KD_Reno
Gold Member
Thought I'd share some information about my Galapagos trip for those who might be interested.
We used these folks for our arrangements:
galapagostravel.online
As I understand it, CNH took over Galapagos Travel when the previous owner decided to retire. GT is the company that caught my eye several years ago when I first stated looking. They handled everything, including flights to the islands, transit cards and park entrance fees. You can probably save some money by doing your own pre-cruise legwork, but you're on your own if there's a problem. If there had been a flight delay our group was all together, so the boat wasn't going to leave without us.
We did the first half of the photo tour with Tui De Roy. She is an accomplished photographer and writer who grew up in the Galapagos. I considered the 11-day Natural History Tour, but there were some discounts on the photo tour. It wasn't a photography workshop type of tour, and Tui was more a naturalist/expedition leader, although she was happy to give photography advice. Basically it was a tour for people interested in photography and more deliberate nature study.
Although there are a few towns and some private land on the larger islands, most of the archipelago is a national park, with strictly controlled access. Vistors to most sites must be accompanied park guides. Regulations require 1 guide per 16 visitors, and that what many tours use. We had two guides (plus Tui) and a group of 15. With two guides we could spread out, and stop longer when we found something interesting. There were several instances when groups arrived after us and passed us on the trail, looking a bit like they were on a forced march. Our guides both enjoyed the lower ratio as well and mentioned how rushed they often were when guiding alone.
There are some hotels, and it's possible to stay on land and take some day trips, but those burn a lot of daylight just going back and forth. On a cruise most of the long passages are made at night. There are some 40-50 boats. Many taking 14-16 passengers. Some, like the National Geographic boats take over 100. To manage visitor impact each boat has a specific two-week itinerary, with stops at specific sites on specific islands. These are typically split into two one-week itineraries, which can be combined, and some offer 4 or 11 day segments.
Because we only did one week, we missed Fernandina and Isabella, so no Penguins or Flightless Cormorants, but we did get to Genovesa and Espańola, which most boats do not include in a single week. Genovesa was fantastic, with up close views of nesting seabirds. Espańola has the Waved Albatross colony, which was on my must see list. Note that they leave when the chicks fledge in December and start returning in April. The other islands we visited during our week were San Cristóbal, Floreana, South Plaza, Santa Fe and Santa Cruz. Something interesting to see on every one.
Here's our boat, the Anahi, and one of the inflatables they call pangas. We rode in one for every outing.
We used these folks for our arrangements:
Galapagos Travel
galapagostravel.online
Helping you organize a trip of a lifetime - Home
We've been helping people like you plan and book their trip of a lifetime since 1999. Galapagos, Antarctica, the Arctic, Pantanal, Okavango, Easter Island, Madagascar and more.
www.cnhtours.com
As I understand it, CNH took over Galapagos Travel when the previous owner decided to retire. GT is the company that caught my eye several years ago when I first stated looking. They handled everything, including flights to the islands, transit cards and park entrance fees. You can probably save some money by doing your own pre-cruise legwork, but you're on your own if there's a problem. If there had been a flight delay our group was all together, so the boat wasn't going to leave without us.
We did the first half of the photo tour with Tui De Roy. She is an accomplished photographer and writer who grew up in the Galapagos. I considered the 11-day Natural History Tour, but there were some discounts on the photo tour. It wasn't a photography workshop type of tour, and Tui was more a naturalist/expedition leader, although she was happy to give photography advice. Basically it was a tour for people interested in photography and more deliberate nature study.
Although there are a few towns and some private land on the larger islands, most of the archipelago is a national park, with strictly controlled access. Vistors to most sites must be accompanied park guides. Regulations require 1 guide per 16 visitors, and that what many tours use. We had two guides (plus Tui) and a group of 15. With two guides we could spread out, and stop longer when we found something interesting. There were several instances when groups arrived after us and passed us on the trail, looking a bit like they were on a forced march. Our guides both enjoyed the lower ratio as well and mentioned how rushed they often were when guiding alone.
There are some hotels, and it's possible to stay on land and take some day trips, but those burn a lot of daylight just going back and forth. On a cruise most of the long passages are made at night. There are some 40-50 boats. Many taking 14-16 passengers. Some, like the National Geographic boats take over 100. To manage visitor impact each boat has a specific two-week itinerary, with stops at specific sites on specific islands. These are typically split into two one-week itineraries, which can be combined, and some offer 4 or 11 day segments.
Because we only did one week, we missed Fernandina and Isabella, so no Penguins or Flightless Cormorants, but we did get to Genovesa and Espańola, which most boats do not include in a single week. Genovesa was fantastic, with up close views of nesting seabirds. Espańola has the Waved Albatross colony, which was on my must see list. Note that they leave when the chicks fledge in December and start returning in April. The other islands we visited during our week were San Cristóbal, Floreana, South Plaza, Santa Fe and Santa Cruz. Something interesting to see on every one.
Here's our boat, the Anahi, and one of the inflatables they call pangas. We rode in one for every outing.
. I took 1.5TB, but only used about 350 GB.
