Ecuador and Galapagos - did you see "enough"?

[DisneyWishes14]

Hi everyone! I am contemplating the Ecuador and Galapagos ABD and I'm just curious if those who've been on it felt like they saw enough of the Galapagos Islands? I noticed you spend 4 nights on the boat traveling around the islands doing 2 excursions per day on the ABD. I am also looking at a Celebrity Xpedition 7 night Galapagos cruise. This would be a once-and-done Galapagos trip for us, so I just want to do my due diligence before making a decision. Thank you for any feedback or advice!

 

[Dashzap]

My son did the Lindblad National Geographic Galapagos cruise in 2009. He says it was fabulous. Less than 150 other guests. Smaller ship to get to places larger cruise ships cannot. In and out to beaches and sites by zodiacs. Naturalists led walks and talks, snorkeling, etc.

https://www.expeditions.com/destinations/south-america/galapagos/the-experience/

 

[DisneyWishes14]

My son did the Lindblad National Geographic Galapagos cruise in 2009. He says it was fabulous. Less than 150 other guests. Smaller ship to get to places larger cruise ships cannot. In and out to beaches and sites by zodiacs. Naturalists led walks and talks, snorkeling, etc.

https://www.expeditions.com/destinations/south-america/galapagos/the-experience/

Thank you so much! I will look at this too!

 

[Bobo912]

My son did the Lindblad National Geographic Galapagos cruise in 2009. He says it was fabulous. Less than 150 other guests. Smaller ship to get to places larger cruise ships cannot. In and out to beaches and sites by zodiacs. Naturalists led walks and talks, snorkeling, etc.

https://www.expeditions.com/destinations/south-america/galapagos/the-experience/

We did the NatGeo/Lindblad Galapagos trip in 2011. It was the best trip we've ever taken. Best tour company we've traveled with, as well. Even though I had taken previous trips with ABD, I chose not to go with ABD because I didn't think 4 days in the Galapagos was enough. After taking the trip, I am sure 4 days would not have been enough for us. But that is my personal preference, of course.

 

[iheartglaciers]

I did an 8-day small boat trip in the Galapagos (and also spent a couple days on land before the trip) and would agree with others, 4 days isn’t enough! There are so many different landscapes and animals, it’s worth it to spend more time there. I had an amazing time. If you’re open to a small boat trip (ours was 13 passengers), we did the Beagle northern itinerary and the boat and guide were excellent. It was a much different experience than a cruise though. PM me if you want to discuss more, happy to talk about island itineraries, etc

 

[iheartglaciers]

I did an 8-day small boat trip in the Galapagos (and also spent a couple days on land before the trip) and would agree with others, 4 days isn’t enough! There are so many different landscapes and animals, it’s worth it to spend more time there. I had an amazing time. If you’re open to a small boat trip (ours was 13 passengers), we did the Beagle northern itinerary and the boat and guide were excellent. It was a much different experience than a cruise though. PM me if you want to discuss more, happy to talk about island itineraries, etc

 

[DCPhotoGal]

We did the Ecuador/Galapagos ABD and I thought the time in the islands was enough for us. The boat that ABD uses is much smaller than the other ones folks are describing (I think maybe 60 people on the boat?), but it is still designed like a cruise ship with nice rooms, lounge and a dining area. There were some other folks on the ship, but it was small enough that the kids from our group basically just took over the library on the ship and made it their kids' lounge. The days on mainland Ecuador are actually quite interesting as well, and shouldn't be discounted. When we first signed up for the trip we considered them the days "waiting to get to the Galapagos" but they turned out to be interesting in their own right. I did worry that the other ABD, Amazon and the Galapagos, wouldn't have enough time on the islands, so that's why we went with the Ecuador one.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Thank you all so much! I looked into Lindblad and spoke with them yesterday. We are waitlisted for a few of their summer Galapagos adventures now. I am obviously very late to the summer trip planning party! If it doesn't come through for this year, I think I will book now for next summer!

I did an 8-day small boat trip in the Galapagos (and also spent a couple days on land before the trip) and would agree with others, 4 days isn’t enough! There are so many different landscapes and animals, it’s worth it to spend more time there. I had an amazing time. If you’re open to a small boat trip (ours was 13 passengers), we did the Beagle northern itinerary and the boat and guide were excellent. It was a much different experience than a cruise though. PM me if you want to discuss more, happy to talk about island itineraries, etc

I will look into this as well, thank you!

 

[Travel junkie]

Hi everyone! I am contemplating the Ecuador and Galapagos ABD and I'm just curious if those who've been on it felt like they saw enough of the Galapagos Islands? I noticed you spend 4 nights on the boat traveling around the islands doing 2 excursions per day on the ABD. I am also looking at a Celebrity Xpedition 7 night Galapagos cruise. This would be a once-and-done Galapagos trip for us, so I just want to do my due diligence before making a decision. Thank you for any feedback or advice!

Watching the thread, we are booked for this trip in 2019. I have not seen as many travel reports/feedback as the other trips, so this is helpful.