Travel Galapagos Islands & Ecuador

Galapagos Boat Tours Prearranged

Posted September 21st, 2008 by Bob the Sea Lion

Most visitors arrange tours before arriving

at the islands. You can do this in your home

country (expensive but efficient), or you

can arrange something in Quito or Guayaquil

(cheaper, but you sometimes have to

wait several days or weeks during the high

season). See p89 and p322 for more information

on agencies that book Galápagos

tours.

Dangers & Annoyances

Judging by a fair number of letters Lonely

Planet has received, there are some common

pitfalls and hassles to Galápagos boat

tours. It’s difficult to make blanket statements

concerning specific boats or companies,

however it does seem safe to say that

the cheaper the trip the more likely you are

to experience problems. That’s not to say

costly boats are glitch free, only that because

the crew and company expect you to have

higher expectations, they are more attentive

and quick to respond to any complaints.

Five tourist-class boats – Darwin Explorer,

Antartida, Golondrina, Pulsar and

Fragata – have sunk in the past two years.

Some of the recurring complaints involve

last-minute changes of boat (which the contractual

small print allows), poor crew, lack

of bottled drinks, changes in the itinerary,

mechanical breakdowns, bad smells, bug

infestations and overbooking. Passengers

share cabins and are not guaranteed that

their cabin mates will be of the same gender;

if you are uncomfortable, get a guarantee

in writing that you won’t have to do this.

If at all possible ask to see a photograph or

layout of the boat including those of the

cabins before booking.

When things go wrong, a refund is difficult

to obtain. If you have a problem, report

it at the capitanía (port captain) in Puerto

Ayora. If you are unable to do so while in the

islands, reports can be mailed to El Capitán del

Puerto (La Capitanía, Puerto Ayora, Galápagos, Ecuador).

Reports are taken seriously, and repeat offenders

get their comeuppance. You should

also report problems (in person or by email)

to the Cámara de Turismo (tourist information office;

infocptg@capturgal.org.ec) in Puerto Ayora, which

keeps a database of complaints to share with

agencies and tourists.

There have also been reports of crew members

of tourist boats and more commonly

small fishing boats, illegally fishing and killing

wildlife. Complaints of this kind should

be reported to the Natural Reserve office, a

THE GALÁPA G O S I S L A N D S • • T o u r s 357

© Lonely Planet Publications

T H E G A L Á PA G O S I S L A N D S

www.lonelyplanet.com

green building just to the left of the information

booth at the entrance to the Charles

Darwin Research Station in Puerto Ayora.

Though not usually publicly disclosed,

there have been a handful of shark attacks

over the years. One reader reports that a

member of his group was bitten by a Galápagos

shark while swimming in a channel near

the Plaza Islands in 2004. Odds are slim to

nil this will happen but worth mentioning

in the interests of full disclosure.

With all the boats cruising the islands

it’s easy to forget that these are remote,

inhospitable and dangerous places to be

marooned. Seventeen people have disappeared

since 1990, most were found alive

though a few have died after straying from

the designated paths.

Tags: Galapagos Tours