NEW WHALE WATCHING vessel for the ST LUCIA operator

The ADVANTAGE CHARTER III has just been launched, again with more passenger comfort and safety in mind each vessel built by Danie Bennett is better than the one before. The ADVANTAGE CHARTER III is state of the art for the surf launching conditions in St Lucia, powered by 2 x 300HP Suzuki motors to get through the surf.

This is the 5^th vessel that Danie has completed, his vessels can be viewed on www.advantagetours.co.za under BENNETT BOAT BUILDERS, although up until now he has only built boats for their own use for the ADVANTAGE TOURS company , Danie will now start building boats for the tourism industry. All his boats are built under the auspices of SAMSA, and adheres to all the regulations the authority puts out.

 

Whale Watching St Lucia South Africa

Another successful exhilarating whale watching trip this morning  - saw 6 HUMPBACK WHALES and 4 Bottlenose Dolphins in close proximity to the vessel.

Many satisfied clientele , and a very emotional experience to see that enormous mammal whooooosh blow and then she emerges.

The Humpback Whales migrate past this coastline from the end of May to the middle of December specifically to mate and calf, as they would not be able to calf in the cold waters of the Antarctic, the little ones won’t have enough blubber to survive.

A trip aboard the ADVANTAGE CHARTER run by the Bennett family is a must if you are visiting the Kwazulu Natal coastline. To view sightings go to www.advantagetours.co.za

 

 

FW: WHALE WATCHING SEASON STARTING within a few days

 

 

 

DEAR KWAZULU NATALLERS’ !

 

We’re counting the days till we see the first HUMPBACK WHALES that start coming through for the annual breeding and calving migration....!

 

Like every other year I’ll try and keep in touch throughout the season about our sightings, but as always there are times that it is so hectic that I just don’t get the time.

 

This year we’ve made our web page much more user friendly, there is 3D picture gallery showing your client exactly what they can expect and what it is all about – so if your client is still hesitant in going , please let them browse the web page www.advantagetours.co.za

 

All the conditions of admission is also again on the web page and a clear description of what the client should bring along.

 

The rate for the 2009 season will be R770-00p.p – yes, it is costly, but it is an extreme costly operation, and like you all know Danie, he believes in operating with high standards, and to keep those high standards it obviously costs to maintain.....but like one of our visitors of last year said – R700-00 – wow – a lot of money, but he will gladly pay if a million times over for the same experience! The educational information given throughout the two hours on board will leave the client with much more knowledge about the whales.

 

Throughout the 2 hours on the water whilst ‘looking’ at the whales your clients will also be part of our research, if a whale breaches we go closer to the spot where they’ve breached to pick up slooth skin which we then send off to MCM to DNA purposes, and obviously do a lot of photo id’ing. We are also part of the South African Whale Disentanglement Unit but this won’t be done with clients on board, as it is a very risky business, and if there is ever a whale to be disentangled we will go out on a separate trip with only qualified trained staff members on board.

 

Comparing our rate to our Cape colleagues we are still much below, and in the area of St Lucia you have so much more to keep you busy after the whale trip –

 

As always please make sure that your client is on a legal boat based whale watching trip – all the legal operators in the country is mentioned on the SOUTH AFRICAN BOAT BASED WHALE WATCHING web page www.sabbwwa.org.za

 

You all know how I excitedly e-mail you throughout the season to say we have seen the most awesome sight on a specific day, and then my finger b.u.r.n.s. in the office to attach a photo, but not all of you want to receive photos on e-mail as it takes too long for your mail to download, so we’ve started an Advantage Tours St Lucia page on Facebook where we will be adding the best photos regularly.

 

Please make use of the special offer that we put out to you which is valid till the end of JUNE 2009 – if your client goes whale watching, they can have a free early morning or mid-day Hippo / Croc cruise ( not sunset cruise ). This offer only valid from the 1^st of June until the 30^th of June – the free trip can only be claimed after the client has already gone on a whale watching trip – not before -

 

Please keep in touch with the office re the times of departure.

 

Herewith wishing you all a great season and hoping for us all to have a whale of a time!

 

 

 

 ****please scroll down and read all the notices ****

                        

Warm Regards
Riëtte Bennett
St.Lucia Tours & Charters t/a Advantage Cruiser CC
e-mail:  advantage@zululink.co.za

web :    www.advantagetours.co.za

Tel   : +27 ( 035 ) 5901259

Fax  : +27 ( 035 ) 5901053

Cell  : 083 487 2762
Box 151, St Lucia,South Africa 3936
1 McKenzie Street,  St Lucia 3936, ** corner of Dolphin Supermarket  , the very first information office as you enter the town of St Lucia after crossing the bridge , at the traffic circle find parking immediately on the right (next to PEP stores) **

our GPS co-ordinates are :: S28 22. 335 E32 24. 773   ....St Lucia Village South Africa

 

 

CONTACT US FOR THE FOLLOWING :

 

WHALE WATCHING ( the only legal permit holder currently in KwaZulu Natal ), HIPPO & CROC BOAT CRUISES ( aboard the luxurious ADVANTAGE CRUISER ), DEEPSEA BIG GAME FISHING, iMFOLOZi /HLUHLUWE GAME RESERVE TRIPS, CAPE VIDAL SNORKEL SAFARIS, TURTLE TOURS, OCEAN ADVENTURE for DOLPHINS and other MARINE MAMMALS , HORSE RIDING , KAYAKING , etc . with experienced skipper/guides Danie, Bien and Berno and lady skipper/guides Riëtte Bennett and Natasha.

