I just returned from a 3 week trip to the Galápagos, and I thought that I should pass on some information. My trip was not for scuba diving, but I did manage to get in a couple of days of diving on March 29-30.
I spent most of my time in Puerto Ayora on Isla Santa Cruz. There are a dozen or more dive operators in Puerto Ayora who can arrange both liveaboard and day trips. I looked through a lot of the dive shops, and everyone seems to have about the same gear and same prices, so for me it was more a matter of who was going where that day rather than anything else.
Most dive ops were charging $140 to $150 for a two tank dive, that generally included a light breakfast snack, lunch and transportation.
If you are interested in liveaboards, and have some flexibility, then you can try showing up in Puerto Ayora and booking a "last minute" liveaboard trip for approximately 50% cheaper than pre-booked Internet prices.
I did a day trip with Academy Bay divers in Puerto Ayora, and I liked the dive master so much that I did another dive them the next day. The dive master shot some video and I patched together this YouTube video:
[video=youtube;ipQ8JQ5Z98o]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipQ8JQ5Z98o[/video]
I did a week-long nature cruise with on the boat Tip Top IV, and it was a first-class operation (no scuba diving). Tip Top Divers also offer scuba liveaboard trips, so I assume that their dive trips are equally as well organized as their nature tours.
TRAVELER ADVICE
This is not meant to be advice that covers everything, but just a few pertinent things.
MONEY
The currency of Ecuador is the U.S. dollar. A lot of places say that they accept credit cards, but the reality is that they won't. Generally prices are the "cash price" and you will pay 10% to 15% more if you insist on using your credit card. So bring a lot of cash (small bills like $20).
My ATM card did not work at any of the five ATM machines on Isla Santa Cruz, despite making prior travel arrangements with my bank. Since no one accepted credit cards, I had to resort to getting cash advances on my credit card from the local bank. Be sure that you have back-up plans for getting cash if your ATM card does not work in Ecuador. More than once, I heard young backpackers lamenting on a weekend (banks closed) that they were out of cash, their ATM cards did not work, none of the hotels accepted credit cards and they were on the street for the night.
FLIGHTS
Most of the flights to the Galápagos go from either Quito or Guayaquil and then onto Baltra Island. Actually, the flights from Quito layover in Guayaquil for 30-60 minutes before continuing onto to Baltra. (The other airport is on Isla San Cristobal.)
The Quito airport is plagued with weather problems, so try to avoid going into Quito at all. A better plan is fly directly into Guayaquil and avoid Quito altogether. If you have to go through Quito, and you have to be somewhere on a certain date (say for a cruise), then allow for a 3 day buffer to account for possible travel delays and missed flights in Quito. Seriously. If your flights are without problems, then you'll have a few spare days in Puerto Ayora to relax and eat and enjoy yourself.
A couple of airlines that fly to Baltra include Tame and LAN.
Inside of the Quito airport terminal, signs direct Galápagos passengers to the right side of the terminal building. There, you will need to take your bags through an x-ray screen and all of your luggage/carryon bags will be searched and locked closed before you check in and get your boarding pass. Once you arrive in the Galápagos, the locks on your bags will be removed by airport personnel.
AIRPORT TRANSFER FEE
You must also pay a $10 fee to travel to the Galápagos. The window for this fee is next to the Galápagos baggage screening area. The line to pay this fee is very, very, very long. Once I got there at 5:00 a.m. and I still waited in line for more than 3 hours.
But skip this line - you can pay the $10 when you arrive at customs in the Galápagos (no one will tell you this). Some people have been told by ticket agents that they cannot check their bags or get their boarding pass until they paid the $10 - and they missed their flight standing in the long line - so try to avoid this long line at all costs.
If you are forced into this line, and you are getting close to missing your flight - do things the South American way: just cut the front of the line and get it done. Do not be shy about this, just do it.
GALAPAGOS PARK FEE
Once you arrive in the Galápagos, you will go through customs. In addition to the $10 fee, you will also have to pay a $100 park fee. Cash only.
GETTING TO PUERTO AYORA FROM BALTRA AIRPORT
Once at the Baltra Airport, you still need to cross the ferry to Isla Santa Cruz and then it's 40 km to Puerto Ayora. Here's how you get there:
Outside of the Baltra terminal, go to the right to catch the free bus to the "Canal" (the channel). It's obvious where the buses are located. Some of the buses go to the Baltra port ("muelle") and not the "canal," so ask the driver before you get onboard. It's about a 5 minute trip to the "canal."
At the "canal," get on the ferry with your bags (85 cents) and ride 200 yards to Isla Santa Cruz.
See this map:
https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=-0.485882,-90.272083&spn=0.037378,0.038581&t=h&z=15
Once on Isla Santa Cruz, you are still 40 km from Puerto Ayora. You can ride one of the buses (about $2) or you can get a taxi for $18. Even if you hire a taxi, the trip still takes 45 minutes.
Allow about 1 hour to go from the airport to Puerto Ayora by taxi, and vice versa, if everything goes smoothly. And in South America, nothing ever goes smoothly. If you ride the bus to Puerto Ayora, allow 1.5 to 2 hours.
LODGING
None of the cheaper hotel accept credit cards. Cash only. You can get pretty decent and basic lodging for $40 to $50 per night. That is the "last minute" price - if you want to reserve a room then you will pay quite a bit more. Having a "last minute" room price means that you may be "bumped" by someone else who is paying the "reserved" room price, and you may be required to vacate your room in the morning, even if you plan to stay longer.
The most expensive room that I found in Puerto Ayora was $530 per night. You can get a decent room without air conditioning for about $15 per night, but only a deperately poor idiot would do such a thing.
If you are totally obsessive-compulsive, you can book a room online before your arrival. But only book a room for 1-2 nights. Once you are in Puerto Ayora, look around and find yourself a better deal.
