Times are changing rapidly again in the Galapagos, and not
for the best, especially for cruisers. Apparently a new law has been passed,
augmenting the Galapagosian motto of “sustainable tourism = less tourists who
pay more money”. From 2014 every person
visiting the islands by boat (possibly by land as well), will have to pay $300,
meaning that a cruising couple has to put down $600 daily, for the privilege of
being here! Based on that new law, few sailboats will visit the Galapagos, or
even more will try to pull off the 72-hour emergency stop. This will also lead
to agents losing their job, water taxis sitting idle and restaurants and other
shore facilities receiving fewer customers. One can only imagine how this will
affect the local economy. Yet another place where only the rich will be able to
afford a visit… until the tide changes again in a few years. With that in mind,
not many people will probably benefit from this blog post, but in case these
are all just rumors, here we go!
Agents
There are two ways (well, three if you count the 72-hour
emergency stop) to legitimately visit the Galapagos islands by private boat.
You can just show up in one of the three main ports (Puerto Baquerizo Moreno –
San Cristobal, Puerto Ayora - Santa
Cruz, or Villamil - Isabela) , get hold of an agent via the local VHF channel
(or they might offer their services coming directly to your boat) and stay for
20 days, in the one port. Cost: around $500 for boats under 40 feet. The second
option is to contact an agent ahead of time through email and arrange for an
autografo, which are limited. This piece of paper allows you to visit the three
main ports and stay up to two months in the archipelago. You still have to get in touch with your agent
when you arrive in one of the ports and deal with an inspection and the
necessary paperwork. Moving between the three ports also requires checking in
and out of each harbor. The agents do their job, but nothing more. Our
experience with Bolivar (San Cristobal) is that once he has his money (a lot!),
you don’t see him around anymore and he becomes less responsive and responsible
over email.
Some boats got in trouble in Isabela when their autografo
expired. They had asked for extensions well ahead of time, but both Bolivar and
his representative in Isabela, JC, had said they didn’t need one, to just “lay
low” and hang out, and everything would be fine. Not so much. One day, the port captain came
by, realizing what was going on and kicked all the “illegal” boats out! A
couple had twelve hours to prepare for the big voyage, another boat received
one hour notice! Not really how you want to start a three to four week sail
across the Pacific Ocean!
Cost
In regards to checking in fees and other harbor costs, I can
only speak for our boat Irie, which is a mere 35 feet. We had to pay $400 as an
agent fee and another $470 for port and other fees. $70 of that was an overtime
fee, because we checked in on a Saturday. So, if possible, avoid weekends and
holidays to check in or out of the (any) country. On top of that, we paid about
$15 for a zarpe (paper to allow you to travel to another port) the times we
left a harbor and $5 every time we arrived in a new port. So add about another
$60 to the lot. We counted on about $1000 to visit the Galapagos, so I guess we
succeeded. Truly the most expensive country Irie has visited. Of course, this
doesn’t account for other expenses and tours!
Life on the islands is affordable. We stocked up in Panama,
so we didn’t have to buy a lot of staples, other than fresh produce and some
beer to make our stock last longer. Fruits and veggies cost about $1 a pound,
big beers are about $2.50 with the returnable bottle costing 25 cents, a 2l
bottle of coke costs $3 including a $1 deposit, 1l of UHT milk costs between
$1.75 and $2. Souvenir T-shirts go for $13-$18. Most other things are imported
or arrive from mainland Ecuador and are a bit expensive. Eating out in local
restaurants is possible for $3-$5 a person, including a juice, soup and main
dish (fish, pork, beef or chicken). Drinking out is pretty pricey, but,
smuggling your own rum with you and mixing it with a purchased coke, makes this
work as well on random occasions. J
Isabela is more expensive than the two other islands we visited. Tours are very
expensive everywhere.
Services
Gasoline and diesel can be arranged through water taxi
drivers, but caution is required, as this is the illegal (and cheapest) way to
buy fuel. Word of mouth will help. You can purchase fuel through the agents,
but you will pay $1-$2 a gallon more. If you manage to make it to a gas station
on shore, you pay the tourist price, which is also around $4 a gallon for
diesel or gasoline (locals pay $1 for diesel and $1.45 for gasoline). In
Isabela (and maybe in the other towns as well?) you are required to obtain a
fuel certificate, which allows you to buy some. In Isabela, this piece of paper
costs an additional $15. The port captain can decide on a whim to put a halt to
the sale of this certificate, which happened at one point. But then, once he
wanted some boats out of the bay, he has the power to open gas stations (closed
for lunch) and suddenly things work very quickly!
