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Review of Xpedition Galapagos Inner Loop May 10-17, 2015


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Visiting the Galapagos Islands has been on our bucket list forever, but it always seemed very daunting (both the cost and the expedition nature of the trip, especially on small boats). When we learned about Celebrity Xpedition, we felt that the larger ship and luxury details would make it possible for us. I don’t like to tip my hand too much in reviews, but suffice it to say that this trip met and exceeded all of our expectations and was the best cruise ever!

 

This first post will be followed by a series of day-by-day blog posts, and my photos can be seen and downloaded here:

https://jazzbeauxgalapagostrip.shutterfly.com/pictures/5

 

We took the 10-day package because: (a) our Spanish skills are pretty much limited to restaurant menus; (b) since the cruise wasn’t going to be a relaxing spa affair we wanted a minimum of stress getting there and back; and © we were worried that the altitude in Quito is already stretching it [we live near sea level] so Machu Picchu would be problematic. That turned out to be the right decision for us. We made friends on the cruise who were going on to Machu Picchu and they had a great time, but we had enough trouble with the altitude in Quito and were happy to be returning home to our own bed at the end of the cruise.

 

Xpedition is unique in many ways, and the Celebrity website never recognizes this. You cannot print out express passes for Xpedition. You will get a very nice booklet in the mail with luggage tags and everything else you need. This is triggered by your completing the online check-in. If you booked with a TA, the materials will be sent to them and they will forward them to you.

 

Celebrity took great care of us from the moment we got through customs in Quito until they escorted us back to the airport for the flights home. Their shuttles were always waiting for us and eliminated the need to figure out the complex geography of the Quito metropolitan area [a mountain valley that is something like 3 miles wide but 35 miles long and seemingly never flat for more than a block] The J W Marriott hotel is beautiful, the rooms are large [especially compared to European hotels], and the restaurants are very good – and contrary to rumor Wi-Fi internet is included in the Celebrity rate along with the buffet breakfast.

 

The city tour of Quito was interesting, and the maze of streets made us very glad we didn’t try to do this on our own, especially since that first day was the bad one for altitude problems [exhausting travel the day before with the usual dehydration from airplane “desert” humidity levels and late bedtime plus early wake-up produced major headaches and serious lethargy – there should be a warning label “do not operate heavy machinery or make important decisions while under the influence of low oxygen levels”!] Lunch at El Theatrum was good, and the folkloric dancing was entertaining. The Middle of the World park is hokey but still worth doing [look at how many people keep going back to Disney, to see how well hokey can work ;)] – some say it isn’t on the exact Equator, but we have pictures with one foot in each hemisphere and that’s our story and we’re sticking to it… Dinner at La Gloria restaurant was even better than the lunch, so our adventure was off to a great start.

 

The next day showed the real benefit of the 10-day Celebrity cruise tour. After enjoying a sumptuous breakfast (included), we joined our fellow cruisers on Celebrity’s chartered coaches for a smooth trip to Celebrity’s charter flight non-stop to Baltra. We waited in the VIP lounge for a short while [probably until the ship sent the all clear that the cabins were ready], then were smoothly transferred to the nearby pier for the panga ride to Xpedition. Each panga group was welcomed in the lounge [with free booze – a harbinger of the week to come], given a brief presentation, and escorted to our cabins. We paid for “no hassles” – and there were no hassles! [Well, DW and I were seated at the back of the panga and because the day was unusually windy we got soaked from the waists up – but that was the only time we got wet on a panga and the cabin hair dryer took care of the dampness before lunch, so “no harm no foul.”]

 

Note 1: on Xpedition they usually refer to these inflatable boats as “Zodiacs,” which is their brand name. I use the general term “panga,” which is more often found here on Cruise Critic and was occasionally used onboard as well.

 

Note 2: there has been controversy on Cruise Critic about the luggage weight limits on the Celebrity charter flights. The website and the printed materials from Celebrity state limits for both checked and carry-on luggage. I think our checked bags just came in under the limit – but since they were taken the night before so Celebrity could handle the Ecuadorian agricultural inspection for us, there was no opportunity for anyone to complain if they were too heavy. I’m sure our carry-ons were over the limit – and I’m even more sure that nobody weighed them. This is a charter flight, so Celebrity is setting the rules, not the airline. I wouldn’t worry about luggage weights. [if you like to pack light, more power to you – it will make it easier for me to remember you as “the person in that outfit.” ;)]

 

Lunch was the first of many good meals. We had heard that food on Xpedition isn’t up to Celebrity’s usual standards – Bunk! The food was different [which for those who complain about Celebrity’s 14 never-changing menus should be a good thing!], and everything was made from fresh local ingredients and usually reflected Ecuadorian cuisine [both things that people lament missing on most ocean cruises]. I love Ceviche, and it was great to have it in infinite variations every day at lunch. Likewise Spanish deserts like flan and tres leches. And the fish was plentiful, varied and always cooked perfectly. The only weak spot is meat, because strict environmental regulations require that all meat imported into the Galapagos must be partially pre-cooked – this made it a real challenge to comply with our orders for “medium rare,” but once we made our taste known [and adjusted our request to “rare” for emphasis] we generally got exactly what we wanted, and they were always happy to try again and get it right the second time [very quickly].

