Galapagos – WOW! What a trip!!! (Cabin 506)

[Kami's pal]

[quote name='starsjohn']I leave on the Xpedition trip in less than a couple of weeks.

I have been on third world mountain climbing and travel for years and only got sick from the local water twice (the pure water bottles had been secretly refilled with local water and resealed). The resulting sickness was nowhere as intense as reported on this thread.

On the other hand, I got decked but good on the Celebrity Summit in Alaska, with the N virius.

I am not allowed to take Pepto Bismo as it interacts with my Coumadin medication, which might make me subject to internal bleeding.

My game plan, for this trip, is to drink water only from carefully inspected purified water bottles, drink wine, avoid salads and most dairy products like the plague, eat lightly in Quito, not swallow any seawater while diving and snorkeling, wash hands frequently, use anti-viriual spray, carefully observe the ship's crew and naturalists for sterile cleaning and food serving procedures. What have I forgot here??

John[/QUOTE]

[COLOR=Black]After my conversation yesterday with Mr. Sheehan and his colleague, I have been assured that Celebrity is sending a doctor familiar with communicable diseases to work with the medical team and crew on Xpedition. They do intend to look carefully at the whole operation with an intent to break this cycle of GI problems that have plagued Xpedition. First they have to identify weak points, the actual strain of pathogen(s), and the various means of transmission (air, touch only). As Ecuador apparently doesn't have the needed laboratory facilities, perhaps they will even need to bring some glass specimen slides, petrie dishes and lab. microscopes etc. with them. They will be educating the crew who may not understand fully why we weak passengers need such pampering! However, by the time you board all this should be fully operational. So you will be able to tell us what you see being done. I have heard promises before, so I am waiting to actually hear from CC posters that this is happening. Don't drop your guard.

But, other than having to be ill and miss some (thankfully, not ALL as some did) of the activities, I had a great time. Celebrity has put together a good product. The combination of pampering, good food, and the Galapagos is magical.

I think you have covered all bases. Remember, when you touch those water bottles, someone has handled them before you. Keep your hands away from anything going into your mouth.
And thanks for the warning that we should only drink from sealed bottles!

Bon voyage[/COLOR]

[SheilaNC]

Kami's Pal,
Thanks so much for your strong work to reverse this situation and for hanging in there.... we will all benefit from your efforts

Sheila

[starsjohn]

Spengle and Kami, lots of good news! I will report back after the trip. I really do not expect any problems that are not typical of anywhere else in the world including home. I will report my experiences upon return. As an astronomer, diver, and nature photographer, I have waited many years to make this trip.

If I have any distress, I will be planted at the doctor's at first notice.

Again, thanks for all the good advice.

John

[Kami's pal]

as my grandson says! You are in for such treats!

The sky was too cloudy for star gazing on my cruise. I still haven't been able to pick out the Southern Cross.

It's all there. Almost no light pollution to hide stars. And if conditions allow, they hold a star gazing session. I tried to get that on my cruise to N.Z. but the captain said they couldn't turn out the ship's lights. Draw me pouting.

Lots of geological and biological sights to capture. Oceans to explore and you have the skills.

Have you made arrangements about the diving? I think I remember a post about needing to prearrange that. Something about not all the guides having accreditation?

And we will all be looking forward to hearing back from you. Remember in Quito, the artists in the artists' village don't have hook-ups to take credit cards. So you need cash and bubble wrap.

[starsjohn]

Kami,

Another question, my dive camera housings and long lenses for nature photography are quite heavy to be honest. Do you think I will have any problems with the air service out of Quito or the ship's staff? I may be looking at 50 pounds worth here. With that, I am leaving the Hasselblad at home.

How do I prearrange the diving before the trip? I had supposed I was at the mercy of the naturalists on this one.

About the cloudy skies. I lead a camping group to NewZealand where I was to present the night programs. Every night was cloudy. This has been typical of the many nights I have spent near the equator also, clouds!

One last story about purified water. In remote areas, our camping organization felt that the only way to insure safe water was to boil it yourself using the prescribed time limits. We once had a guy take the water purfication pumps down to the lake, where he was observed to drop the lids to the bottles in the lake! Back to boiling water!

