G.A.P. Adventures-Galapagos

We have booked a 7 night cruise of the Galapagos Islands with GAP Adventures on their new catamaran, the Adventurer VI. Has anyone been on a Galapagos cruise with this company? If so, please tell me everything. I have lots of questions.

Thanks!

Went to the "galaps" 1/2008 and used GAP adventures for a day cruise on a small boat. They were very knowledgeable and friendly.

Assuming the same service and expertise is provided on your 7-day cruise, you will have an awesome experience.

In 2005 I went on GapAdventures 14 day trip to the Galapagos. I don't do tours generally, but this one was terrific.

There were 16 of us on an 8 cabin boat, which was a very good number because you need to stay on the pathes and with your guide to keep the islands and the wildlife safe. I went alone but was made to feel very welcome. Although the boat was small, there seemed to be enough space to be social or be alone as the mood presented.

There was time for sitting on a beach, for snorkelling and for seeing the most wonderful wildlife. The pace never felt rushed, partly because lunchtime was used for moving from one island to another (as were the nights). The food was ok and the staff were terrific.

At 50+ I was the oldest, and there was one 50 year old, but most of my shipmates were in their mid 20s to mid 30s. Some were travelling around the world and had lots of great stories.

The only problem I can see for you is that getting to the Islands from Quito takes most of one day, as does getting back, so a 7 day trip would leave you with very little time in the Islands.

If you can take a longer trip, IMO, you should. It takes time and money to get to the Galapagos Islands and in the next few years the Ecudorians may either greatly restrict access or start letting in the really big ships. In either case, this may be a one and only chance to see this fantastic place.

I went with Gap because there was a special 1/2 price deal with BA for the fare to Quito which required a tour, but I would love to go to the Islands again in a different season (I went in early December, next time I want to see the Blue-footed Boobies dance in April) and I would certainly go with GapAdventures again whether there was a deal or not.

I took the most amazing photographs of my life. The birds and animals are not afraid of people, so with my 3x zoom tiny pentax digital camera I was able to take close ups of iguanas and albatross and frigates that capture their individual characters in I way I haven't before or since.

My avatar is a shot of Frigates taken from a cliff on Espanola, where I also sat 5 feet from a Waved Albatross nest and took a photo of the two parent birds greeting each other with clacking beaks and gentle grooming.

I never even knew I liked birds that much, but I was enchanted by them in the Galapagos.

There are also sea lions everywhere and snorkelling with them was also a highlight. One female decided to play with me and we spent a few happy minutes copying each other's swimming. She swam straight towards me and then stopped suddenly and blew bubbles in my face. So I did it back to her and we went on from there.

But do get out of the water quickly if the Alpha male gets in!

The divers among us saw a school of hammerhead sharks, but said that the diving is best for those with a fairly good level of expertise aa the dive master did not supervise closely and assumed more knowledge than some of them had.

Thanks for the info. We are very excited, we leave on Monday, Jan 11, 2010, for our trip. The GAP tour is 10 days, with 7 days on the islands and we decided to fly to Quito 1 day early. We ae hoping to see the Middle of the World Monument.

Thanks again.

How was your trip? What was your most memorable moment? Is there anything that you would do differently? Enquiring minds want to know!

Thanks.

The most memorable things were seeing reef sharks when were were snorkeling and that the animals are not afraid of you. You have to step over and around them on the beach. And being able to get very close to the animals.

There are a few things I would do differently. First I would bring a pair of Teva type sandels. The kind you can wear in the water, but are also good for hiking. We did alot of hiking, but some of the landings were wet landings so I would get out of the zodiac barefoot, walk ashore and then put on my hking boots. It was ok with just boots but it would have been easier with teva's. If you plan to do it the way I did, bring a small towel in your day pack to dry your feet before putting on your boots.

The other thing I would do is make sure you bring any meds you think you might need. You will be out int he middle of the ocean with NO medical facilities. Jennifer got sick and we only had over the counter meds. Thankfully a fellow traveler gave us some antibiotics that helped her. So my advice is bring a general purpose antibiotic that will help with most problems associated with travel to a foreign country.

I alomost forgot. The tour we booked started on a Tuesday in Puerto Ayora, it worked out best for us because of our work schedules, but if I had to do it again I would book the tour that starts in Baltra. Baltra is where the airport is. For us to get to Puerto Ayora we flew to Baltra, took a bus across the island to a ferry, took the ferry across the channel to Baltra Island, got on another bus to take us to the the harbor. Then we got on a zodiac to take us to the Queen Beatriz (g6). If yor tour in Baltra you have a very short ride from the airport to the harbor.

Also, we did the 10 day tour with GAP. One day in Quito before the Galapagos, 7 days in the Galapagos and one more night in Quito. I think in hind sight 7 days was too many. I think 4 days in the Galapagos is enough.

I hope I answered your questions. If you have more just let me know.

Thanks for the info. Someday I will get to the Galapagos Islands, but for now I have to settle for living vicariously through other peoples adventures.

Thanks for the info. Someday I will get to the Galapagos Islands, but for now I have to settle for living vicariously through other peoples adventures.

Dear cant,

If you would like to live vicariously through others' experiences, please see our website.

http://home.mindspring.com/~highlandpark/

If you would like to read the story of my trip to the Galapagos and Macchu Pichu, please e-mail me at: highlandpark@mindspring.com