Review of Xpedition Galapagos Cruise Feb 14/16

What type of clothes did folks where to dinner at night...with the weight limits on luggage I guess not much dressing up?

Do cabins have hair dryers?

Besides sunscreen, bug spray, water shoes, hat, seasick meds, binoculars...what else do you suggest?

Was Internet available?

Did you enjoy Quito?

How many electric plugs in cabins for charging camera batteries?

> What type of clothes did folks where to dinner at night...with the weight limits on luggage I guess not much dressing up?

A few dressed up, most did not.

> Do cabins have hair dryers?

Yes.

> Besides sunscreen, bug spray, water shoes, hat, seasick meds, binoculars...what else do you suggest?

Light windbreaker.

> Was Internet available?

So slow as to be unusable.

> Did you enjoy Quito?

No. Wrote a full review, but it hasn't appeared on this site yet. However, most seem to have enjoyed Quito, so perhaps we were the oddballs in that regard.

> How many electric plugs in cabins for charging camera batteries?

1 US plug, bring a short extension cord.

Buy waterproof sandals (Keens kind) and leave the high heels and expensive shoes at home.

The islands are rocky and covered with guano.

You will have to go on and off the zodiacs on wet beaches.

Fast drying pants and long sleeves shirts may help.

A good hat is a must to protect you from the intense sun.

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Buy waterproof sandals (Keens kind) and leave the high heels and expensive shoes at home.

The islands are rocky and covered with guano.

You will have to go on and off the zodiacs on wet beaches.

Fast drying pants and long sleeves shirts may help.

A good hat is a must to protect you from the intense sun.

 

 

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We wore cheap flipflops on the wet landings and brought good hiking shoes (not boots)to change into once on the beach. We also brought a towel to sit on and a facecloth to dry off our feet so we could easily put hiking shoes on. That way you don't need waterproof shoes. Reversed this when it was time to get back on the zodiac. When you get back on the ship, there are hoses with sprayers to quickly wash off your feet.

I would definitely recommend NOT taking dress up clothes. We saw very few if any people dress up - it just isn't that type of cruise. You will definitely be better off having more changes of clothing for excursions than worry about heels or dressy outfits!

Dinner on our cruise was very, very casual with many people wearing shorts.

We bought Keens sandals based on the recommendations on these boards and weren't disappointed. They are great for both wet and dry landings; they dry quickly. I wore mine most of the trip, but be sure to wear a sturdy sneaker or hiking boot for the day of the hike across the lava field. That was rough terrain and you'd likely tear up your feet with sandals.

We were very glad we brought along a couple of the Columbia SPF long sleeved shirts. These were very light weight, quick drying, and provided protection from the sun. I had 2 of these and wish I had brought 3. We wore shorts every day, but lathered all exposed skin with sunscreen.

We saw wasps on two of our hikes and were glad we had brought along repellent wipes.

If you need to adjust the temp of the air conditioning in your cabin you need to ask at the front desk. They send someone to your cabin to do this manually.

These boards were incredibly helpful to us.....especially the sports bra!

 

May I also recommend 2 bathing suits as you may not have the opportunity for one to dry completely prior to the next dive!

 

Did not need the bug spray at all...that being said, we did the Machu Pichu add-on and I did get bit in one area....

 

I will watch this board in case there are other questions......

 

I also brought a small bottle of detergent to wash out some undies/socks etc!

 

This really is a laid back cruise...no need to bring all that glitters!

Please give any information you feel would be valuable if we are also doing the Machu Pichu add on and would appreciate any pointers!!

Please give any information you feel would be valuable if we are also doing the Machu Pichu add on and would appreciate any pointers!!

seadancer, I just posted my impressions of the MP extension on the main Xpedition just back thread.