The Adventure Company: Walking in a Winter Wonderland!

This week, keen adventurer, Kerry Ovenden gives us a sneaky peek at her travel diary whilst on holiday in Finland with her boyfriend.



I went to Finland last February with my boyfriend. Our flights to Finland were a bit chaotic but we made it in the end. We arrived at night so we couldn’t really see anything when we arrived but our guides met us at the airport and took us to the hotel, they were very friendly. Hotel Inarin Kultahovi is situated on the edge of a river, which at this time of year is frozen over and is a very warm and welcoming place to stay. Apparently at this time the lake could hold the weight of a car but I won’t be testing that theory!



The next morning we were so keen to explore that we rushed outside without our thermal suits on! Inari is amazing, everything was covered in glistening snow and the air was really clear. It is a very small village with only a petrol station, two gift shops, a pub, museum and a hotel, so it is very quiet. The pub has a sign outside which tells you the temperature and throughout our stay, it remained about -7 degrees in the day.



On our first day, we went to collect our outdoor equipment and clothing to keep us warm when taking part in the many activities on offer (we had access to the snow shoes, toboggans, and skis etc throughout the week). Our first activity was cross country skiing, our guides gave us tuition at first but then we could have a go by ourselves. In the afternoon we had some free time.

Day two we went out to explore on snow shoes. We saw a lot of wild reindeer and our guides told us all about the wildlife in that area. In the afternoon, we went to visit a local reindeer farm, where we were able to feed the reindeer. We then went to have a drink in a kota which is a traditional Sami wooden house, with a fire in the middle. In the kota, we had a traditional drink called glogi (hot berry juice) in a carved wooden cup. The owners of this farm told us a lot about the area and their ways of life and also explained to us the importance of the reindeer for food, clothing and income, through crafts made from their antlers. At the end of our visit we had a reindeer driving test on a sleigh.




Day three: A visit to the Siida Museum to learn about the local area and the local people and an afternoon snowmobile excursion. We all had chance to drive the snowmobiles across the frozen lakes and on our journey, we saw reindeer and stopped to visit a wilderness church. The ride across the frozen lake was very bumpy due to the ridges in the ice but it was great fun. We also stopped at a kota on an island in the middle of the lake. Inside the fire kept us really warm and our guides had brought sausages, cheese and bread as well as biscuits and glogi, which we cooked on the open fire. We were then shown how local people drill into the ice to catch fish before we drove back over the frozen lakes at sunset.


Each night we sat out by the lake hoping to catch the northern lights, but tonight was the first night we had seen them. They are quite eerie but amazing to watch. Everyone at the hotel had gathered to watch them, it is an unbelievable experience.

Day four: This morning we went tobogganing near our hotel and in the afternoon, we started our trip to the wilderness lodge by snowmobile. On our journey we met a local man who had set nets under the ice to catch fish and he explained to us how he did this; we watched as he pulled his fish out of the water. After sunset we arrived at the wilderness hut on a small island, it was the only building for miles and had no electricity. Here we had a nice dinner to warm us up, with water straight from the lake to drink. That evening, our guide went to the frozen lake to collect water for our sauna; he lit the path ways by candles, and it looked amazing. The only downside to our night in the middle of nowhere was the arctic toilet! Basically a port-a-loo outside, with barely any light! But that was all part of the adventure. In the evening, we sat around the warm fire talking to our guide about the snowmobile competitions that they have on this lake; in the springtime, local people race to see how far they can drive on the ice by snowmobile before falling in!


Day five: We returned to our hotel in the morning. Then we drove to a local husky farm. The afternoon here was amazing; we all went out on our sleighs for an hour and a half with six huskies pulling us along through the woodland. I sat in the sleigh to begin with; wearing reindeer skin to keep me warm and my boyfriend drove the sleigh. The dogs were so excited, they were just dying to run off and they were so friendly too! We stopped half way around the course to take photos and change driver, but the huskies were yelping and barking at us because they wanted to keep going. Now it was my turn to drive the sleigh. This involved putting my whole body weight onto some iron teeth to push them into the ice in order to stop the sleigh, which isn’t easy! When leaning from side to side to turn corners, we had to hold on tight because lots of people from our group went flying off the sleighs, around the bends, but no one got hurt! This was definitely the highlight of our trip. When we got back to the farm, we sat in a kota and had warm berry juice whilst listening to the owner of the farm tell us all about the huskies.




