Silver Galapagos June 7, 2014

Just received our final documents. Not in a silver box but the case is nice. Now the anticipation begins to rise.

Esther and Joe

Have a great trip and keep us posted!

Enjoy every floating minute!

Have a great trip.

I will be boarding, when you disembark, for the two cruises following yours. Since I am a photographer, but don't expect to return to the Galapagos (too many other places in the world I haven't photographed yet), I decided to see all the islands in one trip.

Sure hope the local crew has had sufficient time to approach Silversea standards for service. My only real concern is whether the old air conditioning can keep my suite cool enough at night for a good sleep. I tend to push hard during the day, spend time downloading and reviewing my day's pictures after dinner and then collapse. Need a cool suite to sleep well and then do it all over again the next day. Probably will need a vacation when I get back from this trip.

Probably will need a vacation when I get back from this trip.

We are on this cruise and are very excited. It is our first on Silversea. Have started my list - sunscreen, insect repellent, etc. I have read all the previous posts and know that this ship is an expedition staffed totally by locals and may not be totally up to normal Silversea's standards. But I know it will be fine and we are going for the Galapagos.

I do concur with the OP - the air conditioning at night after a busy day is probably at the top of my list. I have learned over the years to calibrate my expectations and go with the flow. It has served me well.:)

Have a great time, and tell us all about it when you get back. I'm going in August.

So thrilled for you, joek. I am on the August cruise with crys. She prefers to call the way I like the suite...... "meat locker" and she brings a sweater. I too hope the ac is up to par.

We have the same situation, NCCruzQueen. Esther likes the house warmer than I do, she wears long pants and shirts, I wear tank top and shorts...(not a pretty sight).

Weather forecast for our week is mostly cloudy, highs of 75, lows 48.

joek, your weather sounds ideal. Thank goodness the ship offers wet suits. The water temps may be cool. Have a great time. Hope you will post while onboard or when your return home.

Cruise time is closing in. Off to the scuba store today to pick up a new mask and snorkel. I will probably pick up a snorkel vest. Not much of a swimmer, so the extra buoyancy should help my confidence.

As a wildlife photographer, I'm really looking forward to both the birds of the Ecuadorian cloud forest and all the "residents" of the islands. What I'm not looking forward to is getting all my camera equipment from Quito to Baltra. Don't mind the extra baggage fees, just don't want to see the cameras go missing on the way to the Galapagos. The equipment is all insured, but it would sure mess up the trip to arrive with no cameras.

Photogirl, are you planning to do any underwater photography? Some of the undersea videos I see on TV are just mind-boggling. I don't scuba and very little snorkel, but I had considered getting a waterproof case for my video camera. It uses mini DVD disks that hold just 15 minutes, a real pain.

Joe

joek,

I really don't do any underwater shooting. Not the world's greatest swimmer. However, one of my cameras is a little waterproof Panasonic, sort of a rugged point and shoot, that I use in Zodiacs, etc., when the seas are rough and I don't want to risk the good equipment. Used it in Antarctica a couple of times. The camera is good to a depth of some 40 feet. That's way more than I' m good for. It shoots both stills and video.

Liz

My husband and I just returned from a trip on the Silver Galapagos. Based on prior reviews I was worried about standards on the ship. I am happy to report we were very pleased. The food was very good and the wait staff worked very hard to ensure we enjoyed our meals. The expedition team was experienced, enthusiastic and also worked very hard to make sure everyone had a good time. The cabins were spacious and had a better layout than a comparable cabin on the Silver Explorer (we were in a deluxe veranda). We were very lucky to have dinner with the captain and he was a total delight.

Could the ship use some sprucing up? Yes, probably, but I think that's true of most of Silversea's ships.

Operationally, they could learn a few things from the Explorer. I thought the way they embarked/disembarked the zodiacs could be improved and the expedition leader was a little more casual than I like. Despite that, her team did a great job.

The Galapagos is such an incredible place, it's wonderful that there is now a ship that allows you to enjoy the whole experience in such luxury. I'd recommend this trip to all the adventurers out there.

The Galapagos is such an incredible place, it's wonderful that there is now a ship that allows you to enjoy the whole experience in such luxury. I'd recommend this trip to all the adventurers out there.