 

Alcohol is truly all-inclusive throughout the cruise. Most nights there is a special cocktail of the day in the hour before dinner, but you can get anything you like at any time. Wine is poured freely at lunch and dinner, and if you want anything else they will happily procure it for you. You also get a bottle of bubbly in your cabin – and unlike any other cruise we’ve been on when we asked to switch it for something else we were offered our choice of any wine on the ship [and through a mis-communication we ended up getting two bottles! – although there’s hardly any reason to have a bottle in your cabin, since the bar is only a few steps away]

 

Tipping is also included, and no one acted like they expected anything more even for exemplary service. We weren’t sure how Celebrity had handled tipping at the Quito hotel or with the tour guides, but again the body language was completely different from service personnel in the US who know how to subtly convey their desire for an emolument. At the end of the cruise they ask you to come to the service desk with your credit card, but they sent us away because our bill was zero!

 

Our cabin, 403, was very convenient to the lounge and just one flight up from the dining room. The cabin feels larger than 160 sf, but it's hard to keep it neat with all the expedition gear you need for wet landings, swimming, etc. One of the twin beds is fixed to the wall, so when you have them together as a double somebody [that would be DW] has to crawl over the covers to get in and then doesn’t have a night table or reading light – but otherwise the bed was fine. There’s also a small desk which houses the flat-screen TV, and underneath the small fridge and hairdryer. Behind the TV there are two plugs, one US (for the TV) and one EU. Our cabin came equipped with a 3-plug expander in the US outlet, so we still had 2 spares – plus I had brought an EU-to-US adapter and a 3-plug/2-USB expander [http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0016IXEWG/ref=psdc_761520_t1_B0015DYMVO], so we had more than enough slots to plug in the computer, camera battery charger wall-wart, and my shaver charger wall-wart. There are three small drawers in the night table, and two closets with both hangers and shelves (and the safe). The bathroom has a nice shower (with glass door that mostly didn’t leak) and lots of space on the counter and the shelf underneath. The shower has 3 dispensers (soap, shampoo and separate conditioner. Water pressure is very good. There is a clothesline built in to the shower – but with no balcony, stuff doesn't dry quickly [meaning, bring 3 bathing suits]

 

Air conditioning worked great in our cabin and throughout the ship. I had heard rumors that the AC isn’t so good on decks 3 and 6, but we heard no complaints from residents of those neighborhoods. Our deck 4 cabin was nice and cool [even had to turn up the thermostat] I mentioned to the CD the complaints I have read on CC about deck 6, and she admitted that the separate AC system added for that new deck had some teething problems that were corrected after the first season. She also noted that the ship's AC system uses sea water and that makes it work perversely in the Galapagos climate where the water is warm when the air temp is cool and vice versa – the result is that the AC works too well in cool weather and not well enough in warm weather [i forget the engineering principle behind this, but it made sense at the time – of course that was the evening of the Wine Tasting, which may have had something to do with my comprehension ;)]. The dining room does get warmer as you go back, but we never had to sit further back than the first table past the arch and we did fine.

 

I had heard that you have to go to the lounge to get Wi-Fi reception, but our cabin (403) was close enough that we had a good signal. The issue was getting beyond the local network to the internet – apparently there was an unusual problem on our cruise, because part way through they reformatted the network server with a new name and new passwords and after that it was much better.

 

Service was good, but not great. Our cabin attendant kept everything clean and neat [she was OCD about everything – even our things – being kept in the “right” place!], but she had a blind spot for wash cloths and routinely failed to replace them. [Luckily we discovered that they use them as hand towels in the public washrooms, so we knew where to replenish our supply as needed!] The waiters in the dining room were very friendly and willing to make substitutions/corrections as requested, but service in general was slower than we would have liked [and with three friendly couples we had enough conversation going on that we weren’t bolting our food…] The naturalists were top-notch, and I can’t imagine any other cruise line having better ones. They were taking pictures throughout the cruise, and at the end we were each given a DVD with a slideshow and 500+ pictures – and also a coffee table book that Celebrity produced about the Galapagos Islands – nice touches! [And if our luggage wasn’t overweight on the flight in, the addition of that book ensured that it was coming home!]

 

So, from a cruise and cruise-tour perspective this was a 4- or 5-star experience. But that’s not why you go to Galapagos [it’s just what makes it possible to survive…] You go for the itinerary – the unique geology, flora and fauna. And this trip did not disappoint in any way. We chose the Inner Loop in May because we wanted to see the Blue-Footed Boobies doing their mating dance – and we saw it in spades! Also the male Frigate birds with their gular pouches expanded like their had overdosed on ******! Everything else was gravy, but there was lots of gravy: sea lions in all the usual poses; many kinds of birds [i guess it’s obvious that we’re not “birders” – all I know about pelicans I learned from Ogden Nash: “A wonderful bird is the pelican, His bill can hold more than his belican”]; the stark beauty of volcanic landscapes, with more variation than I expected – and above all the animals’ complete lack of fear about our presence. The Galapagos delivered everything you have ever read it can.

 

It helped that we had great weather. There was no rain to speak of until the last day. The air was hot and humid, especially on the afternoon excursions, but there was usually a good breeze to keep us cool. [There is no shade anywhere, so you really want to wear a big hat and spread on the SPF50.] And the water was still warm enough that we didn’t need the (provided) wetsuits. So my conclusion on timing is that early May is an excellent choice.

