Repost- 3/07 trip report Quito, Galapagos, Sacha Lodge
Apr 5th, 2007, 05:42 PM
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Repost- 3/07 trip report Quito, Galapagos, Sacha Lodge
Re-posting- I did not attach earlier post to Ecuador search topic.
We recently returned from an amazing trip to Ecuador! Here are some details, which may be helpful to others planning a trip, I will try to be as brief as possible(hard), and willing to answer questions if anyone would like more detail.
Our trip was planned thru Zenith Travel in Ecuador, through emails, and everything turned out as planned. The only (minor ) problems encountered was we were supposed to stay at Red Mangrove in Puerto Ayora but when our agent re-confirmed with them after we made final payment, they had lost the reservation, but she was able to offer us alternatives, and we found out upon our arrival that cafe cultura was overbooked for our last night, but our agent was aware and able to rebook us for the last night into another hotel with no additonal cost(see report for detail).
Day 1, arrival tues. night, stayed 2 nights in Quito, Cafe Cultura- not a standard hotel, more like a big old house, very unique and cozy, these 2 nights we were upgraded to one of the suites(rm 2) due to the problem w/ the reservation. Only complaint was street noise.
Day 2, Wed., Tour of Quito- old town, churches, Panecillio, cable car (telefriquo) and mitad del mundo (equator monument) and museo de sitio Inti-nan (in same area).
Day 3, Thurs, flight to Galapagos, for 2nights at Hotel Silberstein, Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz Island, no complaints w/ this hotel-- hot water, large room, a/c , pool. Lunch at Hernan's- pizza just ok to me. Walked that afternoon to Charles Darwin Research Station, said hello to Lonesome George and down the path from the station is a small beach, dinner at La Garrapata-- good fish. Compared to NYC where we live, all the meals in Ecuador were a bargain-- usually our bill for 2people was $20.
Day 4, Fri, still on Santa Cruz, walked to Tortuga Bay (about 45min), large, very pretty beach but too rough to swim, walked around rocky point and saw iguanas and pelicans, on the other side is a calm lagoon where swimming is allowed. Very hot walk back. Lunch at Salvavidas-- again great fish, large portion. We had dinner at La Dolce Italia-- I liked the pizza better than Hernans but my husband had a fish dish there and developed food poisoning overnight.
Day 5, Sat, loaded hubby up w/ immodium, and made our way to Baltra airport to meet up w/ our cruise, Galapagos Explorer II for 5nights. Ship doctor gave husband meds and the gi symptoms calmed down. In brief-- I chose this ship because I get very seasick and felt I would do better on a larger vessel ( I also wore wrist band and took dramamine) and one day was really rocky and I never felt nauseous, overall we had a great experience w/ this ship, all the staff, food, and the facilities. Afternoon stop: Cerro Dragon (Dragon Hill)-- ended up being the least exciting stop of the cruise-- saw some flamingos, a couple of iguanas, small birds.
Day 6, Sun: am stop: Bartolome Island: walked up the steep wooden steps for gorgeous island views, on panga ride saw penguins, then we went to the adjacent beach where you could snorkel ( I ended up not doing any snorkeling, I found the water too cold, but then I am senstive to cool water, I like it 78 or higher, most people (and my husband) could manage 30-60min w/out wet suit.
pm stop: Santiago (James) island: see sealions, beautifully colored crabs, marine iguanas, and more beach/snorkel time-- sealions were swimming close to shore.
Day 7, Mon: this was the rockiest sea day. am stop: Fernandina island: one of my faves, lava reminded me of hawaii, more sealions, many iguanas, flightless comorants. pm: panga ride around northern cove off Isabela island: saw sea turtles, penguins, many other birds, a few boobies,and rode into a cave. snorkeling was also offered.
Day 8, Tues: am stop: Seymour Norte (N. Seymour): another fave of mine, saw many seals and pups, blue footed boobies doing their mating dances, frigate birds w/ their red chests puffed out, and land iguanas. pm stop: Santa Cruz, took bus to highlands to view land tortoises and lave tunnel.
