Ecuador & Galapagos Islands: Andean Highlands and Galapagos Islands Meets Thread

[sayhello]

Please post here if you would like to talk with anyone else who has signed up to travel to Ecuador & the Galapagos Islands with ABD.

You can also share information/ask questions about the Equador & Galapagos Islands: Andean Highlands and Galapagos Islands ABD.

Please try and keep this thread on topic to discussion and questions about the Ecuador & Galapagos Island ABD. Off topic posts will be deleted or moved.

Thanks!
Sayhello

Roll Call:

Previous:

• Dec 18 - 26, 2012 - kristilew & family
• Aug 14 - 22, 2013 - familygotoboston, DH, her folks, daughters (15 & 17)
• Apr 3 - 11, 2015 - DCPhotoGal, husband & two daughters (9 & 11)

 

[kristilew]

We're on the Dec 18 departure of this year...anyone else?

Thanks, Say Hello, for organizing the new threads!

ETA: oops! Saw later that I put this on the wrong Galapagos thread...SH, can you move me? Or delete me and I'll start over?

 

[sayhello]

kristilew, you're moved!

Sayhello

 

[familygoboston]

Just catching up on my Board work Say Hello, thanks for organizing threads by trip...I'll probably subscribe to both, as much info will apply to either trip.

We travel August 14, with my DH and I late 40 ish, my folks, early 70 ish, celebrating their 50 th wedding anniversary, and my teen daughters 15, and one who will be weeks away from 18. ( FYI to lurkers looking for empty houses..sorry, big male dog sitter and two big dogs staying behind 2 frogs and a cat too, but they won't do as much harm)

We are doing an extra pre night at JW, and plan to ride the Telefrico and see some of the culture and art museums with a private driver. After the ABD, we have two extra post nights at JW. We plan to go out to the Mindo Cloud Forest for a day trip with a guide one day, and tour old town the other day with the guide.

For those on the Aug 14 departure, we were told:
The trip was 70% full as of March.* *1-17 year old ( mine), 1-15 year old (mine), 1-14 year old, 2-13 year olds, 2-12 year olds, 2-11 years olds, 1-10year old, 1-9 year old, 2-8 year olds.

Hope to meet a few others who are taking this trip, maybe with some reviews from those who already have? Say Hello- is this the place to post trip reports after our trip? Or should we be starting seperate threads for extensive photo reviews?

 

[sayhello]

Just catching up on my Board work Say Hello, thanks for organizing threads by trip...I'll probably subscribe to both, as much info will apply to either trip.

We travel August 14, with my DH and I late 40 ish, my folks, early 70 ish, celebrating their 50 th wedding anniversary, and my teen daughters 15, and one who will be weeks away from 18. ( FYI to lurkers looking for empty houses..sorry, big male dog sitter and two big dogs staying behind 2 frogs and a cat too, but they won't do as much harm)

We are doing an extra pre night at JW, and plan to ride the Telefrico and see some of the culture and art museums with a private driver. After the ABD, we have two extra post nights at JW. We plan to go out to the Mindo Cloud Forest for a day trip with a guide one day, and tour old town the other day with the guide.

For those on the Aug 14 departure, we were told:
The trip was 70% full as of March.* *1-17 year old ( mine), 1-15 year old (mine), 1-14 year old, 2-13 year olds, 2-12 year olds, 2-11 years olds, 1-10year old, 1-9 year old, 2-8 year olds.

Hope to meet a few others who are taking this trip, maybe with some reviews from those who already have? Say Hello- is this the place to post trip reports after our trip? Or should we be starting seperate threads for extensive photo reviews?

I went back and forth on whether to create 2 threads or just one. Finally settled on 2. (Mostly because I couldn't fit all the description for both in the Title. ) If people want them combined, I certainly can do so.

I think the best idea would probably be to post your report in it's own thread, and then post a link (or links) to it here. Otherwise, you could have multiple people doing reports that overlapped posts, and people might get confused whose posts belonged to which report. That way you can also post a link to it in the Trip Reports thread!

