THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS

Transcription

1 Open to alumni UBC and friends THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS EXCLUSIVE PRIVATE YACHT EXPEDITION FEBRUARY 26 MARCH 7, 2020 Considered by many to be the archetypal liing laboratory of eolution, the Galapagos Islands hae a natural appeal for ardent traellers. On this exclusie oyage of discoery aboard a 16-passenger yacht, you can explore these magical islands that inspired Charles Darwin and generations since. What s more, you can do so in the company of a leading, modern-day eolutionary biologist who has worked in the Galapagos and who can proide rare insight into the significance of this archipelago. This full eight-day cruise ensures you isit seeral islands and hae the opportunity for a fulfilling experience of the landscapes and habitats which, while perhaps desolate at first sight, are home to a wonderfully strange and abundant wildlife. Dolph Schluter and your onboard Galapagos naturalist guide will lead daily island walks on on-board discussions that put eerything into context. And what is so special about the Galapagos experience is that the wildlife here acts as though humans are nothing more than a passing interest, allowing us to obsere them up close. Undisturbed by our nearness, they engage in intriguing courtship displays, groom one another, forage, and nurture their young. You ll skirt past nesting boobies, giant tortoises grazing in the lush highlands and dinosaur-like iguanas sunning themseles on black laa shores. While we swim or snorkel, tiny Galapagos Penguins and playful sea lions dart by us through the waters like torpedoes. There is simply no place in the world quite like the Galapagos Islands! Join fellow alumni UBC traellers for this intimate and exclusie experience of the Galapagos! TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS BY:

2 Galapagos Sea Lions WHY TRAVEL WITH THE ALUMNI UBC TRAVEL CLUB? Walking amongst dozing Galapagos Sea Lions Watching the interactions among the bizarre Swallow-tailed Gulls Obsering Galapagos Giant Tortoises foraging peacefully on Santa Cruz Discoering the unique Chocolate Chip Sea Star clinging to the rocks while snorkelling Challenging ourseles to distinguish the Darwin s Finches based on their bill shape and size! FERNANDINA THE GALÁPAGOS ISLANDS ISABELA PINTA MARCHENA GENOVESA SANTIAGO BARTOLOMÉ BALTRA SANTA CRUZ SAN CRISTOBAL SANTA FE FLOREANA ESPAÑOLA STUDY LEADER Dolph Schluter, FRS, FRSC is a professor of Eolutionary Biology and a Canada Research Chair in the Department of Zoology at the Uniersity of British Columbia. Dolph s early research was done on the eolutionary ecology and morphology of the famous Darwin s Finches, with extensie periods of research in the Galapagos. Dolph s work was cited in the Pulitzer Prizewinning The Beak of the Finch, a popular non-fiction work that detailed the discoery that eolution by natural selection is still taking place.

3 DETAILED ITINERARY Wednesday, Feb. 26: Meet in Quito, Ecuador Meet in Quito, where our local representatie proides a transfer to our hotel in the heart of the dazzling old colonial city nestled in the snow-capped Andes Mountains. Oernight: Hilton Colon, Quito Thursday, Feb. 27: Quito City Tour Meet your study leader and fellow participants at a morning briefing session before heading out to enjoy a guided walking tour of the colonial centre isiting Independence Plaza, La Compañía Church, one of Quito s most beautiful religious buildings, and San Francisco Church with its monastery, the first great colonial building. We ll also drie to El Panecillo Hill for a panoramic iew of the city. Visit the Quito Botanical Gardens to enjoy an array of plants and become acquainted with some of Quito s beautiful birds such as the Southern Yellow-Grosbeak, Black Flowerpiercer, and Black-tailed Trainbearer. This eening, we ll enjoy a welcome dinner at the fantastic Theatrum restaurant in the old city. Oernight: Hilton Colón, Quito Meals: Breakfast, Dinner Friday, Feb 28: Flight to Baltra, Galapagos After an early breakfast, we ll transfer from our hotel to the airport for the morning jet flight to the Galapagos Islands. Before boarding our yacht, we ll isit the Charles Darwin Research Station, the operations centre for wildlife and conseration programs in the Galapagos. We ll also drie up to the highlands where the aried cloud habitats produce some interesting egetation and endemic land birds, including the arious Darwin s Finches, including two species of tree finch, the Green Warbler-Finch and the Vegetarian Finch. The El Chato Tortoise Resere is in the highlands and is home to many of the famous giant Galapagos tortoises. After our isits, we ll drie to the dock at Baltra where the M/Y Beluga is waiting for us, ready to begin the cruise. Oernight: M/Y Beluga Saturday, Feb 29: Floreana Flamingos feed in the island s large salt-water lagoon and colonies of Galapagos Sea Lions line the beach. This is also a good area for snorkelling and enjoying some of the wonderfully dierse and colourful Galapagos fish. Floreana is best known for its colorful history of buccaneers, whalers, conicts, and early colonists. It is home of a famous wooden mail barrel at Post Office Bay, where letters are dropped off and picked up. Oernight: M/Y Beluga Sunday, Mar. 1: Isabela This is the largest island with 5 actie olcanoes. One of these, Sierra Negra, erupted in October We will hae a number of isits on this largest of the Galapagos Islands oer a few days. We will isit Sierra Negra ia Puerto Villamil, a charming small town on a white sand beach. At Sierra Negra we can iew recent laa flows, moist highland egetation, and parasitic cones. Time permitting, we may isit the Tortoise Breeding Station at Puerto Villamil and a lagoon where American Flamingos may be found. Oernight: M/Y Beluga Monday, Mar. 2 Tuesday, Mar. 3: Isabela We also land at Punta Moreno on a beautiful rocky shore and hike across an extensie laa field to some small ponds that are teeming with wildlife. The site has spectacular iews of olcanoes Alcedo, Sierra Negra and Cerro Azul. Some highlights include impressie laa flows, desolate and pristine landscape, aried and unusual arid zone egetation. Further along we ll land at Elizabeth Bay where Green Sea Turtles and rays can usually be seen. Other sites include Urbina Bay and Tagus Coe. Oernight: M/Y Beluga Wednesday, Mar. 4: Fernandina Fernandina is just oer 100,000 years old and is one of the youngest islands in the Archipelago. It is also the most olcanically actie. Our landing at Punta Espinosa is at the edge of an expansie laa field with a ery interesting trail. The tidal pools and the snorkelling opportunities make this one of the best landings on the Galapagos. The Galapagos Penguins, nesting Marine Iguanas, Flightless Cormorants, dolphins, and perhaps spouting Bryde s Whales, seen from shore, are an added bonus on this landing. The beautiful, but menacing, Volcán la Cumbre oersees the area. There is also a great iew of the island of Isabela. Oernight: M/Y Beluga Great Frigatebird

