Best Time of Year for Galapagos

[Babo02]

My husband and I are hoping to take the Celebrity Xpedition cruise through the Galapagos in May or June. Can anyone tell me if this is a good time of year? I also noticed that there were some problems last year with stomach illness on Xpedition but couldn't find any posts that mentioned if this problem had been solved. My husband has a sensitive stomach at the best of times and I would hate to think that he might have to miss out due to stomach problems.

Thanks

[voyageur]

My husband and I are hoping to take the Celebrity Xpedition cruise through the Galapagos in May or June. Can anyone tell me if this is a good time of year? I also noticed that there were some problems last year with stomach illness on Xpedition but couldn't find any posts that mentioned if this problem had been solved. My husband has a sensitive stomach at the best of times and I would hate to think that he might have to miss out due to stomach problems.

Thanks

 

First of all, the latest reports show no sign of illness... My husbanad and I were on Xpedition last year at the time of the reports... and must say they were exagerated... although one must always practice caution going to places like South America.

 

I recall the naturalist telling us that June was a good time to go and see the islands after the rainy season... when we were there it was very dry and the flora was all "dead"... that did make it easy to spot the wildlife. I don't think there is a bad time to go... if there are certain animals you would like to see then you should study up on when to see them. We were fortunate to be at the end of the blue-footed boobies mating season... therefore didn't see the babies. But we did see baby albatross (he was huge!) and lots of sea lion pups. I could go on forever... I wish I could be there again...

 

Also, if you don't mind my asking... which "small town in Ontario" you're from?

[Brucemcdou]

Hi, Babo - We have not been on the Xpedition cruise, but are signed up for the cruise in April of '07 (we plan ahead...). I can report that when we booked the cruise with the future cruise consultant on Infinity, she told us that the "best" time of year for the Galapagos is late winter through spring, roughly February to April or May. This is because (as she explained it) there's more rain in the fall/winter, September to November and the flowers and other vegetation are therefore nicer in the spring, when it won't be raining as much, although the temperature apparently doesn't vary too much throughout the year. This is born out by the prices you'll see for the cruise - a little more in the spring and a little less in the fall, although pretty expensive all the time!!

 

Again, this is just based on the future cruise consultant, who had not been there herself but apparently talks with the Xpedition "specialists" at Celebrity headquarters about these things.

 

From everything we've read on CC, it sounds as if it's an amazing trip no matter when you go!

[Trobrah]

Hi Babo,

My husband and I were on this trip in the middle of September and loved it! I can tell you that this time of year is the dry season in the Galapagos, but it's also cooler. It was never humid and the air temperature was in the 70s. The water is cooler this time of year. We were told that the cooler water is better for wildlife viewing, as the animals prefer the cooler temperature. But we did have to wear wetsuits in the water. I snorkeled several times, each time with a shorty wetsuit that the ship provided, and the water temperature did not bother me. In fact, it was similar to the ocean temperature here in NJ in the early summer (approximately 68 degrees). Apparently, between January and May, which is the wet season, the temperature is higher and it is more humid. I think people prefer that time of year because the water is warmer, but it is more likely to rain then. We didn't have any rain in September, except for one afternoon in Quito.

 

All of the wildlife is there all year long, except for the waved albatross, which apparently is at sea during the beginning of the year. We saw them in September, along with pretty much all the animals we were hoping to see. Regardless of when you decide to go, you'll have a fantastic time. You really should do this!

 

By the way, we were unaware of anyone having stomach problems on our trip. While we were careful what we ate in Quito, we did not worry about it on the ship and had no problems whatsoever. However, there were several people who experienced altitude sickness in Quito. We did not because we took diamox while we were there. My husband, who is a reformed smoker, was concerned but he had no problems with the altitude. But one person had to have oxygen in his hotel room and several others experienced headaches and/or nausea. So, I highly recommend diamox for the altitude. We went to a travel clinic, and they prescribed that, along with typhoid pills, tetanus/diptheria shots and hepatitis A.

 

Hope this helps. We'd be glad to answer any other questions.

 

Susan

[Babo02]

In reply to where we live in Southern Ontario I can go so far as to say that we live between Brantford and London.

[OPSoccermom]

We went in February. The weather was perfect. Water was warm enough that we could wear shortie wetsuits and actually enjoy time in the sun. When we booked, we were told that February was "prime" time.

[voyageur]

Babo,

 

I live in Cambridge... last year we ran into people on the Xpedition from Tillsonburg... it's becoming a very small world.