Day six: We spent the morning souvenir shopping before heading to the airport.

Finland has to be one of the best holidays I have been on. The guides were brilliant; they taught us so much about the local area and really looked after us. The activities were amazing and well planned and the food we ate was all local produce, for example: the food on the hotel menu included fish from the lake behind us. This trip combined all of the things I look for in a holiday: adventure, culture, relaxation and wildlife. A once in a lifetime experience!

If, like Kerry, you are keen to explore Finland, The Adventure Company offers two tours to the country, Wilderness Activity Week Teenage Adventure and Winter Wonderland Family Holiday. We also offer other winter adventures that promises fun and excitement, whether you are travelling on your own or with the family. For more details, please visit our website.

Thanks for reading,
The Adventure Company

The Adventure Company: Tikkas, Temples and the Taj Mahal: From Delhi to Kathmandu!

Nicola Mc Farlane, our Product and Commercial Director, took our Delhi to Kathmandu in November 2008. In this week's blog, she shares her experiences with us by giving us excerpts from the travel journal she kept during her time there.

The only way to describe the Delhi to Kathmandu trip is as an action packed journey through India and Nepal and something akin to a 'Planes, Trains and Automobiles', with the odd Ox cart, Elephant, rickshaw, dug out boat and light aircraft thrown in for fun!

Delhi
Having arrived into Delhi airport at 5am we said a quick hello to the rest of the group and headed off for a few hours rest before formal introductions to Abhi our tour leader (and soon to be friend) and other members of the group.
After a quick briefing we headed out on a ½ day tour of Delhi for our first flavour of Indian life, culture and the eagerly awaited curry, none of which disappointed. We visited the Jami Masjid, the principal mosque of Old Delhi, where some of the women in the group had to wear fetching art smocks to hide our arms which usefully doubled up as protection from the flocks of pigeons flying overhead. We headed onto the India Gate war memorial in New Delhi just as the sun was going down and locals began to promenade around the adjoining park, before returning back to the hotel for the first beer of the fortnight.



Agra
Anyone who has ever complained about crossing Waterloo Station at rush hour has clearly not been to an Indian train station at 6am. It was certainly a shock to the system for the 15 of us, half asleep, experiencing for the first time the madness and aromas of crowded Indian streets. Being typically British we stumbled our way through with our bags, apologizing as we went, whilst Abhi artfully managed to lead us to exactly where our carriage would stop and bundled us onto the train when it arrived ahead of the crowds. The train was a pleasant surprise with comfortable seats, where we were served with a basic breakfast and tea and the loos were even quite serviceable!

Arriving into Agra we headed straight to the The Taj Mahal where we met Sunil, our local guide for the day, who enthralled us with many great stories. Having spent time walking through the gardens, marveling at the architecture and taking the inevitable hundreds of photo’s (although we resisted the “Princess Diana seat” picture) we headed for our second curry of the trip which again was fantastic. After lunch we visited the stunning Red Fort which is more a walled palatial city and still home to the Indian military.



Orchha
Our second train station experience was much less hectic but our journey from Agra to Jhansi was equally as pleasurable as the first. After spending our first few days in India in the hustle and bustle of city life, arriving in the countryside at Orchha was such a contrast particularly as we were staying in a tranquil hotel with courtyard gardens and a small pool – perfect for a quick swim before lunch. We worked off our latest curry by walking into the village for a tour of the palaces and temples where it was fantastic to be almost the only tourists wandering freely around these ancient sites. Especially pleasing was the complete lack of the persistent street vendors of Delhi and Agra trying to foist their 'exclusive' wares on us.



We also learnt an important lesson for the rest of our stay that afternoon; don’t get too close to the rear end of a cow or, like one of our group, you may get a nasty and smelly surprise! We ended the day with drinks around an open fire in the hotel gardens with lots of chat and bonding with our fellow travellers

Khajuraho
The next day we set off mid morning (along with our hangovers) to Khajuraho on our first major road journey of the trip. The 4 hours flew by with so many sights to behold as we travelled through the countryside; such as villagers making fire bricks from the dung of their water buffalo stationed in the “front yard”, street markets selling everything from “fresh” fish to truck tyres and the ubiquitous roaming cows. However, these were a mere side-show to the fantastically chaotic Indian traffic fighting to negotiate the potholed tarmac or more often dirt roads. We became fascinated by the hierarchical system in place which denoted who gave way to whom and the level of horn tooting required to alert others of their presence. Pedestrians naturally were at the bottom of the heap, followed by cyclists (even those laden with 10 plastic garden chairs), then tuk-tuks, motorbikes (complete with the usual 3 passengers), cars, vans, hugely overloaded local buses and finally large brightly coloured trucks. But regardless of mode of transport there is always one thing that has priority over all else and that is the Holy Cow! These free roaming beasts must not be harmed and miraculously seem to escape injury even when standing in the middle of the M25 equivalent.

