Regardless of the specific ship or island, all Galapagos itineraries will follow a very similar format. In order to preserve the Galapagos and protect the wildlife, the Galapagos National Park Directorate helps to orchestrate tourism of the islands. All travelers are allowed one land and one water activity per day, but often you’ll experience more! Regardless of which islands you visit, you’re sure to see something amazing and get some wonderful photos.
An example cruise day would look like the following:
Example Cruise Schedule (Kate Arntz)
Typically, in the Galapagos, your day begins by 7-8:00 AM with a warm buffet breakfast. Within another hour you’ll be off and running on the first activity of the day, whether it be by land or by sea. Your guide will instruct you of any necessary items to bring to ensure you’re comfortable and prepared. Often these items will include the correct footwear, water bottle, camera, sunscreen, and bug spray if necessary.
The land activities involve 90-120 minutes of leisurely walking through trails and among islands spotting wildlife and learning about the various islands. When possible, the naturalist guide will take pauses to teach you about the surroundings. They’ll also be sure to point out the best photo ops! After working an appetite, you’ll return to the ship for lunch and to prepare for the afternoon’s excursion. Sea Lions at Play on South Plaza (Kate Arntz)
Well-fed and prepared, you’ll head to your afternoon excursion and continue the exploration of the islands!
Learning about the Galapagos Islands (Kate Arntz)
For water excursions, plan to snorkel for approximately an hour spotting various wildlife from tropical to fish, to sea lions, and maybe even a penguin! For those who are a bit uneasy in the water or need a break from the activity, the pangas are ready to pick you up at the wave of a hand. On certain days, kayaking may even be available as a wonderful addition to snorkeling.
Back on-board again, the afternoon is typically free to spend at your leisure napping, journaling, or spending time on the sun deck attempting to see more wildlife while sailing to the next destination. Personally, I always opted for the latter! Majority of days, a third land or water activity ensued in the late afternoon. Sunset on the islands was a wonderful way to end the daily excursions.
The infamous Pinnacle Rock! (Kate Arntz)
After a delicious dinner and a decadent dessert, every evening consisted of a briefing by our naturalist guide. Each briefing would advise us of the scheduled activities and timings for the following day, the recommended clothing, and a general Q&A session. Evenings were spent leisurely among the other wonderful guests on-board.
Relaxing evening on the sun deck of the Natural Paradise (Kate Arntz)
The response from Adventure Life to my first inquiry was prompt and promising. I worked with Jamie Broeckel, Trip Planner, via text, email, and phone calls- always extremely responsive and thorough with information and explaining the process to arrange a private tour for me to Malaysia Borneo. Within about week, the booking was complete and I made decisions because of Jamie's great customer service , friendly manner, and overall competence on behalf of the company's travel expertise. Now I have an itinerary, additional Trip Planner Assistants, several links for vital information for traveling to Maylasia, etc. Still many details for Sept. trip, but now the heavy lifting is done and I can enjoy the rest of the anticipation and research!! Thanks Jamie- you are amazing!!!!
Susan Campo
2 days ago
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
3 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.