John

[starsjohn]

Kami,

Forgot to mention, I am taking an empty duffel full of bubble warp and maybe some rolls of TP. Have to hit the artists village. Thanks for the reminder.

Upon return home, I will teach session of wilderness education to the camping trip and will use this whole episode of illness on the Xpedition as a case study. It would be really nice to see a resolution of this problem.

John

[Kami's pal]

Thanks for the chuckle, John. The best laid plans ...

Only one satchel of bubble wrap? Oh well, you have to make choices.
The extra TP hopefully will not be needed.

To my knowledge, the snorkel trips are all escorted by competent people, but diving to depths means certification and I know that one poster on one thread on this board said that (s)he had to hire a private dive master to dive from Xpedition. That contact was made by one of the guides/naturalists on Xpedition, but I don't know which one. Hopefully someone reading this will point you in the right direction, or you could try a search on this thread using 'dive' and see what you find.

I would think that your diving equipment would be an extra and not a problem. You'll get a special permission, or exemption. It's not as if all 100 people are bring an extra 50 pounds.

Looking forward to reading your review.

[Lube]

[size=2]Don't worry about any GI problems. They are blown way out of proportion. I have Colitis and was overly worried just because I normally have problems daily. I was fine except for a stomach ache the first day and I think that was motion sickness from all the travelling. Neither my husband nor I had much difficulty, but were careful to drink only bottled water and watched what we ate. Any smart traveler does that whenever they go into foreign countries. It is common to get "traveler’s diarrhea" which is very controllable with a shot of Pepto or some Imodium......if you are not diligent about your diet

[/size]

[narob]

We have traveled all over the world extensively and were very careful, but we still got sick and so did several others.

[OPSoccermom]

[QUOTE=Kami's pal]Thanks for the chuckle, John. The best laid plans ...

Only one satchel of bubble wrap? Oh well, you have to make choices.
The extra TP hopefully will not be needed.

To my knowledge, the snorkel trips are all escorted by competent people, but diving to depths means certification and I know that one poster on one thread on this board said that (s)he had to hire a private dive master to dive from Xpedition. That contact was made by one of the guides/naturalists on Xpedition, but I don't know which one. Hopefully someone reading this will point you in the right direction, or you could try a search on this thread using 'dive' and see what you find.

I would think that your diving equipment would be an extra and not a problem. You'll get a special permission, or exemption. It's not as if all 100 people are bring an extra 50 pounds.

Looking forward to reading your review.[/QUOTE]
Did the Galapagos last February, and we are a family of 4 divers. TAME (the Ecuadorian airling that flies for Quito to Baltra) does NOT make any special exemptions for your diving gear. Pack light, or expect to pay $$$$$ for overweight baggage.

[OPSoccermom]

Reading this thread has gotten me interested in a Galapagos cruise. My husband was really talking this up and I was ignoring him - but oooooo.... this looks fascinating. We love to cruise and love "different" travel. Last year was helihiking in the Canadian Rockies. I do have a couple of questions.

We are a family of 4 with a daughter 16 and a son 13 - have any of you got first hand experience with teens on this trip? Would love to hear from you. The kids have done a lot of travelling - including the helihiking last year with Tauck - the group was 40 adults and my 2 teens - they had a spectacular time.

Second question is in regards to the time of year. With Kids in school we need to travel during breaks - and we were thinking about late August just before school starts again. Anyone with any summer trip experience? Again - would love to hear from you.

Thank you for all of the great discussion about this wonderful- sounding part of the world.

Famcruise, I know this is a late post - hope you get it...

 

We did the Galapagos last last February withour 11 year old and 15 year old. They absolutely loved it!!!! I know you are thinking about traveling around the school calendar, but keep in mind that because the seasons are opposite, December to March are the best times to fo to the Galapagos. We scheduled over President's day weekend to cut back on the missed school, but in actuality, the kids' teachers were thrilled that they were going somewhere so educational and had no problems with them missing. Both were asked to do do presentations on the trip when they returned in lieu of making up work.

 

This is a trip of a lifetime - go for it!!!