Arriving early afternoon we had time for lunch and a quick swim, before heading into town for the sound and lightshow at the temples and shopping in the market before dinner – another curry of course but no-one had tired of them yet! Our transport of choice that evening was a team of rickshaws who raced us to and from town in wacky races style.



Khajuraho / Varanasi
We awoke to unseasonal wet weather, reminiscent of a typical UK summer of warm drizzle and went off to be awed by the famous erotic temples which had been discovered in the jungle by the British 400 years ago. The mind boggled at some of the scenes depicted in the carvings and some photograph editing will need to be done prior to the holiday slideshow at home!



The plan for the afternoon was to be a quick internal flight to Varanasi, however what we didn’t count on was that Indian air traffic control and autopilot weren’t able to cope with typical foggy Gatwick conditions, and by late afternoon when the fog hadn’t lifted the flight was cancelled.

The challenge then was finding transport to get to Varanasi overland so we could stay on track with the itinerary. This proved difficult and although Abhi found a supplier of cars, he then had to find some drivers!, Eventually a Jeep, a people carrier, a saloon car and an old ambassador car arrived and we set out on what was to be a long, bumpy and uncomfortable night, finally arriving to Varanasi at 0930 the next day in time for a late breakfast.

Varanasi
After a few hours rest we were back on schedule with an afternoon tour. Then what better way to erase the memory of our overnight drive than a hilarious rickshaw ride through the manic streets of Varanasi to see the ritual prayers and sunset ceremony down by the River Ganges? This was awe-inspiring, with hundreds of spectators on the river banks and in small boats launching thousands of small flower/candle boats along the river, (said to release the spirits on dead relatives to the afterlife with a prayer). Abhi came up trumps again by finding us a great vantage point, which also happened to double as a stable for a couple of cows trying to have a snooze.



Once the ceremony was over we wound our way through the old city alleyways past many small shops and food stalls taking in all the smells (good and bad) before emerging on the banks of Mother Ganges and headed for dinner at a terrace restaurant with fantastic views overlooking the city and river.

Varanasi / Into Nepal
An early start this morning before sunrise took us back down to the ghats to board our small row boat for a cruise along the holy river. A flotilla of small boats drifted along full of tourists, passing more small flower boats drifting along in a haze of candle smoke to see the early morning ritual bathing, exercises/yoga and clothes being washed (even the white towels of local hotels were being bashed out on rocks along the river banks, alongside the rubbish).



Drifting back downstream we came to a large cremation site identified by the towers of wood and black smoked buildings. Walking back through the old town we stopped to have a cup of Chai from a street vendor. Initially concerned about the potential consequences, Abhi assured us we`d be fine due to the 10 minutes brewing ritual of boiling pots of water, then milk all done on a small stove fanned by a tiny electric fan and sure enough it tasted great. Walking through the narrow streets we found hidden temples, dodged cows, saw a monkey electrocuted on the tangled overhead electric cables and finally came across a group of locals restraining a thief who had just tried to steal an old ladies gold chain. They kindly paused their street justice beating to let our group pass along the narrow alley, all just a normal day in the streets of Varanasi.

We were then on the road again, northwards to the Nepalese border where first we signed out of India, before crossing the road to the Nepal immigration office, paid the entry fee and headed to our hotel for the night in Lumbini.

Lumbini / Pokhara
We visited the site of the birthplace of Buddha first thing, taking a walk through the colourful prayer flags stretching across the park where many monks were praying, past the eternal flame and around the lake where at first glance we thought we’d seen Buddha himself riding a Harley!



Our next journey was amazing as we flew up to Pokhara in a small 18 seater plane through clear sunny skies which afforded fantastic views over the Annapurna mountain range. Being a private charter the pilots were happy to invite each of us up to the cockpit to take pictures of the full range which was spectacular.



After what had been a busy few days with a lot of travelling we had some down time in Pokhara to relax. Whether that meant a few hours by the pool, a hassle free shopping experience or leisurely lunches by the lake with a cold beer in hand, it was certainly enjoyed by all in the group.

