ABD Galapagos vs Galapagos Cruise only?

[alvernon90]

2. make sure your children are old enough to snorkle. u wouldn't want them to miss under water galapagos.

What is the minimum age for snorkeling? Our daughter will be almost 8 when we go, but she's a strong swimmer and we will let her practice with the snorkel before we leave.

 

[tufbuf]

The minimum age for the trip is 7. If you look at the GE2 website, there is a notation that kids younger than 7 will not be permitted aboard the ship.

 

[familygoboston]

we did the abd equador/galapagos trip this year w/ our 13 and 18-yr-old children.
2 quick suggestions:
1. do the land tour as-well-as galapagos. u can't imagine how much u will miss if u don't do equador. it would be a real loss.
2. make sure your children are old enough to snorkle. u wouldn't want them to miss under water galapagos.

Definately agree about the cultural part! We completely changed our dates to make sure we could do the land/cruise trip. We went on safari in Africa and added several days of cultural activities and they turned out to be some if our highlights!!
I'm glad your kids enjoyed the trip; mine are about the same age(15, &17) so I think they will too! We will practice our snorkeling in Mexico this winter as we don't snorkel much in Maine- too cold!!

 

[tufbuf]

Hello. I just want to share a few photos from our recent trip.

This is the Middle of the World, lat 0 deg 0'0".

Peguche Falls

A rescued Andean condor. There are other raptors in Parque Condor but this guy is the biggest!

Beautiful long-stemmed roses in Vegaflor

Roses ready for export

My little girl flying her kite! She managed to do it on her own , it was quite a struggle since the wind was coming and going.

 

[tufbuf]

And here are some photos from the Galapagos part of the trip.

This is in Cerro Dragon in Sta. Cruz Island, our first stop/hike.

A land iguana on Sta. Cruz island

The kids playing by the beach waiting for the zodiac to pick us up.

Bartolomew Island with the famous Pinnacle Rock. That was where we snorkeled the next day. We saw sharks and penguins swimming in the area and lots of fish!

Next hike was in Santiago Island. And here are some marine iguanas.

Baby sea lions sleeping. The iguana overlooking them looks almost like their babysitter.

A pup nursing, you can hear the loud suckling of milk!

 

[tufbuf]

Next stop, Punta Espinoza in Fernandina Island.

I call this, a carpet of marine iguanas. The iguanas in this island are bigger and more robust than the ones we saw in the other islands.

Flightless cormorants

A brown pelican

At Punta Vicente Roca in nearbly Isabela Island, we snorkeled with green sea turtles. The water was murky and full of plankton and the turtles were swimming away from us. Later that day, we had a dinghy tour and saw numerous sea turtles swimming on the surface. Here is one of them:

An equatorial sunset...

Our last full day, we went to North Seymour Island thriving with numerous birds. Here is a frigatebird with an inflated gular pouch trying to attract a female to his nest.

A giant tortoise on the highlands of Sta. Cruz island

Last stop, San Cristobal Island. We stayed in town before leaving for the airport. We found this sea lion sleeping on a bench. It was a holiday that day with bands playing and a very festive atmosphere but nothing bothered this little guy.

 

[familygoboston]

Thanks for the photos! These are great! My photog DH really likes your shot of your daughter flying the kite. Great sky! That must be the "cloudy but not rainy weather" i read about that happens in the summer.

 

[tufbuf]

I was concerned before leaving since the forecast for Otavalo was daily rain. We had good weather when we were there. It was chilly early in the morning and at night but no biggie.

Here are more photos and some snorkelling ones as well.

I have always wanted to see these blue-footed birdies. Well, we saw lots!

These photos were taken from Pinnacle Rock in Bartolomew island, our first snorkeling spot.
School of razor surgeonfish

A sea star

A parrot fish

 

[tufbuf]

We also snorkeled off the coast of Santiago Island. Here we swam with sea lions! This is our daughter swimming right next to one.

Here is a video of a Pacific green sea turtle my hubby took. This was off the coast of Isabella Island.


And a photo:

A stingray swimming on the sandy bottom off the shore in North Seymour Island.

And, last minute, hubby saw a shark... (click for video)

 

[familygoboston]

Thanks for the photos! So great! Love the one of your dd with the sea lion. We cannot wait for this trip!

 

[familygoboston]

My mom noticed on the Galapagos Explorer 2 website that it says no sneakers at dinner. Did you find that to be true? I know no shorts, but no one in our group really wants to drag dress shoes with us. Just hiking shoes or sneakers, and water shoes. Would I be out of place with my keens?
What about the dress- are khaki zip offs ( as pants) ok with a polo? Gosh I'll be miserable if this turns out to be a dressy trip- we hate that!! Want to enjoy the wild life; not dress to impress!
TIA for any advice!

 

[sayhello]

Fabulous pictures, tufbuf! Thanks for sharing. That sunset is just gorgeous. (So did the site filters mess up the name of the blue-footed "birdies"? )

Sayhello

 

[tufbuf]

Thank you, sayhello! Yes, the birds' name was censored, I'll just call them blue-footed birdies. I am awaiting your trip report too! Even if we have done K&L before, it's always nice to hear from someone else.

 

[sayhello]

Thank you, sayhello! Yes, the birds' name was censored, I'll just call them blue-footed birdies. I am awaiting your trip report too! Even if we have done K&L before, it's always nice to hear from someone else.

I hope to start posting my Trip Report in the next day or two!

