Lying some 600 miles from Ecuador’s mainland in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the Galápagos archipelago offers arguably the planet’s most compelling wildlife experience.
Nowhere else on Earth will you find wildlife so fearless of human beings. On land and under the water you can spend intimate moments with playful sea lions or schooling hammerheads, and wander freely among colonies of marine iguana or lumbering giant tortoise. Although natural selection occurs everywhere, few places show this process in action more clearly than the Galápagos Islands. It is this status as a ‘laboratory of evolution’ that makes the Galápagos Islands so special.
"We can bring in leading conservationists and policy makers to deepen and enrich your understanding."
Being a small group of islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean makes the Galápagos especially vulnerable to climate change, pollution and overtourism. It is vital therefore that travelling here is done with the lightest possible footprint. We only work with those suppliers who have a manifest commitment to sustainability. This doesn’t just benefit the Galápagos’ endemic wildlife and human residents, but ultimately means that you can travel here knowing that your experience has been considered from all angles.
There are two main ways to experience the Galápagos. Cruising from island to island aboard an expedition yacht—whether shared with other passengers or privately chartered—provides a breadth of experience but rarely allows for tailoring or caters to special interests. Those who prefer to be land-based can enjoy a more in-depth experience of the immediate environment but do not have access to the wider range of habitats provided by cruising.
Our favoured way to offer luxury travel to the Galápagos Islands is to combine these two approaches. A week’s charter, for example, followed by a few days at a private villa, accompanied by hand-selected private guides, with the additional possibility of bringing in helicopters to explore less accessible areas, provides a truly exceptional and transformative experience. We can also bring in leading conservationists and policymakers to deepen and enrich your understanding. You can join them in the field tagging marine wildlife or help in vitally important projects such as surveying giant tortoises while staying in a spectacular volcano camp custom-designed for you.