[CruiserJen]

Were you on Xpedition with your teens? Did they feel out of place with the age difference? I'm told the average age is 50's to 70's. All reviews indicate the trip is awesome! Thanks, Jen

[OPSoccermom]

Were you on Xpedition with your teens? Did they feel out of place with the age difference? I'm told the average age is 50's to 70's. All reviews indicate the trip is awesome! Thanks, Jen

Jen,

 

Actually, we went on a smaller ship. Booked it well before X lauched Xpedition. My kids are seasoned cruisers, and would fit in most anywhere, but in all honesty, we found the nature of this trip to be so different from other cruises. With the emphasis on exploring the islands, and diving (we took 2 to 3 snorkeling or diving trips a day), the social aspects on the ship weren't a big deal. On most evenings, they turned in early because they were tired from all the exploring. If not, they had lectures from the naturalists, and my son spent a lot of time on his laptop, catagorizing all our pictures, and producing a movie of the trip on Adobe Premier. Because we went during peak Galapagos travel time, there were a few other kids on board.

 

The other passengers were extremely welcoming of the kids - thought it was great that they could be there. Despite the fact that they've been on 7 cruises on all different lines, they would probably say that the trip to the Galapagos, because of the destination, was their most memorable.

[CruiserJen]

We have a small group (all in our 20s) who would like to book on a small ship instead of Xpedition. Can you email me with info on how you booked, and any recommendations you may have for going this route? Any advice is greatly appreciated. I just wondered if your teens were bored without the night life. I know we would prefer to have some nightlife, even if we create it ourselves with music & dancing. I have heard from others that on Xpedition, there is nothing to do at night & most people just turn in after dinner.

 

Did you stay at any of the hotels in Galapagos? If so, which one(s) did you like, how long did you stay, any problems?

 

Thanks, Jen

cruiserjen@yahoo.com

[OPSoccermom]

We have a small group (all in our 20s) who would like to book on a small ship instead of Xpedition. Can you email me with info on how you booked, and any recommendations you may have for going this route? Any advice is greatly appreciated. I just wondered if your teens were bored without the night life. I know we would prefer to have some nightlife, even if we create it ourselves with music & dancing. I have heard from others that on Xpedition, there is nothing to do at night & most people just turn in after dinner.

 

Did you stay at any of the hotels in Galapagos? If so, which one(s) did you like, how long did you stay, any problems?

 

Thanks, Jen

cruiserjen@yahoo.com

Jen,

 

The first thing that you need to realize that excursions to the Galapagos, are not a standard "cruise", so if night life is a big deal to you, you are not going to get it at all in the Galapagos. Due to restrictions placed by the Galapagos National Park, the ships(boats) the cruise the islands are all small. The people on the trips are there solely to experience the Galapagos. The standard "social" aspects of a cruise come in second. I'm sure anyone who has made this trip will agree that the wildlife and diving are so incredible that what happened in the evening was secondary. In fact, on our trip, we spent evenings after dinner either stargazing on the upper deck (incredible) or being briefed by the naturalists or dive masters as to what to expect the next day. Only when we were in Porto Ayora for an evening did we experience what you would consider "night life". We prepared our kids well in advance that this would be the case. In fact, my son gave up his precious carry-on space to bring his X-Box, which was a hit with the other teenage passengers as well as with a few crew who were permitted to mingle with the passengers.

 

We found the trip we took after a couple of years of research. If you are serious about the Galapagos, get you hands on any guidebooks you can find and do your research on-line. We booked through the Aggressor fleet (which you can find on-line), but please understand that we were very interested in a trip that would include lots of diving. You have to know what you want to do in the time you have in the islands before you can choose the ship/boat. Keep in mind that other than X, you are not going to find any of your standard cruise lines.

 

If your group really wants to do this and you are pretty hardy cruisers, check out chartering your own boat - that is the absolutely best way to do the Galapagos as long as you realize that on a smaller boat, you are going to feel the waves much more than on a cruise ship.

 

We did spend 3 -4 days in Guayaquil at the Hilton Colon. The hotel was unexpectedly nice. We explored the city, but you need to do your homework here as well. many parts of the city can be dangerous, and if you go out on your own, make sure you have someone who is pretty fluent in Spanish. We had no problem, and got to experience some very pleasant local culture and restaurants.