Planning a trip to the Galapagos Islands? Your questions answered.

It’s on many people’s travel bucket lists (including ours!) and for good reason. The Galapagos Islands form an Ecuadorian province, a national park, and a biological marine reserve, most famous for the vast number of endemic species that none other than Charles Darwin studies and wrote about during his well-known voyage of the Beagle. It was his observations here, in fact, that contributed to his groundbreaking theories on evolution and natural selection in The Origin of Species.

But how to get there, who to go with, how much to budget for, and whether to go by land or sea are the questions!

“Traveling to the Galápagos Islands can be tricky, but with help from experts who are familiar with Ecuador’s rules and restrictions, it’s entirely possible and definitely worthwhile to visit the one of the first places to land on UNESCO’s World Heritage List,” says Dan Austin, President and Founder of Austin Adventures.

Since many major travel decisions are made during the holidays when families are gathered together, Austin and his team of travel professionals hope to answer burning questions prior to the Thanksgiving holiday by hosting a Galápagos-themed 45-minute webinar on Thursday, Nov. 6 at 6:00 p.m. EST.  

For more information and to reserve a spot, visit: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/814043352.

The topic of the webinar is “land-based vs. boat-based” and with the help of Austin Adventures’ partners Tropic Journeys in Nature and Ecoventura (who we’ll be traveling with in early 2015- woohoo!), participants will learn the benefits of these two distinct ways of exploring the islands and choose what’s right for them.

The webinar will close with a real time Q&A session with Austin and his adventure travel consultants as well as land-based expert Jascivan Carvalho of Tropic Journeys in Nature and boat-based expert Doris Welsh of Ecoventura, which has been leading the way in expedition cruising in the Galápagos Islands since 1990.

“It’s pretty much a win-win situation when you have multiple ways to experience such a biologically diverse destination, and we’ve always gone out of our way to offer the best of both worlds to our guests who visit the Galápagos,” says Austin. “With this webinar, we hope to answer a lot of reoccurring questions regarding the ideal ways to visit these unique islands.”

The webinar is open to consumers, members of the media and travel agents. Participants who book an Austin Adventurers Galápagos vacation by December 5 will receive a free gift. Austin Adventures will also cover the cost of their Galápagos National Park entrance fee ($100) and transit control card ($10).

Fun facts about the Galápagos:

• Abundant fearless wildlife, visitors can get up close and personal to some of the world’s rarest animals
• The Galápagos was home to the only surviving giant Pinta tortoise, ‘Lonesome George’ which unfortunately died in June 2012.
• The convergence of three major oceanic currents brings an incredible mix of marine life to Galápagos
• The endemic Galápagos marine iguana is the only lizard to swim in the ocean