Getting to Galapagos

The Galapagos Islands are a natural wonder and a bucket-list destination for many travelers. Located off the coast of Ecuador, these islands are home to a unique ecosystem and a wealth of wildlife found nowhere else on Earth. I was excited for this next phase of our journey. Though it's not the easiest destination to get to I knew our 5 day cruise would be well worth the effort.
Getting There
Most travelers to the Galapagos Islands fly from Quito, the capital city of Ecuador. Our guide took us into the airport and helped us find our cruise liaison. She was waiting with our TCT and luggage tags already in hand. Once we had checked in with her and checked our larger luggage our guide Christopher said his goodbyes and we went through airport security.
Flights usually stop in Guayaquil along the way, where some passengers will deplane and more will come on board. The stop was quick and anyone continuing on to Galapagos was instructed to stay on the plane.
Once you arrive in the Galapagos, you'll need to pay a park fee before you can enter the islands. This fee helps to support conservation efforts and the management of the national park. This is payable in cash (USD) and we generally recommend bringing small bills to pay.

Meeting Your Guide and Group
Once we were through immigration and collected our baggage we met our guide and the rest of the group who would be on board the ship with us. Since all of us had arrived on the same flight it was easy to gather together and be ready to get going. Your guide will be with you throughout your entire stay on the islands, leading you on excursions and providing information about the wildlife and natural history of the area. After meeting our guide and group, we took a short bus ride to the north side of the island where we boarded our boat, the Alya.

Boarding the Boat
We chose a cruise over a land based stay and I have to say it was the right choice. These boats are designed specifically for travel in the Galapagos and are equipped with all the amenities you need for a comfortable stay. The boat will be your means of transportation between islands, which means we didn't have to spend too much idle time in transit. The boat either moved during the night while we slept or during meals.

Once settled into our cabins, we set off on our first activity, a cruise in a panga to see some wildlife. It was incredible to see sea lions lounging on the rocks, marine iguanas basking in the sun, and blue-footed boobies diving into the water to catch fish. This gave us our first taste of just how incredible our trip was going to be