Drinking water is a bit trickier. In San Cristobal, you
basically have to buy the 5 gallon jugs on shore and haul them to the boat,
empty the water in the tank and bring back the bottles for which you paid a
high deposit. We lucked out with some rain there. In Santa Cruz, you can do the same or contact
one of the water taxi drivers with your water request. He will fill up a
massive container and come to your boat, where you “tank” the desalinated water
into your boat and extra jugs. Very easy and efficient! We paid $25 for 70
gallons and he threw in a few extra for free. In Isabela, JC can arrange the guy
who desalinates water on his property. He will arrive with a massive tank in
his pick-up truck and you meet him at the dock with your (and your neighbors)
jugs to bring the required water back to your boat in as few trips as possible.
It worked OK for us, since we have a small tank. Two dinghy trips and $21 did
the trick to obtain 70 gallons.
Laundry can be dropped off ashore in any of the three
villages. You can have them do the whole service (wash-dry-fold) or just do the
washing and let the sun do the drying. In San Cristobal, we paid 50 cents a
pound for a full service treatment, in Isabela, the price was 50 cents a pound
for just washing. Do-it-yourself laundromats are non-existent.
Propane bottles can be filled in all three villages, using
the gravity procedure. The gas is relatively expensive, compared to other
countries. We paid $30 for a 20 pound tank. If you do it yourself, having the
correct fittings, it is much cheaper. You pay a deposit for the local tank, pay
a little bit for the gas (about $10),deal with the long procedure onboard and
swap the bottle back for your deposit.
Little grocery stores abound, but don’t expect anything like
Panama City or other western places. Santa Cruz is the best place to stock up
on things, since the supermarket on the waterfront is fully stocked and easily
accessible. All three villages have a few good bakeries with daily fresh bread.
In Isabela everything is closed between 12pm and 3pm!
Rules
There are many! All things considered, there are few places
you are allowed to venture yourself. With the big boat, you can only stop at
the one or three ports allocated to you. With the dinghy, you can only drive
the shortest distance between your boat and the dock. No sightseeing! For many
sights, you need the presence of a paid National Park guide. You are allowed to
swim around your boat, but don’t stray too far… Most of these rules, we knew
ahead and we gladly agree with. The Galapagos are a unique area and we all want
to keep it that way. Where we have a problem is when the “hypocrisy” comes into
play. Having massive wakes created by speeding tour boats and local fishing
boats in the bay where wildlife and people frequent the water. (Why is there no
speed limit? Why do the boats LOVE to drive as close as possible to anchored
sailboats?) Seeing park rangers smoke in
a hidden corner while smoking is prohibited. Watching the guy feeding the giant
tortoises at one of the institutes ignore the juvenile turtles on the ground
and stepping on top of them. Spotting many scars on turtles and sea lions, and
noticing a penguin with a hurt wing, realizing it is probably due to
inconsiderate drivers. Being annoyed with water taxis and other local boaters
not keeping an eye on the wildlife, just being their macho self.
I know most people in the Galapagos are very involved and
concerned with wildlife preservation and conservation, but, unfortunately,
there are always “the others” for whom time is money and money means the world…
Tours
It is hard not to do a tour, even though you already paid a
lot of money for being here. From
volcano hikes, to snorkel tours, island visits and boat trips, much is possible
and the whole archipelago is reachable by day trips or multiple day cruises.
For a price. Divers can take their pick from many possibilities offered. You can use tour agencies or your harbor agent
for an easy arrangement or you can try to skip the middle man and find better
prices. It all depends on your budget and time frame.
People who decide to visit the Galapagos by private boat
will not be disappointed, whether they stay for three weeks or two months. The
autografo allowed us to take it easy and do the sights at our own pace, for a
friend to be able to come and visit, for boat maintenance and chores to be
combined with sightseeing and wildlife watching, mostly from Irie itself. Getting an autografo costs about $200 more,
mainly agent fees, than staying in the one single port. We are happy we did it
the way we did it to give ourselves all the amazing opportunities we ran into
and to have plenty of time. If we were to pick only one port, however, we would
probably choose for Isabela. San Cristobal really pleased us as well (because
of the giant amount of sea lions and the freedom to visit places ourselves) but
the island of Isabela has interesting highlights and tours and you can meet all
the animal species from the other places here as well, which makes it stand
out. Plus, the laid-back atmosphere – very different from the two other ports
and towns - and amazing beach are attractions in themself!
