Hi everyone, just wanted to keep those Galapagos-bound travelers in the loop for this weekend:

Cruisers:
Passengers booked for cruises will head right to their cruise as normal, but will be interviewed for a brief 10 minutes by the Censo-takers upon arrival to their vessels on SATURDAY or SUNDAY. Passengers who are already cruising this weekend will be interviewed upon arrival to the first port after Sunday by officials.

Land based:
Those with a booked land-based tour and hotel should have no problems getting to town from teh airport, as all hotels with BOOKED PASSENGERS will have applied and (hopefully) been authorized for transportation of said passengers on Sunday.

It´s imperative that people who are traveling to or from the Galapagos to Baltra on Sunday are aware that they MUST HAVE A HOTEL/BOAT booked, as only such tourist employers are authorized to be traveling to/from airports with special permission requested BEFORE TOMORROW! So for those of you who are planning to "just show up" at Baltra airport and head into town to look for a hotel, you could very well get stuck at the aiport. Best bet to book something today for Sunday to ensure you actually get to town from Baltra airport.

There was an open meeting held by the chamber of tourism here and they are recommending that everyone who arrives, arrives with a confirmed booking. (and re-confirm with the hotel that they have gained special permission to do the transfer.).

Please note that day tours (including diving) will not be operating. Stores and restaurants in town will be closed as well.

Good luck