first two nights will be at the Manava Suite
Resort on Tahiti and the next morning we join the ferry for the one
hour crossing to the idyllic island of Moorea, where we stay at the
luxurious Moorea Pearl Resort. Although just 13km from the island of
Tahiti, this volcanic island has spectacular scenery with steep eroded
cliffs soaring up to 1,200m and endless white sand beaches. We have two
nights on this beautiful island before we join our flight to the
observation site. (For more about a total solar eclipse
click here.)
We have arranged three special charter flights to observe the
event, the two to Anaa about one hour flying time from Papeete and
one to Hikueru a journey of about 1 hour 45 mins.
Observation from Anaa
On the Standard Programme you will fly to Anaa the day before the
eclipse and two nights' accommodation will be provided on the island,
either in simple beach chalets or in islanders' homes, and a communal
feast will be provided in the evening by the local people (with a
little imported help...). Your charter flight will return you to Tahiti
to join your international flight or continue with any extension.
Eclipse times for Anaa -
1st contact 07.19.07
2nd contact 08.32.35
3rd contact 08.34.59
4th contact 10.00.00
The "Day Trip" charter flight is scheduled to land on Anaa at
06.00hrs and depart at 11.00hrs. These times are for our observation
site just south of the air strip on the island. For passengers on the
Standard Programme, the duration of totality can increase to almost 3
minutes by observing further south on the island and some local
"speedboats" will be available to make this 45 minute trip (additional
cost).
Observation from Hikueru
This island is about as remote as it gets! We will be staying two
nights on this island and you will need to bring your own sleeping bag
and sleeping mat. You will be one of just 40 people enjoying almost
the longest eclipse duration of any island in Polynesia. Details of the
Hikueru programme are shown below.
Eclipse times for Hikueru-
1st contact 07.22.14
2nd contact 08.37.11
3rd contact 08.41.30
4th contact 10.07.54
Standard Programme (8 days) £3,499
Price is per person in twin share (single supplement £497)
Includes international flights from London, all transfers, hotel
accommodation as indicated (room and buffet breakfast only in Moorea
and Tahiti), private charter flight to Anaa Atoll and accompanied by
expert guest lecturers and an experienced tour escort.
Supplement for observation from Hikueru is £425 per person.
Please Note - for new
bookings flights and hotel accommodation on this programme are on
request and subject to confirmation by the airlines and hotels.
Los Angeles Program (7 days) US$4,845
Price is per person in twin share (single supplement $845)
Includes program as above but with flights from Los Angeles and no LA accommodation.
Supplement for observation from Hikueru is US$635 per person.
Please
Note - for new bookings flights and hotel accommodation on this
programme are on request and subject to confirmation by the airlines
and hotels.
"Day Trip" Charter Flight to Anaa €760
We now have limited space on a "Day Trip"charter flight from
Papeete to Anaa available on 11th July. The flight departs at 04.40hrs
and will arrive on Anaa at 06.00hrs in time to observe the complete
eclipse. The return flight will arrive in Papeete by midday. A
special briefing for clients on this programme will be provided by our
experts at the Manava Hotel during the evening of 10th July.
Charter Flight to Anaa €1,045
Charter flight from Papeete to Anaa flying on 10th July and providing two nights local accommodation, with meals, on the island.
Charter Flight to Hikueru €1,295
This programme includes the flight from Papeete to Hikueru on the
10th July, returning on the morning of 12th July, overnight camping
accommodation for two nights on Hikueru and meals on the island.
(Now wait-list only on this programme)
Hikueru Programme
The local people have now provided us with the proposed programme
for the stay on Hikueru. Please remember that this is a very remote
place with a small isolated population and an understanding attitude to
variations from the plan will help your enjoyment of this unique
experience!
Saturday July 10th
Traditional welcome at the airport with sampling of local products
Transfer by boat from the airport to the Village and then to the camp
site (the air strip is located on a separate island in the lagoon)
Dinner (fried fish served with rice, water)
Introduction to the local council and show
Sunday July 11th
Breakfast (tea, Tahitian coffee with coconut milk, chocolate milk,
firifiri (local donuts), different Pa’umotu breads, jam, butter, juice,
local fruits (almonds), water
Viewing the Eclipse. After the Eclipse, activities such as coconut
demonstration, pandanus weaving demonstration, pandanus head crown
demonstration
Lunch, traditional food buffet (with fish, chicken, rice, vegetables and fruits), coconut water, water
Visit to the village
Dinner (Homemade noodle soup, ham, vegetables, bread, fruits, water)
Show (Mini Heiva Festival)
Monday July 12th
Brunch (tea, Tahitian coffee with coconut milk, chocolate milk,
Tahitian fish , different Pa’umotu breads, jam, butter, juice, water)
Farewell departure show
Shell lei and transfer to the village and join the boat to the airport.
The camping site has electricity, water, 2 showers, 2 toilets, a
Fare Potee dining room and kitchen and 4 Fare Potee sleeping rooms
(these are local palm thatched wood buildings).
