Guide to Galapagos Islands, cruises, yachts, boats, maps, scuba diving, tours, travel, vacations, holidays, Ecuador

Guide2Galapagos® has been brokering Galapagos cruises for over 10 years and have proven ourselves to be one of the leaders in accurate, reliable and confident information. For this reason we are cited in numerous reputable guide books & web sites as the Lonely Planet, Fodors and Frommers.

As one former client stated “First, I want to take this opportunity to thank you and everyone for acting as the Ecuadorian liaison for my company's Galapagos wildlife photo adventure. Everyone, including myself, was highly pleased with your recommendations concerning boat selection. Your personal involvement and focus on details made this year's trip to the Galapagos Archipelago a truly once-in-a-lifetime adventure for my customers. I feel very fortunate to have located such an experienced and qualified person as yourself.” [Weldon Lee]

Our mandate is to provide you with the highest level of professional service and attention … from the minute you first contact us to the minute you leave Ecuador with truly memorable experiences of your time with us, Ecuador & the Galapagos Islands. No task is too big or too small for us.

Aspects to closely consider in planning your Galapagos trip

The quality of the onboard NATURALIST GUIDE. He/she will make one of the biggest differences on your cruise. This particularly applies to his/her ability to communicate in ENGLISH (the level of English spoken varies from yacht to yacht) and his/her level of KNOWLEDGE on Galapagos (history, flora, fauna etc).

The CRUISE RATE, which does not necessarily reflect the quality of the cruise. The more expensive options are not always higher quality cruises. Sadly, there are no under-priced cruises; there are about a dozen reasonably-priced cruises and most are expensive options. Most tourists are looking for reasonably-priced cruises (that provide a good itinerary, balanced meals, are clean & safe and carry a qualified naturalist guide). These options are limited and most popularly selected.

General Comments:

Most Galapagos cruises run for 4 nights (5 days) or 7 nights (8 days). Bearing in mind that you fly to and from Galapagos on the first and last day respectively, the 4 night cruise is really only a 3 full day cruise and the 7 night cruise a 6 full day cruise. We always recommend the latter for various reasons: the flight and Galapagos National Park entry fee ($100 pp) is the same whether you go for 4 or 7 nights and is therefore better value for money for the 7 night cruise! Additionally, most people visit the Galapagos Islands only once and for this reason we recommend making the most of it and going for the full 7-nights.
The standard cabin arrangements are double cabins – most yachts have bunk bed cabins. Do let us know if you’d prefer a yacht that offers twin or double bed cabins.
Flights to the Galapagos Islands (which are booked in conjunction with your cruise) can be taken from either Quito or Guayaquil.
Almost all Galapagos yachts have double cabins with private facilities;
Most yachts carry 16 passengers, alocated in 8 double cabins;
All yachts carry snorkel equipment (some charge a nominal rental fe for this equipment;
A very, very limited number carry kayaks and/or offer scuba diving.

We receive a lot of requests to book flights from the mainland to the Galapagos Islands either a day or a few days before the cruise date and / or to return to the mainland a day or a few days after the cruise date. Although we will endeavour to get the flights you have requested, if they do not coincide with your cruise dates, we can not offer any guarantee that we will be able to get the flights you're looking for. The earlier you let us know about these flight requests, the better chance there is that we will be able to confirm the flights for you

As the demand for Galapagos cruises continues to increase, remaining spaces tend to sell out rapidly (especially on the more reasonably-priced options). Although you need to have all the accurate & detailed information at hand to make a well-informed decision, taking too much time usually results in original options no longer being available. The options below are currently available (but for a limited time – depending on the demand for these spaces).

The reservation / booking form can be filled out at www.guidetogalapagos.com/bookingform.html. Payment policies and options are found at www.guidetogalapagos.com/policies.pdf.