Ecuador Trip Review: Galapagos Islands, Cruise, Snorkeling with Sea Lions, Wildlife, 6-Day Trip

Review by traveler

Heather B.

5.16.2023

General Info

Traveler Review

Which Country (Countries) did you visit on this trip?

Galapagos / Ecuador

Your overall comments on the trip and the travel company:

Our trip to Colombia was incredible. Brian and his team were exceptional to deal with. We will enthusiastically recommend them to anyone seeking a personalized travel itinerary.

What were the most enjoyable or memorable parts of your trip?

All the animals! From the fun flamingos to the boobies, and snorkeling with the sea lions who come up so close to you!! We were fortunate also that we had great weather which always helps, especially when we did numerous dry landing's.

If you could take your trip again, what would you do differently?

We would stay on a different ship. Also, perhaps one that includes a day with no scheduled itinerary even if it means chartering our own yacht with some friends. There were many good parts of the boat, it's crew and the trip as a whole, hence my 4/5 star review. It was a bucket list destination for many of us and the boat noise unfortunately left a bad taste with all of us.
Some of the details on the logistics and itinerary could have been more clear as well, perhaps our travel company will change a few things from what our group mentioned, so it's more straight forward for new guests in the future. For example, airplane seat selections.

Travel Company Comments:

Hi Heather,
I know we discussed your concerns when we met here in Cusco a few days ago, but I just wanted to follow up in writing and cover the points that you mentioned in your review.
Let me start by saying thank you for the positive review about our services, I am glad to hear that you found the guide in the Galapagos to be very good and that you saw lots of interesting flora and fauna whilst cruising the Galapagos.
Regarding the noise that you experienced whilst on the cruise. We use this boat a lot for mid-level Galapagos cruises, as it offers a super level of comfort, a good crew and guide, whilst offering good value for money. On average, we have about 3 groups per month on this vessel, and have not received complaints about noise. Indeed, I have personally taken a cruise on this boat. It is our principal aim that our clients have the best trips possible, so offering a cruise experience that could potentially cause problems is simply not in our interest. However, we thank you for raising your concerns as client feedback is essential for improving our services for future clients. For the most part sailing in the Galapagos from location to location is done during dinner time and late evening, but I can see that on your itinerary you had the remote location of Genovesa in the far north-east of the Galapagos. This requires some 6-8 hours of sailing (depending on sea currents), which could account for the anchor noise in the early hours of the morning. I spoke with Jason, and we were unaware of any request on your part of compensation. From a personal standpoint, I have sailed the Galapagos around two-dozen times and although I have enjoyed each cruise, I have found that the quieter boats in general are aboard catamaran or trimaran vessels. By nature of design, these boats have cabins and common areas that sit above the hulls, offering a more spacious and quieter experience. Of course, whilst sailing in any boat, you'll experience some level of engine noise, vibrations and anchor noise.
We hope that overall your experience in the Galapagos was good, as this has to be one of the finest natural attractions in Latin America. I know from speaking with you that you enjoyed your time in Peru too.
Kind Regards,
Paul