Galapagos Cruise

This was a Bucket List trip for my husbands 70th birthday. We looked at many options as there are so many ships that go to the Galapagos Islands. We originally thought we wanted smaller than 100 passengers. We thought we wanted maybe a sail boat. But..after doing mounds of research which probably could have been avoided by a single phone call to Linda Androlia at Sunstone Tours. By her recommendation as Lindblad's connection with National Geographic being the best options, as well as it appears Lindblad is the father of tourism in Galapagos. It certainly wasn't the east expensive so we had high expectations.

We had Lindblad book our air from Las Vegas through Miami to Guayaquil and return. We were picked up at the airport by the shuttle of the Hilton Colon Hotel. There were a number on our flight, only we didn't know it until we all got on the same shuttle. Five minute drive and 20 minutes later we were in our room. A good nights sleep and up early for breakfast and back to the airport. Two or so hour flight and we arrived in the islands. Weather was a balmy 80 degrees which was perfect.

The ship..she seems to be old but impeccably maintained. We had a Category 3 cabin on the A Deck. Since there is no elevator we got our exercise. The ship is comfortable not full of luxury and set up for the destination.Food, plentiful and exceptional. They accommodated all my mini allergies and requirements with a smile no less. Little smattering of regional fare. Three meals 2 buffet and dinner sitdown. Full bar, coffee, tea and cookies in the library.

Swimming, hikes, snorkeling, zodiacs, kayaks. We did it all over and over again. Very active, no sitting around reading a book. You could if you wished, but why would you. Everyday one or two islands. Just when you thought the island and sea and land life you saw today could not be beat, the next day it does and so on. Once off the ship the country of Ecuador has many regulations and Lindblad is understandably a stickler for keeping to the rules.

Fellow passengers were like minded. Only two children from So American on the cruise. Otherwise the age range is about 45-75. As the crew is very professional, you some how feel a connection between passenger and crew in a friendship sort of way. Everyone we spoke to was thrilled and proud to be working on this ship.

It really was a trip of a lifetime. I can't find anything to complain or suggest to be done better. Tell your clients to bring heavy sunscreen and a hat, the sun is strong. Good walking shoes are a must. They had walking sticks which I found helpful. Sorry the trip is over in such a short time. After others on our Bucket List I think we would like to return.

As you know we were on the National Geographic Islander, the 44 passenger ship. It was a lovely ship and your recommendation of what cabins were available when we booked (8 months in advance) was spot on. We had a Category 4 cabin which was nice. All the cabins on the ship seem to be good size. We had previously been on the National Geographic Sea Bird and the Islander was a totally different type of ship, both appropriate for the destination they were exploring.

This was an active trip, always on the move with lots of walking, Snorkeling, swimming, kayaking, MUCH more active than Alaska. We talked to you about the Galapagos experience, we talked to people on the Alaska trip who had done it. I did lots of research as to the best operator and time of year to go. I felt I was well informed of what to expect. A little hesitant to spend the big bucks on Lindblad and the islander. But we can say we had high expectations, and were blown away how everything was in the "exceeded expectation category".

Of course the animals...they walk all over you, they have no fear, the fish the birds the land animals are all in your face. Can't explain this until you experience it. Not at all like Africa...a sea lion I could almost say cuddled up to my wife when she was laying on the beach.

44 passengers three rock star naturalist, expedition guides. All Ecuadorian which is the rule as to protect jobs of their countrymen. We had Salvadore, Paul and Juan Carols. All three excellent, their knowledge, passion, concern for us all made every minute of the trip a joy. As you can not wander off on your own and always have to be with a guide, the quality of this guide can make or break the trip. We understand the Lindblad guides are the top banana and everyone wants to work for Lindblad. We had Lynn as our head person. She was more involved in making sure everything was running well, like a cruise manager. She did give two excellent lectures on Darwin and one on the turtles.

We had very little rain and the weather and sea was very calm. As you never dock you are always out in the open waters. Snorkeling was a top on my list and I was able to do it enough that I was satisfied. I had trouble getting the equipment to fit properly. Our rock star naturalists worked with me each time to make sure all was perfect before I went out. Very much personal care.

