Galápagos Islands
I didn’t plan this trip far in advance. I wanted to go scuba diving in clear waters, found a boutique hotel in Santa Cruz, and booked it. The trip was only four days, but worth every second.
Getting there was the first sign that the Galápagos takes itself seriously. Before we could deplane, they sprayed disinfectant through the cabin—with all of us still sitting in our seats. Then our shoes were disinfected on the way out. I’d never experienced anything like it, but it made complete sense. This is a place worth protecting.
My driver from the airport made an unexpected pit stop on the way to the hotel, and that set the tone for everything that followed. We found a couple of barn owls and walked through a massive, ancient lava tunnel. And there were the giant tortoises. I wasn’t prepared for how big they are, how many there were, or how close we could get. It was one of those unplanned moments that ends up being the thing you talk about most.
Santa Cruz is walkable and easy to navigate. I used Google Maps, grabbed snacks from convenience stores, had dinner at The Rock Galapagos one night, and checked out a waterfront restaurant the next. There was a language barrier at the restaurant, but the staff was warm and the food was great. I also walked to the fishing pier and found seals lounging at the fish market like they owned it—because they kind of do.
The scuba diving didn’t quite go as planned. My guides recommended snorkeling instead, since most of the wildlife were closer to the surface. I went with it. The boat tour included lunch, and that’s where things took a turn—I’m fairly certain it was the fresh fruit. The tour operator was wonderful and swimming with sea turtles was amazing! But by that evening, I was back at Hotel Cucuve, convinced I was going to die alone in a beautiful boutique room in the Galápagos.
I’ll spare you most of the details, but here’s what I will tell you: it was coming out of both ends, I ended up on the bathroom floor because it was more efficient than running back and forth to the bed, and you cannot flush anything down the toilet there, which made the whole situation significantly more dramatic. I ran out of water but couldn’t make it out of the room to the fountain. I eventually passed out on the bed, completely dehydrated, and slept for an entire day. I woke up on the other side of it, a little hollowed out but intact.
My last stop before heading home was Galapagos National Park. It was a longer walk from the city than I anticipated, but it was a great cultural experience. I missed the English language hatchery tour and ended up on the Spanish one, filling in the gaps with context clues and whatever Spanish I could piece together. It wasn’t ideal, but I managed to enjoy the tour.
The mishaps didn’t end there. On the way home, we had a short layover and I got off the plane when the engines shut down. Seemed reasonable. I exited security, started looking around, and slowly realized something was off. I made my way to the check-in counter and they told me the plane was departing in 15 minutes. They called the gate agent, who rushed me back through security and onto the plane just before the door closed. When I walked on board, the flight attendant looked at me and laughed—apparently you’re not supposed to deplane during a layover there. We don’t do that in the US, so I genuinely had no idea. We had a good laugh about it though.
None of the unexpected overshadowed the trip. The Galápagos earns its reputation. Go! Just maybe skip the fresh fruit on the boats.