Day 9 Wed, depart cruise in San Cristobal, saw (small) but well done interpretative center and time to stroll through the shops and view the sealions playing near the harbor. flight back to Quito and cafe cultura-- had a regular room this time (rm 6) it was quieter but I think the smallest room in the place.
Day 10, Thurs: Originally had nothing planned this day as was not sure what we would feel up to, agent called us and offered us to join tour going to Papallacta Hot Springs, and it ended up being the easy day we need at this point, the baths are in a beautiful setting and very relaxing.
Day 11, Fri: flight to Coca and travel to Sacha Lodge in the jungle. Accomodations were not fancy, but good staff/service and pretty well organized. In the jungle the wildlife is not in your face like the Galapagos and of course the scenery is 180* different, but still is special in its own way. Assigned 2 guides to our group of 4- english speaking naturalist and local guide- both very knowledgeable.
Day 12+ 13, Sat/Sun: had am and pm jungle walks, canoe rides, visited canopy tower, and had night walks. saw toucans at a distance, squirrel and capuchin monkeys amongst the trees, howler monkeys at a distance, many birds ( I am not a birder, so names escape me), insects/spiders, small + large frogs ,and shown different medicinal plants in jungle, butterfly farm, parrots (mostly at a distance but did see parakeets up close on canopy tower), caiman. And experiencing all the sounds of the jungle.
Day 14, Monday, last night- back to Quito, as cafe cultura was overbooked, we were changed to Hotel Sebastian, which was a regular hotel-- had our first tv of the trip, nice facilities and good restaurant, were put in a suite the size of our apartment at home.
Between our trips to Galapagos and Sacha Lodge, we left our suitcases in storage at Cafe Cultura and just brought carry on duffle bags, and this worked without any problem.
I would also like to say that I found 95%+ of the people we dealt with in Ecuador to be friendly and pleasant, which added to our trip enjoyment.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We recently returned from an amazing trip to Ecuador! Here are some details, which may be helpful to others planning a trip, I will try to be as brief as possible(hard), and willing to answer questions if anyone would like more detail.
Our trip was planned thru Zenith Travel in Ecuador, through emails, and everything turned out as planned. The only (minor ) problems encountered was we were supposed to stay at Red Mangrove in Puerto Ayora but when our agent re-confirmed with them after we made final payment, they had lost the reservation, but she was able to offer us alternatives, and we found out upon our arrival that cafe cultura was overbooked for our last night, but our agent was aware and able to rebook us for the last night into another hotel with no additonal cost(see report for detail).
Day 1, arrival tues. night, stayed 2 nights in Quito, Cafe Cultura- not a standard hotel, more like a big old house, very unique and cozy, these 2 nights we were upgraded to one of the suites(rm 2) due to the problem w/ the reservation. Only complaint was street noise.
Day 2, Wed., Tour of Quito- old town, churches, Panecillio, cable car (telefriquo) and mitad del mundo (equator monument) and museo de sitio Inti-nan (in same area).
Day 3, Thurs, flight to Galapagos, for 2nights at Hotel Silberstein, Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz Island, no complaints w/ this hotel-- hot water, large room, a/c , pool. Lunch at Hernan's- pizza just ok to me. Walked that afternoon to Charles Darwin Research Station, said hello to Lonesome George and down the path from the station is a small beach, dinner at La Garrapata-- good fish. Compared to NYC where we live, all the meals in Ecuador were a bargain-- usually our bill for 2people was $20.
Day 4, Fri, still on Santa Cruz, walked to Tortuga Bay (about 45min), large, very pretty beach but too rough to swim, walked around rocky point and saw iguanas and pelicans, on the other side is a calm lagoon where swimming is allowed. Very hot walk back. Lunch at Salvavidas-- again great fish, large portion. We had dinner at La Dolce Italia-- I liked the pizza better than Hernans but my husband had a fish dish there and developed food poisoning overnight.