Mark and I have a wealth, not of money – unfortunately – but
of time and adventures, and until not too long ago, age and health. Most
visitors coming to Bora Bora have the kind of wealth that comes to mind first
when you talk about wealth: the money kind, the big bucks, the means to go on
fancy vacations. All those pretty over-the-water bungalows, or villas as they
call them here, look very attractive. Sure, you can see the neighboring huts,
or the ones from the next resort over, but some sort of privacy is offered, the
water underneath looks very appealing, the comfort level is very high end, and
the view of the lagoon and Bora Bora’s mountain is suburb. All the resorts on
the motus (outer islands) have upscale restaurants and “private” beaches, and
offer all the luxury one can imagine. No wonder this place is a prime honeymoon
destination.
But, what does all that cost? Mark and I were curious and
went online to have a look. The average over-the-water accommodation costs about
$1000 a night. That is without meals or even breakfast. Depending on the
location and the size of the villa you prefer, costs go up to about $10,000 for
one night. The resorts on the “mainland” of Bora Bora are generally cheaper –
some even half price; wow, only $500 a night! - than the ones on the motus. We briefly
played with the idea of going out for a meal or a drink in one of the places, since
we have so many past occasions we never celebrated. We even went ashore at the
St. Regis – one of the top resorts on Bora Bora – to get some information. The
hostess was eager to get our business – despite our raggedy outfit (we really
don’t fit in with the crowds here) – but didn’t have much useful information to
tell us. “If you have to ask, you can’t afford it!” 
Back online, the dinners ranged from about $40 to over $100
a piece, the sushi was outrageously priced. Bottles of wine started at $30, I
believe, but the bigger selection was more in the $70 price range for one
bottle. You could even buy a Cuban cigar for the same amount of money. The desserts
were priced like a dinner in the more down-to-earth places of the western world.
Fresh coconut water, straight out of the nut with a straw, went for $10, while
on the street in Fare, such an ice cold and tasty local refreshment costs $1.
And, that is probably about the going rate for everything at the resorts – ten
to one. A bit disgusted by all this (they even charge $30 a day for WiFi if you
stay there!), and not even feeling up for spending $8 a beer or $5 a soda, we
stayed on Irie, made ourselves a drink and enjoyed the same marvelous view for
free. I guess we are your typical kind of cruiser after all… :-)
One afternoon, while we stayed on a mooring ball off the Mai Kai marina and yacht club, I took advantage of their pretty infinity pool. It
had been many years, since I dipped my toes in some fresh water to cool off,
and the feeling of just sliding in and having all the tiredness and hotness
leave my weightless body was amazing. I met the (well-paid and hardworking) crew
of the mega yacht Noble House (on which we received a tour by the departing
captain later), which was docked at the marina. The friendly folks enriched me
with stories of how the “other side” lives and offered me a delicious glass of
white wine. In the evening, Mark and I joined them again for some social times
and drank the happy hour beers and wine. Spending a reduced price of $12 for
two glasses of fair tasting wine (beers are two for one during happy hour, wine
is half price for the second glass) made me crave one of the glasses the mega
yacht crew was drinking. While they drank, ate, and laughed the night away,
fitting in with their nice clothes and chic demeanor, Mark and I walked back to
our dinghy barefoot (the soles had come off my recently purchased flip flops)
and went home to drink water and eat leftovers.
Nevertheless, despite all the boat wake and trash burning, and
despite some tinges of jealousy of the happily spending and enjoying
vacationers, we are fortunate and glad to be able to be here, rich in our own ways,
and to combine our daily work schedule and boat chores with the beauty of these
Society Islands, savoring (almost) everything they have to offer. Improving the performance of
the wind meter: check. Cleaning Irie’s bottom and waterline: check. Sewing some
ripping seams on the bimini: check. Cleaning the BBQ: check (no more grilling
until we sell the boat!). Fixing the outboard engine: almost check! Writing
articles and finishing up the new Wirie products: getting there… Busy times on
Irie, as always. :-)