Sayhello

 

[familygoboston]

I went back and forth on whether to create 2 threads or just one. Finally settled on 2. (Mostly because I couldn't fit all the description for both in the Title. ) If people want them combined, I certainly can do so.

I think the best idea would probably be to post your report in it's own thread, and then post a link (or links) to it here. Otherwise, you could have multiple people doing reports that overlapped posts, and people might get confused whose posts belonged to which report. That way you can also post a link to it in the Trip Reports thread!

Sayhello

Oh, two threads are fine! They are different trips. I guess since I am so lonely here I didn't want to lose all my Grandioso friends I think most of us keep and eye on a few different threads anyway.

That makes perfect sense about the reviews. I do like to post ( and read other's) long reviews with lots of photos...I just wanted to make sure I didn't put it in the wrong place! Now that everything is so nicely organized it should be much easier for people to do research on these boards!!

 

[zakatak]

I'm watching both threads! Pretty slow, though so maybe we are the only ones!

 

[familygoboston]

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2012/06/25/lonesome-george-giant-tortoise-dies-in-galapagos/

Sad news...Lonesome George died, this was one of the things we had hoped to see in August

 

[Bobo912]

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2012/06/25/lonesome-george-giant-tortoise-dies-in-galapagos/

Sad news...Lonesome George died, this was one of the things we had hoped to see in August

That is so sad. I am glad we got the chance to see him last year. I was tearing up just listening to the guide talk about him being the last of his kind. I thought they told us he was around 70, but the article says he probably over 100, so maybe she told us he would likely live for another 70 years. Regardless, it is very sad.

 

[familygoboston]

Our Adventure Travel Trunks arrived today! Yeah! It's really real now!

This trip is so easy from the US...no adapters, no currency to exchange. Still some last minute packing and I like to put the travel insurance lost bag info in all our suitcases, getting the AG tips together in envelopes etc, but we are ready to go and now we have our docs!

Actually my biggest thing left to do is leave detailed instructions for our TA about my ADR's for a WDW trip in Feb...wouldn't ya know our 180 is smack in the middle of our Galapagos trip. Luckily, our TA is WONDERFUL, and plans to get up early to make our ADR's for us. But I have to leave all the info with her!

Ok, last call...anyone else on here going on the mid Aug departure?

If not...I'll post a quickie review when I get back, then it will take a while for the full review. We return, school starts just a few days later, and it will take a while to process photos and start writing. Stay tuned!

 

[tufbuf]

Our Adventure Travel Trunks arrived today! Yeah! It's really real now!

This trip is so easy from the US...no adapters, no currency to exchange. Still some last minute packing and I like to put the travel insurance lost bag info in all our suitcases, getting the AG tips together in envelopes etc, but we are ready to go and now we have our docs!

Actually my biggest thing left to do is leave detailed instructions for our TA about my ADR's for a WDW trip in Feb...wouldn't ya know our 180 is smack in the middle of our Galapagos trip. Luckily, our TA is WONDERFUL, and plans to get up early to make our ADR's for us. But I have to leave all the info with her!

Ok, last call...anyone else on here going on the mid Aug departure?

If not...I'll post a quickie review when I get back, then it will take a while for the full review. We return, school starts just a few days later, and it will take a while to process photos and start writing. Stay tuned!

I am so excited for you!!! I'm sure things will turn out great! Just a note, the Ecuadorian dollar coins are much lighter and the designs are different. They won't work here if you use it in vending machines and maybe even toll booths. It's a nice keepsake though.

 

[familygoboston]

I am so excited for you!!! I'm sure things will turn out great! Just a note, the Ecuadorian dollar coins are much lighter and the designs are different. They won't work here if you use it in vending machines and maybe even toll booths. It's a nice keepsake though.