Day 5, Sat, loaded hubby up w/ immodium, and made our way to Baltra airport to meet up w/ our cruise, Galapagos Explorer II for 5nights. Ship doctor gave husband meds and the gi symptoms calmed down. In brief-- I chose this ship because I get very seasick and felt I would do better on a larger vessel ( I also wore wrist band and took dramamine) and one day was really rocky and I never felt nauseous, overall we had a great experience w/ this ship, all the staff, food, and the facilities. Afternoon stop: Cerro Dragon (Dragon Hill)-- ended up being the least exciting stop of the cruise-- saw some flamingos, a couple of iguanas, small birds.
Day 6, Sun: am stop: Bartolome Island: walked up the steep wooden steps for gorgeous island views, on panga ride saw penguins, then we went to the adjacent beach where you could snorkel ( I ended up not doing any snorkeling, I found the water too cold, but then I am senstive to cool water, I like it 78 or higher, most people (and my husband) could manage 30-60min w/out wet suit.
pm stop: Santiago (James) island: see sealions, beautifully colored crabs, marine iguanas, and more beach/snorkel time-- sealions were swimming close to shore.
Day 7, Mon: this was the rockiest sea day. am stop: Fernandina island: one of my faves, lava reminded me of hawaii, more sealions, many iguanas, flightless comorants. pm: panga ride around northern cove off Isabela island: saw sea turtles, penguins, many other birds, a few boobies,and rode into a cave. snorkeling was also offered.
Day 8, Tues: am stop: Seymour Norte (N. Seymour): another fave of mine, saw many seals and pups, blue footed boobies doing their mating dances, frigate birds w/ their red chests puffed out, and land iguanas. pm stop: Santa Cruz, took bus to highlands to view land tortoises and lave tunnel.
Day 9 Wed, depart cruise in San Cristobal, saw (small) but well done interpretative center and time to stroll through the shops and view the sealions playing near the harbor. flight back to Quito and cafe cultura-- had a regular room this time (rm 6) it was quieter but I think the smallest room in the place.
Day 10, Thurs: Originally had nothing planned this day as was not sure what we would feel up to, agent called us and offered us to join tour going to Papallacta Hot Springs, and it ended up being the easy day we need at this point, the baths are in a beautiful setting and very relaxing.
Day 11, Fri: flight to Coca and travel to Sacha Lodge in the jungle. Accomodations were not fancy, but good staff/service and pretty well organized. In the jungle the wildlife is not in your face like the Galapagos and of course the scenery is 180* different, but still is special in its own way. Assigned 2 guides to our group of 4- english speaking naturalist and local guide- both very knowledgeable.
Day 12+ 13, Sat/Sun: had am and pm jungle walks, canoe rides, visited canopy tower, and had night walks. saw toucans at a distance, squirrel and capuchin monkeys amongst the trees, howler monkeys at a distance, many birds ( I am not a birder, so names escape me), insects/spiders, small + large frogs ,and shown different medicinal plants in jungle, butterfly farm, parrots (mostly at a distance but did see parakeets up close on canopy tower), caiman. And experiencing all the sounds of the jungle.
Day 14, Monday, last night- back to Quito, as cafe cultura was overbooked, we were changed to Hotel Sebastian, which was a regular hotel-- had our first tv of the trip, nice facilities and good restaurant, were put in a suite the size of our apartment at home.
Between our trips to Galapagos and Sacha Lodge, we left our suitcases in storage at Cafe Cultura and just brought carry on duffle bags, and this worked without any problem.
I would also like to say that I found 95%+ of the people we dealt with in Ecuador to be friendly and pleasant, which added to our trip enjoyment.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Apr 6th, 2007, 11:11 AM
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Oh no, food poisoning prior to a ship based holiday. Now that's a problem.
The flamingo sighting is not that common, so it might have been an exciting outing after all. Your other wildlife viewing on the islands ran the gamut and I think you saw it all. Nice to see the frigate pouches inflated and the blue footed booby mating dance.
