Celebrity Xpedition Inner Loop Galapagos 8/2-8/9/15

Greetings. This will be a bit of a lengthy review as there wasnt much out there before our trip for the Galapagos. Me, my wife, my 14 yr old son, and my sister all went. 2 different cabins on the third deck. More on this later. First, we did the 10 day pre and post cruise package offered by Celebrity. We arrived in Quito and made it through immigration etc in a breeze and found our Celebrity rep right away. There was approx 20 min wait and then we were into a bus and headed to the JW Marriott. Transport time was approx 40 min (can be 35-60 min depending on traffic). While en route we had the itinerary reviewed for our stay. On arrival Celebrity had a table with our room keys near the entrance. In 2 minutes I had a room key and over to the fonr desk I went. Given that I am a Marriott Gold member I was able to get a complimentary upgrade to the Executive Loung floor and a room with a balcony on the 6th floor. This is a very nice hotel. Roses everywhere!!

alot of reviews that I dont think were fair to this hotel. Everything was clean. Service is excellent. There arent alot of people that speak English so this could be a challenge at times. We ate dinner on our own the first night and the pre cruise package started the following AM with a nice buffett breakfast. This was wonderful--alot of fruits you dont usually get in the US. A smoothy station that also had several items we dont usually have in the US. Only problem was the person making smoothies didnt speak much English and we dont speak much Spanish. My wife still got a good smoothie. Definitely try some of the Ecuadoran food and some of there different breads/pastries. We finished breakfast and off we went for a city tour. Several grand churches with very informative guide. There was approx 20 people in our group with one guide and one security person. Not sure why we needed security, as I never felt threatened. we then went for lunch at the Theatrum. Another opportunity to sample Ecuadoran cuisine. The meat stew was delicious. Potato soup was also very good. After lunch we were driven to the "Equator". Alot of touristy shops and a monument that was neat. A few photo ops and brief self guided tour and we were back on the bus and off to the hotel. after a brief rest at the hotel we were off again to dinner

Dinner was at La Gloria. This was a very limited menu. Alcohol was extra but reasonable. I had veal osso bucco. Very rich sauce. Dinner was good but if I had it to do over I would dine somewhere else on my own for dinner. There is a really good waffle/crepe place across the street form the hotel. This place was amazing. we went one night for dessert. Not diner or ice cream parlor fair. Decadent chocolate and excellent ice creams. the best waffle I can ever remember. Anyway, the next Am we had the buffett breakfast at the hotel. Again very good for a buffett. They do have an omelette station where you can get omelettes and any type of eggs. Then we were off to the airport again. We were taken through as a group to a private lounge area. Not much of a wait and then off on our charted flight to Baltra. We upgraded our seats to first class as a nice way to start our Galapagos journey! The flight was approx 2 hrs and we arrived at Baltra without an issue. Again we were brought off as a group and taken to another private area. We were through customs/immigration without an issue. Please do yourselves a favor. All needed papers were passed out on the plane to be completed. please do them before you get off the plane. One couple didnt and they almost held up the entire line. Nonetheless we were onto busses within one hour or so and whisked away (approx 5 min) to our first Zodiak ride

Each zodiak holds up to 16 people. You are required to wear a life jacket. Getting on and off is not a problem, but can be interesting at times depending on water conditions. There were several older people on our trip that got on and off without a problem. Each zodiak has a certified naturalist. All the naturalists on our trip were wonderful. If you go please bring a Steelers or Cubs hat so Diego can get rid of his New England Patriots hat! After a brief introduction to how we were to get on and off the zodiac we were off. Please do yourself a favor. We had back packs and checked everything else. Some others had large suitcases. These are not easy to get on and off and you have to lug. Let them be checked so you dont have to hassle. This trip is physicially active and you really dont want this added hassle. Our ride to the ship took approx 10 minutes. Soon we were on this ship and greeted by serval smiling faces and glasses of champagne. Within minutes were were personally escorted to out rooms. 307 and 308. Yes there was a problem with the AC on this floor. We knew about this be a problem before hand and requested fans for our rooms. the fans helped but didnt by any stretch keep the rooms cold. Granted we like a cold room to sleep in so this may not be as big a deal for you. More info tomorrow....feel free to ask any questions as my post continues tomorrow

looking forward to the rest of your review, as we are thinking of planning

a galapagos trip. A little concerned about Altitude sickness

Looking forward to the rest of the review :)