 

The one weak spot in the itinerary [in our opinion] is the final day on Santa Cruz [and this is common to both itineraries]. It’s a good thing the Giant Tortoises were not high on our to-do list because they really didn’t hold to the level of “Oh My God” that the rest of the animals had established. [This was our one rainy day, which may have also affected our enjoyment.] We took the morning tour of the Charles Darwin facility – but the museum is closed and even the gift shop was closed on our visit, so this was just a dull walk to get to the Tortoise pens. There we saw randy Diego and two of his harem [he and the two young males he incited to jealousy brought their species back from 14 to 2,000], one pubescent male mistakenly humping another male [at the wrong end!] while a few others milled around, and dozens of cute babies being raised to restock the unique species on a couple of the islands. This was OK, but not much different from visiting any zoo [Diego was repatriated to the Galapagos from the San Diego zoo, hence his name]. We went back to the ship for lunch [this was option 2, which only 6 of us had chosen]. In the afternoon we were supposed to go back to the island for a bus ride to the highlands where we would see the Giant Tortoises in the wild, but since it was still raining only one couple decided to go – and they reported that after a 45-minute bus ride (each way) and much slogging through mud, they only saw a total of two (count ‘em – 2!) tortoises. [They also stepped off the bus into two feet of brackish water, which didn’t add anything to the enjoyment of the day ;)]

 

Option 1 was a full day on the island, with the Darwin Center in the morning, a tree planting service-trip, lunch at a restaurant in the highlands, and then the search for wild Tortoises. I don’t know how this is handled normally, but on our cruise there was a special attempt to set a world record for simultaneous tree plantings so there was heavy pressure [Ecuadorian women know how to use guilt as a weapon as well as any nationality!] and almost everybody signed up. The reports back were not good: the food at the restaurant is not up to Xpedition standards, the folkloric entertainment was amateurish, the mud was as high as a tortoise’s eye, and several people fell or had near misses. Instead of being shunned as non-team players we were praised for our good judgment in staying on the ship.

 

Other than that day, all the excursions were top notch and we almost always chose the more demanding one. There were usually two choices for both the morning and evening excursions – you sign up the night before so that they can allocate panga-loads among the two options [National Park rules limit each panga to 16 guests, so they have to make sure everybody sorts out correctly.] As far as I could tell everyone got their first choice every day [i think there are seven pangas, so they have a little wiggle room – we were occasionally on a less-than-full panga].

 

On two days there was also a third activity – a deep water snorkel. We passed on these as DW doesn’t swim well enough and even I was scared off by the dire warnings. After hearing the reports back I think I could easily have done them [the water is actually calmer away from the beach] but three excursions in one day would probably have been too exhausting.

 

One added bonus was the stars! DW went up to deck 6 (which has the fewest lights) and after her eyes adjusted she was blown away by the myriad stars and the painted stripe of the Milky Way. This was unexpected, but another awe-inspiring aspect of nature in the Galapagos.

 

We missed the extra bonus of the eruption of Wolf Volcano on Isabela Island, which started two weeks after we were there – the next Inside Loop cruise was perfectly timed, and they should be seeing views like this:

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-32882500

Too bad we missed it on the May 10 sailing – we could have saved a trip to Hawaii!

 

The end of the trip was a smooth as everything else. One last panga ride [stayed dry this time], charter flight, and bus back to the J W Marriott. I should mention – and praise – the food service on the flight: first a white tablecloth for your tray table, then the meal tray which includes a blue cloth napkin and real metal tableware. Pay attention to your napkin: many have a Celebrity X embroidered in the corner, but a few have a Blue-Footed Booby [two of which are now in our collection] We had an excellent (and included) dinner that night in the hotel restaurant, then breakfast the next morning and a quick shuttle back to the airport for our flights home. The altitude didn’t bother us as much this second time in Quito [probably because we didn’t arrive exhausted, or maybe because we didn’t actually try to do anything] and we got home safely late that night.

 

We had been warned that Quito is “dry” on Sundays and therefore on the return evening you could not purchase wine at dinner. This is not quite true. If you go to a regular restaurant, it may be true [we didn’t test this] But the hotel is allowed to serve alcohol along with food. Not only was the restaurant selling wine, the bar was doing a good trade also [i suppose they provided peanuts or something to qualify as “food”] But the advice ended up working to our advantage since we brought that free bottle of wine back from the ship and the hotel bar was happy to open it and provide wine glasses (for free), which we then brought into the restaurant without raising any eyebrows.

 

This was our 11th cruise, plus we have taken many DIY land trips – and it is etched in our memory as the best cruise ever. Celebrity Xpedition is the only way to go in the Galapagos, and the islands are everything they are reputed to be. I highly recommend it – but don’t wait too long because even with all the Celebrity luxury this is still an expedition cruise. Do it now, and save the Caribbean for your dotage!

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DW and I flew American Airlines to Miami and on to Quito, Ecuador where we were met at the airport by Celebrity staff. A small bus brought 8 of us to the J W Marriott hotel. Roses filled the lobby and we were greeted by staff who offered warm, wet towels and champagne flutes of tree tomato juice. We had a lovely room and large bath with thick, terry robes and slippers. We slept soundly and rose at 7 on Saturday.

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There were many things from which to choose at the breakfast buffet, for both Spanish and American breakfast tastes. We boarded the Celebrity tour buses at 9:15 to explore Quito, the capital of Ecuador. It has the best-preserved, least-altered historic center in Latin America. Our favorite stop was our first, the National Basilica. Large but simple in styling, it has wonderful stained glass windows. We also visited the monasteries of San Francisco and Santo Domingo, and the Church and Jesuit College of La Companía with their rich, gaudy, gold interiors. These are pure examples of the ‘Baroque School of Quito,’ a fusion of Spanish, Italian, Moorish, Flemish and indigenous art. We went to Plaza Grande and saw the Presidential Palace. (DW bought a $2 pashmina from a street vendor.) Then to lunch at El Theatrum. Quite a smorgasbord plus folkloric entertainment. We sat with people from L.A. and London. [The altitude obviously affected people differently. Some of the men joined the performers dancing, while some people decided to skip the afternoon activities and returned to the hotel to rest]

 

After lunch DW and I catnapped on the 45-minute bus ride to Middle of the World Park and Museum where we took photos of each other standing on the equatorial line [and got a free photo of the two of us in “native” dress] We returned to the hotel for a short break before dinner at La Gloria restaurant. Pam and Ray of Pennsylvania and their friends Rosemary and Tom of Chicago invited us to join them. DW and I both had Shrimp and Sea Bass Ceviche, and Veal Shank with Andes yellow potatoes mashed with garlic. Delicious! We each got a dessert sampler of crème brûlée, lemon puff pastry, sorbet and berries. I bought a bottle of red wine (35 Sur Carménère Reserva 2013 Valle Central, Chile – excellent!) and shared it with our friends. A lovely evening! Although we never had difficulty breathing, we both were affected by the very high altitude of Quito and were affirmed in our decision not to continue on to Machu Picchu.

