Any favorite parts of the trip? Things to know for those of us who haven't gone yet? Things to avoid? I'm going to bookmark for later
It was incredible through and through, so hard to pick a favorite. I'll go with what surprised me the most --
The stars were perhaps the most amazing thing I've seen in my life. I thought they'd be like what we saw in the Big Island (since there's little light pollution there) but they weren't. There were so many, they were so 3D, and you could see the milkiness of the Milky Way. Truly awe-inspiring.
So many baby animals!!!
Our boat had 15 passengers at a time (mid-week, 5 people got off and 5 more got on, so 20 people total) and they were just incredible, interesting, well-traveled people and we learned a tremendous amount from them as well.
Things to know:
- We really loved being on a small boat for many reasons (and the boat we were on (the Ocean Spray) exceeded all expectations so I highly recommend it), but it was EXTREMELY people-intensive. Beyond spending a lot of time on the islands together, we sat at the breakfast/lunch/dinner table for like 5 hours a day. So if you don't want that level of social interaction, a bigger boat may be a better choice.
- You will get sunburned in Quito even on a cool, crappy day
- An underwater camera is an absolute must
- The islands smell pretty bad
- Because of the strict rules about how many people can be in an area at once, there is a lot of shuffling around and some on-boat downtime -- but there isn't really anything that the tour companies can do about it. So a typical day can be panga ride to beach, walk on beach, panga ride to boat, half an hour on boat, panga ride to snorkel, snorkel, panga ride to boat, lunch, panga ride to another beach, walk on beach, panga ride to boat, half an hour on boat, panga ride to snorkel, snorkel, panga ride to boat. Very inefficient and not a relaxing trip!
Awesome pictures. I adored the sea lions. It was a bit nerve-wracking when an adult one kept thinking my underwater camera was a shiny silver fish, though. Those things are big and extraordinarily agile underwater!
Great pics! I can't wait to go. Did you use a wetsuit when you were in the water? I was planning to bring a shorty but wondering if it was really necessary.
These are fantastic! Also bookmarking. DH and I have been talking about going for our 10-year dating anniversary in 2016! Curious what the "budget" was??