Thanks for the update, msrieski,

As time draws near for my trip, any positive comments gets me more and more excited. :D:D:D

Great news msrieski! We will be in the air this time next week on our way to Quito. Even more excited now, if that's possible. If you wouldn't mind, could you answer a quesiton about the bathroom? Is there space to hang any hand laundry? Thanks,

Joanna

Great news msrieski! We will be in the air this time next week on our way to Quito. Even more excited now, if that's possible. If you wouldn't mind, could you answer a quesiton about the bathroom? Is there space to hang any hand laundry? Thanks,

 

Joanna

The bathroom is pretty small and it's only a shower. There is one of those string lines in the shower but I don't think they hold much. If you have a balcony you can easily dry things by hanging them on the chairs. The humidity in the Galapagos is very low and things dried much more quickly than in the shower. Other than that, there really isn't anywhere to hang drippy clothes. There is a handheld shower attachment and I did hang stuff on that and the shower head. HTH.

Glad to read your comments. Some of the few prior reports were less than glowing. I was concerned sometime back when I read of the need for Imodium and Cipro, and thought about bringing bottled water. Of course, we could always brush our teeth and take meds using beer or wine.

The bathroom is pretty small and it's only a shower. There is one of those string lines in the shower but I don't think they hold much. If you have a balcony you can easily dry things by hanging them on the chairs. The humidity in the Galapagos is very low and things dried much more quickly than in the shower. Other than that, there really isn't anywhere to hang drippy clothes. There is a handheld shower attachment and I did hang stuff on that and the shower head. HTH.

Thank you for taking time to answer. I have a much better feel for the situation now. Surprised by the low huidity comment. Nice to hear.

Thank you for taking time to answer. I have a much better feel for the situation now. Surprised by the low huidity comment. Nice to hear.

Comment withdrawn

msrieski,

All your reports seem pretty good. I will be in the same class of cabin as you were. Yesterday went out and got a new snorkel and mask. Can you tell me how they handle the snorkeling? Do they provide wet suits, if the water will be cold? What about fins? I don't want to add any weight to my already overweight equipment. Is most of the snorkeling off of the Zodiacs, off of the ship, or off of the beach?

I am actually half way packed. That is a record for me, since I usually end of finishing my packing the night before departure.

Liz

joek,

 

I really don't do any underwater shooting. Not the world's greatest swimmer. However, one of my cameras is a little waterproof Panasonic, sort of a rugged point and shoot, that I use in Zodiacs, etc., when the seas are rough and I don't want to risk the good equipment. Used it in Antarctica a couple of times. The camera is good to a depth of some 40 feet. That's way more than I' m good for. It shoots both stills and video.

 

Liz

Photogirl

Don't know if you left aready but thought I would give you a heads up on what there using out on the islands. Ships photographer is using a full frame on a tripod with a 28-300mm type L lens. After a day or two I followed suit on the lens and found out that range worked well. Also so much water required polarizer filters. Spend most afternoons in the room post processing in Lightroom.

Good luck you will have plenty of animals and landscape to work with...

Carefree,

Thx so much for the camera info. Main camera will be a Canon 1DX. Second body will be a 7D or my tiny SL1. Also taking Panasonic FZ200 and waterproof TS5. Lenses include 70-200 f2,8, 70-300, 24-105 and maybe 16-35, Have lots of polarizers. Also carrying laptop with 1TB storage drive, two Hyperdrive Colorspace backup storage devices and a couple of external drives. Lots and lots of cards.

As you can tell, I'm pretty serious about my photography. I only hope the guides give me enough time to get the shots I want before they tell me I have to move along with the rest of the group. I get that a lot. :>)

Liz

Carefree,

 

Thx so much for the camera info. Main camera will be a Canon 1DX. Second body will be a 7D or my tiny SL1. Also taking Panasonic FZ200 and waterproof TS5. Lenses include 70-200 f2,8, 70-300, 24-105 and maybe 16-35, Have lots of polarizers. Also carrying laptop with 1TB storage drive, two Hyperdrive Colorspace backup storage devices and a couple of external drives. Lots and lots of cards.

 

As you can tell, I'm pretty serious about my photography. I only hope the guides give me enough time to get the shots I want before they tell me I have to move along with the rest of the group. I get that a lot. :>)

 

Liz

OK you’re ¬well set up. Animals in this part of the world are posing and not afraid of mankind. It will be like portrait shooting and you should have plenty of time. Guides will take their time as not to disturb the wildlife and hope to catch some mating dances, depending on time of the year. Groups will be between 8-12, smaller groups will be the last boat to take the stragglers. Most people seeing your quality lens and body will step out of your way I found on most excursions.

Did most of my stuff with a prime 35mm on a sling, due to the irregular and uneven large rocks surfaces along the way. No time to get something out of a back pack. There was no problem with water spray on zodiacs also. Telephoto needed for frigate birds not nesting.