Thanks for replying and for all your help on the boards! My parents keep asking "we don't even have to change money? ". I will save some of those coins my preschoolers love to play with them when I do a lesson about the places I travel.
My DH for a trillion dollar note in Zimbabwe, which sadly for those folks was not worth the 3 US dollars he paid for it, but it's a great novelty and sad reminder of what goes on in the world! Hoepfully, our tourism dollars do some good for the local economies where we all are blessed to visit!

On to happier things...time to read my day to day itinerary!

 

[kristilew]

Our Adventure Travel Trunks arrived today! Yeah! It's really real now!

This trip is so easy from the US...no adapters, no currency to exchange. Still some last minute packing and I like to put the travel insurance lost bag info in all our suitcases, getting the AG tips together in envelopes etc, but we are ready to go and now we have our docs!

Actually my biggest thing left to do is leave detailed instructions for our TA about my ADR's for a WDW trip in Feb...wouldn't ya know our 180 is smack in the middle of our Galapagos trip. Luckily, our TA is WONDERFUL, and plans to get up early to make our ADR's for us. But I have to leave all the info with her!

Ok, last call...anyone else on here going on the mid Aug departure?

If not...I'll post a quickie review when I get back, then it will take a while for the full review. We return, school starts just a few days later, and it will take a while to process photos and start writing. Stay tuned!

Have fun! I'll be waiting to read all about it, both your quick report and the longer one. Our trip finally feels like it is approaching...even if we still have 5 months to go!

You are in my favorite situation: heading off on one trip with your next one already booked! Enjoy!

 

[familygoboston]

Have fun! I'll be waiting to read all about it, both your quick report and the longer one. Our trip finally feels like it is approaching...even if we still have 5 months to go!

You are in my favorite situation: heading off on one trip with your next one already booked! Enjoy!

We are back! It was great! Laurie and Robbie, our adventure guides were beyond great! It was a very, very busy trip, but incredible.
I just finished the writing part of my review today, its very detailed (with more specifics than "great" ) with a travelogue and tips, but DH has to get all his photos on his website so I can include them in the review. It will take a few days for me to post it all up here on its own thread, and we are going away for the long weekend, so I'm hoping by the end of next week to get it all up there.

I'm sure you will have a great time on this trip and hope my review is helpful, as Tufbufs was such a big help for my planning! If anyone following the meets thread has questions, I'm happy to try to answer!

 

[robpetrie]

Please post here if you would like to talk with anyone else who has signed up to travel to Ecuador & the Galapagos Islands with ABD in 2012/2013.

You can also share information/ask questions about the Equador & Galapagos Islands: Andean Highlands and Galapagos Islands ABD.

Please try and keep this thread on topic to discussion and questions about the Ecuador & Galapagos Island ABD. Off topic posts will be deleted or moved.

Thanks!
Sayhello

Roll Call:
Dec 18 - 26, 2012 - kristilew & family
Aug 14 - 22, 2013 - familygotoboston, DH, her folks, daughters (15 & 17)

Wow! That cruise sounds amazing. I've always wanted to go to the Galapagos Islands.

 

[familygoboston]

You should go! It's a great trip!
I hope it's ok with the mods, but here is a link to my review. It's such a quiet thread and it might help those going on this trip...if not I'll remove it!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2987674

 

[sayhello]

You should go! It's a great trip!
I hope it's ok with the mods, but here is a link to my review. It's such a quiet thread and it might help those going on this trip...if not I'll remove it!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2987674

Totally, absolutely OK!

Sayhello

 

[gadawg94]

Hello! Preparing for my first ABD trip (woo hoo!) and will be leaving for Ecuador in just over 2 weeks. I have been reading as much as I can about it here (thank you to familygoboston and tufbuf for sharing your experiences!) but I have a couple of questions. This trip came up very quickly and we don't have our "trunk" with all info yet (it was to go out end of last week so it should be here soon!).

