Picton Castle’s World Voyage itinerary is full of exotic place names, including some you may never have heard of before. We specialize in visiting exotic tropical ports, taking our ship and crew to some unique, remote places. But that doesn’t mean it’s difficult to make travel arrangements to join the ship for a leg of the voyage. We design the itinerary so that leg changeovers take place in ports with easy airport access and good flight connections.
Trainee crew members who sign on to sail on the world voyage and make the full voyage will join the ship and depart the ship in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada. Those who sail for a leg of the voyage (or more than one leg) will join Picton Castle in one port and depart in another. Wonder where you would sign on and off each leg?
Leg 1 – join in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada, sign off in Avatiu, Rarotonga, Cook Islands
March 18, 2018 to August 1, 2018
Leg 2 – join in Avatiu, Rarotonga, Cook Islands, sign off in Benoa, Bali, Indonesia
August 2, 2018 to October 29, 2018
Leg 3 – join in Benoa, Bali, Indonesia, sign off in Cape Town, South Africa
October 30, 2018 to January 28, 2019
Leg 4 – join in Cape Town, South Africa, sign off in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada
January 29, 2019 to May 18, 2019
How do you get to these places?
Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada
Lunenburg is located on Nova Scotia’s South Shore on the Atlantic coast of Canada, about an hour and a half drive from the Halifax Stanfield International Airport. Halifax Stanfield has multiple flights daily direct from most major North American cities as well as many major European cities. To get from the airport to the ship, there are a few local shuttle services including Kiwi Kaboodle and Cloud Nine Shuttle. Picton Castle docks on Lunenburg’s waterfront, on Bluenose Drive.
Avatiu, Rarotonga, Cook Islands
The Cook Islands is a country in the South Pacific made up of 15 islands spread out over almost two million square kilometres of ocean. Rarotonga is the largest and most populated island in the Cooks, while still small, safe and friendly, and is the one island with an international airport. Flights go daily to New Zealand with a few different airlines and weekly to Los Angeles with Air New Zealand. To get from the airport to the ship, you can get a taxi at the airport. If you prefer to book a shuttle in advance, you could check out Raro Tours or Tiare Transport. Picton Castle docks in the harbour at Avatiu.
Benoa, Bali, Indonesia
The island of Bali’s major industry is tourism, so they’re all set up for visitors. The Bali Ngurah Rai International Airport has daily flights to a number of destinations, some within Indonesia and some to other Asian countries or to Australia or New Zealand. Getting from the airport to the ship is easy because there are so many taxis in Bali – just be sure to negotiate the price before you hop in. Picton Castle usually anchors in Benoa Harbour in Bali. We use our small boat to make runs between ship and shore every few hours, usually picking up from the Bali Marina (we will confirm this with anyone sailing on this leg closer to the ship’s arrival).
Cape Town, South Africa
Cape Town is the biggest city we sail to on the World Voyage, located in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The Cape Town International Airport is located just outside the city and has daily flights to major centres in Africa, Europe and Asia. On previous visits, our ship’s agent in Cape Town has made arrangements to pick up incoming trainee crew members, but if that’s not the case on this upcoming visit, taxis are readily available at the airport. Picton Castle docks at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town.
Exact details on where to find Picton Castle in each of these ports will be communicated to trainees closer to the ship’s arrival, as well as any updates or additional tips on traveling from the airport to the ship. While arranging flights and ground transportation is the responsibility of each trainee individually, our shore crew are happy to help provide details and advice based on first-hand experience in all of these ports.