Galapagos Cruise Reviews

Celebriity did an awesome job in all phases of this vacation!  The JW Marriott in Quito was a nice land base. Good restaurants, shops, and rooms. Nice Quito tour. The trip from Quito to Baltra was well organized and Celebrity' handled everything! We left our luggage at the hotel and it showed up in our room on the Xpedition! FYI no liquids allowed in luggage to the Gallapogos it all needs to be in your carry-ons! Bought a wide brined hat for $20 at the airport in Baltra! Best investment I made! Transition to the Xpedition was easy and rooms were ready when we arrived along with lunch. Lectures on board by the naturalists were informative along with videos and constant attention on excursions. The pace was creatively set up to accommodate all agendas with different opinions available every day.  They really want everyone to be able to do what they like. Groups are small and plenty of down time is available and you really do not have to participate in excursion if you don't want to go out.  Transport back to Quito and airport departure was well organized. Bring plenty of sun screen , water shoes of some kind, sun hat, a few sun protective shirts , and be prepared to have a really fun educational vacation! The ship was amazing and so much fun! 

Best Price Guarantee  -  Celebrity Cruises offers a “Best Price Guarantee” but pay attention to the fine print.  In my case, this was nothing but an empty gesture.  In December 2016, I booked a May 14 sailing.  I made the full payment in January as this was the due date.  In March, I noticed that they were advertising a cabin in the same category on the same cruise for $1,000 less.  When I called to ask about this “Best Price Guarantee”, I was told that I do not qualify for any refund or concessions because this was after the due date of final payment.  While I do understand the cruise line’s reluctance to part with money that they have pocketed, I thought they should have offered me some shipboard credit that I can use for laundry, gift shop purchases or, at least give the crew a generous tip if the services were good.  Again, read the fine print!

The crew and naturalists of the Xpedition were outstanding. We had a wonderful trip and they catered to our every need. They were always willing to go the extra for any of us. What a wonderful experience. Don't miss it!!

Excellent Silversea service and name remembrance except at lunch and sometimes dinner when something is ordered but it never comes or you have to be assertive to get someone to take your order.  Expedition cruises often have smaller rooms but it was beautifully equipped and excursion memories will last a lifetime!

We have multiple cruises under our belt and have been all over the world. This cruise experience is like no other. Service and professionalism has taken a back seat ever since COVID except for this cruise. From flights, transportation, organization, attention to detail and service this cruise has been the pinnacle of all my cruises.

Go. Sail on the Flora. You’ll not regret the experience.

GALAPAGOS REVIEW We just returned from the August 25, 2019 Inner Loop sailing on the Flora. It was a trip of a lifetime and Celebrity exceeded our expectations!!! From the minute we stepped off the plane until the minute we flew home, they were right there taking care of all the logistics...ticketing, transfers, documentation, luggage, etc. It's also the first time on a cruise that we had a ZERO balance on the last day!!! For our experience, I found that my Chaco sandals were good for the beach hikes, but was very thankful to have trail shoes (Columbia trail running shoes) to navigate the rocks and lava fields. Plenty of people wore regular sneakers, which was OK, but they did slip on dusty rocks at times. There were 2 times they recommended long pants/sleeves, but I'm not really sure why? It was not necessary. The naturalists and the tender drivers stay covered head to toe at all times to protect from the sun. I'm from Georgia and don't like to be cold, but had the attitude that I could withstand it for a 45 minute snorkel!!! One time, I had to talk myself off the ledge because the cold water took my breath away upon entry. Once I regained my composure, it was totally worth it to see the turtles feeding on algae! I felt good about my clothing choices. No one cares what you wear. I would say most were dressed "nice" for dinner, but I did see some in jeans and even one couple in gym clothes. I usually wore a sun dress or pants with a cute top. Men wore jeans or slacks with a shirt. I also felt like I needed to look the part of adventurer, but that is not the case. The dry wicking shorts are nice and I used a PFG long sleeve shirt as my top layer. If you go straight from a hike to snorkel, wear your swim suit as there is nowhere to change!!! I'm sure it would be frowned upon, but we figured out to take a washcloth with us to brush the sand from our feet after a wet landing. As for the underwater camera...I had a Fuji, but it filled with water on day 3. Before that, it took great pictures. I'm sure it was user error as many people had the same camera. One thing I realized is that I was freer to enjoy the snorkel without worrying about the perfect shot. At the end of the cruise, they do give you a USB with pictures from the week. Travel and tourism in the Galapagos is HIGHLY regulated, so you cannot just jump in the water anytime you want...or walk anywhere either. There were a couple of times, when we didn't have far to cruise, that we would just sit until it was our appointed time to disembark. We sat looking at nice calm water with a white sand beach in the distance but were stuck on the ship. By the time we snorkeled, the water there was choppy. That is my only complaint and Celebrity has nothing to do with it!!! The "deep water snorkel" is the best and you don't have to be super experienced...you just can't touch the bottom. They do give you a talk the night before each island to discuss excursion options and level of difficulty. Obviously, this is subjective, but we felt they might have put a little too much emphasis on "strenuous" or "fitness walk." I'm 51 and in decent shape. I walk a lot for exercise and found all the walks easy. My 81 year old mom would not agree. According to my Fitbit, the hike that went by Darwain's Lake was 33 flights of stairs. The one on Bartolome was 402 stairs plus some incline. All of the hikes had stops along the way for the naturalists to talk and point out critters. A disappointment for us was there was no snorkeling the last 2 days. The Darwain Tortoise Center was good, but I could've breezed through there and then snorkeled. I did not need all of the allotted time to shop. As stated the food is good. The breakfast was basically the same everyday, but yummy. The Grill is great for lobster, but I did hear someone say they will bring it to you in the MDR if you ask. The french fries are not worth the calories. I enjoyed the cultural food and different ceviche everyday. There was a family on our cruise with 4 kids ages 9-15. They were wonderful and added a great touch of fun to our week. I did hear that the week before had some challenging kids. As with any cruise, you never know what people will be there. We had a great group by week's end. There were those who kept to themselves and others who formed connections as the week went by. Celebrity provides you with a water bottle, poncho (needed once), lip balm and a string backpack. As noted, you must have your bags out the night before the cruise and the last night of the cruise. I wish I had had a bigger backpack or carry-on for this purpose. Hope this helps!! Have a great trip to the Galapagos. You will NEVER regret it or forget it!!!!

