Kids headed to Ecuador and Galapagos

[K and K's Mommy]

We've been packing today, and my oldest two are headed to Quito tomorrow for the start of their ABD trip to Ecuador and Galapagos with their grandparents. I'll post their thoughts when they return.

 

[sayhello]

I hope they have a fabulous time! (How could they not?)

Sayhello

 

[mecllap]

I am so envious -- the best trip I have ever taken was one many years ago to the Galapagos -- it was wonderful. I hope they bring back lots of pics you can post that show what it's like to go there with ABD (accommodations, guides, food, etc.) in addition to all the wonderful critter shots they will have. If I can scrape together the money someday, that's the big trip I'd love to take my DGS on (maybe I need to curtail our fun WDW trips and save the money for that trip). Quito is also very interesting -- some of it is beautiful (and some very historic, but also a lot is impoverished -- Disney probably won't let them see that). Do they have a journal or netbook to take notes in every night about what they see and do?

 

[K and K's Mommy]

They have their journals. My DD - almost 10 has even written all sorts of prompts to help her with each day. We'll see how much we get from my DS 12. He has an excellent memory so I'll question him about pictures and experiences as soon as he gets back.

We always take pictures of our food at Disney so I think they'll remember to do that!

 

[Dahly]

They will have a fab time! My DS and I did this trip in '09 when he was 11..it was definately the trip of a lifetime...everytime we talk about planning another vacation, he says he wants to go back.

 

[SteveInCA]

They're in for a wonderful time. We were on the previous departure, and just got back last Thursday. One of our guide (Laura) is doing this departure as well, and she's great. The cruise through the islands is pure magic.

 

[sjlsk8r]

We are planning this trip for Christmas this year so if anyone has any tips or comments (or posts a trip report) we would love to hear.

 

[K and K's Mommy]

We are planning this trip for Christmas this year so if anyone has any tips or comments (or posts a trip report) we would love to hear.

I'll post a report and tips from my parents and kids when they get home. I can tell you they were glad they left a day early. The plane from Houston to Quito was delayed so they didn't get to Quito until after midnight which is after 1 our time. They called yesterday from Marriott and were glad they were going to have a day to take it easy. My DD said the view from her room was beautiful. They had just finished the breakfast buffet when they called. My DS wasn't adventurous! I'm hoping there are times when he has to eat native food.

 

[tufbuf]

Any tips on anyone who has done this before? What to bring? Shopping? Ours will be in a month, cant wait!

 

[Bobo912]

Since we did the Lindblad trip and spent almost all of our time in the Galapagos and just a little in Guayaquil, I don't know about the mainland part of the trip. But for the island part, bring lots of sunscreen, a good hat that keeps the sun off your face, comfortable shoes, two swimsuits, lots of memory for your camera, and an extra battery. I went to a lot of trouble to find comfortable water shoes before the trip, since the ones I had weren't all that comfortable, but you don't really need them. Most people just wore their walking shoes or hiking boots and took them off for wet landings. By the second day that's what I was doing too, since my walking shoes were still more comfortable than my Keens.

 

[Bobo912]

Any tips on anyone who has done this before? What to bring? Shopping? Ours will be in a month, cant wait!

I saw on the other thread that you just got back from Peru. And your going to the Galapagos next month?!! That is awesome!

 

[sayhello]

I saw on the other thread that you just got back from Peru. And your going to the Galapagos next month?!! That is awesome!

Seriously! Color me jealous!

Sayhello

 

[Dahly]

Any tips on anyone who has done this before? What to bring? Shopping? Ours will be in a month, cant wait!

k, just wrote a long post and my computer ate it...so the highlights -

it gets cold in August (we went in Aug 09) at the Hacienda so take warm jammies if you don't like to be cold when you sleep.

take small bills for the market in Otavalo - hard to haggle a $10 item down to $7 and them pull a $20 out to pay for it

if you are the least bit seasick prone, take something before you get on the ship...the first night was the worst for me.

feel free to ask any questions, and i will do the best i can to help!

dahly

PS the tortoise in my avatar is from the Galapagos...we got thisclose....highlight of my son's trip!