Sayhello

 

[zakatak]

Familygoboston: From the Galapagos Explorer II website: We suggest wearing informal clothes during the day, however in order to maintain a spirit of casual elegance, during dinner we recommend a more formal dress code. Shorts, baseball caps, or sandals are not allowed during dinner.

Bathing suites are only allowed in the Jacuzzi area, a sarong or shorts are preferred in the ship’s public areas.

We recommend wearing light clothes when you visit the islands. Comfortable walking shoes appropriate for lengthy treks, a pair of sandals / TEVAS (with Velcro for wet landings) cotton shorts or pants or any other light fabric.

Cotton shirts with long or short sleeves. Hats or baseball caps due to the intense sun on the islands, bathing suits, windbreaker jackets and sweaters during the cold and dry (drizzly) season from July to December.

It also says in What to Bring: Casual Outfits for dinner (shorts & sneakers are not allowed).

I'm thinking capris, nice jeans, polo shirts, and flats would be fine.

Karen

 

[familygoboston]

Familygoboston: From the Galapagos Explorer II website: We suggest wearing informal clothes during the day, however in order to maintain a spirit of casual elegance, during dinner we recommend a more formal dress code. Shorts, baseball caps, or sandals are not allowed during dinner.

Bathing suites are only allowed in the Jacuzzi area, a sarong or shorts are preferred in the ship’s public areas.

We recommend wearing light clothes when you visit the islands. Comfortable walking shoes appropriate for lengthy treks, a pair of sandals / TEVAS (with Velcro for wet landings) cotton shorts or pants or any other light fabric.

Cotton shirts with long or short sleeves. Hats or baseball caps due to the intense sun on the islands, bathing suits, windbreaker jackets and sweaters during the cold and dry (drizzly) season from July to December.

It also says in What to Bring: Casual Outfits for dinner (shorts & sneakers are not allowed).

I'm thinking capris, nice jeans, polo shirts, and flats would be fine.

Karen

Thanks Karen, thats what mom saw, I was wondering from someone who was on the ABD trip what is actually happening on the ship. Sometimes what is stated and what is actually done are two different things on any ship. I know that the ABD group is seated for dinner earlier, so maybe things are slightly different? Has anyone who has been recently share their observations?

My mom has orthotics and they don't fit well with any of her shoes except for her (very nice white ) sneakers. She is really not wanting to bring another pair of shoes outside of those walking shoes and her beach/wet landing shoes. She wears those sneakers with her dressy capris and tops and never looks sloppy. In the past I've read "requirements" for trips" gone out and spent good money on stuff we never needed...just trying to avoid that!

 

[zakatak]

Hey Fam,

I would have her wear the sneakers! You don't want her feet hurting her, that's for sure. My youngest daughter (age 11) has orthotics so I definitely understand the issue. I can't believe they would have an issue with a nice pair of white sneakers at dinner.

We have a total of 5 in our family and am really wondering how I am going to pack correctly since we are doing the Andes beforehand as well. I think I will call the Marriott and see if they will hold a bag or too so we don't have to bring it with us on the ship (sweaters, warmer shoes, etc.).

I am hoping to bring one pair of "hiking" shoes and one pair of sandals for each person. That alone is 10 pairs of shoes (with my 40 lbs weight limit per person).

Karen

 

[familygoboston]

Hey Fam,

I would have her wear the sneakers! You don't want her feet hurting her, that's for sure. My youngest daughter (age 11) has orthotics so I definitely understand the issue. I can't believe they would have an issue with a nice pair of white sneakers at dinner.

We have a total of 5 in our family and am really wondering how I am going to pack correctly since we are doing the Andes beforehand as well. I think I will call the Marriott and see if they will hold a bag or too so we don't have to bring it with us on the ship (sweaters, warmer shoes, etc.).

I am hoping to bring one pair of "hiking" shoes and one pair of sandals for each person. That alone is 10 pairs of shoes (with my 40 lbs weight limit per person).

Karen

Karen-
I've heard they aren't real fussy on the weight limit on this trip, but I also know that with ABD, you can definately leave stuff behind - no problem, we've done it!
I know I've seen mom out to dinner wth her orthotic sneakers and felt she was looking very appropriate., so I'm going to encourage her to do what is most comfortable!

 

[tufbuf]

The sneakers for your mom will be just fine especially if they are orthotics. They just want you to wear something nice during dinner, not what you wore the whole day hiking or looking like you are about to go on a hike or a swim. The guides will even mention that to the group since the ship is particular about the dress code. Lunch and breakfast, keep a shirt on. There was this one rowdy boy on the ship with us (not with ABD) who keeps running around and rushed in the restaurant for lunch with just trunks on, they called him to go put a shirt on.

Yes, don't worry about the weight limit. You can also use your luggage which you brought with the trip. We brought extra bags ( small ones) thinking the cabins will be tiny and the 40 lb weight limit we were told when we booked the trip. But don't sweat it, they are not particular about the weight at all.

 

[familygoboston]

The sneakers for your mom will be just fine especially if they are orthotics. They just want you to wear something nice during dinner, not what you wore the whole day hiking or looking like you are about to go on a hike or a swim. The guides will even mention that to the group since the ship is particular about the dress code. Lunch and breakfast, keep a shirt on. There was this one rowdy boy on the ship with us (not with ABD) who keeps running around and rushed in the restaurant for lunch with just trunks on, they called him to go put a shirt on.
.

Thanks TufBuf! Mom will be happy about that! I think the guys have plans to bring collared polo shirts, so they will definately have a change before dinner, and we girls enjoy having our capris and sundresses anyway!