Have fun!
I spent most of my time in Puerto Ayora on Isla Santa Cruz. There are a dozen or more dive operators in Puerto Ayora who can arrange both liveaboard and day trips. I looked through a lot of the dive shops, and everyone seems to have about the same gear and same prices, so for me it was more a matter of who was going where that day rather than anything else.
Most dive ops were charging $140 to $150 for a two tank dive, that generally included a light breakfast snack, lunch and transportation.
If you are interested in liveaboards, and have some flexibility, then you can try showing up in Puerto Ayora and booking a "last minute" liveaboard trip for approximately 50% cheaper than pre-booked Internet prices.
I did a day trip with Academy Bay divers in Puerto Ayora, and I liked the dive master so much that I did another dive them the next day. The dive master shot some video and I patched together this YouTube video:
[video=youtube;ipQ8JQ5Z98o]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipQ8JQ5Z98o[/video]
I did a week-long nature cruise with on the boat Tip Top IV, and it was a first-class operation (no scuba diving). Tip Top Divers also offer scuba liveaboard trips, so I assume that their dive trips are equally as well organized as their nature tours.
TRAVELER ADVICE
This is not meant to be advice that covers everything, but just a few pertinent things.
MONEY
The currency of Ecuador is the U.S. dollar. A lot of places say that they accept credit cards, but the reality is that they won't. Generally prices are the "cash price" and you will pay 10% to 15% more if you insist on using your credit card. So bring a lot of cash (small bills like $20).
My ATM card did not work at any of the five ATM machines on Isla Santa Cruz, despite making prior travel arrangements with my bank. Since no one accepted credit cards, I had to resort to getting cash advances on my credit card from the local bank. Be sure that you have back-up plans for getting cash if your ATM card does not work in Ecuador. More than once, I heard young backpackers lamenting on a weekend (banks closed) that they were out of cash, their ATM cards did not work, none of the hotels accepted credit cards and they were on the street for the night.
FLIGHTS
Most of the flights to the Galápagos go from either Quito or Guayaquil and then onto Baltra Island. Actually, the flights from Quito layover in Guayaquil for 30-60 minutes before continuing onto to Baltra. (The other airport is on Isla San Cristobal.)
The Quito airport is plagued with weather problems, so try to avoid going into Quito at all. A better plan is fly directly into Guayaquil and avoid Quito altogether. If you have to go through Quito, and you have to be somewhere on a certain date (say for a cruise), then allow for a 3 day buffer to account for possible travel delays and missed flights in Quito. Seriously. If your flights are without problems, then you'll have a few spare days in Puerto Ayora to relax and eat and enjoy yourself.
A couple of airlines that fly to Baltra include Tame and LAN.
Inside of the Quito airport terminal, signs direct Galápagos passengers to the right side of the terminal building. There, you will need to take your bags through an x-ray screen and all of your luggage/carryon bags will be searched and locked closed before you check in and get your boarding pass. Once you arrive in the Galápagos, the locks on your bags will be removed by airport personnel.
AIRPORT TRANSFER FEE
You must also pay a $10 fee to travel to the Galápagos. The window for this fee is next to the Galápagos baggage screening area. The line to pay this fee is very, very, very long. Once I got there at 5:00 a.m. and I still waited in line for more than 3 hours.
But skip this line - you can pay the $10 when you arrive at customs in the Galápagos (no one will tell you this). Some people have been told by ticket agents that they cannot check their bags or get their boarding pass until they paid the $10 - and they missed their flight standing in the long line - so try to avoid this long line at all costs.
If you are forced into this line, and you are getting close to missing your flight - do things the South American way: just cut the front of the line and get it done. Do not be shy about this, just do it.
GALAPAGOS PARK FEE
Once you arrive in the Galápagos, you will go through customs. In addition to the $10 fee, you will also have to pay a $100 park fee. Cash only.
GETTING TO PUERTO AYORA FROM BALTRA AIRPORT
Once at the Baltra Airport, you still need to cross the ferry to Isla Santa Cruz and then it's 40 km to Puerto Ayora. Here's how you get there:
Outside of the Baltra terminal, go to the right to catch the free bus to the "Canal" (the channel). It's obvious where the buses are located. Some of the buses go to the Baltra port ("muelle") and not the "canal," so ask the driver before you get onboard. It's about a 5 minute trip to the "canal."
At the "canal," get on the ferry with your bags (85 cents) and ride 200 yards to Isla Santa Cruz.
See this map:
https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=-0.485882,-90.272083&spn=0.037378,0.038581&t=h&z=15
Once on Isla Santa Cruz, you are still 40 km from Puerto Ayora. You can ride one of the buses (about $2) or you can get a taxi for $18. Even if you hire a taxi, the trip still takes 45 minutes.
Allow about 1 hour to go from the airport to Puerto Ayora by taxi, and vice versa, if everything goes smoothly. And in South America, nothing ever goes smoothly. If you ride the bus to Puerto Ayora, allow 1.5 to 2 hours.
LODGING
None of the cheaper hotel accept credit cards. Cash only. You can get pretty decent and basic lodging for $40 to $50 per night. That is the "last minute" price - if you want to reserve a room then you will pay quite a bit more. Having a "last minute" room price means that you may be "bumped" by someone else who is paying the "reserved" room price, and you may be required to vacate your room in the morning, even if you plan to stay longer.
The most expensive room that I found in Puerto Ayora was $530 per night. You can get a decent room without air conditioning for about $15 per night, but only a deperately poor idiot would do such a thing.
If you are totally obsessive-compulsive, you can book a room online before your arrival. But only book a room for 1-2 nights. Once you are in Puerto Ayora, look around and find yourself a better deal.
Have fun!
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