 

[tufbuf]

k, just wrote a long post and my computer ate it...so the highlights -

it gets cold in August (we went in Aug 09) at the Hacienda so take warm jammies if you don't like to be cold when you sleep.

take small bills for the market in Otavalo - hard to haggle a $10 item down to $7 and them pull a $20 out to pay for it

if you are the least bit seasick prone, take something before you get on the ship...the first night was the worst for me.

feel free to ask any questions, and i will do the best i can to help!

dahly

PS the tortoise in my avatar is from the Galapagos...we got thisclose....highlight of my son's trip!

Thanks! These little tips really help!!

Are the Ecuadorians picky about the quality of dollar bills too?

Does it get warm during the day?

Does the hotel and ship have laundry? hair dryer? iron and ironing board?

We have one full day at the end of the tour, what do you suggest we could do to spend the day?

Thansk again!

 

[Dahly]

Thanks! These little tips really help!!

Are the Ecuadorians picky about the quality of dollar bills too?

Does it get warm during the day?

Does the hotel and ship have laundry? hair dryer? iron and ironing board?

We have one full day at the end of the tour, what do you suggest we could do to spend the day?

Thansk again!

Dollar Bills - that is one thing I had in my first post that disappeared...yes, i had read before we went they only like crisp dollars...so I called my bank and asked them to set aside some brand new ones and fives for me..may not be totally necessary but I didn't want to take a chance..also heard they like our dollar coins, so we took 10 or so of those.

While we were in the highlands, it did get warm during the day, most of our group was in shorts or capris, but you may want to carry a light jacket...especially on kite flying day, it was very windy. It was also pretty windy at the waterfall (am assuming the schedule is similar to 2 years ago).

Very warm in the Galapagos, especially as there is a lot of walking.

The Marriott in Quito has landry, but we were only there 2 nights (we went in one day early) so we didn't do any laundry there. The Hacienda has a laundry service, I actually emailed them before we left with that very question, they sent me a generic price list, but I am sorry, I don't have that email anymore. We ended up not needing any laundry done so I am not sure about turn around time.

We took a small travel iron so I don't remember if there was one provided, there was a hair dryer in the room at the hacienda as well as on the ship.

We went in one day early, and just spent the day relaxing at the hotel pool. It was DS(10 at the time) and I , so i didnt feel too comfortable about venturing away from there. However, i do wish we had taken the time to go to Teleferico Quito, which is a cable car to the top of a mountain, which I have read, that on a clear day, has an amazing view of the city. Not sure how far away from the hotel it is. About $9 or so per person to ride the cable car to the top.

So, other than that one thing, I am not much help!

If you don't plan anything prior to leaving, you may want to see if you can get a few minutes with the Concierge at the JW on your first day there, to see if they can help you plan your day on the back end of the trip. Or even call them ahead of time to see if they can recommend any day trips from the hotel.

hope that helps a little!

Dahly

 

[tufbuf]

Thanks, Dahly!!

Very helpful, thank you for taking time to answer my questions! I am concentrating now on the Galapagos trip since we are done with Peru. We are all excited and can't wait. We were supposed to go to Egypt during that time but since they canceled it, we chose to do Ecuador instead.

 

[K and K's Mommy]

We went in one day early, and just spent the day relaxing at the hotel pool. It was DS(10 at the time) and I , so i didnt feel too comfortable about venturing away from there. However, i do wish we had taken the time to go to Teleferico Quito, which is a cable car to the top of a mountain, which I have read, that on a clear day, has an amazing view of the city. Not sure how far away from the hotel it is. About $9 or so per person to ride the cable car to the top.


Dahly

This is what my parents and kids did the day before the tour started. They said it was great. My DD e-mailed me about it, and she and her brother waved to everyone going up and down.