[frankpc]

Here's a link to get you started - the climate section explains the two seasons:

 

http://www.galapagos-ecuador.com/galapagos-index.html

 

The "best" time of year depends on the weather you like and the animals and vegetation you want to see. We went at the end of September .... the weather was very comfortable, around 70F. The water temps ranged from near 70F to 60F. Wet suits provided ...

In the cooler/dryer weather certain animals tend to be more active, but the vegetation is very sparce.

 

It's a great trip ......

 

Frank

[Babo02]

Hi Voyageur,

I live in Paris, not far from you. I know what a small world it can be as we have run into people from our area wherever we go it seems.

 

Babo

[voyageur]

My nephew plays hockey in Paris all the time...

 

back to Galapagos... don't just think about going... it is absolutely amazing! It's the first vacation that I didn't want to come home. I have never enjoyed anything more. The sea lions play with you at the beach, they're like little puppies, I just want to pick one up and kiss him on the nose. And I loved watching the birds diving into the water to catch fish (like torpedoes) When we were thinking about it and looking through the brochure I hoped it would be half as good as they wrote, but it was that and even better! You won't understand until you're there. It's the most prehistoric place... and the most peaceful beaches.

[kitty9]

Remember, being in the Southern hemisphere, their seasons are the opposite of ours, so June is the winter season for them.

[drfun48]

Remember, being in the Southern hemisphere, their seasons are the opposite of ours, so June is the winter season for them.

Huh?----You're not in the Southern hemisphere, Kitty. You're AT the equator,where the weather varies very little,except for wet and dry seasons.

[voyageur]

Huh?----You're not in the Southern hemisphere, Kitty. You're AT the equator,where the weather varies very little,except for wet and dry seasons.

 

Thank you... I was just going to say that! So many people have said that they have opposite seasons and were talking about when its warmer... it's starting to make me crazy!

 

The weather is almost always the same temperature.

[frankpc]

Just remember that the apparent temperature does change and they really have two different seasons. Feb-May can be warm, humid and sunny with daily rainstorms (think US Southeast in the summer). Much less humid, little rain and noticeably cooler in August - November.

 

Frank

[Babo02]

Thanks for the link Frank. I haven't had an opportunity to do anything but skim it so far, but will read it in more detail shortly.

We had thought of going to Galapagos a few years ago, but the size of the boats were a turn-off. This sounds so much better.

Babo

[Babo02]

Hi OPSoccermom, February sounds great but we do other things that time of year. June-September is the best time for us, so we'll likely consider that time. Thanks for the input, though.

 

Babo

[CruiserJen]

First of all, the latest reports show no sign of illness... My husbanad and I were on Xpedition last year at the time of the reports... and must say they were exagerated...

 

Last year in the Fall & Winter a lot of people reported illness on board X in Galapagos. Fortunately, Celebrity has been doing whatever was required to clear up the illness.

 

I was nosing around on the Sea Dream Yacht board earlier this week and read that even SD is experiencing an outbreak of NoroVirus. A poster reported getting off the ship in St. Barths due to illness & 40 people were sick on her sailing. SD only holds about 100 pax so that is a significant number on one sailing. Poster reported that 30 were sick the week before. So it seems that once an illness takes hold, it gets passed along until the ship is disinfected sufficiently to get rid of all the germs! That seems to take a few sailings from what I read on these boards.

 

Illness can occur on any ship at any time. It is really disruptive to everyone including the staff. Not much they can do once it happens except clean the ship top to bottom!!

 

We recently returned from Galapagos, but opted for a smaller charter vessel with a group of friends. It was awesome! We saw the volcano erupt from the boat, of course. Great trip. Highly recommend it. Our guides talked about the outbreak last year, but they have not noticed or heard of anything like that so far this season.

 

Bon Voyage!

[ingrid295]

We asked one of the Naturalists when is the best time of year to visit Galapagos ... he told us May & November.

 

We sailed in early November and the Naturalists were commenting that the seas were noticeable rougher during our week than the previous week. The weather was great for hiking, but the snorkelers reported some rough seas and limited visibility.

 

The Naturalist told us that in summer months when it is more humid, they do more snorkeling and swimming and in winter months they do more hiking than swimming. So I guess you can plan according to what activities you prefer doing, hiking or swimming..!

 

The water temp was pretty cool and everyone who snorkeled did wear a wet suit in early November. Hope this helps.

[patlanta]

You'd best do a search on Galapagos and read about precautions/medication to prevent and deal with illness on the Celebrity Xpedition. We went in July and 7 out of 10 in our party suffered different degrees of illness during the week ranging from traveller's diarrahea, to possibly Norwalk virus, to seasickness.

 

Exercise precautions every step of the way and take along medications for the possibilities identified in earlier posts.

 

The cruise is extraordinary and you really should do it, but please be prepared.