Galapagos Islands By Luxury Yacht

Fly to Quito in the heart of the Andes. It’s a spectacular arrival to this city surrounded by high peaks, the capital of Ecuador is one of the highest cities in the world.

Being met by your private local guide on arrival for the short journey to your hotel in the heart of the old town. Casa Gangotena is a wonderfully restored historic mansion full fo character and style.

The morning will reveal the pretty old town squares around Casa Gangotena and views of the peaks of the Andes mountains. We suggest staying in Quito’s old town which has been redeveloped in recent years and has a colonial Spanish and very Latin American atmosphere, we think it’s much more interesting to have this on your doorstep rather than a modern business district.

Meet with your expert guide for a private walking tour of Quito. Walk to Independence Square to see the cathedral, and the Presidential Palace, hearing about the modern and ancient history of Quito. See the Baroque architecture of La Compania church and stroll to San Francisco square, stopping for a traditional Ecuadorian snack at Tianguez cafe, set within the San Francisco convent.

Taking a drive out of the city just to the north to stop on the equator line. At these altitudes of 2,800 metres, it’s certainly not tropical, but it’s pretty amazing to stand in both the northern and southern hemisphere at the same time. It’s what the country is named after of course! You will cross the equator again at least once more on your Galapagos trip.

The afternoon is free to chill out, head back to somewhere in the city that takes your fancy and enjoy the luxurious surroundings of Casa Gangotena.

Explore the valleys in the north of Ecuador with your private car and driver. Soon out of the city you’ll be driving on twisting roads through green mountain scenery. It’s a land of coffee plantations, also see large rose farms, they’re one of Ecuador’s main exports! Stop for fresh mountain air and views of Lake San Pablo beneath the Imbabura volcano.

Visit Otavalo, on Saturdays, there’s a colourful market which is one of the busiest in Latin America. Traders all over the region gather in Otavalo, many in traditional dress reflecting the colours of their tribe. Native Otavalans dress in distinctive blue clothes. They trade textiles, jewellery, intricate crafts and the colourful fruits and foods of the Andes. Bargain for an authentic and artful souvenir or tasty snack.

There’s also a traditional music museum to visit to see traditional instruments played and hear the evocative sounds of the mountains. Your guide will also take you to lunch in one of Otavalo’s excellent restaurants, and introduce you to some new and enticing foodstuffs from the Andes – fresh and organic!

In the other direction today, travel out of the capital south for a day’s road trip on the Pan American highway into what they call the Avenue of Volcanoes. On a clear day you can see several volcanic peaks, high up in the Andes, these are high plains which stretch all the way to Chile.

Pass villages and ranches, stopping to visit a listen town and market, time to get out for a walk on the lower flanks of Cotopaxi Volcano. Walk around Limpiopungo Lagoon, through and wild and windswept region, an area changed by previous lava flows. Cotopaxi volcano erupted in 2015, but don’t stress they keep a close watch on activity in the region.

Having worked up an appetite for some hearty and tasty Andean food. Stop for lunch in a historic hacienda in the valley.

Fly to the Galapagos Islands. These fascinating and wondrous islands way out in the Pacific Ocean are a two-hour flight from the mainland.

On arrival, your guides will be waiting to take you to your home for the next seven nights, the luxury yacht La Pinta.

Unpack and get ready for a slow pace of life and an adventure in style. Yacht La Pinta has some really cool features not found on other craft in the Galapagos Islands; large cabins with floor to ceiling windows, a sun deck and hot tub, a sky bar and observation deck and even an exercise room. Also for visiting the islands, there’s kayaks and a glass-bottomed boat. Plus, and we cannot stress this enough, island visits in small groups so you never feel crowded in those all-important wildlife encounters.

A seven-night cruise offers a way to see a great variety of wildlife on the islands. Call into both the large and small islands of the chain and see the vastly different habitats which forced species to evolve differently and gave Charles Darwin the inspiration for his Theory of Evolution.

Seven nights also means time to relax and get into the rhythm of sailing around the islands, with plenty of time for swimming and snorkelling and relaxing on board. We find that travellers who do 3 or 4-night cruises often wish they’d stayed longer. It’s a long way to travel after all!

