Which cruise line for the Galapagos?

I have a question, would you go to the Galapagos on Celebrity or on Silver Seas? I do have special dietary requirements since I am gluten free.

My husband is also GF and we love Celebrity and they are very good about his dietary restrictions...

We just booked the Galapatos for 2018 with Celebrity.

Both ships are different from the other ships of these lines. They are much smaller and they have Ecuadorian crew. I doubt that anyone has travelled on both ships in the Galapagos. Compare prices and what's offered in addition to the actual cruise such as hotel in Quito etc.

We went with Celebrity and were happy. We haven't been on any other Celebrity ship nor on Silversea. In contrast to many other people, this was not our favorite trip. We liked the extension we booked independently to the Ecuadorian Amazon much better: Napo Wildlife Center.

We are getting ready to go on Quasar Expeditions- Equinox. This is a small ship with all 5 star reviews. We are really excited and pleased with all we have read. Trip of a lifetime and this one includes all excursions in small groups with a naturalist. Snorkeling every day. Watch their video!

GF is not an issue on either line. All 5-star lines employ the top certification level (certified by government) naturalists. That level requires university degrees and speaking at least two more languages. They are contractors and go from one line to the other, you may find the same person on Celebrity one day and six months later on Silverseas. Only two or three may be permanent employees of the line. So naturalists are not an issue either.

As recommended, do check for other features, such as stay in Quito or Guayaquil, ambiance of the ship, etc. The maximum size allowed by the government for the ships is 100 passengers.

Last November 2015 I went on a 7 night excursion with DetourDestinations on the Angelito and had a crew of 8 to take care of us, maximum cabin passenger of 16, some were vegan and they had special meals included.

We( husband and I ) flew into Guayaquil with AA miles stayed overnight and then flew the next day to the GIslands on LAN also with miles.

We stayed on the island Santa Cruz 3 nights before cruise and 1 night after .

The company is based in Ecuador and the guides they have available will take care of your personal interests be it birding or other animals. He was obviously on the ship with us throughout the trip.

We were kept busy with morning and afternoon excursions and snorkeling, we had great meals and snacks returning from our excursions.

They have 2 dinghy attached to the sides and took us to shore safely in them.

We were able to meet the owners while in Santa Cruz which was a great plus in order to give him feedback on the cruise.

There are 2 itineraries and you can mix and match and either have 4, 5 7 , 10 or 14 day cruises.

The ship was recently refurbished in 2012 and is a 4 deck ship, cabins were roomy right above the crew deck, upper deck for sunning or hanging clothes, lower deck crew cabins and storage, 3rd deck where meals were served.

Sometimes the seas were rough going around certain islands but we saw so much without droves of people around us at every spot seemed we were the only ones on the island.

You can contact the company I listed and can charge the cruise in installments and not have to wire money to Ecuador . The base company Cometa travel offers the same trip.

We had our fuel charge waived and we were able to book our own flights with miles by using DetourDestinations.

Sounds great, especially if you like to do a lot snorkeling.

A few things are the same on all ships in Galapagos waters:

You fly in and out from Quito or Guayaquil. Celebrity uses a charter flight for its passengers from Quito.

You can fly to Ecuador on your own, don't need to book a ship/flight package. We did and were picked up by a Celebrity representative at the airport because we had booked their hotel package.

Ship: Crew and naturalists are Ecuadorian who speak English and Spanish. Food is Ecuadorian products prepared for American tastes with some specific Ecuadorian and south of the border specialties.

Itineraries are controlled by the National Park. Max. number of passengers on a ship is 100.

Just returned and cannot say enough great things about our cruise on the Equinox with Quasar. We had great food, great cabin and superb naturalists that went above and beyond to get us to see everything. So worth every penny - would go again tomorrow !

You were on Quasar's EVOLUTION! It was fabulous, but since I was with you I think we were not on the Equinox!

You were on Quasar's EVOLUTION! It was fabulous, but since I was with you I think we were not on the Equinox!

Jet lag or spell check ---LOL - Evolution it was!

We did the Ultimate Galapagos with Macchu Pichu pre- trip extension with Overseas Adventure Travel and I can't imagine a better experience. Local guides are with you throughout trip and have min 4 years training, dietary needs accommodated (fabulous food), snorkeling and hiking each day and also spent 3 nights at an Eco lodge on the Amazon. The best part is that there are 16 persons max! It was phenomenal. You can check it out on their website.