We got another e-mail this morning that they are VERY busy but having a good time. Today is their last day at the Hacienda. The bad news was that my DD lost her camera at the market. She is really responsible, and my dad thinks it could have been stolen. Poor thing was so upset she didn't want to call us. My parents, of course, have a camera so we'll still have pictures. I now wish we had sent a cheap one with my DS 12 but he is not responsible so I didn't want to risk losing one.

They had small bills for the market, but I didn't read about crispness. I don't remember them being extra crisp. I'll let you know how my kids did.

 

[Dahly]

This is what my parents and kids did the day before the tour started. They said it was great. My DD e-mailed me about it, and she and her brother waved to everyone going up and down.

We got another e-mail this morning that they are VERY busy but having a good time. Today is their last day at the Hacienda. The bad news was that my DD lost her camera at the market. She is really responsible, and my dad thinks it could have been stolen. Poor thing was so upset she didn't want to call us. My parents, of course, have a camera so we'll still have pictures. I now wish we had sent a cheap one with my DS 12 but he is not responsible so I didn't want to risk losing one.

They had small bills for the market, but I didn't read about crispness. I don't remember them being extra crisp. I'll let you know how my kids did.

i am glad they are having a good time. Too bad about her camera...i left my on the bus the morning we went from the hacienda to the airport..fortunatley the bus driver found it and gave it to one of the guides before we got too far into the airport.

My DS has asked for a second trip back for his HS graduation....so hopefully we will have a chance to do the cable car so time in the future.

looking forward to hearing about their trip!!

 

[CindyInNC]

Any tips on anyone who has done this before? What to bring? Shopping? Ours will be in a month, cant wait!

We just got back from Galapagos. We had an amazing time. This was our first ABD and we are sold. Worth every penny to not have to deal with any hassels or frustrations we usually encounter on our other various trips.
Tips to add to other posts:
*Clothing - Hiking pants that can convert to shorts are great since layers and versitility are key. My husband wore shorts the entire trip and was fine except on the early morning bus ride back to Quito since there was no heating on the bus and it was chilly.
WEAR PANTS WHEN YOU GO TO THE WATERFALL while in the highlands, especially if you are effected by mosquitos. I got 15 or so bites before even noticing and then put on repellant and still got a few more. Others said they had put on bug spray before going and they got bites as well.. I must be allergic because I got nasty red blisters that still itch like crazy.
*Bathing Suit - I brought one that is the 2 piece style that has a skirt on the bottom and it was a total pain because you needed to wear it under your clothes while hiking and than go directly to the beach for snorkling. The skirt part would also get bunched up under the wetsuit and was uncomfortable. The water is cold and I couldn't imagine going without a wetsuit but some people did.
Nice Clothes: There is not a real requirement to wear nice clothes for dinner but most people did especially on the ship and at the farewell dinner back in Quito.
They let us send our extra bags to the hotel after leaving the highlands to go to the Galapagos and that was a great help regarding the extra luggage. I packed as if we were going on 2 separate trips and put the purchases we had made in the highlands, dirty clothes and warm clothes in the bags to leave in Quito. you will still need a light jacket on the ship since it can be windy at night and the AC in the room and common areas was chilly.
Camera: Be sure to take a waterproof camera for the wonderful fish and marine life while snorkling.
Shoes: The terrain in Galapagos is very rocky and you absolutely need sturdy shoes. My family never used the swim shoes even for the wet landings. They just took off their shoes and socks and sat on the rocks to dry off and put them back on. I wore my mesh style shoes and had to deal with sand in my shoes that morning. The rest of the time I had the hiking cross training type shoes and they were great. My husband worn tennis shoes and it was a bit slippery for him at times.

Hope this helps. Have a wonderful time.

 

[sayhello]

Welcome to the DISBoards and the ABD Forum, CindyInNC! Thanks for the great tips. Hopefully we'll be seeing more from you about your next ABD!

Sayhello