Love the Galapagos . Have much respect for the people who put their hearts into the conservation of their homeland

Overall the Flora and all of the Excursions on all of the Islands was Spectacular. We met a great deal of nice people who were so excited about biding the Galápagos Islands. The major Flaws were the toilets that would not flush and the floor drains in the bathroom overflowing. We travel Celebrity quite often and the Employees and Management did not come up to the Celebrity Standards. All employees need to be adequately trained before they come on the ship to serve the Guest. We all paid Big $$$s to go in this cruise and most of us felt we did not get the Suite Service we were told to expect. The food quality was Not up to Celebrity Standards. We had huge shrimp one night and they were mushy and taste terrible. I had the Executive Chef come to my table and take the shrimp away and see the problem. He returned and told me the shrimp were bad. He never replace them or brought me something else. These staffing & food quality problems can be easily solved with proper management.

Awesome. No complaints. Staff was wonderful and friendly. The ship was clean. Food was very good and a wide variety of choices

Adventure cruise for the active cruiser. This would be difficult but possible for someone with limitations. The crew and naturalists go above and beyond to give each person the best experience. We had two naturalists who were there 9 years ago! They are still passionate about what they do and very knowledgeable. Highly recommend this cruise. The price is steep but the service and “all included” is worth it!

It is really too bad that Celebrity is moving away from the 16 person ship. We had 6 of our friends with us so we felt like we had our own charted boat. Even if just a couple, you will feel that way. We knew all the crew quickly and they knew us as well. I would definitely recommend Celebrity for the Galapagos. I don't see how another company (i.e. Lindblad) could do much better. Seems like it was a bit cheaper also.

It was my best cruise, because, it was so beautiful to see the animals on their environement and the islands and all the team of the cruise, give their best and we feel in the beginning of the world and the respect of the nature is an exemple for all the world. In the ship, leaves the naturalists , that are from Galapagos and explain all to us. We feel in an true expedition...

Not all ports were landings, some were ‘drive-bys’ (Zodiac trips). We had a great time on this cruise. It is not like the big ships but given the size of the boat, the crew did a great job of making this a great trip. Lots of close animal encounters. This is a very casual cruise so don’t over pack. Lots of snorkeling and beach landings. Zodiacs are the only way on and off of the boat so you have to be physically able for this cruise. Several of the shore excursions are very rigorous and not for folks that are not in shape. Having said that, I am 76 and did all of the hikes.

Great trip Lots of great geology flora and fauna. Structured all inclusive trip.

A most memorable journey!! It was well worth the wait for us and I urge perspective travelers to take this trip while still in good health. It is a physical trip that requires stamina.

No keys to the cabins (the cabins do not lock). The TV is only connected to a portable dvd player. The rooms did not have binoculars, robes, tissues orny other ammenities for the first cruise.  When I complained to Celebrity they told me that it was the first cruise so what should I expect. With regard to the rooms not locking, Concierge Dianna ( who claims to be the point person for Celebrity CEO Lisa LP) to me the brochure never said the cabin doors lock.  WOW. Celebrity had no clue.  

The part of the expedition run by the National Park was excellent.