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6:05 alarm to get us moving for breakfast and last minute packing before catching the Celebrity bus to Quito Airport – where DW set off alarms walking through security and I lost my old friends [Hoffritz barber scissors] to the confiscated materials bin. [The Celebrity reps had told us that since it is a domestic flight we didn’t have to worry about liquids in our carry-ons, so we blithely kept our toiletry bags for use in the morning – forgetting that they contained the scissors] We sat adjacent to Pam and Ray, Rosemary and Tom. It turned out that was our cabin arrangement on the ship as well. Our two hour Celebrity charter flight was pleasant and we had linens and real cutlery for our quiche brunch. The only tough part was carrying our bags down the exit stairs to the tarmac at the Baltra airport. After a short wait in the VIP lounge we were bused to the “dock” where we embarked on pangas for the Xpedition. [There is a nice new covered dock area, but the landing stairs were destroyed by a storm literally days before our visit so we had to use the adjacent bare landing area] DW and I were seated at the back of the panga near the driver, and we both got pretty wet. [This was due to the windy conditions that day – we stayed dry on all the later rides]

 

Onboard Xpedition we were served Mimosas and had a short briefing and then were shown to our cabin. Compact, but lots of closet space. DW got the wall side of the bed and had to shinny down to get in and out. We headed for the dining room where we met up with the foursome and had some lunch. [After all, we hadn’t eaten anything for a couple of hours – we were already on a cruise feeding schedule!] Then we had a 3:00 talk by Bitinia, our cruise director/naturalist. Excellent! That was followed at 3:45 by the lifeboat drill which led to the distribution of snorkeling equipment. What a sight to see us struggling to get into wet suits. It would have helped to know I was trying to put mine on backwards [some of them zip up the front, others in back] We took a stab at unpacking and stowing [we don’t pack light, but ultimately everything found its place]

 

At 5:00 the ship “circumnavigated” [a stickler would complain that we didn’t do the full 360 degrees, but we did most of the circle] Daphne Major and passed Daphne Minor. As expected there were many frigate birds overhead, some puffing up their bright red throat bladders. There were also tiny flies annoying us on deck. At 6:30 Bitinia gave a detailed talk on snorkel safety. Then the Captain greeted us and introduced the officers and we all toasted with dreck “champagne”. [All drinks are included in the fare. We found a complimentary bottle of the bubbly in our cabin, which they were happy to exchange for a bottle of anything on board – so I got the same excellent wine I had bought in Quito and brought it back for the final dinner there (see below)] Then we had a briefing on the next day’s excursion options and sign-up. [As far as I know, everyone got their #1 choice throughout the cruise]

 

We hurried to the dining room and held a table for the 6 of us. I had tuna (‘medium’, as suggested by the waiter, but too well done to my taste) and tres leches; DW had petite filet mignon [‘medium rare’ was too done – we learned that all meat tends to be cooked 1/2 grade too done on Xpedition] and chocolate cake/vanilla ice cream.

 

After dinner DW walked the decks for awhile. Not much space to do so, but the reward was phenomenal: The Milky Way! Better than a whale fluke? God speaks in different ways! She was in awe!

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DW was up by 6:15, but let me sleep a little longer. We met Pam and Ray in Darwin’s Restaurant for breakfast so we would be ready for our 8:00 expedition via panga [note: the Xpedition staff calls them by their brand name, ‘Zodiac’, but I use the generic term ‘panga’] to Puerto Egas on Santiago Island with its black sand beach, where we made a wet landing for a two-mile walk with naturalist David. We were rewarded by seeing Opuntia [prickly pear] cactus, lava lizards [unusually in nature, the females have a bright red throat/head, while the males are less colorful], mockingbirds, finches, flycatchers, Galapagos doves, American oystercatchers, yellow crown night herons, lava herons, and more sea lions, marine iguanas, and Sally Lightfoot crabs than you could count. We were within touching distance of many of these animals but were reminded to keep a distance of 8 feet. Coming back to the beach we had the opportunity to return to the ship or remain to swim (DW) and/or snorkel (me).

 

The six of us eventually met in Darwin’s for a hot buffet lunch. DW went to the 1:45 talk on identifying birds. At 3:30 we took a panga with naturalist Jorge to a wet landing on Rabida Island. The two-mile walk started from the red sand beach and then became a steep, rocky trail. We saw mockingbirds, Darwin finches, lava lizards, and schools of mullet in the ocean. We descended to the high salt inlet where DW spotted a nesting oystercatcher and a white-cheeked pintail duck. We all tried in vain to spot a vermillion flycatcher [we later learned there are only a small number of these in all of Galapagos] but did see a small snake on the beach. We opted out of water activities and returned to the ship.

 

After the activities talk, the six of us dined and celebrated anniversaries, etc. with the crew singing to us and bringing a special chocolate cake. DW & I had tournedos (ordered ‘rare’ to get the desired medium rare). DW had Caesar salad and apple crisp while I had spinach turnover and strawberry soup. DW returned to deck 6 for more communing with the stars.

