Galapagos - Land based or cruising?
Sep 21st, 2008, 02:53 AM
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Galapagos - Land based or cruising?
I am planning a trip to the Galapagos in 2009 and need some input. So here are some preliminary questions:
What season? The info suggests that June to Nov is cooler and a bit rainy, with the ocean rougher. Dec to May is warmer and drier, with calmer seas. How much rougher/rainier? Did you feel that it impacted your holiday?
Has anyone done Galapagos from a land base? From what I read, it seems that it might be possible to stay at one of the hotels/lodges and do day excursions to the various islands. Seasickness may be a factor in our group, so I wanted to explore this option. For those that have done this, are you able to get to see as much? Was it worth it? How were the accomodations?
Cruising - there seems to be so many companies. Can you tell me what you liked/didn't like about the cruise company you used? We can afford not to be at the lower end of the price scale, but we also don't want to pay for frills we won't use. On the larger ships, how bad was it with the large group shore excursions? On the smaller boats, did you feel that you had any space from the other guests? How rough did you find the ocean?
Any other input you can provide is appreciated.
What season? The info suggests that June to Nov is cooler and a bit rainy, with the ocean rougher. Dec to May is warmer and drier, with calmer seas. How much rougher/rainier? Did you feel that it impacted your holiday?
Has anyone done Galapagos from a land base? From what I read, it seems that it might be possible to stay at one of the hotels/lodges and do day excursions to the various islands. Seasickness may be a factor in our group, so I wanted to explore this option. For those that have done this, are you able to get to see as much? Was it worth it? How were the accomodations?
Cruising - there seems to be so many companies. Can you tell me what you liked/didn't like about the cruise company you used? We can afford not to be at the lower end of the price scale, but we also don't want to pay for frills we won't use. On the larger ships, how bad was it with the large group shore excursions? On the smaller boats, did you feel that you had any space from the other guests? How rough did you find the ocean?
Any other input you can provide is appreciated.
Sep 21st, 2008, 06:18 AM
#2
I recommend you buy Barry Boyce's book - a Travelers Guide to Galapagos - it is an invaluable tool to figure out the right season for your trip, the right boat, the right itinerary, etc.
We were in Galapagos in February - stayed in Puerto Ayora for a month and went on a one week cruise on the Eclipse (which carries 48 passengers and has 4 zodiacs which means everybody moves at the same time so no hanging around waiting for boats) highly recommend it especially if you have sea sickness as a problem as it's bigger.
Re landbased touring - it will also involve boating so not sure it achieves much in terms of reducing sea sickness.....and it does restrict how many islands you'll see - but it is possible.
We were in Galapagos in February - stayed in Puerto Ayora for a month and went on a one week cruise on the Eclipse (which carries 48 passengers and has 4 zodiacs which means everybody moves at the same time so no hanging around waiting for boats) highly recommend it especially if you have sea sickness as a problem as it's bigger.
Re landbased touring - it will also involve boating so not sure it achieves much in terms of reducing sea sickness.....and it does restrict how many islands you'll see - but it is possible.
Sep 21st, 2008, 08:09 AM
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jjmb:
My wife and I will be visiting the Galapagos for the first time in January 2009. Suggested by our travel agent.
I found a lot of very good information on the Cruise Critic web site.
When you look into prices and what you get for your money, check out the Celebrity Xpedition. While the fee for their cruise may appear higher than others, they are reputed to be FULLY inclusive. Tours, guides, lectures, all food and drink except for high price liquor brands and laundry. So their 'higher' price may not be so high in the end. One person wrote that their extra total cost was $38.00.
But look at the Cruise Critic site for a lot of input from other cruisers.
Woodie
My wife and I will be visiting the Galapagos for the first time in January 2009. Suggested by our travel agent.
I found a lot of very good information on the Cruise Critic web site.
When you look into prices and what you get for your money, check out the Celebrity Xpedition. While the fee for their cruise may appear higher than others, they are reputed to be FULLY inclusive. Tours, guides, lectures, all food and drink except for high price liquor brands and laundry. So their 'higher' price may not be so high in the end. One person wrote that their extra total cost was $38.00.
But look at the Cruise Critic site for a lot of input from other cruisers.
Woodie
Sep 21st, 2008, 05:08 PM
#4
My personal opinion is that I would do the cruise as opposed to the land base.
As Elizabeth has mentioned you see more islands... doing a land base I think you will be restricted to seeing some of the far away islands.