Pokhara
Our first and only lie-in of the trip prepared us for our mid morning canoe ride across Phewa Lake followed by a steep climb up to the World Peace Pagoda overlooking Pokhara. After an hours upward walk we were rewarded with fantastic views of the Annapurna range stretching along the horizon and a cold coke served by the enterprising lady in a shack.





Sunrise at Sarankot / Bandipur Village Stay
With the promise of a fantastic sunrise over the Annapurna we all dutifully rose at 0530 to drive to the hilltop village of Sarankot but our luck hadn’t improved and due to the heavy cloud the sun never appeared! However the full English breakfast served at the Himalayan Encounters office on the way back made up for our disappointment and set us up for the drive to the traditional hillside village of Bandipur.

After a late lunch we took a walk around the village and surrounding countryside accompanied by many of the local children who were just finishing school for the day. We called into the village hospital to see some of the good work being done by volunteers there to improve the conditions and got back just in time for a beer as the sun set behind the hills and dinner was served around the camp fire.



Chitwan National Park
One of the highlights of the trip for many of us was the Elephant back safari through the jungle and grass lands of Chitwan. We climbed onboard early on our second day in the park and headed into the long grasses and across the river in search of Rhino. There was a great variety of bird life to view as we went and we also spotted monkey and deer. Then just as we had given up hope of seeing Rhino a mother and baby appeared through the morning mists in the undergrowth, which made our day.





Continuing the wildlife theme with an afternoon canoe trip on the Rapti River with our expert bird spotting guide, we saw the 'mugger' & 'gharial' crocodiles basking in the afternoon sun on the banks before settling by the river ourselves for sundowners and the sunset.



Bhaktapur
Back on the road for the long drive to the Kathmandu valley we finally arrived in the ancient town of Bhaktapur early evening after being delayed due to traffic congestion. We had a quick dinner followed by a well planned early night because although the hotel has a great location in the centre of town, it does mean a dawn wake up call from the ringing prayer bells accompanied by the local dogs barking choir!



We only had time for a quick tour around Bhaktapur which, as a World Heritage site is recognized by UNESCO for its abundant rich culture, temples and artworks in wood, metal and stone, which we found as we made our way through some of the narrow alleyways and past the potters square where they were still using the traditional methods.

Kathmandu
Finally onto the last stop of the trip, Kathmandu. Eagerly awaited by many, it didn’t disappoint and we first headed to the cremation site and Temple complex of Pashhupatinath on the banks of the holy Bagmati River. After the obligatory stop to photograph a Sadhu we moved onto the Buddhist temple of Swayambhunath and finally a walk through the famous Durbar Square via a labyrinth of crowded streets and the markets of the Thamel area where we all indulged in some retail therapy.



Having come to the end of the trip, there was only one highlight left, a scenic flight to see Mt. Everest. The very early wake up call was certainly worth it as we boarded our small plane just after sunrise to fly along the edge of the Himalaya towards Everest for some spectacular photo opportunities.

The trip had given us all a great insight into the cultures of Indian and Nepalese life and every day had offered a new sight, sound, smell (not always pleasant!) or photo opportunity, leaving a desire to return in the future to experience more.

Whilst most of our group were seasoned `adventure tour` travellers there were a few first time sceptics amongst us who all seemed to be won over by this fantastic experience of sharing so much with a great and varied bunch of people. Under the expert leadership of Abhi we had travelled hundreds of miles across the two countries but never once tired of setting off on a new day of discovery. All in all a fantastic adventure that will be forever remembered and relived during every Indian meal back home!

Nicola went on our Delhi to Kathmandu trip. If you are looking for a trip to India, The Adventure Company offer 13 different tours, which include solo, group or family holidays. For more information, please visit our website.

Thanks for reading,
The Adventure Company

The Adventure Company: Top Ten Family Adventure Travel Tips!

If like most Britons you’re taking just one family holiday this year, the pressure’s on to make it a good one.

It’s hardly surprising in these cash-strapped times that growing numbers of families are opting for an adventure-based holiday to get the most thrills out of their single trip away. Whilst the benefits of an adventure tour are endless, the amount of planning and organising can be daunting for first-timers.

Follow our Top Ten Tips for Family Adventure Travel to make your time away sail smoothly.

1.Book Online
When you have limited time to research your dream trip, surfing the net will save you money as well as the drag of going to travel agents with the kids in tow on a busy Saturday.