Anaa Programme
A similar programme to that planned for Hikueru will also be
provided on Anaa. The air strip is on the main island just five
minutes from the village. Accommodation is in various village houses
and communal meals will be provided by the families.
Saturday July 10th
Early afternoon arrival and traditional welcome at the airport.
Meet your host family and transfer from the airport to the Village. Dinner with your host family.
Sunday July 11th
Breakfast - Transfer to the observation site south of the airport to view the Eclipse.
After the Eclipse various activities and entertainment around the village.
Lunch with your host family.
Celebration Dinner and Show in the village.
Monday July 12th
Breakfast, transfer to the airport and farewell
Electricity, water, showers, flush toilets are provided in all the houses.
Moorea Pearl Resort
Accommodation will be in the Garden Bungalows at the resort.
Upgrade to Garden Bungalow with private pool is available for an
additional £169 per person or an Overwater Bungalow for £249 per
person.
Moorea extension
Enjoy an additional two nights on this spectacular island.
Price £242 per person (twin share), room and buffet breakfast only.
Manava Suite Resort
Tahiti extension
Four extra nights at the Manava Resort giving additional time to explore the main island of French Polynesia.
Price £436 (twin share, single supplement £396), room and buffet breakfast only.
Los Angeles stopover
Mount Wilson Observatory
Fly out earlier and enjoy a three day stopover in Los Angeles, with a
tour of the highlights of this vibrant city plus a trip up the
spectacular Angeles Crest Highway to visit the historic Mount Wilson
Observatory in the San Gabriel Mountains.
Stopover
price £349 (3 days) per person (twin share)
Includes airport transfers, three nights' accommodation in Los
Angeles (room only), half day tour of the city and a visit to Mount
Wilson Observatory.
Weather prospects for the eclipse
The following summary is taken from the definitive analysis
published by NASA as part of their work in assisting observations of
solar eclipses -
"French Polynesia is the clear-cut choice for
the best weather prospects, but land-based sites are scarce ....
Mangaia and Easter Island are the largest islands in the track, with
more-or-less the same chances of sunshine—about 50%. If observing
requirements dictate solid ground, then the choice is among one of
these or the few reachable islands in the Tuamotus [French Polynesia].
Easter Island has, by far, the most developed infrastructure and the
most convenient travel, but the small French Polynesian atolls offer
the best weather."
from NASA’s Annular and Total Solar Eclipses of 2010, Espenak & Anderson 2008
Our Experts
We have three special guest lecturers with us on our trip to
Polynesia to observe this event. Broadcasters and authors Heather
Couper and Nigel Henbest are always good company and their
communication skills will be a great benefit to the party. Sheridan
Williams will have specific responsibility for the Hikueru group and
will also be of great assistance with the technical "number crunching"
requirements of the expedition.
Sheridan Williams FRAS
Sheridan is a Director of the Computing Section of the British Astronomical Association (BAA)
and
a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society. A seasoned eclipse-chaser
he has seen 12 total solar eclipses and has written several eclipse
books and publications on eclipses. As the "astronomy expert" for
various tour companies he has taken groups to places as diverse as
Siberia, the Sahara, Atacama and Gobi Deserts, Madagascar, Antigua,
China, India and Libya to witness astronomical events such as eclipses,
aurorae and meteor showers.
In the 1970s he worked as a "Rocket
Scientist" with the Ministry of Defence using analogue computers; later
he ran his own computer company for 20 years before he retired. He now
spends his time compiling the BAA’s Handbook, as well as being a
volunteer in Bletchley Park's National Museum of Computing with
Colossus (the world’s first programmable electronic computer). He is
also the secretary of the Open University Astronomy Club and gives
talks to clubs and societies.
Nigel Henbest
Nigel
Henbest is an internationally recognized writer and broadcaster on
astronomy, space and science. At Cambridge University he researched
radio astronomy, where he studied supernovae, radio galaxies and
quasars. He developed geophysical equipment that he installed on Mt
Etna. He became media consultant to the Royal Greenwich Observatory,
Astronomy Consultant to New Scientist magazine and Editor of the
Journal of the British Astronomical Association. A prolific author,
(together with Heather Couper he has written more than 30 books and
over 1,000 articles), Nigel is also an award-winning TV producer and
scriptwriter and runs Pioneer Productions, bridging the arts and
sciences and specialising in factual and scientific programming.
Heather Couper
Heather
Couper is a leading international communicator on astronomy and space.
She studied astrophysics at Leicester and Oxford Universities and went
on to run the Greenwich Planetarium. She later became President of the
British Astronomical Association and Gresham Professor of Astronomy.
After presenting two TV series for Channel 4, Heather and two
colleagues set up Pioneer Productions – now one of the leading factual
TV companies in the UK. She was the producer of Universe, and of the
international award-winning programme Electric Skies – the classic film
on lightning. Having left Pioneer to concentrate on a wider range of
ventures, she divides her time between writing (she is the author and
co-author of more than 30 books) and broadcasting (she has presented
many radio and television programmes including a profile of Stephen
Hawking for BBC Television and is currently presenting a 30 part series
called Cosmic Quest on BBC Radio 4.)