 Columbus
Travel Ltd. - Galapagos Tours - The Flight
All of our Galapagos tours start with a flight from either
Quito or Guayaquil (in Ecuador) to the Islands.
It takes approximately an hour and a half to fly from Guayaquil
to the Galapagos Islands and two and a half hours to fly from
Quito, which includes a stop in Guayaquil. Most flights arrive
at Baltra Island using TAME,
an Ecuadorian airline. The rest arrive at San Cristobal Island
using AeroGal.
Your crew will take you directly from the airport to your
boat.
Galapagos
Island Tours
Boats navigate during the night and spend the day on the
islands. You will usually visit two islands a day and spend
two to three hours on each one.
We provide naturalist guides on all Galapagos tours. Many
are biologists. The guide’s role is to make sure the National
Park’s rules are enforced, to explain and answer questions
about the Galapagos wildlife and natural history and to escort
visitors on shore.
Some of our boats provide guests with the opportunity to
converse one-on-one with the naturalists and ask questions
about the Islands. One of our ships, the Galapagos Explorer
II, is the only vessel in the islands with one of the scientists
from the Darwin Research Station. The Station conducts land
and marine research for Galapagos conservation. This is the
most deluxe ship that provides Galapagos tours.
Guides on Galapagos tours also ensure that the National Park’s
rules are enforced. For example, visitors are restricted to
designated paths to help preserve the Islands’ ecosystem.
Individuals are not allowed to bring food, pets or plants
to the Islands.
Underwater Galapagos tours are some of the most exciting
in the world. The currents are a mix of warm tropical waters
and cold currents from the Antartic, creating the most diverse
diving in the world. Dive with sea lions, hammerhead sharks,
dolphins, equatorial penguins, sea turtles, diving iguanas,
rays and many more species. Please be aware that Galapagos
diving is for experienced divers only.
Galapagos Tours - Prices
Note: The price of the flight is not included in the price
for the cruise on our Web site.
Prices for return flights to the Galapagos Islands from Quito:
- High season: June 15 to September 14, November 1 to April
30: $US$ 405,10
- Low season: Rest of the year: US$ 349,10
Prices for return flight to the Galapagos Islands from Guayaquil:
- High season: June 15 to September 14, November 1 to April
30: US$ 355,45
- Low season: Rest of the year: US$ 311,77
Time table from “Tame” (national airline):
|
From |
To |
Days |
Departure |
Arrival |
|
Quito/Guayaquil |
Baltra |
Monday through Sunday |
07H30 |
09H45 |
|
Quito/Guayaquil |
Baltra |
Monday through Sunday |
09H30 |
11H45 |
|
Baltra |
Quito/Guayaquil |
Monday through Sunday |
10H45 |
14H45 |
|
Baltra |
Quito/Guayaquil |
Monday through Sunday |
12H45 |
16H40 |
|
Quito/Guayaquil |
San Cristobál |
Mon, Wed, Sat |
10H00 |
12H15 |
|
San Cristobál |
Quito/Guayaquil |
Mon, Wed, Sat |
13H15 |
17H15 |
In addition there is a $100 national park fee to be paid
by cash only upon arrival on the Islands.
Galapagos Tours - How to Pay for your Cruise and Flights
Payment: The passengers will have to make a down payment
of at least 30% (depending on the policy of the boat) of the
total amount to secure the spaces after the confirmation of
the tour. The balance has to be deposited at the latest, 30
DAYS before the departure time . These are policies from the
boat operators and not Columbus Travel.
Insurance: We strongly recommend passengers buy trip
cancellation insurance. In addition we also recommend the
following insurances: life, international medicine, baggage
loss and baggage delay, loss of personal belongings lost or
stolen personal objects during the length of the trip.
Warning: Diving in the Galapagos Islands is advisable
for experienced divers only. Cold waters, strong currents
and surge may be present. Passenger participation in water
sports, snorkeling, skin diving, kayaking, etc. is done
at your own risk. COLUMBUS TRAVEL CIA LTDA. assumes no
liability for accidents occurring for passengers participating
in these activities.
Galapagos Tours - Cancellation and Penalty Policy
- Any cancellation within 120 days or more prior cruise departure date will have a cancellation fee of 150 USD per person for administrative expenses and the remaining balance of the deposit will be refunded.
- Any cancellation between 119 to 91 days prior cruise departure date will have full deposit as cancellation fee (30% of the total amount of the trip).
- Any cancellation between 90 to 61 days prior cruise departure date will have a cancellation fee of 50% of the total amount of your trip.
- Any cancellation within 60 days prior cruise departure date full cancellation fees will be applied (100% of the total amount of your trip).
- Cancellation penalties for Land Services that involve guide, hotel or third parties reservations will be evaluated depending on the policy of each service provider.
- Cancellation penalties can vary from boat to boat. Please enquire for specific cruise cancellations.
- TRIP CANCELLATION INSURANCE: click here to get a quote and purchase your travel insurance through Travel Guard.
NOTE: THE ITINERARY IS ALWAYS SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT
PREVIOS NOTICE DUE TO OPERATIONAL PURPOSES, WHEATER CONDITIONS
OR POLITICS OF THE GALAPAGOS NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITIES.
Galapagos
Tours - Frecuently Asked Questions - FAQ
Q. Can we use traveler checks to pay the Galapagos National
Park fee?
A. No, the park fee can only be paid with USD cash.
Q. Is snorkeling and diving equipment provided on the
ships?
A. It depends on the boat, most boats provide snorkeling equipment
which you can rent at a low fee.
Q. What are the flight fares from/to Quito or Guayaquil?
A. Please click here for
fares, high and low season.
Q. What is the difference between economic, tourist and
tourist superior boats?
A. Economic and tourist class boats are quite basic without
biology guides (but with guides category 2). The cabins do
not have air conditioning or hot water. Some tourist superior
boats have biology guides and they have hot water and air
conditioning.
Q. Will the navigation be mostly during the day or during
the night?
A. Boats navigate during the night and spend the day on the
islands.
Q. How many hours per day do we spent on the different
islands?
A.You will normally visit two islands a day and spend 2 to
3 hours on each one.
Q. How is the climate the month we will travel?
A. Please click
here for weather information.
Q. How long have you been organizing trips to the Galapagos
Islands?
A. We have been operating for 7 years now and have had hundreds
of clients going to Galapagos.
Q. Which is the difference between Naturalist I, II and
III?
A. Most of naturalist 3 level guides are biologists.
Q. What sort of food can I expect on the boat ?
A. We always receive favorable reports on the food on the
boats. The better the boat the better the food and expect
high quality on the food on the bigger boats.
Q. How much luggage can I take on the flight to Galapagos?
(Kg, pounds)?
You can bring 20 kg, 44 pounds.
Q. What languages do the guides speak?
A. It depends on the category of the boat. On the bigger boats
and the first class and luxury boats expect the guide to speak
English, French and German in addition to Spanish. On the
other boats, most of the guides are bilingual Spanish/English.
Q. Is there any recommended time of the year to visit
Galapagos?
A. Galapagos is good to visit all year round but there is
more sun and warmer water from December to May. |