Travel companies are targeting busy mums and dads and posting their latest and best deals online first. Since brochures have been printed, pricing may have changed and this could benefit you. An example of this is our Tiger Trails and Taj Mahal trip. Since the brochure was printed, it’s dropped by up to £300 per person. For a family of four to go, the customer would save up to £1,060 at the moment, so get online!

2.Book flights separately
Yes, this can be a hassle but it’s well worth it as you’ll usually get a far better deal and keep the overall cost of the holiday down.



The Adventure Company’s trips are available on a flight inclusive or land-only basis. If you are flying as a family, its normally cheaper to book land-only and fly with budget airlines, which is why we’ve introduced the “Find and Book” system to help you. Our reservations team will advise you of the cheapest flights on offer to get you to your chosen tour destination and make the booking for you. This is particularly useful if you’re flying out of regional airports.

3.Involve the kids in planning
Get the kids excited about the destination before they go! On average, people like to buy three guidebooks if visiting a new destination.



If you have young children, pick one with plenty of pictures, and encourage older children to hit the net and read up on the country by visiting Wikitravel.org. Set a challenge amongst older kids and teens as to who can find the best facts about where you are heading to.

4.Packing wise
Every parent will fret about packing days in advance, and we’re sure you won’t forget the vital items your brood will need. However, our top three, pop-in-your-rucksack-just-in-case items are:



Baby Wipes: No matter how old your kids are, you will need these, especially on an adventure holiday where you are likely to be hot, sticky and sometimes in the middle of nowhere with no amenities.
Small Bottle of Detergent: If a whole family are going away together, you’ve probably insisted everyone packs lightly. They may well have, but it doesn’t stop them or you getting dirty. Small packets of detergent, which can be used in hotel or bathroom sinks, will mean you can keep clothes fresh.
First Aid Kit: Obviously, your guide will be trained and adequately equipped, but making sure you have your own supplies as back up is vital. Alongside this, it’s worth packing any medicines the kids may occasionally have back home such as Piritin and Bendryl.

5.Make the most of the flight
Time spent on the plane can be the most challenging part of your adventure trip! Again, planning in advance is vital. Some airlines have seat plans available on site, as do sites like seatguru.com.




Find out meals in advance too, and if you think the in-flight entertainment won’t be good enough, bring your own.

6.Toys
Choose the toys you plan to bring carefully. Teenagers will probably insist on their ipod, PS3, and mobiles- but only let them bring one gadget – you don’t want them to miss out on key experiences whilst away. For younger kids, forget toys with small parts, as these will get lost. Never forget the favourite teddy.



Also bring a small selection of art supplies – they are going to be seeing some amazing sights and drawings or diaries are a really creative way of documenting their experience. For very young children, buy one or two new toys and give it to them as a treat on the flight – maybe then you’ll get to enjoy some of the on-flight film!

7.Culture Shock
Prepare yourself and the kids for a shock if you are travelling to an unfamiliar place. In poorer destinations, or those which are really “off the beaten track”, the locals may find the kids in your group of amusing interest. Their friendliness, if you’re used to the civil politeness of villages, or downright rudeness of London, could be unsettling.



Find out about the local customs before you go, and explain these to the kids so they understand how to behave.

8. Make yourself at home!
If you’ve decided on an adventure holiday, you probably shouldn’t expect five-star accommodation. But you can expect rooms or tents to be clean, spacious and most importantly, safe. To make putting the kids down at night go a little smoother, make sure you pack favourite blankets or pyjamas.



Turn a foreign room into a fun den, by bringing a favourite book, a wind-up torch, and pack a cheap battery operated nightlight.

9. Stamina
Whilst you shouldn’t expect to be tested to your limit on your trip, families should be healthy enough to complete their holiday without much struggle. If you are concerned about the kids’ level of fitness, we’d recommend taking them on a morning’s walk once every weekend before you go. Buy their backpacks early so they get used to wearing them when completing activities. Then, gradually fill it with things they may need: a change of clothes, a bottle of water, snacks, sunglasses, hat etc so they can get used to the weight.



Alongside this, if you are planning on doing any watersports or rowing whilst away, take a family trip to the nearest lake and rent a boat so smaller kids can get used to being on the water. Another bonus of these tasks is that the family will establish ways of working together and being in the same situations for long periods of time.

