Day 19: Galapagos - Cruise Time

Cruiseship time! But first, we had to get there. The meeting point was 9:40 at the Baltra Airport. Santa Cruz doesn’t have an airport, but there is one on a small island directly north of it called Baltra. This Airport was used as the meeting point for the cruise because most people came by plane and because there is a dock on Baltra.

Going to Baltra from Santa Cruz, or more specifically from Puerto Ayora, is easy. First, you take the Taxi to the Canal, which costs 25$ and takes 30-40 minutes. There you then take a ferry, which goes all the time (as soon as it’s full) and costs 1$. On the other side (on Baltra) you then take a Bus which is 5$ per Person and takes you to the Airport. That’s it! The total duration is 1:00 - 1:30 hours, depending on how lucky you are with the ferry.

After we had done this part, we had to wait a bit at the Airport. Then we met our two Guides, Jorge and Pablo, and most other passengers. Why only most? Because there are people who stay longer and are already on the Boat. We will sail with the Monserrat, which is a small ship with a total of 20 passengers in 10 cabins.

Then we took another Bus to the Docks and boarded our Ship. Quick introduction on board, like where is what. Then, it was already time for lunch—Spaghetti Pomodoro, which was good. Then, we had some time to relax and explore the Ship before 14:30. We got our snorkeling equipment. At 15:00, we had our timeslot at the Playa Las Bachas.

There we saw some Wildlife, Including Blue-footed boobies, Galápagos Brown Pelicans, Galapagos Flamingos, Lava herons, and again, Baby Sharks 😍

We had nearly two hours at the beach, but time passed so fast it was wild. Back on the Boat, there was a bit of relaxation before we were briefly introduced to the crew and the dinner. So far, it is a good mix of activities and relaxation.

After dinner, we used the sundeck, which turned into a star deck, to be stunned by the beauty of an unpolluted night sky. Can’t be described with words 🤩

Now, I lay in my cabin and write these words. It’s pretty bumpy, so let’s see how the night goes. We will anchor most of the other nights so that they will be quieter.

By the way, Thanks to Elon Musk for Starlink. Quite amazing how good the internet on the cruise is 🤯

Pictures

Activities

Snorkeling :)