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Up again by 6:15. We went on the 8:00 excursion with naturalist Edwin for an hour and a half panga ride to spot wildlife in Elizabeth Bay on Isabela Island. And we did! We entered an inlet of mangroves where we spotted a school of golden rays, sea turtles, brown pelicans, and an eagle ray. Out in the bay we were up close to blue footed boobies in a feeding frenzy, pelicans, flying fish, a marine iguana, flightless cormorants. DW spotted a sea lion settling in on a wall by the water. The water is a beautiful, clear aquamarine. We were back on board by 10.

 

DW headed up to deck 6 to sit outside until the sun found her. Then she joined me for a nap before we all lunched together in Darwin’s – today was an Italian buffet. We borrowed a book on Galapagos from the ship’s “library” [a corner of the lounge] which had great photos (everyone later received a different book as a gift from Celebrity). [The book we borrowed was Galapagos Along the Path by Fabian Romero Davila. ISBN 978-9942-11-475-4. Did I mention that DW and I are both retired librarians? ;)]

 

At 4:45 we took an extended panga ride with naturalist David. Overcast skies kept us a little cooler, but the humidity was high. We moved slowly along Tagus Cove of Isabela Island and saw wildlife up close: blue-footed boobies, brown pelicans, marine iguanas, Sally Lightfoot crabs, flightless cormorants, brown noddy terns, frigate birds, penguins, petrels, starfish and sea lions playing and swimming close to our panga. The hillside (of compacted volcanic ash) was studded with Palo Santos trees. There were caves and interesting rock formations. We headed to shore to take a short, steep climb (150 steps) to see Darwin’s Lake, a saltwater filled crater. Beautiful view!

 

Back to Xpedition for quick showers, cocktails (Blue-Footed Booby cocktails made with blue Curaçao), excursion preview/signup and dinner. DW had Caesar salad, Galapagos fish (sea bass) and molten chocolate cake. I had tuna carpaccio, a combo of two entrees (seafood and Indian vegetarian), and strawberries jubilee. Then we six went to the ‘Crossing the Equator’ party/dance. DW was disappointed that there were no stars this night, because it was overcast.

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Up at 7:00 for the long lava-rock walk at 8:30 with naturalist Diego. [All of these men and women are certified Ecuadorian naturalists] The Xpedition was anchored in Sullivan Bay of Isabela Island and our panga took us to a ‘dry landing’ on a rocky beach for a rugged mile and a half hike over black lava rock. Footing was uneven and the sun on the black surface was HOT! Diego lectured on the geology of the area as we progressed around the loop. Coming upon a lava tube, he descended into it for a photo op. Some of us followed suit. Of course, the two of us did, and have pictures to prove it! We spotted lava herons, lava lizards, a Galapagos grasshopper, Galapagos hawk, Galapagos dove [if in doubt about the exact name of an animal, just call it “Galapagos …”), lava cactus and candelabra cactus. We saw several examples of hornidas (lava ovens), ropy lava (pahoehoe) and rough lava (a’a).

 

The panga brought us back to the ship for an outdoor lunch at the grille [fish, lobster tails, shrimp, burgers, etc.] We skipped the geology talk in favor of a nap [this was a pattern, especially for me ;)]

 

At 3:30 we headed for another long walk to the top of Bartolome Island – steep, 380 steps and boardwalk landings to the summit. Sun was out. Not a cloud in the sky. Thank God for the wind. It was a killer climb, testing heart and legs. But we made it along with 12 companions and naturalist Marvi. We then took a panga to a nearby beach. I snorkeled and saw a variety of fish, while DW walked the length of the beach with her feet in the water keeping cool. She saw a school of small fish and a handful of puffer fish.

 

It was good to get back to the Xpedition for de-sanding and showers. Wine-tasting before dinner [that’s how I learned they had the 35 Sur Carménère Reserva on board]. DW had pasta fagioli, brujo (white fish), and Grand Marnier soufflé. I had mushroom terrine, brujo and the soufflé. The naturalists performed in Discovery Lounge, then DW danced with other women while I chatted with Terry and Mary Tallent. DW enjoyed another beautiful sky!

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Up at 7:00. Misty, overcast. But not for long. We were on the last panga out to Bachas Beach (remains of sunken barges) on Santa Cruz Island. A wet landing! I sat on a rock to put on my hiking shoes – with a two-year old baby sea lion dozing on the sand a few feet away. Our small group of eight followed naturalist David along the beach. We spotted brown pelicans, Sally Lightfoot crabs, lava lizards, butterflies, marine iguanas, yellow warblers, oystercatchers, ruddy turnstones, pintail ducks – and found evidence of nesting sea turtles (empty egg shells, tracks from the dunes to the water). The coup was the adult greater flamingo fishing in the saline pond. We returned to the landing beach where I snorkeled and DW walked. She was rewarded with a sea lion swimming offshore and found two more flamingos and three “new” birds in another pond. [Naturalist Jorge said these might be lava gulls]

 

Mexican buffet for lunch.

 

An overcast afternoon brought us to North Seymour island where we took a two-hour walk on the beach and on a path of large uneven rocks, with naturalist Janet. This was the excursion that had led us to choose the Inner Loop – and Wow, was it worth it! We saw sea lions, swallow tail gulls (one sitting on her egg), land iguanas – and most importantly frigate birds and blue footed boobies by the dozens doing their mating rituals and sitting on nests.

 

We witnessed the BFBs doing their mating dance –the male whistles, lifts up one blue foot at a time, and spreads his wings to attract a female. If interested, she responds with a honk. The more blue his feet, the better his chances – as it means he has caught and eaten a lot of fish, so he is probably a good provider.

