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daisychain01_gw

sue, mtn, others re: Galapagos tips

daisychain01
9 years ago

Hi there. Hoping for some help with planning my 15 year old DDs school trip.

They are going to Quito and the Galapagos for about 2 weeks in March. Most details are taken care of by the school but we do need to take care of a few things ourselves.

One of the things we are worried about is how to send spending money. We understand that US currency is used in the islands. We think she will need about $500. I was thinking of sending some cash, but also one of those pre-paid Visa cards. Do you think they would accept these at restaurants or if she had to buy travel tickets?

Another concern is the Yellow Fever vaccine. We've heard differing reports about whether she should have it or not. Did you?

Any other advice or info would be greatly appreciated. So hard to send her so far away without us!

Comments (17)

  • tibbrix
    9 years ago

    I'm afraid I can't answer any of your questions, but I did want to pipe in to say that my sister went to the Galapagos islands a few years ago, and the photos she took were jaw-dropping amazing.

    Also to suggest your daughter find the mailbox on Galapagos. It's just a box on a tree, and everyone puts their postcards in there, addressed to whomever, but then THEY go through the post cards to see if there are any for anyone near where they live, and if so, they bring them home and deliver them. THAT is the postal delivery system.

    So, for example, my sister found a postcard to someone in Wellesley, MA, and gave it to me to deliver, since I lived near there at the time. I found the house, which was being renovated, so I left a note on the door for the woman to call me, which she did the next day, and she couldn't believe I had the postcard SHE had put in the box to see if it would get to her.

    Lol.

  • funnygirl
    9 years ago

    We didn't get the yellow fever vaccine (went last spring). As far as spending $$$, we used cash and credit cards.

  • maire_cate
    9 years ago

    If I remember correctly Mtn is on vacation now - she should have some great suggestions when she returns.

    Is your school planning on having a meeting for the parents and students soon? My kids all went on various travel excursions out of the country with our school and they always had an informative meeting with parents to discuss money, insurance, passport protection, what to pack and my personal favorite - behavior.

    And they always repeated past incidents to the parents as a reminder of what happens when a student goes awry - like the girl who tried to steal the flotation device from underneath her airplane seat or the kid who photocopied $20.00 bills and tried to pass them at the airport.

    This post was edited by maire_cate on Mon, Dec 29, 14 at 13:59

  • fawnridge (Ricky)
    9 years ago

    I was there in 2010 and we used cash and credit cards the same as we use them at home. Did not get vaccinated for Yellow Fever, but if there's an outbreak now, I would get the shot to be sure.

    The most important consideration is shoes. Everything is about the walking. Very little of it is on flat surfaces, mostly walking across old lava flows and on the beaches. Dry socks and shoes (sneakers) become your best friend.

    Make sure they spend some time Quito and get to see the sights and experience the culture. We flew in and out of Guayaquil and other than a huge mall next to the hotel, saw nothing but the airport.

  • sas95
    9 years ago

    I agree about the shoes being key. Much of the Galapagos trip is getting in and out of small boats, wading in shallow water, etc. The Keen sandals that were recommended to us before the trip were a lifesaver. They are great wading in water and have closed rubber toes so you don't stub your toes against rocks. And they dry quickly.

    We did not get vaccinated for yellow fever either.

    Fawnridge, we did walk around Guayaquil and found it quite interesting. As long as you stick to the city center it was safe. There was plenty of security patroling the area.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Good shoes for the Galapagos

  • sixtyohno
    9 years ago

    Only drink bottled water. 5 people on our trip missed part of the trip after stupidly drinking water in a restaurant. Quito is at 9000 feet, so one must acclimate to the altitude.

  • daisychain01
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thanks so much for the info. We are at 750 ft, so there will definitely be a need for acclimation.

    Wish I could get her to wear Keen's, but she hates them. We will definitely have to do some shoe shopping soon. She's done camp with canoe portages in her Chaco sandals so those might work. Oops, just remembered they were on the third floor in the house fire and are probably toast (hah! a pun). Might have to order more online.

    Good to know you were able to use credit cards. We will likely do the prepaid Visa and some cash.

