Galapagos Islands and Ecuador Travel Guide

Our trip to South America had been in the pipeline for several years so when it came to putting it into actuality we wanted to make sure that it was just right. We hunted around to find a travel agent who could tailor a package to suit our needs. We came up with a list of 4 travel agents in 4 different countries but eventually we chose this travel agency. Our decision was based on  the the travel agency's approachability (whenever we emailed a question we always received an immediate and comprehensive response); also our agency's flexibility in being able to add or alter different options, and their friendly and helpful advice.Our contact was with Heather who made herself available to chat on Skype at all times. (It is very reassuring to be able to personalise travel arrangements - it makes it seem less like dealing with an anonymous organisation and more like chatting with a friend and mentor.)Our agent provided us with a comprehensive written itinerary which left nothing in doubt. She organised all transfers, internal flights, tours with local operators (some private, some group). At one stage when demonstrations in Cusco interrupted train and bus services, Heather immediately stepped in to organise suitable alternatives. We understand that other tourists did not fair so well and were stranded on train platforms or forced to pay for exorbitant hotel accommodation.Our 43-day tour included visits to 6 countries -  Chile, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina and Brazil. Right from the onset in Quito we were met by a wonderful guide who shared his knowledge of Ecuador - its geology, its history, its politics and its food. Our agent marked the beginning of a series of friendly, well informed and entertaining tour guides from the different regions we visited.We had an amazing holiday visiting all the well known tourist sites - Galapagos, Machu Picchu, Colca Canyon, Lake Titicaca, Iguasu Falls and Rio de Janeiro. And a few maybe a little less touristy such as Paracas and the Ballestas Islands, the Peruvian Amazon basin, Nazca lines and the Bolivian Salt Lake of Uyuni.When we used bus transport it was reasonably comfortable, hotel accommodation was always clean and comfortable and airport transfers were always on time. All hotels included breakfast which naturally varied from one hotel to another but it was always quite adequate and healthy. At different times when other meals were provided such as on the Galapagos cruise, in the Amazon Basin, on Lake Titicaca and during the Sacred Valley tour the quality of the food was quite impressive.We are now considering another visit to South America - this time to Patagonia and we will definitely be looking at involving this travel agency again with our trip arrangements.Muchas gratias!

We just returned from a trip to Peru and the Galapagos Islands. We visited Lima, the Amazon, the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu, and Cusco, with an overnight stay in Quito.

The Zicasso-recommended travel agency created the perfect itinerary for us. All of the transitioning from place to place was seamless, the hotels were beautiful, the recommendations for restaurants were great, and the guides we had were amazing. They were so enthusiastic and willing to share their knowledge about past and current history. We were so impressed with our travel agency that we are already considering our next journey with them.

We had a very nice trip to Quito, Ecuador, and the Galapagos Islands. The people in Quito were very friendly and we felt very safe. We were initially concerned based on what we saw in the media, but Zicasso's travel agency checked with the hotel and guides, and said all was fine. We are glad we listened and went on the trip.

Our guide was excellent and we spent four days touring around Quito, Cotopaxi, the cloud forest, and Otavalo Market. Then we flew to Galapagos and went on a four-night cruise. It was an amazing experience seeing sea turtles, sea lions, penguins, sharks, and giant tortoises. The landscapes were beautiful and we got some great pictures on our nature walks. The crew and guide in the Galapagos were top-notch. The meals on the boat were fabulous as well. Make sure you are physically able to do long walks, sometimes on rough terrain, and go snorkeling, as they kept us busy multiple times per day. We highly recommend visiting Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands.

We had a wonderful time on out recent vacation with our travel agency to Peru and Ecuador. The Sacred Valley is amazing. Those Incans really knew how to build. We were met by guides at the airports in Lima and Cusco. Natalie showed is the Sacred Valley and was very knowledgeable. We had a guide on our hike on the Incan Trail from mile 104 to the Sun Gate at Machu Picchu. He was an excellent guide. He, also, was really informative.  He kept a very reasonable pace.

Then we flew to Quito where we were met by our guides. We spent the next week exploring the highlands of Ecuador with them. It was a pleasure getting to know our guides and their culture.  They took us to several cities, some Incan ruins, and the equator. We drove to Guayaquil on the coast for our flight to the Galapagos.

There we stayed on a catamaran and sailed to many islands in the Galapagos. We snorkeled, hiked, kayaked, and rode in zodiaks exploring the flora and the fauna. The staff on the catamaran saw to our every need. The food was delicious, the ship was spotless, and the staff was friendly and courteous.

Our South America travel agency made sure we were taken care of and had a wonderful trip.