 

The male frigate birds have a red gular pouch [throat bladder] that puffs up to the size of a party balloon. The bigger the expansion and redder the color, the more attractive he is. The female also checks to see if he has built a nest – if so, his chances improve greatly. Both take turns incubating the egg. The chicks are white fluff balls with huge beaks and feet. The wing span of these birds, at 35-45 inches, is only exceeded by the 9’ spread of the waved albatross, which we didn’t see on this itinerary. [The males keep their gular pouches inflated for hours at a time – as if they had overdosed on ****** – even when incubating an egg on the nest. Not like human males who stop holding their belly in after the wedding… ;)]

 

There were so many specimens of these two types of birds and of the land iguanas that we couldn’t possibly count them. We also saw lava lizards and a yellow crowned night heron.

 

For dinner DW had shrimp crêpes, Boston lettuce salad, salmon, and apple tart Tatin. I had the crêpes, Lobster Thermidor, and the tart. All the wait staff serenaded Rosemary for her birthday. When they learned that she was a high school Spanish teacher they delightedly sang the song again en español. Then they brought out a special chocolate log cake for all of us to share. We headed upstairs for trivia and none of us won. Heavy rain so no stars visible. DW & I worked on the Galapagos trivia crossword puzzle contest, but were stumped by several questions about fish [so now you know that we aren’t good at identifying fish or birds. We are a little better on reptiles, but only really good at things that are edible. ;)]

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Up at 7:00, met the ‘Gang of Four’ [Chinese Cultural Revolution reference, not English rock band] for breakfast before the 8:30 excursion to San Cristobal Island where we visited the Galapagos Interpretation Center and then got bused into the town of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno. There were sea lions everywhere around town – 10 lying in someone’s boat [pooper scooper alert!], others on park benches, under benches, on steps, rocks, beaches… It rained lightly on our Zodiac ride from the ship and back again but was just cloudy for our walk around town. We explored shops and wound up buying DW a tee shirt with boobies on it and a hat with the same motif for me. The shop keeper [with whom DW conversed in her minimal Spanish] gave us each a little cloth bracelet.

 

Returning to Xpedition we caught up with the four in the Discovery Lounge and compared notes. Three of them stayed upstairs for a grilled lunch while we descended to the dining room for the Oriental buffet.

 

Then the six of us headed out for the option 2 shore excursion – a panga ride and beach walk. We cruised slowly alongside a tuff cone, catching sight of playful sea lions, BFBs, a sea turtle, frigate bird. But this ride was really about appreciating the geology of this area: Cerro Brujo. The majestic sheer cliffs. The height of the island. The largest indentation, called ‘The Cathedral’ for its Gothic-motif walls. But a high arched tunnel with caramel and vanilla colored rock had a vaulted ceiling that to us should have earned the cathedral name. Magnificent!

 

We headed for the beach for our last wet landing (hooray!) and walked barefoot in the hot sand (ouch!) past an area where sea lions napped and fellow passengers swam, to see several BFBs dive-bombing into the drink in search of small fish. We witnessed several successes.

 

Back on board Xpedition, the ship eventually circumnavigated the unusual Kicker Rock. DW spotted a ray cutting through the waters below our vantage point.

 

The six of us had dinner with Celie and her nieces Julie and Emily plus travel agent Pam and Rosemarie at the very large table. There were too many people to have a decent conversation, and the table was too big to get the best service – no wonder it sat empty most nights. DW had Caesar salad, surf & turf (lobster & filet mignon), and chocolate soufflé. I had Caesar salad, my own version of surf & turf (sea bass & filet mignon – they are very willing to make substitutions), and the soufflé. We all headed to the Discovery Lounge for karaoke [they had a Spanish karaoke machine which rated your performance but gave no points for style...] Rain again so no stars.

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Up at 6:45. Breakfast with the Four. They had to leave early for an all-day excursion that involved planting trees at lunchtime. We joined the very small group of non-planters with naturalist Marvi for option 2: a morning visit to the Charles Darwin Station Giant Tortoise Breeding Center. We got soaked as gentle rain turned into heavy rain. We saw a dozen adult tortoises including the stud Diego, who was instrumental in returning his species from 14 to over 2,000 and at 120 years old is still interested in the ladies. [Lonesome George died at 100, probably of boredom since he wasn’t good with the ladies!] We also saw dozens of babies who will be repatriated to their home islands. The rain ended as we walked back to town and popped into several shops before returning to Xpedition at 11.

 

Two other passengers on board had opted not to take any shore excursions [it does get exhausting as the week progresses]. The eight of us lunched cozily in the dining room with a meal cooked to order [in lieu of the scheduled buffet – it wouldn’t have made sense to cook all that food for such a small crowd, and we were happy to have our lunches à la minute]

 

We decided not to take the 90 minute round trip via bus to the highlands to see tortoises in the wild as rain threatened again and tortoises had not been on the top of our “to see” list. We took it easy. DW headed topside and enjoyed the antics of a single sea lion off the port side of the ship, while I took my customary nap [DW says I should have been a sea lion. All they seem to do is sleep and eat – sounds good to me ;)]

 

Mid afternoon brought very heavy rain which affirmed our decision to stay onboard. That, and comments by those who had visited the highlands, slogged around the mud in Wellies and spotted only two tortoises. Our friend Rosemary slipped and fell, and several others had nearly fallen.

 

DW had chicken cobb salad and I had beef Carpaccio to start dinner. Then we both had Beef Wellington (much too well done and chewy for DW, but mine was fine). I had Bananas Foster with extra ice cream, and DW had chocolate cake. DW had one last look at the stars and was not disappointed – gazillions of them, and the Milky Way in all its glory! Then it was time to finish packing, to get the suitcases into the hall by midnight.

