Last minute bookings for Galapagos

As I pointed out in another thread, "last minute"does not have to be hours or days before the cruise. You can find good deals two or three weeks out. You have to research itineraries and boats carefully beforehand so you know what to look for and what is a good deal. June is high season and if you wait 'til you get to Ecuador your choices might be less appealing.

You won't find a sail boat that uses actually uses wind power as a mode of travel; there are a few boats that will unfurl the sails and sail under wind power for a short time, mostly for the romance of it.

As for agencies, I can recommend a Galapagos specialist called CNH Tours, which helped me plan my second trip. They can also book your flights so you arrive with the rest of the passengers.

We liked Happy Gringo agency to book the cruise and the flight to the Galapagos. We did a 7 night trip on a small boat (12 passengers) called Nemo II. It was great. We booked it ahead because we were there in December, a busy time, and we knew we wanted a smaller boat and a catamaran, and we knew what day we wanted to go. So for us the possible extra expense was worth it. The 7 night cruise is better than the 5 night one, because you don't have much touring the first and last days. Right, no "pure sailing," because the distances are too far from one island to another.

We went in May without reservations a couple of years ago and got a boat within hours. We weren't fussy about the exact itinerary and it was a small boat bu the price was right. We were on the islands for 10 days, so we had some time to play with. Just my opinion, but I'm not sure I would even go if it was only 5 days because of the expense.
Regards,
Bob

Agree with poster above. The biggest expensive is getting there, I'd go for longer than 5 days as flights are almost $500 rtn plus $100 park fee and $20 agricultural tax. If you are a femal, traveling solo and don't mind waiting around for a few days it's easy to get a last minute deal on a cruise as often they are wanting to fill just one space. It will be more expensive to book ahead. But then if you turn up you might end up waiting a couple of days for a cruise you like. I was offered an 8 days cruise for $1500 on a luxury boat leaving the next morning that people who booked ahead paid $3500 for. Also I would look at flying into Baltra and out of San Cristobal if you want to visit both islands as it will save a return journey by boat. Good luck, hope you enjoy.

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