The Galapagos Islands (province of Ecuador) are located about 1,000 km west of Ecuador in the Pacific Ocean. The archipelago consists of 14 larger and over 100 smaller islands, with Fernandina, Isabela, Santiago, Santa Cruz and San Cristóbal being the five largest. In total, 96% of the land area belongs to the Galapagos National Park. The Galapagos Islands are a highlight of every dream trip because of their fantastic wildlife and because of the unique landscape together with the unique white beaches and the very pleasant, warm and extremely healthy climate. Therefore, a stay in the Galapagos archipelago should be placed at the very end of a trip, as this is how you "take home" the relaxation of Galapagos.

 

Pre-program to Galapagos

The pre-program, e.g. on the mainland of Ecuador, Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Colombia or as part of another travel program (for example a world tour) can be placed before the stay in the Galapagos Islands. We will be happy to give you tips on the conception of a suitable pre-program, see also www.lateinamerika-spezialist.com. We would be pleased if you could benefit from our many years of travel experience and local knowledge (Mr. Frobeen has lived in Latin America for a long time) when planning your personal "tailor made" dream trip!

Recommended duration of stay in Galapagos

A Galapagos cruise should last at least 5 days or 4 nights. However, a Galapagos cruise of 8 days / 7 nights is ideal. The zenith in terms of experience value of a Galapagos trip is about 6 - 7 days. At the end of the trip, a stay at the beach, for example on the island of Santa Cruz and/or Isabela, can be added. Here it should be at least two nights, since half a day is needed for check-in and check-out. Here we can recommend numerous excellent hotels on the archipelago. We are also happy to offer you an island hopping program on Galapagos. In an island hopping program, a local public transfer boat can be used. This transfer (e.g. between the islands of Santa Cruz and Isabela) takes about 3 hours. There is also the possibility of a flight with a propeller plane from Baltra Island to Puerto Villamil/Isabela.

 

The advantage of an island hopping program is that you stay at the hotel. The disadvantage is that you see less, because you can only make excursions in a certain radius from the hotel accommodation. On a Galapagos cruise you will see much more, as the cruise ship sails the Galapagos archipelago in a large radius. The sea state around Galapagos is moderate. Catamarans, due to their twin hull characteristics, have the advantage of much less rocking and their shallower draft allows them to sail closer to the Galapagos visit points.

 

Large ships such as the Silver Origin or Celebrity Flora have stabilizers against the moderate swell around the Galapagos Islands. These large, new ships offer very good comfort. The disadvantage with these ships with a capacity of up to 100 people is that the disembarkation by dinghy takes a lot of time due to the large number of participants, as there are about 12 people in the dinghy per disembarkation. Here, a relatively large amount of time is needed for the "logistics", which is deducted from the time spent visiting the islands. With smaller boats for about 16 people, the contact is also more personal.

 

If you consider the Galapagos archipelago as the absolute focus of your Latin America trip, it is also possible to extend the Galapagos cruise up to 15 days. For example, on very many ships we have indicated an 8 days / 7 nights itinerary. We are happy to offer you an extended cruise up to 15 days / 14 nights upon request. Upon request we will send you the itinerary and price of the extended Galapagos cruise. We have evaluated the most important Galapagos Islands for you in terms of highlights, see under:

 Galapagos Islands

The ship selection

First of all you can choose your dream Galapagos ship on our website www.galapagos.de – with best price guarantee. We can offer you here one of the most extensive Galapagos ship offers worldwide. Via the "filter" it is possible to narrow down among other things the ship size or ship class. We recommend here, as already noted by us, to put the stay in Galapagos at the very end of your vacation time!

Flight to Galapagos

Regarding the international flights (usually fork flights) we are also very happy to support you. We work together with one of the largest ticket wholesalers worldwide! If you want to use a mileage credit, this can of course be taken into account during the planning. The flight from mainland Ecuador to the Galapagos Islands generally departs from Guayaquil to Baltra Island (three-letter code = GPS) or to San Cristobal Island (three-letter code = SCY). The aircraft used is usually a Boeing 737 or an Airbus, flight duration approx. 1 ½ hours from Guayaquil. This flight is nonstop! If you fly from Quito, this flight is usually always with a stop in Guayaquil.

 

The return flight from Galapagos to the mainland of Ecuador should be made to Guayaquil, so that then the return flight to Europe can follow in the evening from Guayaquil (Ecuador) with arrival on the following day in Europe (because of the time change of about 7 - 8 hours depending on CET or CET). If the return flight is to Quito, the arrival in Quito is too late for a direct onward journey, so that an intermediate overnight stay in Quito must take place.

 

 

What animals / wildlife will I see in Galapagos?

Which wildlife you can experience on a Galapagos cruise is shown by the respective indicated route on our page www.galapagos.de. Please click on the individual visit points. A window will then open with the unique wildlife you are very likely to see there! We have compiled the most important animals in Galapagos for you, see also under:

 Galapagos Animals / Wildlife

 

 

Important note: The lack of "flight behavior" of the wildlife in Galapagos is unique, i.e. the animals have not known humans as enemies and are extremely tame. Attention: Please do not touch the animals and strictly follow the instructions of the local Galapagos tour guide.