4 Thursday, Mar. 5: Santiago, Bartolomé At Puerto Egas, we can take a walk along the rocky coastline that will proide a iew of some of Galapagos best tide pools. We can also see a sugar loaf olcano, Galapagos Fur Seals, Galapagos Oystercatchers, a Marine Iguana colony and old salt mine. We may also see the fearless and endemic Galapagos Hawk, Galapagos Doe and Galapagos Mockingbird on this island. There is excellent snorkelling right off the beach on this island. Bartolomé is one of the bestknown islands in the archipelago mainly because of its spatter cones and striking Pinnacle Rock, which seem to appear on most postcards from the islands. There is also a tiny colony of Galapagos Penguins residing at the foot of Pinnacle Rock. A hike ia a series of boardwalks and stairs will take you to the highest point on Bartolome for a spectacular iew of Santiago and other islands. Galapagos Sea Lions and Galapagos Penguins may be seen around Pinnacle Rock. There s also a sandy beach with great swimming and snorkeling. Oernights: M/Y Beluga Friday, Mar. 6: North Seymour Island, fly from Baltra to Guayaquil This is our last day in the Galapagos Islands. We ll isit the small island of North Seymour to isit the largest colony of Magnificent Frigatebirds in the Galapagos archipelago. We can also see more Blue-footed Boobies, both the Laa and Swallow-tailed Gulls, and Galapagos Land Iguanas in addition to the endemic Palo Santo tree. Our boat will return to Baltra and the crew will transfer us to the airport for our flight to Guayaquil. A farewell dinner is planned for the eening. Oernight: Hilton Guayaquil Meals: Breakfast, Dinner Saturday, Mar. 7: Departure day We will be taken to the international airport for our flights home. Meals: Breakfast Note: The itinerary and accommodation described in these notes are subject to change due to logistical arrangements and to take adantage of local eents. Chocolate Chip Sea Star Swallow-tail Gull Marine Iguana

5 Galapagos Oystercatcher TOUR DETAILS Tour Cost (per person): US$6870 Single Supplement: US$3435 We would be happy to try to match you with a suitable roommate. If we are unable to, the single supplement will apply. Group Size: participants What s Included: Airport transfers on arrial and departure 2 nights hotel in Quito, in double occupancy (in hotel listed or similar) Airfare from Quito to the Galapagos / Return to Guayaquil 7-night Galapagos cruise aboard the exclusiely chartered M/Y Beluga based on double occupancy Meals as indicated in the itinerary All actiities as indicated in the itinerary Serices of bilingual naturalist guide on board, trained by the Darwin Research Station Gratuities for all group serices Not Included: International airfare from your home to Quito / return from Guayaquil Fuel surcharges on the boat or flights (if applicable) Meals not listed in the itinerary Galapagos National Park Fee (US$100 per person) Airport transfers, if not traelling with the group Alcoholic beerages and bar expenses Phone calls and items of a personal nature Additional transport required due to any emergency situation Galapagos Transit Control Card (US$20 per person) Payment Details: A non-refundable deposit of US$500 per person is required to resere your space on this tour. A payment of US$1000 is due six months prior to departure. The balance is due 90 days prior to departure HOW TO BOOK Please contact Worldwide Quest Updated March 1, 2019

