Galápagos Islands on a Budget - Scuba and Backpacker Crusie For Young Travelers
We had the Galápagos Islands trip of a lifetime. It was always on our bucket list, and we made it happen while living in Cuenca, Ecuador.
Getting there:
Our trip began in Puerto Ayora on the island of Santa Cruz. We landed in Baltra Airport via Quito. There is a mandatory $100 National Park fee per person before you take your flight to the Galápagos Islands.
Once at Baltra Airport, you can connect directly with your cruise (as most people opt to do - most cruise operators even book your flights from the mainland). We headed into Puerto Ayora for a few days to scuba dive and explore. We highly recommend booking in Puerto Ayora. From the airport, you take a bus to the ferry (to get from Baltra to Santa Cruz) to another taxi (or bus).
In Puerto Ayora, the bus will drop you off at the Terminal Terrestre station. The trip takes 1-1.5 hours. From there, you can take any taxi to your hotel.
Puerto Ayora:
The tourist hub of the Galápagos Islands. There are plenty of hotels, restaurants, and tourism agencies hawking deals on trips and cruises. Don't forget to spend a day between Las Grietas and Tortuga Bay, if not scuba diving. Also, the Charles Darwin Station and tortoises at El Chato are cool if they aren't included in your cruise itinerary.
The Basics in Puerto Ayora:
There are ATMs in the town. Tipping is typically 10% if not already included. The best WiFi is in the cafeteria above the Proinsular Market grocery store (also has healthy food and views!)
Scuba Diving in Puerto Ayora:
Scuba Iguana, Academy Bay Diving, and Macarron Scuba Diver. When we arrived, most shops were sold out. We went with Macarron, although the others came highly recommended. Our dives were $160 per person for a two-tank dive. There is one place YOU MUST dive: Gordon Rocks. That's where you're most likely to spot pods of hammerhead sharks (we saw a pod of 30 up close!) To dive Gordon Rocks, dive shops require at least 25 prior dives. The concern is real due to the depth and strong current. We also dove at Seymour and Mosquera. Great dives, but no hammerheads.
Restaurants in Puerto Ayora:
You'll want to eat cazuela at the kioskas which pour out onto the street at Charles Binford at night. Great spot! Our favorite restaurants were the Lo & Lo and the Galápagos Deli for breakfast and lunch. For dinner, our favorite spot was La Garrapata, right along the shore.
Cruises from Puerto Ayora:
We booked a last minute cruise price 2 weeks before departure from a Quito tour company called Carpe Diem. We went on the 8 Days Adventure Cruise on the Darwin Yacht. This was one of their budget options and came to $1700 per person without flights. From talking to other passengers, it sounds like we got a good price by booking early, and we were given a prime room on the third floor of the ship. We are not sure if it is because we were celebrating our honeymoon, or if it was because we didn't book just days before.
We had a great time on our cruise. We were curious to see how our budget cruise would pan out (the most expensive ones are closer to $10,000 a trip), and it was better than we could have hoped. With more expensive cruises, you risk being in an elderly crowd. Our cruise had people ages 20-60, but with most in their 20s and 30s. We had a faster-paced snorkel and hiking experience. Aside from the clientele on the boat, the Galápagos National Parks require official and highly trained guides. Our guide, Rafael, was incredibly knowledgeable. There are also several workers on the boats. We had phenomenal meals. They even accommodated vegetarians! The one thing we would recommend you bring from either the airport or from Puerto Ayora is your own beer, wine, and alcohol. The boat's crew didn't mind us drinking our own bottle of wine. The boat only had beer. Also, Dramamine is good to have just in case.
Most boats go on 15-day tours and make stops to the islands to drop off and pick up new passengers in between to create two tours of 8 days and three tours of 5 days. We recommend an 8-day cruise, but if you're short on time, spend time on Isabela on your own (you can get there by speed boat from Puerto Ayora.) You can also check out San Cristobal, which was a close second favorite (and you can stay in town at Puerto Baquerizo Moreno.)
We loved our cruise and saw all the amazing wildlife. Our cruise itinerary can be found here:
If you've been meaning to start making GoPro videos of your travels, check out our guide:
For those fit and adventurous couples out there, head over to our website, and sign up for our newsletter so we can help you engineer your best life!
Best,
Ryan and Alex
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Macarron Scube Diving - HD
See it. Feel it. Live it.
Dive Galapagos with us.
Galápagos Diving 2008
Mergulho em Galápagos.
Diving in Galapagos.
Buceo en Galápagos.
(Gordon Rocks, Macarron Place e Seymour Norte).
08/2008
Buceo Bartolomé y Cousins (Galápagos 2014) HD
Tortugas carey, tiburones de puntas blancas, leones marinos juguetones y...Mantarayas gigantes! . Buceo con Scuba Iguana.
Arrival to Galapagos and Trip to Esrella del Mar
First day of our trip on the liveaboard Estrella del Mar. This video shows the plane to bus, to panga, to boat journey.
Galápagos - Rocas Gordon 24-01-2015
Guía: Macarron Scuba Diver
Lugar: Rocas Gordon - Santa Cruz - Galápagos
Música: Yanni - Seasons
Localizado al noreste de Santa Cruz, es un sitio de buceo de los más visitados en Galápagos. Entre la fauna que más atrae a los buzos están los tiburones martillo y tiburones de Galápagos. También se puede observar otras especies pelágicas como mantarayas, rayas águila, tortugas verdes y escuelas de peces de aguas abiertas (barracudas, palometas, ...). Además de las especies más comunes, hay una elevada abundancia de peces mariposa barbero, peces bandera, tamboritos percebes de Galápagos por toda la zona, y peces pelágicos, rayas de espina y sartenes marmoleadas.
YoBuceo en Cousins Rocks y Bartolome - Galápagos - Ago2011
En Agosto de 2011 estuvimos en Islas Galápagos con un grupo de nuestros alumnos y visitamos las islas Cousins y Bartolomé. Aquí les entregamos una muestra de lo que vimos bajo el agua. A.D.
Centro de Buceo de Isla Isabela, Galápagos - Buceo Galapagos
La mejor experiencia de buceo en la isla Isabela, ¡dirigida por Isabelueños!
1- Islas Galápagos. Buceos en Plazas y Gordon Rocks.
Islas Galápagos, primer día de buceo, check y primer buceo en plazas, segundo en Gordon Rocks.
Galapagos Islands, first dive and check at Plazas, second dive at Gordon Rocks.
Discovery en Galápagos - buceo no profesional
Discovery es una forma de buceo para no profesionales que puede practicarse en Galápagos, Ecuador. Definitivamente una experiencia increíble, que vale la pena realizar.
Contactos para practicar discovery: Julio Soberón (Dive SOPE) - (05) 3014354