Galapagos - Summer 2007

[CotoChris]

There is a slight possibility but working very hard for this dream to come true of doing a trip to Galapagos in th summer of 2007. I have a couple of questions hope you can help:

Is July / August a good time to do a dive trip?

Recomendation on operators?

My Mrs wants to visit the islands and especially see the lizards, snorting the water out of their noses . Will this have to be a seperate trip or are we able to see the islands with a dive operator trip.

Any more tips will be greatly appreciated. We would look to fly out from Madrid to Quito/Guayaquil.

Many thanks

[Fiona]

Hi Chris

We are using Maldives Scuba Tours but I think you will be hard pressed to find a place with them, I think the recent TV programmes have something to do with that.

You could try the Aggressor fleet, I think this is the one DavidA went on last year, there is a trip report sometime around Aug / Sept last year.

For next year you can still do land and diving trips but we have been informed after next year boats will only have either land or diving licences.

Iberia do the route you want, we are flying into Guayaquil but out of Quito becuase of the altitude.

We are doing a 10 day trip which again is changing to 7 day trips from 2008 (our cousins across the pond are responsible for that).

I am sure we can find you plently of Galapagos links if you need more information.

Visitor Information for the Galapagos Islands

Diving in The Galapagos Islands

Deep Blue Trip Report by Steve Rosenberg

ECHENG.COM: Galapagos, June 2004

[Jules77]

I dived there in September of this year with Nemo II - you can see the boat on Latin Tour--Galapagos Ecuador, South America and it was a nice boat - not top of the range if you compare it to the Aggressor fleet. The dive guide we had on the boat was very knowledgeable about the dive sites and the marine life though some of his practices were err... questionable. However I think that boat and dive crew change so frequently that you probably wouldn't have the same guy I did. I booked through Tribes travel (not specifically a dive operator) but were really helpful Tribes, the Fair Trade Travel company. Tailor made holidays run on fair trade and responsible travel principles. .

July and August are supposed to be really good for diving there although it is peak season so things are likely to be a bit more expensive and do get really booked up. Some of the boats do specific dive trips and some of the boats do "Naturalist trips" which are more land based but you can do some diving but they won't go up to Darwin and Wolf Islands which are the best for sharks.

There are absolutely loads of links for Galapagos information on the web too.

Jules

[Fiona]

Originally Posted by Jules77

I dived there in September of this year with Nemo II - you can see the boat on Latin Tour--Galapagos Ecuador, South America and it was a nice boat - not top of the range if you compare it to the Aggressor fleet.
Jules

Not sure I would want a specific dive holiday from Nemo II as it seems like it is only set up for occasional dives, there doesn't seem to be a dedicated dive deck or camera tables. Which is something DeepBlue and the Aggressor boats have.

We looked at LammerLaw but decided against it because of the cabins in the hulls and I was told that you would get a lot of "water slapping".

[CotoChris]

Originally Posted by Jules77

There are absolutely loads of links for Galapagos information on the web too.

Jules

That's the problem, there is too much and burnt my small brain fuse!

[PW1664]

Originally Posted by Fiona

Hi Chris

For next year you can still do land and diving trips but we have been informed after next year boats will only have either land or diving licences.

After talking to a couple of Operators, this doesn't appear to be exactly true.

My understanding is that boats will have to apply for landing times and will not be allowed to deviate from these. This would mean any delay over a dive site or change to the itinerary due to weather would make the possibility of landing uncertain.

As I said, this is my understanding and should be verified with your tour operator...

[Fiona]

Originally Posted by PW1664

After talking to a couple of Operators, this doesn't appear to be exactly true.

My understanding is that boats will have to apply for landing times and will not be allowed to deviate from these. This would mean any delay over a dive site or change to the itinerary due to weather would make the possibility of landing uncertain.

As I said, this is my understanding and should be verified with your tour operator...

Arh OK Paul, I only know what we were initially told.

[Lou]

Paul - we were told they were only allowed to apply for a naturalist or a dive license. Unsuprisingly, perhaps, it seem information is confused. I am sure it will get clearer once the regulations are in place - some operators might hedge their bets until then, and some might take a view that if they promose only diving, then if a land trip can be arranged it is a bonus?

[PW1664]

Lou,

I was under the same impression, although those I spoke to earlier this year were hesitent in their explanation.

After talking to you about your trip, my interest has grown somewhat; I've spoke to two operators who have told me the same thing about landing.... after saying that, they too are hesitent with their explanation!....

For non-divers on a diving trip, I guess one would want to be pretty certain of the itinerary!!

[Dive now work never]

Hi,

I came back on Tuesday after a fantastic time. The weather and the water were warm but we'd taken drysuits as we were told the water would be colder. We went on Minstral with Dive Worldwide, I think the website is Quasar Nautica - Galapagos Expeditions - Galapagos Islands, Tours, Boats, Cruises, Yacht Charters, Ecuador

With regard to the land tours and diving, our guide was a native of the Galapagos and he informed us that all tours had to have a permit - diving or land tours and you had to be accompanied by a qualified/ certified guide. We were treated fantastically by the boat staff and the tour company. We had a couple of minor issues with the dive guide but we ironed these out early in the week (we didn't want to dive in a huge group of 12, we used DSMB's and he was happy). With regard to the diving, all the decent stuff is in strong currents, you'll need gloves as you need to hang onto the rocks (there is little coral) and be happy to dive in strong currents. Good bouyancy control is also a must as you will do a lot of blue water diving.

All I can say is spend the money and go - it's mind blowing.

Hope this helps,

J