6 WHAT TO EXPECT Joining Instructions This tour begins with arrial in Quito on February 26. All traellers arriing on the start date of the tour will be met on arrial and transferred to the group hotel. This transfer is included in the cost of the tour. When you book the designated pre-trip accommodation with Worldwide Quest, your transfer from the airport to our group hotel on arrial is included. If you are making your own pre-trip arrangements, this transfer can be proided at additional cost. The tour concludes with a single complimentary transfer from the hotel to the airport on March 7. Please contact us to erify timing of this transfer prior to making any flight arrangements. Leel of Actiity: Moderate You will be getting in and out of Zodiacs (pangas), for wet and dry landings, with assistance from the crew, walking at a leisurely pace, with frequent stops, on ground which is sometimes rough/rocky and hilly. Sturdy hiking shoes or boots are strongly adised. A trekking pole is also useful for extra balance. If you hae any concerns about being able to participate in this trip, please contact us for further information. Weather Although the Galapagos Islands straddle the equator, the tropical heat is tempered by Pacific Ocean breezes and cold ocean currents. It is always a good idea to hae a sweater handy in the eening. We will be isiting during the hot and rainy season when you can expect temperatures to range from 22 C - 32 C, and occasional short, heay showers. Trael Documents You will require a passport for your trip to Ecuador. Please make sure it is alid for six months after the date of your return home. A isa is not required for Canadian or US passport holders at this time. Trael adice Before booking, please refer to the Canadian goernment website to obtain trael adice for the destination(s) you are isiting: Extend Your Stay Many of our traellers like to arrie a day or two earlier or extend their stay to take adantage of being in the region. We hae three exciting extensions that may interest you: an Amazon Rainforest Lodge extension; an Ecuador Cloud Forest Birding extension; and a Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley of the Incas extension in Peru. The two first extensions are best done as pre-trips and the third could be done as a post-trip. We will be happy to send along details on any or all of these extensions so please don t hesitate to write. We can also suggest other options, based on your time aailable, budget and interests. ADDITIONAL INFO Terms and Conditions For additional information about our terms and conditions, please refer to your booking form, the current brochure or our website. All participants booking with Worldwide Quest are coered by the terms of the Ontario Trael Industry Act (Worldwide Quest International, Ontario - License # ). Cancellation Policy All payments are non-refundable, howeer you may transfer your initial deposit for any land tour to another tour 90 days or more prior to your scheduled departure date. Initial deposits for cruises are non-refundable and non-transferable. Your second payment and your final payment are non-refundable and non-transferable. If you cancel within 90 days prior to trip departure, all associated trip costs are non-refundable. The tour price is quoted as a package. No partial refunds or credits will be gien for serices not used. In the eent of a cancellation, you must notify Worldwide Quest immediately and in writing. Trael Insurance We urge you to ensure that you hae adequate cancellation and medical insurance in place, should an unexpected eent cause you to cancel or interrupt your trip or should the tour not be operable per our terms and conditions. We will offer you Manulife insurance coerage. Medical insurance including emergency medical eacuation coerage is mandatory on all our tours. TRAVEL WITH ALUMNI UBC It s your trael experience. Indulge your curiosity as we take you to unique places you e always dreamed about. UBC experts and knowledgeable local hosts proide context. That allows you to deelop a deep connection to the people you meet and the cultures, cuisines and landscapes you re exploring. Best alue in educational trael Meaningful local experiences Thoughtful itineraries See our complete list of tours at: WorldwideQuest.com/alumniUBC TICO#:

7 OUR EXCLUSIVELY CHARTERED VESSEL Bow lounge M/Y Beluga Sun deck Shaded deck Cabin 7 Cabin 2 Dining room Salon and dining We hae exclusiely chartered the M/Y Beluga. This steel-hulled motor yacht is 33.5 metres long, accommodating 16 passengers and 8 crew. She traels at a speed of 12 knots, allowing us to get to 8 islands comfortably during our 8-day expedition cruise. She is well-appointed with comfortable air-conditioned priate cabins and ample lounge and obseration deck space. Here are your cabin options: Cabin #1 (Lower Deck): two lower beds and portholes Cabin #2 (Lower Deck): two lower beds and portholes Cabin #3 (Lower Deck): one double bed and portholes Cabin #4 (Lower Deck): two lower beds and portholes Cabin #5 (Lower Deck): one queen size bed and portholes Cabin #6 (Main Deck): two lower beds and windows Cabin #7 (Main Deck): two lower beds and windows Cabin #8 (Upper Deck): two lower beds and windows (narrow stairway for access)