Trip
Information
Dates:
October
21 - November 1, 2010
March 31 - April 11, 2011
Optional birding
pre-tour (Ecuador) October 17 - 21, 2010; and March
27 – 31, 2011
Guides: Diverse onboard resource staff
Onboard: M/S
Islander
From: Quito, Ecuador
Price: Berths starting at $5695 USD;
Click here for more details
Highlights:
• Experience the unique and very tame wildlife of the Galapagos
on land and in the sea
• Travel onboard the luxurious M/S Islander
• Rich cultural excursions around Quito
• An experienced and engaging resource team onboard
Featured Wildlife:
• Galapagos Tortoise
• Galapagos Penguin
• Marine Iguana
• Swallow-tailed Gull
• Darwin's Finches
• Galapagos Mockingbird
• Blue-footed Booby
• Flightless Cormorant
• Galapagos Hawk
• Nazca Booby
• Green Turtle
• Sally Lightfoot Crab
Trip summary:
• Includes 4 nights in Quito and 7 nights aboard expedition ship
• All meals included
• Internal flights are included
• Includes zodiac excursions, guided hikes, and snorkeling |
Join
us once again for our voyage to the real Middle Earth as we experience
Ecuador and the
Galápagos Islands. We’ll have a chance to explore the UNESCO
world heritage site of colonial
Quito, shop in the shadow of a volcano at the Otavalo Market, and stand
on the equator before
heading to the Galápagos Islands. Aboard the luxurious M/S Islander,
we explore the islands
synonymous with Charles Darwin and the theory of evolution while sea kayaking,
Zodiac
cruising, hiking and snorkelling. The islands promise an unforgettable
experience where the
water, land and air are alive with birds, plants and animals, many of
which are found no place else
on Earth.
Snorkel with sea lion pups, marine iguanas, penguins and sea turtles.
Explore the volcanic
islands alongside giant tortoise and the Flightless Cormorant. Our resource
staff is second to
none and will be veritable fountains of knowledge as they introduce us
to the history, flora and
fauna of these unique islands through guided walking tours, Zodiac tours
and onboard lectures.
Interacting with the Galápagos wildlife is a surreal experience.
Whether it’s watching the mating
dance of the Blue-footed Boobies from only steps away, feeling a seal
pup brush by you in the
water, or carefully winding your way through hundreds of sunning iguanas;
the Galápagos Islands
invite you to connect intimately with its ecosystem.
Click here to download a registration form.
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Itinerary
For
our first few days in Ecuador, we’ll have
a chance to experience all the culture, architecúture and lifestyle
that the Quito area has to offer. All accomodations, meals, transportation,
guides and entrance fees are included in your package.
Day 1: Arrival in Quito
Arriving on our group flight from Miami, we’ll check into our
Spanish villa style hotel in colonial Quito for our welcome reception.
Day 2: Old Town Quito and the Middle of the Earth
After breakfast, our local guides will take us on a walking tour of
the UNESCO World Heritage site of Old Town Quito. We’ll have a
chance to visit the spectacular plazas, the centuries-old churches and
the pre-columbia Gold Museum. After lunch, we’ll head just north
of the city to the Mitad del Mundo (“Middle of the Earth”)
where we’ll see equator coriolis-effect experiúments, shrunken
heads and blowguns. After a visit to the Equatorial Monument, we head
back to Quito for dinner.
Day 3: The Otavalo Market
Rising bright and early, we’ll venture to one of the most famous
markets in South America, the Otavalo Market. We’ll wind up through
the countryside, punctuated by volcanoes, mountain vistas and idyllic
lakes. We’re greeted in Otavalo by a riot of brightly coloured
handicrafts bursting from their stalls, jewellery sparkling in the sun,
everywhere deals being made. This is the place in South America to find
handmade weavings, garments, carvings and leather goods.
After
a lunch at a nearby hacienda (colonial farm) we’ll visit
a few of the surrounding villages that specialize in woodcarving and
leatherwork. We will return to Quito in the evening for dinnner and
a night of traditional Ecuadorian dancing.
Our itinerary in the Galapagos will focus on the areas with the greatest
promise of wildlife. We will venture out from the Islander on inflatable
Zodiacs to explore this wonderful world, landing on the islands to
meet the creatures that call this region home. While exact itineraries
are
influenced by the National Park Service and weather, this is our intended
itinerary.
Day 4: Quito to the Galapagos
We’ll be rising early and heading to the airport for our flight
to Baltra Island, in the Galapagos, where the M/S Islander awaits. In
the afternoon, we’ll visit Cerro Dragon (Dragon Hill) in search
of the spectacular land iguanas that give this hill its name. These
yellow and red giants, with their spiky spines, are endemic to the island
and many have been repatriated here from the Charles Darwin Station’s
breeding program. We’ll also spot blue-footed boobies, pelicans
and maybe even some pink flamingos on this visit.