A little concerned about Altitude sickness

The islands are at sea level :confused:

Was Jose ur Captain.....

Thanks for posting your review! Can't wait to hear more!

Greetings. This will be a bit of a lengthy review as there wasnt much out there before our trip for the Galapagos.

There isn't much on this Celebrity forum, but there is a mega Roll Call with all the information anyone could need before booking this cruise (including many reviews):

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2069149

[note: this is only Part 3 of the thread!]

The islands are at sea level :confused:

Quito is not. Some people experience altitude sickness during the two days in Quito.

looking forward to the rest of your review, as we are thinking of planning

a galapagos trip. A little concerned about Altitude sickness

Drink plenty of water and hopefully you will be fine. They are constantly handing you bottled water, so it is always available (even in the hotel room).

We experienced a little shortness of breath and a bit of weird feeling like you had been on a ship (prior to being on one), but nothing that interrupted our trip.

Thanks. I was concerned about Quito, as far as altitude sickness. Feeling a little weird is Ok, short of breath NOT!

I'm forwarding this to friends who are going in another week or so. We don't go until Nov.1016, hard to wait that long!!

look forward to hearing more. This trip is on the proverbial bucket list!

We are going on this trip in January (leaving the 8th) and have also added the Machu Picchu portion. We're eager to hear about the choices of activities and more about the entire experience. Thanks for posting and keep it up!

after champagne and checking out our room we took a brief tour of the ship. All the action occurs on deck 4---nightly meetings/briefings for the next day. This is also where you find the bar. Again, excellent service. Within minutes of sitting down there was always someone approaching you to ask if you wanted a drink. The nice thing was given that everything is included you didn't have to pay extra. By the second day the bartenders were making milk shakes for the kids as well as adult versions of the same. I digress....

Bags were in our rooms in no time. We then had a brief cruise around Daphne minor and major and got to enjoy some of the wild life--frigates! The night we were at anchor and got to enjoy watching the sea lions chasing fish. Whenever anchored at night I highly recommend going on deck 5 or 6 to watch over the side. A bright flashlight helps at times as well. Although at times the moving fish created a bioluminescence effect.

Evening meals occur on Deck 3. People have complained about the food--especially the beef and I found this to be incorrect. I had beef a few times and it was excellent. they also had a daily carving station at lunch. The Red Snapper on day one was one of the biggest and most tasty dishes of the week. They had suckling pig another day. they also were open for lunch on deck 4 aft outside everyday for hamburger, hotdogs, panninis, pizza. etc. Lunch inside usually had a theme--Ecuadoran food one day, Italian food one day, Mexican/Spanish, Asian. Evening meals were very good. Only wine available was from Ecuador, Chile, Argentina. I usually enjoy California blends and hearty Cabs or Zinfandels and these were ok. Not bad, but not great. They also served Sparkling wine that was pretty good too. A new feature they promoted was eating dinner outside. This had a special menu and had to be signed up for in advance. Not lot of people took advantage but our group did twice and it was delicious. There were appetizers, soups, and salads and desserts to choose from and they served fish, chicken, beef, sausage (chorizo and Italian), large head on shrimps--family style--as much or as little as you wanted

If the ship was moving it could be breezy and chilly out back but being from PA this was a welcome relief. Breakfast each day was a buffett. Usually omelettes or waffle station. Some pastries/croissants on deck 4 outside with coffee for early risers. they also had room service but we never tried.