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Clear, sunny day for our final panga ride – mercifully a dry ride and landing! [Otherwise it would have been a soggy flight back to Quito] We breakfasted with another couple and then joined our foursome in the lounge at 9 as we waited for our boarding passes and disembarkation. A short bus ride from the panga dock brought us to the Baltra airport where we had a two hour wait in the VIP lounge before our return flight to Quito. We had a hot lunch onboard, with real linens and silverware [completing our set of blue-footed booby napkins] We landed around 3:15 and were bused back to the J W Marriott. We joined Mary and Terry Tallent for dinner in the hotel’s La Hacienda restaurant for filet mignon. Terry and I had each brought our ‘free’ bottles from the ship because we had been told that Quito is ‘dry’ on Sundays – it turns out that this was overstated: you can buy alcohol, at least in the hotel, as long as you are having food. But the hotel bar kindly opened the bottles and provided glasses, so we saved the cost of wine with dinner. Good food with good (new) friends – an excellent way to end a trip!

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Sunny, partly cloudy morning. We had our last meal on Celebrity’s dime [the hotel breakfast buffet] and handed in yet another comment card [our third?] We had booked all our flights with American, but today’s first leg was a code-share LAN flight and we were the only ones taking it – so our shuttle was a taxi, with a Celebrity representative riding shotgun and making sure we got to the right place in the airport. The LAN flight was delayed a half-hour for ‘operational reasons’ but we still got to Miami in enough time to go through immigration, reclaim our checked bags temporarily and go through customs, drop the bags at the re-check area, and then walk the length of Florida to the gate for the final leg. That flight was the low point of the trip – not because of anything American did [except not giving us a scrap of food on a three-hour flight] but because of several boorish passengers [so we went from memories of the glory days of jet travel, to the pits of modern society] But we got home safe, with cherished memories of the best cruise we have ever taken!

 

Thanks for staying with me. Don’t forget that our photo galleries are available here:

https://jazzbeauxgalapagostrip.shutterfly.com/pictures/5

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Wow....Thanks SO much for such a comprehensive piece(s) on your Xpedition experience. I guess I am left with one question. My wife and I are booked already for next June, 2016, for the outer loop 10 day experience, and a concern I have is that we are both around 60, and pretty well mobile, but I wouldnt say we are athletic by any means. I dont think we would have any problem sliding out of a Zodiac into waist deep water, but getting back in might present an issue.

 

Could you speak a little to the physical demands that are presented? Unless I missed it, I didnt see much in your review about it, both on excursions as well as on Xpedition? I know theres no elevator on the ship, and Celebrity has said that any and all assistance required is provided on excursions, but what are your thoughts on it?

 

Thanks

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Wow....Thanks SO much for such a comprehensive piece(s) on your Xpedition experience. I guess I am left with one question. My wife and I are booked already for next June, 2016, for the outer loop 10 day experience, and a concern I have is that we are both around 60, and pretty well mobile, but I wouldnt say we are athletic by any means. I dont think we would have any problem sliding out of a Zodiac into waist deep water, but getting back in might present an issue.

 

Could you speak a little to the physical demands that are presented? Unless I missed it, I didnt see much in your review about it, both on excursions as well as on Xpedition? I know theres no elevator on the ship, and Celebrity has said that any and all assistance required is provided on excursions, but what are your thoughts on it?

 

Thanks

 

Thank you! I didn't mention it in the review, but DW and I are both 67 and non-athletes [although we did train before last year's Camino de Santiago hiking trip]. This cruise was nowhere near as demanding as the Camino, so I don't think you'll have a problem. The wet landings were not a physical challenge: the water is more ankle-deep than waist-high and the bottom is fine sand. The naturalist always gets out first [mainly to hold the nose of the boat] and so is available to assist anyone who needs help. Getting back in, they drop a small step off one side that you can use as a foothold while you are getting your butt on the side of the boat. [From my point of view the real problem with wet landings is that you get sand all over your feet and then have to quickly clean them and put on your hiking shoes -- but I'm a bit of a wuss about sand in my shoes!] The hikes with many steps were exhausting, but the guides were very patient waiting for people to get their breath before continuing -- and you have the opportunity to minimize such physical challenges by selecting the easier option on the excursions. You are right that there is no elevator onboard, and the narrow hallways mean that it really isn't possible for anyone who needs a wheelchair or scooter onboard -- but we did have people who used a cane.

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Wow....Thanks SO much for such a comprehensive piece(s) on your Xpedition experience. I guess I am left with one question. My wife and I are booked already for next June, 2016, for the outer loop 10 day experience, and a concern I have is that we are both around 60, and pretty well mobile, but I wouldnt say we are athletic by any means. I dont think we would have any problem sliding out of a Zodiac into waist deep water, but getting back in might present an issue.

 

Could you speak a little to the physical demands that are presented? Unless I missed it, I didnt see much in your review about it, both on excursions as well as on Xpedition? I know theres no elevator on the ship, and Celebrity has said that any and all assistance required is provided on excursions, but what are your thoughts on it?

 

Thanks

 

We sailed the Xpedition about 10 years ago and was our 2nd favorite trip of a live time. Second to safari to Kenya. When we did the trip our luggage was weighed at the Marriott the night before the cruise and we were required to unpack and leave a lot at the Marriott. We had to pay $20 for a bag to put our excess in and when we returned there was noone there to return the bag to and get our money back so we have a great souvenier.

 

We were 65+ when we went so we knew we were out of shape thus we hired a personal trainer for 6 months prior to cruise to get us in reasonable shape.