Day 5: Bartolomé Island
This island is one of the most picturesque and geologically interesting
in the archiúpelago, renowned for its stark volcanic landscape
and the famous Tuff Cone formation known as Pinnacle Rock. A double-sided,
white sand beach becomes the perfect base from which to snorkel with
the Galapagos Penguins that make the rocky shores of Bartolomé their
home. An optional half-hour walk up the moon-like landscape of an extinct
volcano, past spatter cones and lava tubes, rewards visitors with spectacular
panoramic views. In the afternoon, we’ll head to Puerto Egas on
the Island of Santiago. Santiago provides a chance to see the Galápagos
Fur Seal, along with the opportunity to enjoy the best “tide pooling” in
the archipelago.
Day 6: Puerto Ayora and North Seymour
This morning we’ll ascend into the highúlands in search
of Giant Tortoise in the wild. Darwin’s ground finches will also
be found here. Today we also have a chance to visit Puerto Ayora, the
largest community in the Galapagos Islands, with almost 12,000 inhabitants
and home to the Charles Darwin Foundation.
We continue on to North Seymour, a small, barren island, which is
home to prickly pear cacti, great colonies of Blue-footed Boobies
and Magnificent
Frigate birds. Luckily, we’ll be there at the perúfect
time to witness the Boobies’ mating dance and the Magnificent
Frigates with their pouches fully inflated, trying to atútract
a mate. On the sandy beach, Marine Iguanas and California Fur Seals
spend the day sunning themselves.
Day 7: Punta Vicente Roca, Isla Isabela and Isla Fernandina
On
the west coast of Isabela, we’ll take a morning Zodiac ride along the dramatic
cliffs of Punta Vincente Roca where we’ll see Flightless Cormo-
rants, masked and blue- footed boobies inhabiting the shoreline. We’ll
fi nd the remnants of an ancient volcano that has formed a protected
turquoise bay. An upwelling of coldwater currents attracts a particu-
larly rich marine popula- tion here, making this a favourite snorkelling
spot. In the afternoon we’ll make our way Fernandina, the youngest
island in the Galápagos, a youthful 700,000 years old. Here,
at Punta Espi- noza we’ll walk past the mangroves, over the “pahoehoe” and “aa” lava,
being careful not to step on the marine igua- nas. We’ll watch
as the male Flightless Cormorants bring gifts of nesting materials
to their mates.
Day 8: Puerto Villamil, Isla Isabela
Villamil
is often consid- ered the most beautiful site in the Galapagos with
its palm-lined, white
sand beaches. Behind Villamil are several brackish water lagoons,
where Pink Flamingoes, Common Stilts, Whimbrels, White- Cheeked
Pintails and
Gallinules are usually seen. The beaches and lagoons near Villamil
are home to the best migra- tory bird viewing in the Galapagos.
Villamil is also home to the Darwin Station’s tortoise breeding
centre on Isabela.
Day 9: Champion and Punta Cormorant (Floreana)
On our visit to Floreana we’ll learn it is best known for its
colourful history of buccaneers, whalers, conúvicts, and coloúnists.
Here, we’ll make our landúing on a unique green sand beach
and follow a trail with good viewing opportuúnities for Large
Billed Flycatchúers, Small and Medium Ground Finches and Cactus
Finches. Flamingos sometimes feed in the island’s large lagoon.
We’ll end at a beautiful white sand beach that’s as fine
as flour. At Champion Islet, we’ll get into the water at
one of the best snorkelling sites in the islands, with its playful
colony
of
Sea Lions.
Day 10: Gardner Bay and Punta Suarez, Isla Espanola
Española Island is the oldest and most southernly island in the
chain. Its remote location makes for some unique endemic inhabitants,
including the only marine iguana to change colour during the mating
season. We should also find some early Waved Albatross here, as Española
is their only nesting place in the Galapagos, attracting 12,000
pairs each year. Mating for life, the males reacquaint themselves
with their
mates with a ritual dance that can take up to five days and includes
a series of strutting, honking, and beak fencing
Day 11: Balútra to Quito
On Sunday we’ll arrive back at Baltra Island, where we’ll
say goodbye to the M/S Islander and crew. Our flight will arrive back
in Quito in the early afternoon. You’ll have the rest of the day
to explore Quito’s “new” town and maybe finish your
shopping at your leiúsure. In the evening join your new
friends for a goodbye dinner.
Day 12: Depart Quito
This morning we bid farewell to our new friends and make our
way home.
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