It sounds like this is an itinerary that calls for pretty casual dress. Is there a "dress up night" along the way I need to plan for? I am stressing enough about packing with the fact that looking at the extended forecast we have a 50 degree difference between the lows during the Ecuador portion and the highs during the Galapagos portion, I'm hoping I don't have to figure out how to get several dressy things in the suitcase too!

On the ship web site it mentions you can get satellite wifi. Is it decent? Did anyone bring an iPad and if so were you able to connect with that? I know there have been times I have trouble with my iPad but can connect fine with the computer. I was hoping to get by with traveling without the laptop if I could.

Wetsuits on board...is this a one size fits most situation or do they have some larger sizes? Not HUGE but I don't want to get there and find out if you are more than a size 10 you are out of luck!

And finally, are there rules about what types of sunscreen and stuff we can use? Are there certain types that are deemed unfriendly to the environment and not allowed?

Thank you in advance!!!

 

[familygoboston]

Oh, you've probably already left and I missed this message! I'll answer just in case you haven't and for anyone else!

Hello! Preparing for my first ABD trip (woo hoo!) and will be leaving for Ecuador in just over 2 weeks. I have been reading as much as I can about it here (thank you to familygoboston and tufbuf for sharing your experiences!) but I have a couple of questions. This trip came up very quickly and we don't have our "trunk" with all info yet (it was to go out end of last week so it should be here soon!).

It sounds like this is an itinerary that calls for pretty casual dress. Is there a "dress up night" along the way I need to plan for?

The whole trip is super casual! A few people chose to bring a nice sun dress for the second night on the ship, but it was by no means required! Most folks wore comfortable shoes and slacks. I am stressing enough about packing with the fact that looking at the extended forecast we have a 50 degree difference between the lows during the Ecuador portion and the highs during the Galapagos portion, I'm hoping I don't have to figure out how to get several dressy things in the suitcase too!
Don't pack anything dressy!! But do pack warm things, the highlands are cool and the dining room doors are open to the outside

On the ship web site it mentions you can get satellite wifi. Is it decent? Did anyone bring an iPad and if so were you able to connect with that? I know there have been times I have trouble with my iPad but can connect fine with the computer. I was hoping to get by with traveling without the laptop if I could. We did not use the internet on the ship, but we did on another ship recently (the sat services are fairly similar) There is a "trick" to the ipad, this won't make much sense till you try to do it, so copy this and bring it with you on board.
After you follow the step by step instructions to "connect" to the service, you will get a message saying you are "connected". If you try to go right to a webpage or mail, it will not load. You have to go back to Settings and select the ships wifi again That is the tricky part; even though you have connected, the ipad (for some reason) does not recognize it till you go back to settings and reselect the ships wifi. No idea why, but this happens, and this was the way we got around it.

Wetsuits on board...is this a one size fits most situation or do they have some larger sizes? Not HUGE but I don't want to get there and find out if you are more than a size 10 you are out of luck!
My DH is 6 foot 6; My DM is spherical; they both found wet suits with no trouble at all! It helps that ABD gets first pick on the ship, so try on your wet suit as soon as you get them and then the ABD guides will be at the stern to swap out (they will tell you when) if it's not a fit, but don't put off that step till you actually go snorkeling or sizes may be limited.

And finally, are there rules about what types of sunscreen and stuff we can use? Are there certain types that are deemed unfriendly to the environment and not allowed?
No restrictions, though we did see things about it before we left. We used our regular sunscreen (neutrogena) with no restrictions, and nothing was noted in the documents or briefings from guides during the trip.But do use it!! Even if it feels cool, the sun is very intense!
Thank you in advance!!!

Sorry I didn't see this sooner...hope you have a great trip!

 

[kristilew]

gadawg94 may have already gone, but these answers are helpful for me! Thanks!

We are 34 days out and getting pretty excited! No box yet, but I figure that is going through our TA, so will get here eventually.

Meanwhile, we're just trying to get our Christmas shopping done so we can concentrate on packing!