If we would fault anything it would be the food. Our trip in Alaska had fresh salmon, halibut, bought from the fisherman. To please the American palette when you are half way across the world would be a challenge. We always had enough to eat and always found something on the menu that we enjoyed. it just wasn't the quality that we remember in Alaska.

To sum it up...Lindblad is the best...worth the price and then some. Linda, thank you for your knowledge. We called you for Celebrity which our neighbor had been on. Oh my goodness, are we glad we found you to explain the differences. Not that Celebrity is bad..just not what type of experience we were looking for. We are saving our pennies for another Lindblad adventure...maybe Artic next time.

We were on the National Geographic Endeavour in a Category 4 cabin.

The trip met our expectations to the fullest. Firstly, the Galapagos is absolutely fantastic. We were very impressed that all involved have kept the area pristine and yet accessible. It is traveling back in time. The abundant bird and animal life was incredible.

Secondly, Lindblad completely delivered. They were totally organized, the food was excellent, excellent housekeeping, and everyone was extremely helpful. We flew to Miami one day early . The next day we we were met by Lindblad at the Miami airport and they guided everyone through our travels. life was made easy.

This is our second trip with Lindblad, our first being Baja. We would not hesitate to travel with them again.

Finally, you, Linda, did a terrific job in making sure our booking and pre-trip arrangements went smoothly.

Thank you for everything.

Thank you for the greetings, and the bottle of wine - that was a lovely surprise and a very thoughtful gesture. The trip was amazing! It lived up to all our expectations and more. The ship was very nice, and all of the hospitality people that we met were delightful, pleasant, and did their jobs very well. We really liked our choice of cabin # 106 on the ship. The 100 level was definitely the right one for us. Lindblad does an excellent job of arranging and organizing everything - we were very impressed with the entire operation.



Thank you for your help in arranging things for us. This was really a "once in a lifetime" experience, and we feel that we did it with the right company.

There were so many choices in the Galapagos that I was over whelmed in making a decision. We researched up the gazoo. I came across Linda at Sunstone Tours who has been to the Galapagos and knew the many ships we were contemplating. Our issue was looking at the ships and not the naturalists and the experience. True to what Linda explained, the ship is NOT the focus, you are off the ship most of the time, it is the land, the animals, The Galapagos Islands being the focus. So that said we went with Lindblad/National Geographic since our research showed us they were the best by far in all the reviews mentioned. The highest rated Naturalists and have been sailing the Galapagos longer than any other company.



We were on the Endeavour with 98 passengers. We are a family of four, our kids are 13 and 15 and our trip was during the holiday season. We were prepared with hiking shoes, TEVA shoes for water landings, sun block, bug spray, good sunglasses, poncho, snorkel maskand anything else we could think of to spend more money at BIG 5. We were actually well suited and used everything we brought.



Our days were varied and always thrilling. The Naturalists were the best, they were not on a script nor had to adhere to a tight schedule. For instance we were on the beach and a baby seal came up to one of our children and poked its nose in her purse. The beach was being cleared and everyone was getting in their pangas to go back to the ship for lunch. We with our naturalist stood there forever watching this pup go through my daughters purse and taking everything out and rolling it in sand. It was beyond cute cute. When the pup finished she "walked" away like we weren't even there watching. We just made it back to the ship for lunch. Unfortunately our camera was in this purse and we didn't dare interrupt the pup so we have no pictures.



Galapagis Tortoise in the Galapagos IslandsDaily activity had different levels of difficulty as many times you are walking on volcanic land. There was enough staff to accommodate every ones level. The ship also had walking sticks.



Food was good, breakfast and lunch were buffet style, dinner as meat, fish or vegetarian. Good was very good and fresh but I would not call it gourmet. We had two cabins in Category 4 which were lovely and I think worth the extra money over lower categories.



Most amazing part of the experience is of course the animals. They are fearless of people. We intrude upon their space. You have to realize you never see one of anything, you are surrounded by whatever the island holds. It was a chore not to step on an Iguana as we walked, seals are everywhere on the beach, as well as in the way on the steps when trying to make a landing. Being able to observe behaviors of the species is beyond explanation. Clearly a magical destination.



We were very happy to choose Lindblad. They lived up to their expectation and beyond.