On to the excursions

This is definitely an active vacation. Our group did every snorkle--some from the beach and some open water. This was amazing. The water temp was 76 while we were there. We did make use of their wetsuits and Im glad we did. there is a lot of wildlife!! schools of fish everywhere. Sea lions that would dart right at you, engross that were so fast you could barely sea. With all the wildlife your swimsuits did smell a bit funky once they dried! I will share the details of all the islands but will hit a few things. The cruise director is very emphatic in warning people about the open water snorkles. yes, they could be rough and choppy but they do provide flotation vests. The hardest part for some people may be getting back into the zodiac at the end. You have to be able to take your flippers off in the water and then be able to step up onto a small ladder attached to the side of the zodiak to get back in. Some currents are strong and they do keep you close to rocks (the fish are best there) so keep that in mind if you debate doing the open water snorkel. Also, they have a fitness or more active type walk at different islands. The walk up to Darwin Lake is hard just for the steps. The lava walk is just awkward in areas because you are walking on lava!

Without going into much detail I want to hit on a few highlights. The snorkeling from Rabida was incredible! North Seymour Island is amazing for the blue footed boobies, Frigates, iguanas, sealions. This is where the birds nest. It did baffle me as people at times were very ignorant. The naturalists that accompany you everywhere would always point out before you got where you were going to stay on the marked trails. Yes they are clearly marked. Never failed. a few people didn't think this applied to them. One naturalist finally had enough after being polite to the same person and reminded him that if people go off the trail constantly the natural habitat will be damaged and we eventually won't be allowed back. This guys problem was he was trying to take photos with his iphone and never had a camera! a trip of a lifetime and no camera! I guess he thought the rules didn't apply for that reason. The Darwin Center was a bit of a letdown. Some interesting historical info but not much to look at. The last island where we saw the Giant Tortoise and had the option to plant trees was very nice. This was really the one island you could shop for jewelry. A small group of 13 opted for not planting trees and had a great time. Our guide Marvi took us on shore and took us to the turtle breeding center. Very interesting brief excursion. We then had some down time before heading to the Highlands to see the Giant Tortoise in the wild. So just the four of our group were having a friendly discussion with Marvi about street food (we travel to Mexico a lot) and the next thing you know he is taking the 4 of us to a outdoor market the locals have on Saturdays. Excellent empanadas. all kinds of wonderful fruits and potatoes. Not something the Celebrity people usually want but he definitely went about and beyond due to our interest. We did tip him a bit extra at the end as this was down time he could have had as well. This island is his home island and we even got to meet his grandmother!

Other foot notes. the seas were a bit choppy the last two days. Some people complained of stomach upset. Some people complained of food poisoning as well these last two days. Nope---doubtful. As a physician, these people were either effected form the motion or had a case or norovirus. Without going into their symptoms---if you are better in 12 hrs it isn't food poisoning. Thankfully non one in our group was effected by the motion. and no norovirus. thats all for tonight. More thoughts on post cruise experience soon.....

just realized I was posting from home on our computer under my wife login. oops. Smart doc posts above are from wallydoc

This is definitely an active vacation. Our group did every snorkle--some from the beach and some open water. This was amazing. The water temp was 76 while we were there. We did make use of their wetsuits and Im glad we did. !

Please tell me how many snorkel opportunities there were during the trip and if the wet suits are short or long in the sleeves and legs. Thank you.

Please tell me how many snorkel opportunities there were during the trip and if the wet suits are short or long in the sleeves and legs. Thank you.

There were six snorkel opportunities, and they had both long and short sleeved wet suits (probably depended on the size). They just handed you one, but you had the chance to change it out if it didn't fit well. All were short legs though.

ETA: The six snorkel opportunities applied to our inner loop.

ETA: The six snorkel opportunities applied to our inner loop.

Thank you. I'm on an outer loop cruise. I hope there will be approximately the same number of opportunities.