Percy
As Elizabeth has mentioned you see more islands... doing a land base I think you will be restricted to seeing some of the far away islands.
Percy
Sep 21st, 2008, 06:33 PM
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If you are land based and do day trips to other islands, the boats will be smaller than the cruise boats. Seasickness would likely be a bigger problem, at least for the time that you're out on those boats.
You can also fly between the islands. An airline called Emetebe flies daily among San Cristobal, Isabela and Baltra (the island adjoining Santa Cruz). The planes are very small, but the flights are short (25-40 minutes). You're limited to 20 pounds of luggage per person.
www.emetebe.com.ec
You can also fly between the islands. An airline called Emetebe flies daily among San Cristobal, Isabela and Baltra (the island adjoining Santa Cruz). The planes are very small, but the flights are short (25-40 minutes). You're limited to 20 pounds of luggage per person.
www.emetebe.com.ec
Sep 22nd, 2008, 12:03 PM
#6
Thanks Jeff_Costa_Rica I did not know that smaller planes are now flying to some of the islands, from Baltra!
When did this start.?
Percy
When did this start.?
Percy
Dec 8th, 2008, 09:07 AM
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We did a cruise in October, and the seas were a bit rough. Very little rain, though. I was quite seasick the whole time (just on the boat, as soon as my foot touched land I was fine). But then again, we were on a small boat - 20 passengers, 10 crew, so the rocking was a little more pronounced. And I still LOVED it. All the islands are so different from each other. You will be missing out a lot if you do a land based trip.
And as small as my boat was, I was always able to get away from the others. No one really bothers you unless you want company. But you may find that those who go to the Galapagos are much like you, and they will be a joy to meet. We thoroughly enjoyed everyone on our boat.
Options to combat sea sickness - scopolomine patches, dramamine, ginger, and above all, sleeping pills.
And as small as my boat was, I was always able to get away from the others. No one really bothers you unless you want company. But you may find that those who go to the Galapagos are much like you, and they will be a joy to meet. We thoroughly enjoyed everyone on our boat.
Options to combat sea sickness - scopolomine patches, dramamine, ginger, and above all, sleeping pills.
Jan 2nd, 2009, 08:24 PM
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We were on the Celebrity XPedition trip in early December, and we thought it was excellent. I would guess that a ship this size (maximum 98 passengers) with good stabilizers would be less susceptible to sea sickness than the smaller ships that are more typical of the Galapagos.
I would definitely opt for living on a ship; staying on land would necessitate much longer day trips on small ships, and would limit how far you could get from your base location.
We did not feel there was any problem with waiting for excursions. The National Park limits each group to a maximum of 16 people with one naturalist, so any one group from our ship had 10-16 people, which was very manageable. There was at most a 10 minute line to get on a Zodiac (and actually the last people to line up tended to have the smallest group). The naturalists and crew were fabulous.
When we were there in early December, the air temperature was ideal for hiking (generally highs in the 70s F), and there was no rain, but the water temperature made it necessary to wear wet suits (provided by the ship). I gather that starting in January there is some rain, the islands look greener, the air temperatures are more tropical (and therefore not as pleasant for hiking), and swimming is more pleasant.
XPedition is very much all-inclusive, which was nice—all meals, all drinks except high-end brands of hard liquor, excursions, tips, etc. were include. This is worth keeping in mind in comparing the cost to other trips. Our only extra was for an item we bought in the gift shop.
I would be happy to answer any other questions about the XPedition trip.
Len
I would definitely opt for living on a ship; staying on land would necessitate much longer day trips on small ships, and would limit how far you could get from your base location.
We did not feel there was any problem with waiting for excursions. The National Park limits each group to a maximum of 16 people with one naturalist, so any one group from our ship had 10-16 people, which was very manageable. There was at most a 10 minute line to get on a Zodiac (and actually the last people to line up tended to have the smallest group). The naturalists and crew were fabulous.
When we were there in early December, the air temperature was ideal for hiking (generally highs in the 70s F), and there was no rain, but the water temperature made it necessary to wear wet suits (provided by the ship). I gather that starting in January there is some rain, the islands look greener, the air temperatures are more tropical (and therefore not as pleasant for hiking), and swimming is more pleasant.
XPedition is very much all-inclusive, which was nice—all meals, all drinks except high-end brands of hard liquor, excursions, tips, etc. were include. This is worth keeping in mind in comparing the cost to other trips. Our only extra was for an item we bought in the gift shop.
I would be happy to answer any other questions about the XPedition trip.
Len