Our travel agent did a terrific job of including all the requirements that we set forth for our trip to the Galapagos and Peru, which included travel between specific dates (May 7 and June 1, 2016), a week in the Galapagos and being in Cusco May 24, and 25th for Corpus Christi.  He set us up in some great hotels and we feel we saw all that we could during that time.  Before the trip started, Lynn, my wife, felt that the hotels were better than we needed, but we were overjoyed at our agents selections once we were on the trip.

Talking about hotels, I will be specific:

           The hotel in Lima was nicely situated and the staff could not have been more helpful.  The included breakfast was great, possibly the best on the trip which is saying something when you see the other hotels we stayed at, but each had something special.

            The hotel in Quito was very nice and again the staff was great and spoke English well.  The porter who took our bags to our room was so good at explaining all the special advantages of our room.  You could tell he loved his job and did it well.  I just loved how real and nice he was during our entire stay there.  I think it is important to note again how well English was spoken at this hotel.

            Our stay in the Galapagos was great with  two general exceptions.  First the greatness.  The staff could not have been nicer or more helpful, both on the ship as well as getting to and from shore.  The tour did a great job of allowing us to see and experience as much as we could handle.  We usually would walk on one of the islands and snorkeling in the morning and then again in the afternoon on a different island or location.  Sometimes we would snorkel again, yes three times in one day besides the two walks.  We just loved the snorkeling.  What we didn't expect was how strenuous this would be.  I think this level of activity would scare off some people, although some guests sat out some of the activities, we did not.

Now for the less than great.  The food was just good, not great.  Maybe there is a limit as to what can be done on a small ship.  The biggest negative was the level of English spoken by the naturalist guides.  Yes, they spoke English, but you could tell that they could not tell us all that they knew, because they just repeated the same things all the time.  One of the four guides we came into contact with on the ship had good English skills and could tell a good story.  The others, I feel, didn't talk much because they were not as comfortable with the language.  It is important to remember that all the guests on the ship spoke English well even though they were not from English speaking countries.

The best guide from the company was the one that took us to the tortoise reserve, "El Chato" / "Primicias", on land while there was a transfer of passengers from and to the ship on Santa Cruz Island. She would not stop taking and transferred so much information.  We just loved it and I think the other guests did too.

One thing Lynn and I feel should be added to the tour of the Galapagos is an evening naturalist talk about the animals we will see the next day.  Although this is done on land, sometimes it is hard to hear due to the wind or you are snorkeling and have no guide near by.  I will add this to the section on what can be improved.

I am rambling a little now, but this relates to the entire tour, but especially the Galapagos portion.  This has to do with tipping.  After paying $5,000 to $6,000 dollars for a week tour of the  Galapagos we are asked to tip the staff $20/day and the guides $8/day.  We paid this, but considering the cost of the trip, it seems that something this small should be included in the $5,000 to $6,000 dollars.  This was the only time that we were specifically hit up for tips.  I tipped all drivers and guides everyday on our three plus weeks trip and never did I feel that the drivers or guides were hitting us up for tips, in fact, they mostly seemed surprised that I gave them a tip.  I would appreciate a comment of this paragraph and will add this to what can be improved. Maybe there is a good reason for the lecture on tipping on the boat.  I am willing to learn something.  In summary, after paying $5,000 to $6,000 why have a lecture on tipping when it could easily be incorporated in the original billing.

Continuing the review of hotels:

          Hotel in Lima  This was a good choice for our stop over on the way to Cusco.  It is interesting that this hotel does not supply bottled water and it is a good thing that at check in, we got a ticket for a drink at the bar where we selected bottled water instead of a drink. 

          Hotel in  Urubamba was a highlight for hotels.  We will talk of this place for the rest of our lives.  Everyone should stay here once in their lives.  I can't begin to tell you how great this hotel is. 

         Hotel in  Machu Picchu  Nicely situated

         Hotel in Cusco  The staff and bellman were very helpful.  We tipped the bellman when we left and the person who made up our room.  These people were warm, friendly and helpful.  Everyone at this hotel was great and helpful.

         Hotel in Puno   The staff was again very nice and helpful.  I  did order a beer at the bar and the bar tender poured a beer that was 1/4 beer and 3/4 head and then over flowed the class and make a mess on the table, which the bar tender  cleaned up quickly.  This was the only hotel that didn't have forced air heating.  There was a 2x2 foot heating panel on the wall that the porter plugged in when we were taken to our room.  The room was cold and that heater never got the room real warm.  It is very difficult to adjust the shower without getting wet.  I do have pictures of this unusual shower setup.  This hotel had its own dock where we were picked up and dropped off in the morning and afternoon to start and end our day tour, which was very nice.

In summary, we are very thankful for all the planning that our agent did and we were very thankful for all the fine guides.  Of all the guides I felt the best were the ones at the tortoise reserve on Santa Cruz and the one in Quito.  The reason for this is their ability to express themselves in English, and their desire to express their knowledge.

Lynn will want to add her own take on this wonderful trip.  You will not be disappointed.