Sacha was a nice contrast and appears to have lots of animal activity.
Turned out to be a good trip despite a questionable start.
The flamingo sighting is not that common, so it might have been an exciting outing after all. Your other wildlife viewing on the islands ran the gamut and I think you saw it all. Nice to see the frigate pouches inflated and the blue footed booby mating dance.
Sacha was a nice contrast and appears to have lots of animal activity.
Turned out to be a good trip despite a questionable start.
Apr 12th, 2007, 12:54 PM
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Janeq:
Planning 3 night trip on Explorer II in July. What do they mean by "semi formal dress" for dinner. Would a pair of slacks (not jeans) and regular shoes work? Are there wetsuits to rent? Also do not like to snorkel in cold water and July is not the warmest time to go...but it fits our schedule. Don't want to purchase a wetsuit for one trip. Any other activities while others snorkel if I think it is too cold? Any tips appreciated, thanks!
Planning 3 night trip on Explorer II in July. What do they mean by "semi formal dress" for dinner. Would a pair of slacks (not jeans) and regular shoes work? Are there wetsuits to rent? Also do not like to snorkel in cold water and July is not the warmest time to go...but it fits our schedule. Don't want to purchase a wetsuit for one trip. Any other activities while others snorkel if I think it is too cold? Any tips appreciated, thanks!
Apr 13th, 2007, 11:33 AM
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kskc:
1. Semi-formal dress: slacks and regular shoes will be fine (we wore khakis and regular shoes). People wore everything from dresses to shorts/sandals at dinner, so you won't feel out of place.
2. There were not wet suits for rent on our cruise, in July I think you would definitely need one to snorkel.
We did the 4 night/5day cruise-so the itinerary is different from yours-- on ours, the 2 "beach" snorkels, you can just stay on the beach and relax or take a walk-- from the beach I saw sea lions swimming close to shore, and on one beach the water was clear enough close to shore to see fish and a ray. They did 2 snorkels from pangas on our cruise, I did not do either one(I'm a baby w/ cold water and gave up by that point)-- as a substitute they offered the glass bottom boat. I've been snorkeling in Hawaii and Great Barrier reef-- and per my husband (who did snorkel), fish/turtle wise I did not miss anything new, but on the last panga snorkel there were sea lions in the water and that would have been cool to see (but you do see plenty of sea lions on land).
Hopefully you all have a great time! I thought the ship was pretty well run, and the staff eager to please.
jane
1. Semi-formal dress: slacks and regular shoes will be fine (we wore khakis and regular shoes). People wore everything from dresses to shorts/sandals at dinner, so you won't feel out of place.
2. There were not wet suits for rent on our cruise, in July I think you would definitely need one to snorkel.
We did the 4 night/5day cruise-so the itinerary is different from yours-- on ours, the 2 "beach" snorkels, you can just stay on the beach and relax or take a walk-- from the beach I saw sea lions swimming close to shore, and on one beach the water was clear enough close to shore to see fish and a ray. They did 2 snorkels from pangas on our cruise, I did not do either one(I'm a baby w/ cold water and gave up by that point)-- as a substitute they offered the glass bottom boat. I've been snorkeling in Hawaii and Great Barrier reef-- and per my husband (who did snorkel), fish/turtle wise I did not miss anything new, but on the last panga snorkel there were sea lions in the water and that would have been cool to see (but you do see plenty of sea lions on land).
Hopefully you all have a great time! I thought the ship was pretty well run, and the staff eager to please.
jane
Apr 13th, 2007, 04:45 PM
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Jane:
Thanks for the info on dressing for dinner. Definately do not want to dress up. Think I will skip the snorkel. Hate cold water. Have been snorkeling in Bora Bora, doubt if anything can get much better than that, although sea lions would be cool.
Thanks for the info on dressing for dinner. Definately do not want to dress up. Think I will skip the snorkel. Hate cold water. Have been snorkeling in Bora Bora, doubt if anything can get much better than that, although sea lions would be cool.
