Galapagos Advice Sought

I guess I am resurrecting this thread once again. We are doing Galapagos with Celebrity in early June of 2017. We would like to do Machu Pichu before the cruise and have engaged with Escaped to Latin America to get quotes on a 11 night package that includes Lima, Cuzco, Sacred Valley, Machu Pichu and Lake Titicaca, They have been great to work with. My only concern is whether I am getting good value for my money with them. It seems that I could book everything on my own and save 30-50% over what they are charging. I realize I should pay a premium for their services in organizing the package but it just seems to be too big a premium. I am going to try pricing this out independently and see what I come up with before booking.

First let me say we are big Celebrity supporters & have sailed on Azamara too.

We did this trip a few years ago with OAT. ( overseas adventure travel )

We received more bang for our buck & we were very happy with this tour.

Machu Picchu & the Galapagos. Checkout their website.

Advantages for us:

Costs...

Small group... max 16 people.

Small boat/ship... 100ft with 8 cabins, adequate dinning room, & good to excellent food.

Small zodiac inflatable boats ( panga boats, 8 passenger plus driver ) for wet & dry landings. Also used ( panga ) to tour very close to shore to observe the wildlife & great photo opportunities. Snorkeling is included.

Small ship able to anchor closer to island for less travel time & more touring time on the island.

Top deck open & cover area to relax after tours or for our pre-dinner cocktails.

Each day planned the evening before with same local guide to show you the island. Most of the traveling done after night fall, after visiting 2 islands most days.

Small group was great, everyone happy, & no one held up the group on these tours.

Average age 55-65 years young on this adventure.

Did 9 days in Peru which included a over night visit at Machu Picchu. Took train from Cusco. Arrived in time for a 1/2

day guided tour with great information. Next morning arrived at the opening of the site to walk to the Sun Gate. We had 2 guides for our group, about 3 hours. Then on our own for the next 3 hours. Then took bus back to Aquas Calientes. Lunch on our own, grabbed the luggage at the hotel, & boarded the train back to Cusco.

Wonderful experience with lots of pictures & huffing & puffing. Worth all the effort.

Just the best way for us to see our areas of interest. Whatever you decide, you will have great memories of your trip. If you have specific questions you can email me at sfaigle@aol.com Happy Travels, John

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Blue Footed Bubbie

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Galapagos Land Iquana

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Sally Lightfoot Crab ( I like the reflection )

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Machu Picchu

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Taken from a different area Weather & clouds are always changing here

John

We went in March on the Xpedition. All I can say in response to the person who had been before and thought it was awful is that it must have been Utopia before. The ship, crew, and food were great for our voyage. We did the 10 day option. We did a land tour of Peru prior to an around the horn cruise on Infinity the year before so did not choose the extension. It is a very active cruise so we were glad to be heading home instead of Peru afterward.

I do not recommend it to anyone with mobility problems but we found it wonderful. The smaller ships may have a somewhat different experience but that comes with limitations on water usage for such basics as showering. I was glad to have all the comforts on Xpedition.

I used the roll call section of CC for much valuable info on this trip. There is an ongoing thread there plus two closed threads that have pretty much any info one would need.

The brochure given onboard a previous cruise outlined when various animals appear. I thought March or April would be best. We were too early for the waved albatross which is on outer loop in April but enjoyed many wildlife sightings and scenic hikes and snorkeling.

So sorry to hear this, as our excellent experiences were in Jan 2009 and May 2010 and the ship and crew it was made it even more special.

 

Recently i was looking at present rates and they relatively r in the same ball park as our 10 day trip.

 

The reason I booked with X in 2008 was 1. I would not lose my deposit if I cancelled and 2. I received a 10% discount because I was Diamond on RCI.

 

I did not research any other companies at the time because X could accomplish my goal which was to see the Galapagos with the least amount of effort on my part....I enjoyed X so much I returned with my Children, DH said once was enough...

We will be Diamond Plus on Royal by the time we go to on Celebrity. How do you get the discount? is it automatic?

We will be Diamond Plus on Royal by the time we go to on Celebrity. How do you get the discount? is it automatic?

The discount used to be 10% - it's now 5% for Captain Club Elite members.

You need to be enroled in Captain Club program - as a Diamond Plus member you will be enrolled at the Elite level - you need to contact The Loyality Desk or your TA in order to get the discount.

http://www.celebritycruises.com/htmlpage/galapagos-offer