Cruise in Darwin's wake. Snorkel with penguins and sea lions. Watch frigate birds soar. In these protected World Heritage islands time seems to stand still. Packaged with a train ride through the Andes and a few days in colonial Quito, Ecuador, your family will enjoy this 13-day plunge into natural history. You spend seven nights on a large ship in the Galapagos, four nights in Quito and one night in Rio Bamba. Small boat charters and extensions to the Amazon available.

Explore Darwin's "laboratory", where the wildlife has no fear of humans - a naturalist's, diver's and photographer's paradise. Get "face-to-face" with giant tortoises, snorkel and dive with cavorting sea lions. Hike along eerie volcanic landscapes in search of the comical blue-footed boobie and spitting marine iguana. Join a group departure or charter your own yacht for a cruise in the Galapagos Islands - the ideal way to experience this amazing land and underwater world of the Galapagos Islands.

Diving in the Galapagos is definitely one of the highlights of the world of diving. The Humboldt current from Antarctica and the warm El Nino current from Panama fuse together to create a unique mixture of cold and warm water marine life - 23% of the underwater life is endemic to the islands. Itineraries may include several dives or snorkeling expeditions daily to encounter an endless array of marine life; huge sea turtles, penguins, eagle rays, schooling hammerheads, pods of dolphin, amberjacks and more. Shore excursions with your naturalist guide will reveal the unique and incredibly approachable species indigenous to these islands.

Occasional Diving
Many families and couples frequently request trips to Galapagos which feature occasional diving along with the educational natural history focus of regular Galapagos tours. As the regular dive boats focus on taking divers to the best diving in the islands, we do not recommend these trips for non-divers. In order to satisfy the need for a combination of diving and land excursions, we work with certain boats in Galapagos that offer "occasional diving" during their regular naturalist programs. They can offer approximately 6 dives in total during the week long trip. The best of the boats offering these programs is the lovely 105' yacht Andando and the 78' motor yacht Samba. These yachts offer outstanding itineraries including the less frequented Western Islands of Isabella and Fernandina.

Information and tour packages are available on all boats situated in the Galapagos Islands:

• Eric, Flamingo, Letty
• Lammer Law
• Mistral
• Nortada
• Ecuador Extension Available