 

**PLEASE ALWAYS INFORM US IN GOOD TIME ABOUT GUIDE CHANGES and cell contact numbers - ** GUIDES TO DOUBLE CHECK ON DEPARTURE TIMES 24HOURS AHEAD OF TIME

 

Cancellation Policy :

In the event of notification of cancellation, the following cancellation fee shall apply on the full booking :

Less than  3 days prior to arrival: 100% cancellation fee

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whale Watching 24 June 2008

Great Whale Watching again  - beautiful windstill days and ocean conditions perfect! – Danie got a Minke Whale and 16 Humpbacks on the 07h00 trip, I’m still awaiting the sightings of the 2^nd trip.

According to weathersa the sea and wind conditions will remain good for the next couple of days, so please get the message out to your guests – obviously going on the whale watching trip they will have a whole other marine experience whilst out for the 2hours!

 

“Leviathan …

Upon earth there is not his like,

Who is made without fear.

Will he speak soft word unto thee ?”

 
From space, the planet is blue.

From space, the planet is the territory

Not of humans, but of the whale…

 
Above just some words from the book written by Heatcote Williams  - Whale Nation –

 
Did you know ?? - ??

The oil of the whales were used for and in : - soap, margarine, glycerol for lipstick, detergents, nitro glycerine throughout the time of World War I and World War II, for brushes and brooms, linoleum, medical trusses,  sausage skin, sword-hilts and scabbards, laces, surgical stitches, tennis racket strings, wax crayons, engineering coolant, golf-bags, varnishes, printing ink, insecticide, calcium for fertilizer, cat and dog food, the oil of the Sperm Whale specifically were the major source of lighting up houses, businesses, streets – no wonder whaling was such a huge industry in years gone by! It’s absolutely amazing how much of the whale was used for all kinds of materials….

Whale Watching 22 June 2008

Hallo Almal

 

Around the boat, behind the boat, in front of the boat, under the boat,  over the boat, ( ha ha ha ) jaaaaaaaaaaaaa….the Whale Sightings has been absolutely awesome today and yesterday with all your clientele happy chappies and smiling from ear to ear…! After each and every trip we get feedback from the skipper of the day of WHAT he saw, WHERE he saw them , WHAT the behavior was, WHAT the wind speed was etc etc for our logbooks to send data back to Marine and Coastal Management – and Bien was our captain on the 07h00 trip this morning , reported back that he had 5 HUMPBACK Whales, but the clients we’re in such awe, when they came into the office they said they saw about 13-14 Whales – so the perception of the sightings was absolutely stunning.

 

....people often approach us to comment on how fortunate we are to have the opportunity to watch and experience whales and dolphins firsthand. If we look at the rationale behind these comments, it would suggest to us that people see the opportunity to interact with cetaceans as a fulfilling and life-enriching experience. And it is essential for this reason that whale and dolphin tourism has become such an expanding and globally important industry. Many people travel thousands of miles each year and will un-characteristically get up long before dawn to be on the boat with us to experience a chance to encounter from a close distance with one of the world’s great species…..

 

Please keep in touch, the weather for the whole of the next week looks perfect, so let’s get those clients out of bed to go whale watching!

St. Lucia Estuary Self Catering Accommodation

Fishing is picking up in St. Lucia and with the up coming Snoek Derby some of the visitors might like to spend the evening

In St. Lucia .... Be prepaired for the Holiday rush book early ....

 

Self Catering Accommodation in St. Lucia

 

Saxmere Lodge	035 5901055
Lake St. Lucia Lodge	035 5901336	035 5901336
Seemeeu	035 5901224
Sunset Lodge	035 5901197	035 5901135

 

 

Or Visit our web site StLuciaOrgZa

good sightings ! Tail slaps , breaches

The clients that went out on the whale watching this morning had a BALL of good sightings ! Tail slaps , breaches , 8 Humpback Whales !!!!!!!!!!!!!1

So it's still wonderful out there , we're taking it day by day with the weather , DON'T NOT book because of possible bad weather , as sometimes people are disappointed IF the ''bad'' day DID turn out to be a GOOD day indeed ….

We'll rather then cancel and refund if need be , but rather make the bookings not to be disappointed .

GROETE vir eers !

Warm Regards
Riëtte Bennett
St.Lucia Tours & Charters t/a Advantage Cruiser CC
WebSite: www.advantagetours.co.za
e-mail     : advantage@zululink.co.za
+27 (0)35 – 5901259 (Tel)
+27 (0)35 – 5901053 (Fax)
Cell: 083 487 2762