10. Set your mind at ease
Most importantly, you want to enjoy this trip too. Take some time out to relax and run through your to-do list before you leave. Make a visit to the doctor and check there are no jabs required and all the kids’ vaccinations are up to date – you don’t want any niggling worries to ruin your trip!



If you are looking for a family adventure holiday, The Adventure Company has plenty of suitable trips available – plus some bargain deals! Choose from fun-packed itineraries in destinations including Thailand, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and India. You can find the full list here

Thanks for reading,
The Adventure Company

The Adventure Company: Wondrous Wildlife in Ecuador and Galapagos!

This week, our blog comes from Kerry Ovenden who recently went on our Ecuador and Galapagos trip with her brother:



"I had never thought about travelling to the Galapagos before, I didn’t even know that much about it, however last year when my sister dropped out of a trip booked for her and my brother to go to the Galapagos; I just couldn’t turn down the chance to travel.



We started our journey in august 2008. We had a long flight (13hours) but it all ran ok. When we arrived in Ecuador it was a real culture shock; as we stopped at traffic lights there were women and children leaning in the car windows trying to sell us sweets and food. We were staying in Quito which was a bustling city, but very poor with quite high crime rates however, our guides made sure we knew how to keep safe in the city and we were well looked after.

The town of Quito is squashed in between volcanoes and a valley, which made for an impressive view from our hotel room window; it is also situated at 2500 metres above sea level.





The next day we headed to the Galapagos, everyone was stretching on the plane to see out the windows we were all desperate to get our first view of the islands. As we landed on Baltra we realised that the runway was the length of the island and the airport was a small hut with only two walls and when we had gone through arrivals we had to go around the side of the building to collect our luggage off the floor!

From the airport we travelled by bus across the island and then onto the next island: Santa Cruz by boat with our luggage just lying on the roof of the boat! We took this time to take in the scenery; the islands appeared very barren with cacti everywhere, the air was humid with a sea breeze and the only populated place on the islands is Santa Cruz which is like a small village.

We found our boat at Tortuga bay; as we waited for our water taxi we got our first glimpse of wildlife: Frigate birds, pelicans, sally light foot crabs and marine iguanas. On board we explored our ship, before our first outing back onto Santa Cruz to the highlands to see the giant tortoises and the lava tunnels. That evening we returned to the boat for dinner.





Our cruise of the islands had begun, we visited: Rabida, Barthlome, North Seymour, south plaza, Santa fe, Espanola and Florena. Every island varied in scenery but every single one was amazing.



We saw a lot of animals: each island had sea lions, crabs, land and marine iguanas and lava lizards, however as we visited each island the lizards and iguanas varied in size and colour. The animals aren’t frightened of humans so you can get very close to them.





There is a rule on the islands, that you mustn’t touch any of the animals or take anything off of the islands and each time we returned from an island to the boat our feet were hosed off by the crew.





The group we were travelling with on the boat were all from different countries but due to the size of the boat the group gelled and we all became great friends. The crew on the boat were very friendly, only the guides spoke English but we all tried to communicate.



Every morning we woke and went up on deck to watch the sunrise before breakfast, we knew when our meals were ready because a bell was rung and everyone rushed to our dining area! The food was amazing considering the size of the kitchen.




Each day we would travel to an island, and explore and then snorkel. Under the water you could swim with beautiful fish and sea lions but the highlight for me was seeing my first giant sea turtle.




Sea turtles are huge and so graceful. Snorkelling was such an amazing experience; our group would be swimming in the clear waters and suddenly someone would shout “look” we would all race to them and share the experience of swimming with the sea turtles or a small shark or just a big school of fish.



I think I saw four or five sea turtles throughout the trip. Other highlights were seeing rays, sharks and sea lions swimming alongside our boat and a visit to North Seymour islands allowed us to watch the amazing mating dance of the blue footed boobies.



As we travelled frigate birds followed our boat and rested on the rigging as we lay below sunbathing and hoping that nothing dropped on our heads! At night we enjoyed lying on the sun beds up on deck under the stars and listening to the waves.

After eight days at sea we returned to Santa Cruz to visit the Charles Darwin centre where we met the famous lonesome George.



Flying back to Ecuador, as we sat on the plane we reflected upon the last eight days and a feeling of sadness came over us when we realised that very few people will get the opportunity to visit these amazing islands.

I recommend this amazing adventure to everyone!"

Kerry went on our Ecuador and Galapagos trip. If you are looking for a holiday in Ecuador, or are looking to travel the Galapagos Islands, visit our website for more information.