goodcook64

Ship decided to stay in fjords in Norway because of storm in seas between Bergen and Orkney's. Lost two days of time in first three islands. Had abbreviated schedule in Shetlands and Faroes. Caught up with schedule in Iceland. Chose this trip because of visits to the Orkneys and Faroes, so disappointed to say least. Otherwise good trip. Iceland is amazing.

Just a couple of notes about the food. Our trip on the Orion was in SE Asia just after Lindblad acquired the vessel. The dining room still had cuisine developed by a chef in Sydney and everyone on board raved about the food and drink.

Recent trips on both the Explorer and just this summer on the Endeavour in the Galapagos (with grandkids) have us given the impression that food offerings are not what they used to be. The food on the Endeavour was just barely acceptable, not what we experienced on our other Galapagos trips in years past. In fact was thought the entire operation was not of the caliber of previous trips. As for the Explorer, the meal offerings are OK, tasty at times and acceptable. Hope the Orion still has the outstanding food experience of the past and wonder about what we perceive to be a downtrend in food service on their other vessels.

I too am curious about the European cruises and how they will be accepted with all of the competition out there. As veterans of both types of itineraries offered by Lindblad, I think their expedition/adventure cruises came off much better than the history/culture offerings. Always felt their niche has been adventure travel and wish they could continue to develop trip to new, far off places. Perhaps the European itineraries were developed because the South Pacific/SE Asia routes didn't fill as well as they expected. BTW the Orion is a fantastic ship with a great crew and cuisine.

For those of you who have traveled with Cotton and Sisse, this tragic news came across the seas today. Such sad news, such a vibrant and wonderful couple:

https://nppa.org/news/photographer-cotton-coulson-dies-norway-after-diving-accident

After more than a dozen trips on Lindblad, on both the Explorer and Orion, concluded that the bar is a big revenue generator for them. A majority of the guests enjoy recap with a drink or drinks and routinely enjoy wine with dinner. Have mentioned in our evaluations that the inclusion of wine with dinner would be a nice touch, matching some of the other similar operators with similar price points. As often as we travel with them, the "nickel and dime-ing" gets old.

Quick reply to your questions. We have never cruised on a large ship and probably never will. We like the smaller, expedition ship where you are able to get to know wonderful like-minded and interesting travelers. Don't know if one is able to choose the itinerary. For summer trips, you normally book at least a year in advance, and I am not sure how far ahead the itineraries are assigned to each ship. You might inquire with Lindblad. As far as wildlife, you will find it everywhere, and with no fear of humans. The guides constantly remind you to give the wildlife space, and to be respectful of the magic of the Galapagos. Being birders, we were very satisfied with everything we saw. Recommendation: read the "Beak of the Finch" before you go.

We are making our third trip to the Galapagos this summer with Lindblad with our second set of grandkids (on the Endeavour). On our second trip to the Galapagos we took the first set of grandkids ages 8 and 10. On our particular trip there were about 35 kids ages about 6 to 17, and it was amazing to see how the entire group bonded! The older ones took the younger ones under their wings, camped out in their own part of the lounge and played games etc. I must say these were a group of amazing young people. The trip was around July 4th in the summer. Lindblad tells me that all the summer trips tend to have many children on board. We had an amazing trip and both the kids and grandparents made incredible memories.

Lindblad does a good job with the younger ones. They have a junior naturalist program and have a pizza and movie night. Bear in mind the Endeavour is not a luxurious cruise ship, staffed for the most part with enthusiastic Ecuadorian personnel and sails under the restrictions of the Galapagos. Food is adequate, not the same caliber as the Lindblad Explorer, but our first set of grandkids did fine (one extremely picky eater, one who would try anything including octopus).

The ship sails on two different itineraries according to Galapagos rules, and we were on the western one. As I suffer from extreme seasickness, it was very calm, nothing like I experienced in the Drake passage! I wouldn't worry about the motion as you move from location to location at night. I have worn the patch for my last few trips and had no problems.

Concerning snorkeling, both of the boys were avid snorkelers, wearing the yellow inflatable vests and the shorty wetsuits provided. We arrived just as the cold current moved in, so the younger one opted to just snorkel from the beach, while I took the older one in the deeper waters. They have patrol zodiacs in the water and keep a close eye on everyone. Not to be missed. The experience in the double kayaks is another highlight. Hiking is easy, you can choose an easy hike or a longer one with more elevation gain. As I don't do elevation, the other grandparent took the eager ones on those hikes. I can think of only one island that has a hike with a significant elevation gain.

I don't think there is a dedicated NG photographer on board for most of the itineraries as there would be on the Explorer or Orion I believe they do have photo trained personnel on board for all trips. Lindblad does have dedicated "photography trips" on the Endeavour and they are marked as such. Our first trip to the Galapagos was one of those and it was delightful. However with grandkids, we went for numbers of younger passengers....summer.

Haven't experienced other ships in the Galapagos, as we feel Lindblad does a good job. They do their best to have worry free trips and when something goes wrong, they work around it or fix it. Hope this helps.

The Explorer has those, but I don't think you need them on the Endeavour. To indicate that you have exited the ship, you move a small magnetic icon on a board to off, and return it to on when return. Have great time

We too had been to the Galapagos years ago and couldn't wait to take the grandkids on a special trip. This was the first of four trips for us with the two oldest ones. We went without parents and it was a wonderful time to really get to know the kids, as all of ours live so far away.

As far as Guayaquil, we choose the recommended flights and regretted that decision greatly. We didn't arrive in Guayaquil until after midnight and had a 5 am wake-up call for Baltra flight. On the return we had a 7 am flight out of Guayaquil, so we had another middle of night call (3 am). All of this was difficult for the young ones. Would recommend looking at earlier arrival into Ecuador and departure on the red-eye that same day or later the next day after the cruise. As far as Guayaquil, we didn't have time to see anything on the inbound and upon return to Guayaquil after the cruise, the kids just played in the large pool with all of the other kids from the trip (grand time). One caution, they advise you to leave the hotel only with transport that they arrange as it is a large city with all that comes with that. I believe they offered a tour of Guayaquil the day we returned from the ship but we didn't take it.

On board, it was busy all the time with activities. The kids all bonded with the other younger ones quickly and the lounge was filled with chess, board and card games during slack time. We had to arrange our day carefully and pick activities to suit each child (we divided the responsibilities). One pair would go snorkeling while the other kayaked. Be on top of the activity schedule for the next day, as some of the activities such as kayaking fill up quickly. sign up sheets are usually posted in reception around dinner time day prior. One did the Jr naturalist program and enjoyed it. One night they had a pizza party with a movie for the kids.

Would recommend quick dry clothing with a rash guard for swimming and snorkeling, and a fleece for cooler and or windy times on deck. We thought Lindblad did an excellent job. Enjoy your trip.

We took two of our grandchildren (8 and 11) on the Endeavour earlier this summer. It was a magical trip with lots of families aboard. Yes, they had lots of shortie wet suits and snorkel gear to fit the younger ones. The water temperature was quite cold and the 8 year old couldn't stay in too long. The 11 year old did fine. In the spring the water should be warmer.