Galapagos - Anyone book through Safari Tours??
 

This company has given me the best quote so far on the Galapagos cruise we are looking at, but I want to be sure they are reputable. Anyone done business with them lately?

got my best deals with www.guanguiltagua.com

[email protected] from $6-800 pp on a 2 for 1

Had a great time.

Almost booked the Galaven on a 2 for 1 $600 pp but my wife

got down on her back had to cancel.

Many negative reports floating areound on yours on the boards
they have changed addresses recently personally would think
twice about booking with them.

Galapagos cruises are scammed more than anything else

on the boards Tripadvertizer board is the worst where the

foreign expat wife of an agency owner scams the clurless daily

out of thousands on the bunk bed "roach/puke" motorsailers

like Archipel Eden Samba etc...

So do home work carefully caveat emptor insuremytrip.co wise

Smartours BBB.org A rated has best packages on upscale boats

Stick with a reputable knowledgeable local like Dennis

from my recent personal experience I had an awesome time.

Happy Hunting!

Ecoventura.com my fav of all the local boats if budget

is good... Isabella is a do not miss 5000 Giant Tortoises

on one amazing island a do not miss for me evolution in action

ON SALE!!! Save up to $800 per couple!!! For a limited time ... MV Galapagos Explorer II. (B,L,D) Day 11: Galapagos Cruise: Española Island/Punta Suarez.
www.smartours.net/galapagos.shtml

Prefer local providers not into group travel

but an excellent deal for many...

Quick question qwovadis, where do you see "Many negative reports floating around on yours (Safari Tours) on the boards"? I've only seen a few good reviews, but not much recent. They're recommended in several guide books and have been in business over 20 years, so I don't know how moving to a new office facility really matters. I've already picked my boat and itinerary and am just looking for the company offering the best deal on it that is also a legitimate company. These guys seem fine from what I've found, but was just hoping for some more recent feedback from anyone who has used them.

I'm also not sure why you're so down on the Archipel and Samba boats. Those aren't the ones we are looking at, but I've seen nothing but positive reviews and blogs for them on many forms, not just TA. There is nothing wrong with bunk beds, not all of us can afford a fancier boat with queen size beds! Calling them "roach/puke" boats seems a bit harsh considering it does not appear you have stepped foot on them. Which boat did you go on?

Forgot to mention that we are not looking for a package tour either such as SmartTours. We've already got our plane tickets booked through to Baltra and are doing Machu Picchu independantly beforehand. Just need the best price with a good company on our chosen ship (Floreana Yacht).

LAFA, we read through the Trip Advisor forums too and saw a lot of praise for the Archipel and Samba boats. We thought about Samba but decided on the Eric. We booked through an agency whose owner is one of those destination experts but she is completely honest and straight forward. She didn't charge us thousands more than the boat company charges. We only paid a small and worth-it premium for her services like any travel agency and she arranged everything. It seems like Qwovadis is in partnership with the company he is always flogging. No wonder he gets so many discounts from them.

Just thought I should follow up on this now that we have returned from our trip, in case anyone else is looking for information on this company.

They turned out to be just fine! They had the best price, by far, over all the other companies we talk to and they had friendly (although not over the top) service. It'll take one or two business days to hear back from them by e-mail and they weren't full of information, but they did get the job done for us. We really just needed them for good price and booking since we had already done our own research and picked the boat we wanted.

We went on the Yate Floreana and it was wonderful. It's definitely not a luxury yacht (small cabins, bunk beds) but it was quite comfortable, the food was pretty good, and the staff was great. The northern islands itinerary was amazing too. I would not hesitate to go back and do the southern itinerary with them some day and to use Safari to do the booking.