February 2008 - the launch of ‘La Pinta’ the newest yacht in the Galapagos Islands. What an honor to be on the launch of this lovely, luxurious ship as it left Guayaquil. La Pinta started service in the Galapagos in April of this year offering plush, luxury cabins, with all mod cons including ipods – which proved to be the perfect respite after a long day exploring! This yacht operates only on a 7 day cruise but I really would not want to get off any sooner!

As this yacht was not ready for service we stayed aboard the Santa Cruz. My original preference would be smaller yacht, but I definitely changed my mind as I loved the Santa Cruz – the staff were fantastic, friendly, knowledge and fun – the accommodation was very comfortable and the food was great. The large ship also mean that you can meet more people and I met a lovely group and really enjoyed our excursions to the islands.

After snorkeling with sea lions, sea turtles and penguins we than all returned to the ship to enjoy the last sunset and of course cocktails, when one of the naturalists spotted something in the water and we discovered to our amazement that we were in amongst a pod of 50 sperm whales. What a truly amazing experience, even all the naturalists on board were bowled over by this amazing sight as the pod were feeding and mating, breaching etc.

The Galapagos is one of the most amazing places on earth and has survived virtually untouched since Darwin’s discovery of the islands in 1835.. Our ground agents are in my opinion experts at making your visit the best, never to be forgotten experience.

The Land of Contrasts

My last visit to this remarkable country, Ecuador was in May, I decided to concentrate on exploring more of the mainland and uncovering some of this country’s undiscovered secrets.

The highlight of my visit was undoubtedly the markets, which can only be described as an explosion of colour. I can honestly say Ecuador’s flower markets are home to the most amazing roses I have ever seen.

During my visit I was continually impressed with the standard of accommodation available, ranging from large hotel chains through to the smaller locally owned operations ensuring that every visitor is catered for. My personal favourite was the small but ever so charming Hacienda called San Augustin del Callo, boasting incredible views of Cotopaxi Volcano and consisting of just eight rooms; the attention to detail is outstanding as each room is hand-painted with it’s own unique wall mural.

When visiting Ecuador I highly recommend staying in Cuenca, the cobbled streets and colonial architecture enhance this city’s beauty, as the production centre for Panama hats no visit would be complete without getting your own made as a souvenir to take home! The city of Guayaquil was a revelation, as Ecuador’s largest city my initial impression was that it would be characterless however I couldn’t have been more wrong, a city tour opened my eyes and transformed my opinion.

My trip ended with a visit to the Galapagos Islands which I would highly recommend as there truly is nowhere else on earth that offers such a unique experience and opportunity to view unique flora, fauna and wildlife.