 

Anyone who can afford this cruise should begin plannin as we booked 2 years out. With only 98 or so passengers it books up fast. We still have our tshirts and wear them prouldy every time we sail Celebrity.

 

We lucked out and saw a volcano erupt the day before we left the islands. A truly awesome experience.

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This has been on the bucket list for some time - my dh is actually more excited about it than I am. I do have questions;

 

1) How far in advance did you book?

2)Did you use a TA or go with X directly?

3)Did you feel that your cabin selection (Premium Stateroom) met your needs? I ask because I've only had a non balcony room 1 time and the window in the brochure looks very small. The price to have a balcony is a BIG price jump though.

4)What were people wearing in the evenings?

 

Thank you!

Edited by Jane2357
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This has been on the bucket list for some time - my dh is actually more excited about it than I am. I do have questions;

 

1) How far in advance did you book?

2)Did you use a TA or go with X directly?

3)Did you feel that your cabin selection (Premium Stateroom) met your needs? I ask because I've only had a non balcony room 1 time and the window in the brochure looks very small. The price to have a balcony is a BIG price jump though.

4)What were people wearing in the evenings?

 

Thank you!

 

1) Two years and four months -- pretty much as soon as Celebrity released the dates for booking. The price only went up from there.

2) I followed my usual pattern: put a courtesy hold on the cruise line website, then ask my TA to pick up the reservation. She gives me a small credit, but more importantly good advice and service. In this case, since the cruise is all-inclusive and Celebrity doesn't allow discounts, she put the credit on another cruise I had booked with her.

3) We were very happy with the stateroom. We have sailed in Insides, Oceanview, and Balcony cabins, so I understand your question. The window is larger than a porthole but nowhere near as large as a French balcony -- but it was adequate.

Think of the Xpedition cruise more like a River Cruise. The days are filled: each day starts early with the morning excursion often at 8 am; and there is an afternoon excursion at 3 or 4 pm followed by an hour to clean up, the pre-dinner meeting, dinner, and a little time in the lounge but you are tired and ready to turn in. So the main time to enjoy your cabin would be in the middle of the day: you can have lunch either in the dining room or at the grill on deck, and then chill in the lounge or on deck. With only 96 passengers the ship has a country-club feel, so it's nice to mix with the other passengers rather than retreat to your balcony. The best reason to go to your cabin in the afternoon is to take a nap.

We also felt that the deck 4 location was ideal. Our window was high enough above the water to give good views of the islands, but we were low enough to minimize the rolling of the ship. The ship is very stable when underway, but it rolls at anchor -- since the beds are arranged along the main axis, this is like a cradle rocking and didn't bother our sleep at all -- but I think that the deck 6 cabins with the nice balconies must feel the rolling much more.

4) This is not a dressy cruise. Many people paid attention to the luggage weight limits, and we had to allow room for our prescription snorkel masks and hiking shoes -- so there just isn't room for a variety of dressy clothes. One man had a sport coat which he sometimes wore at dinner -- this was so unusual that it really stood out. I was on the dressy end with dress slacks and a Hawaiian shirt -- most wore a golf shirt and chinos or even shorts. [sorry, I'm not good at describing the dressiness of women's clothes. If you go to the Xpedition folder in my photos you'll find some shots taken at or after dinner and you can see how the ladies are dressed]

One further point about clothes: you will go through a lot of clothes on the excursions because of the humidity. I brought enough golf shirts for the number of days, but found that some days I needed a second one for the afternoon. Either ignore the weight limits, or use the onboard laundry service. :)

 

Hope this helps!

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We're booked for Nov 2016 and already I'm starting to think about shoes and clothes. What were people wearing during the day for the hikes, shorts? boots or sandals? How dressy at night?

 

On the hikes most people wore short-sleeve tops, although a few had long-sleeve "rash guard" tops. We used golf shirts or heavy tees, and had no problems with sun getting through, so I wouldn't buy special SPF-rated clothing. We prefer long pants, but most people wore shorts. I also suggest a hat with a wide brim all around [like a "Tilley" hat], or a cap with a front brim and an attached cloth at the back [what I call my "French Foreign Legion" cap].

We did apply sunscreen liberally to all exposed body parts. Consumer Reports just did a review of sunscreens, but the point I noticed was the advice to use 1 teaspoon per body part [head/neck, each arm, each leg, chest, and back]. We used a combination of Banana Boat SPF50 spray on arms and legs, and Mary Kay cream on face and neck [it doesn't sting my eyes when I get sweaty :)] -- and managed to get through the week with only a minimal change in skin color!

You don't need hiking boots (for high ankle support), but you do need sturdy soles for the hikes on sharp volcanic rock. We used Merrill hiking shoes [mine have Gore Tex in case you are hiking in a downpour], but others seemed to do OK with sneakers. You may not need water shoes, because the wet landings are on soft sand and even I [ticklish feet :)] found it easier to get in and out of the panga in bare feet than deal with the load of sand that gets into the water shoes. But they have a rule that you have to wear shoes in the panga, so I used my water shoes at the beginning and end of each excursion [much easier to put on water shoes after reboarding the panga than deal with socks and hiking shoes!]

For the evening dress answer, see the post above.

 

Hope this helps!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Jazzbeau, thanks for an informative and well-crafted review. We were on the May 17 sailing, and concur with all you describe. Celebrity does an outstanding cruise on the Xpedition. We had no problem with the A/C in room 305. We are also happy we did the Quito portion of the cruise. Best regards.

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Hi BearX,

 

Thank you for letting us know you had no problem with the air in 305. We will be in 304 and am very concerned about it being to warm as many have stated. Hopefully after the dry dock in Sept., all the cabins will be cool.

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