Galapagos Islands News

Galapagos: it’s the dream trip of a lifetime for many travellers. The Enchanted Islands have been luring adventurous travellers ever since Charles Darwin’s famous visit, the one which led him to use the unassuming Galapagos Finch to illustrate his Theory of Evolution. Your Galapagos Islands tour is booked, your flight is scheduled: now what? How do you fill your time between now and then? What can you do to make the most of your Galapagos trip, before you even go? Here are the top ten tips from veteran Galapagos travellers.

1. Get a new camera. If you’ve been looking for an excuse to upgrade, this is it! Galapagos is a photographer’s paradise, and that 35mm Canon AE-1 that your older brother gave you in 1982 is not going to cut it. Get a digital camera with a good lens and a powerful optical zoom to get good shots of wildlife. While you’re at it...

2. Get lots of film/memory space. Don’t want to ditch the AE-1? Stock up on rolls of film, at least 2 rolls per day. Gone digital? Invest in a massive memory chip or two. There are photo ops every step of the way in Galapagos and you don’t want to be deleting photos to free up memory space at the end of your trip.

3. Bring a portable memory device, like a jump drive. Not only will it allow you to store your own photos, it’ll make sharing with other travellers easier. Someone is bound to have a laptop (your cruise ship even might) and transferring photos is easy.

4. Pack some necessities. Galapagos is right on the equator, so sunscreen and a good hat are vital. Prescription medicine may be hard to replace, so don’t forget it! If you tend to get motion sickness, bring along some medicine.

5. Bring extra cash. You’ve probably pre-paid for your tour, which includes the flights, the cruise tour, all transfers and food. Your price does not include drinks on board, souvenirs, replacing any forgotten items in town (like sunscreen), tips for the guides and crew and other expenses you might not have thought of (i.e. the cost of post card stamps is about $1 each!) There is an ATM in Puerto Ayora.

6. Get a mask and snorkel. Most of the reputable Galapagos cruise ships have good snorkeling equipment, and enough for all of their guests. As for the lower-end ships, well...let’s just say it’s unreliable. You can usually count on any ship for fins. A mask and snorkel are personal items anyway. How many mouths have been on a ship’s snorkel? Meanwhile...

7. Learn how to use your mask and snorkel. Snorkeling is a skill like any other. Just because you know how to swim does not mean you know how to snorkel. Take your mask and snorkel to a pool or lake and practice. You don’t want to be learning how to use them as you’re swimming in the swift current of the Devil’s Crown, bobbing up and down in the waves, trying to see the sharks and sea lions and spitting up mouthfuls of sea water.

8. Get SCUBA certified. If you’re not already, of course. Galapagos is one of the best SCUBA sites in the world, drawing divers from all corners of the globe. If you’ve ever wanted to get certified, this is your best excuse. You can arrange your schedule to allow for a day or two of diving before or after your cruise trip.

9. Do some research. Your naturalist guide will be extremely knowledgeable about all aspects of Galapagos: wildlife, history, geology, etc. This is great: it’s like a classroom on the trail. But it can be hard to assimilate all of the information at once. On any given trail, your guide may talk about birds, reptiles, flora, geology, volcanoes, history...who can remember it all? If you’re interested in the birds, read up on them before so that you’re already “warmed up” when your guide starts talking and you can ask some educated questions. Read up on the fascinating history of the islands and your personal itinerary as well. You can start with Michael H. Jackson’s outstanding Galapagos: A Natural History.

10. Watch the DVD instead. Reading sound like too much work? Then rent or buy one of the many excellent DVD’s on Galapagos. The BBC documentary is informative as well as stunning, and at two and a half hours you’ll get your money’s worth. The IMAX Galapagos special is also very good and doesn’t lose as much as you’d think in the transition from IMAX screen to TV.