Any recommendations for a 3-4 day Galapagos Islands tour?

I am a travel agent specializing in the Galapagos Islands. We also advise people against the shorter cruises. Each island is unique, with its own endemic species. Travelers on shorter cruises inevitably miss out on something. Also consider that you will fly from mainland Ecuador (Quito or Guayaquil) arriving in the Galapagos and boarding your boat mid day. You will disembark your boat in the mid morning on the last day. On a 3 night cruise this effectively gives you a two day cruise in the Galapagos Islands. Its a long way to go for two days of exploration. We have many clients who want to squeeze the Galapagos and Peru into a week and they end up short changing two spectacular destinations. We advise a 15 day minimum (including travel to/from North America) for a week long Galapagos Cruise with nights in Ecuador on each end and a 5 night package to Machu Piccu including Lima, Cusco, Urubamba Valley and Machu Picchu.

Regarding seasickness, it depends on when you plan to travel. During the "warm season" December through May the water is calm and seasickness is less of an issue. Also consider that these trips travel close to the islands and you are off the boat for a good portion of the day. You may only experience rough seas when crossing from one island to another.

I hope this helps and have a great trip.

Todd Smith
AdventureSmith Explorations

If time and money are adequate then definitely stay longer than 3-4 days or make one trip a Machu Pichu trip and another a Galapagos trip. I personally wouldn't consider a trip of less than 11 days actually in the islands for the reasons in your book. Never been to Machu Pichu.

But, many people go to the Galapagos for 3-4 days and enjoy it. That's why the shorter excursions are offered. Way back when I was first planning a Galapagos trip, I recall talking to a couple of people who had done a short trip and I asked them if they felt they wanted more time. They said 3-4 days was sufficient to see the species they had hoped for. None of these people were extreme nature enthusiasts as I am, just regular travelers.

If your choice is: 3-4 days in the Galapagos or no Galapagos, then do 3-4 days. If you get seasick, then anticipating 7 to 11 days on a boat might make you nauseous just thinking about the trip. Todd Smith has some helpful advise on avoiding seasickness. Over the counter Bonine has saved the day for me on 2 Galapagos cruises where seas got really rolling and on other excursions. And I can't go on a merry-go-round or watch a show at an Imax theater without getting ill.

After a short trip to the Enchanted Isles, you may fall in love and decide to return for a longer stay.

Good luck and have a great trip.

We are going on a short land-based tour to Galapagos next month. We wanted Red Mangrove's Darwin's Triangle - but they were booked - so we opted for Galapagos Safari Camp on Santa Cruz Island in the highlands. Finch Bay also has a land-based program... check those sites out. Have fun.

If you're looking for a land-based tour, consider Galapagos Alternative. We offer comfortable family-owned hotels and day trips from Puerto Ayora in Santa Cruz. We focus on benefitting the local people, who will show you true Galapagos hospitality.

Sue Blythe
Galapagos Alternative
www.galapagosalternative.com

We agonized about length and host but came to conclusion that we would go near the higher end with Lindblad/National Geographic. I did not want to ruin the one chance I would invest in Galapagos.

It was not a mistake. Crucial to such a trip is the naturalists. L/NG are the best. You need to know what you are looking at. Secondly, the Endeavour crew were nearly one to one. The service, safety, information, food are superior.

It would be a mistake to go for less than a week. Each island is unique--and thatz what Galapagos is all about. You would miss too much to make it worth while unless you just want a mark on your gun belt.

Do not under any circumstances opt for Aerogal Airlines. It is an option offered by L/NG than seems irresistible. Every flight is late from 90 minutes to 180 minutes. And you never know because they wont tell you. My "overnight" in Guyaquil allowed time for a shower and 30 minute nap before waiting another 180 minutes in the airport. They are hopeless.

As for Machu Picchu I suggest a travel agent--I think it is Inca Tours. They are great, hold your hand, put you in a decent hotel and the cost is minimal. You only need one day in Cuzco, a day for MP and a day after. Be warned that all flights go through Lima and schedules are as inconvenient as they can be. You may spend more time in the airport (which is anything but commodious) than going to MP.

Neither Lima nor Guyaquil are particularly interesting. It is a long way from the airport to the old town in Lima and again, nothing special.

As for sea sickness, if you are able to use Transderm Scopalamine(prescription), you will do fine.

blackmons,

I'd recommend that you look at a land-based itinerary and compare it to that of the 3-4 cruises. Raywayski has given details of 3 providers, and I would add a fourth http://www.gps.ec/About%20Semilla%20Verde.html where host Robert Grimstone works with guests to devise tailor made itineraries.

We are visiting the Galapagos in August and have booked 3 nights accommodation at Semilla Verde prior to our cruise. We decided on a 7 night cruise that combined the inner island attractions with visits to Tower Island in the north and Espanola in the south, http://www.naturexp.com/detailed_itinerary/itenerary_galapagos.htm

If I had limited time I would have preferred a land based itinerary to a 3-4 day cruise.

Happy planning,

Pol

Thanks, everyone, for all of your wonderful suggestions. You are a wealth of information!
A happy, healthy new year to you all.
Laurie

Hi. I was going to book a trip in May on the Legend with a local Ecuadorian Tour agency (reputable) and they are asking me to pay everything up front in cash. How did your tour company handle the payment? Is there a tour company that you would recommend?

I did this last year, with Happy Gringo tours company. We paid up front, cash, because they cannot take credit cards. It was not an issue. In fact, in Quito, we stayed in the NuHouse Hotel (great, small hotel) and Happy Gringo was right next store. They delivered our paperwork to the hotel since we had a very early tour the morning after we came in and were leaving for the Galapagos the next day.