After boarding at Baltra, set sail to North Seymour Island, and possibly an encounter with some of the stars of the Galapagos Islands, sea lions. You can go crazy with close up photos! There’ll be a boat trip in the dingy along the shore. This evening it’s welcome cocktails with dinner and at some point you’ll be crossing the equator again.

Each day there’s time to relax onboard between shore adventures. Shore visits are always done in small groups and carefully choreographed so that there are never too many people around the wildlife. This is a big advantage of going in a small ship as well….not having to wait for 6 or 7 groups!!

In the afternoon, the visit to Fernandina Island can be a real highlight. There’s abundant wildlife here especially birds, with the flightless cormorant and even Galapagos penguin, the world’s most northerly penguins.

Continue the exploration of Isabela Island in the west of the chain, it’s an area that not every itinerary touches. Visit Urbina Bay, which has been formed by an upturn in the ocean floor. You can see land iguanas here and sometimes giant tortoise. The nutrient-rich seas around here also attract whales from time to time.

In the afternoon visit Tagus Cove which was a stopping point for pirates. There’s also time for kayaking or snorkelling here. You may get the chance to snorkel with sea lions, if they want to play they’ll come to you.

This morning’s stop is at Rabida – a red beach formed from lava flows. The birdlife here is amazing with mockingbirds and Darwin’s finches, additionally you can see marine iguanas. It’s an excellent place to snorkel, you may even see penguins speeding past you underwater or sometimes rays. Or get in the glass-bottomed boat to see all the life on the seafloor.

In the afternoon, after another hearty lunch, there’s a walk on a dry and dusty trail to Dragon Hill. You can see the very different habitat of Galapagos here and beautiful views of the island chain.

Every day there are more wildlife encounters, and the amazing thing is how close you can get to the birds and mammals, you won’t need a zoom lens for amazing photos….maybe even a few selfies!!

Today, arrive at the most inhabited island in the chain, one of the only two towns. At Puerto Ayora town on Santa Cruz Island go on shore and visit the Charles Darwin Research Station. It’s a fascinating visit, and the centrepiece is the giant tortoise pens.

Lunch today is served on the island at the Finch Bay Hotel.

In the afternoon, head up to the highlands in the centre of Santa Cruz Island, where you can walk among the forest, through tunnels created by lava and look out for wild giant tortoises. These are the animals which gave Galapagos their name!

It’s back on board for dinner, always a time to catch up on the day with your fellow travellers and to see the beautiful stars in the sky. The constellations of part of both the northern and the southern hemispheres can be visible close to the equator.

Arrive in the far south of the Galapagos Islands today at Floreana Island, one of the lesser-visited islands. Visit Post Office Bay this morning, where messages where left for ships in the barrel on the bay in the days of sail and exploration. Take a dinghy trip around the waters, wildlife here include sea turtles which come to nest on the island. It’s also an excellent spot for swimming which brings endless rewards, maybe some sea lions again!

In the afternoon you can take a glass-bottomed boat ride at Champion Islet, which is an extinct cone of a volcano, and at Punta Cormorant you might see American flamingoes. You may also see blue-footed boobies here – another of the iconic birds of the Galapagos Islands with, not surprisingly….bright blue feet. You can get remarkably close to these birds if they’re out sunning themselves by the paths.

This morning it’s time to bid farewell after an unforgettable experience, there may be time to see a few more sea lions or even a pelican or two before you head to the airport.

Fly back to the mainland for a night in Guayaquil, Ecuador’s tropical Pacific Ocean port city is well worth a stopover for a night. Stay in the heart of the city at the exclusive boutique Hotel del Parque.

This exclusive boutique hotel is set in the grounds of Guayaquil’s botanic gardens in a pleasant neighbourhood to walk around. It’s a chance for a bit of last-minute shopping, or nip into the nearby museum of chocolate. Dinner is included at the hotel, and the seafood here is excellent fresh from the local port.

Having a bit more time to explore Guayaquil and relax over a lazy breakfast in the stylish 19th-century history of your hotel, before your transfer to the airport. Your guide will assist with checking in procedures in the busy airport before your departure flight.

Touch down after a journey overland through the Andes and with a deep understanding of the Galapagos Islands, something in common with Charles Darwin.