    The school has had some meetings, but they don't seem to have answers to all our questions (or answers come slowly). Most of the service trips the school has done in the past have been to Europe so they are learning as they go (but I do have confidence in the teachers planning the trip. I also know them personally and know they are on the ball).

    We took my DD to the travel health clinic this afternoon and they recommended the yellow fever vaccine and malaria pills because she will be visiting a couple of low lying swampy areas.

    marie_cate, those stories are hilarious. We are at a small girl's school and haven't heard any outrageous tales (but that's not saying they don't happen :)

    Tibbrix, will definitely get her to look out for the mailbox. I'm looking forward to hearing all about it and seeing pix when she returns. I was a biology major and so wish I could go with her. I did offer my services as an extra chaperone since I work at the same school, but they said pretty much every teacher on staff had made the same offer, LOL.

    If anyone has any other advice or suggestions, we'd love to hear. Thanks!

  • funnygirl
    9 years ago

    Personally, I wouldn't be overly concerned about the shoes. My luggage was lost and didn't catch up with me until the end of the trip. Wore dh's walking sandals (Columbia? ) and did fine. The walks aren't very long.

  • sas95
    9 years ago

    Depends on the trip. We did really long walks and climbed huge hills.

  • tibbrix
    9 years ago

    I also really dislike Keen shoes. I bought a bunch because I thought they seemed really great, but they KILL my feet.

    LOVE Klogs - I have the Naples and Pisa (which fit like a glove. I LOVE them).

    How about Sperry Topsiders?

  • Sueb20
    9 years ago

    Wow, that's quite a school trip. We only visited one island -- Isabela Island -- and our experience was that most places (restaurants, bars, shops) did NOT accept credit cards. Our hotel and the restaurant IN the hotel did, but I think we had to pay cash almost everywhere else. I assume meals might be included in a school trip, but if any are not, I wouldn't assume that she can use a credit card. This may be entirely different on the other main island...I am blanking on the name of it now.

    We were advised that we did not need the Yellow Fever vaccine. We did get a few others, though, through the travel medicine dept. of our doctors office -- we were also given Rx meds in case of stomach issues and were also advised to bring Dramamine for motion sickness (we went on a few boats), a specific type of bug spray which I can't recall the name of now (we didn't need it), and a few other things. Sorry my memory isn't working too well but this travel medicine dept. was super helpful in giving us instructions and lists of things to bring.

    Bring good hiking shoes, not just sneakers. We found that out the hard way, slipping around on a very muddy walk up a mountain.

  • daisychain01
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thanks Sue! That's very helpful. She will be going to Isabela Island.

    And thanks for the pic. I've already showed her your other pics from the previous trip thread. So happy for her but so jealous :)

  • mtnrdredux_gw
    9 years ago

    Hi,

    What fun for her! Is it EFTours by chance? My son is taking a trip with them in June.

    I would be surprised if the tour does not include group meals? They usually do. I have no insight about cash needs. We went 7 or 8 years ago, and arranged a lot of the tours and such thru our hotel, the Royal Palms in Santa Cruz. I am sure the tour operator has done this many times so can give good advice. Generally, the exchange rate for cash USD will be far more favorable to the published rate, so cash is the way to go, but it has its attendant risks of course.

    We did not take any vaccines.

    You may want to consider getting the following from your Dr., just in case: Cipro, for intestinal distress, SCOP patches, for seasickness, and Diamox, for altitude sickness.

    I just used the Scop patches on a trip and they were so helpful. Made me a tad drowsy but totally solved motion sickness for me. We took Diamox in advance of our arrival in high altitude, and had mixed results. My one daughter seemed to get ill from it (though I can't be sure), so we all stopped taking it and were fine. But I know another family who could not have gotten thru their vacation without it.

    It felt odd to travel with 15 prescriptions (3 types for all 5 of us), but you don't want to have a problem on vacation in a lesser developed country ...

    I am sure she will have a blasT!

  • mtnrdredux_gw
    9 years ago

    Hi,

    What fun for her! Is it EFTours by chance? My son is taking a trip with them in June.

    I would be surprised if the tour does not include group meals? They usually do. I have no insight about cash needs. We went 7 or 8 years ago, and arranged a lot of the tours and such thru our hotel, the Royal Palms in Santa Cruz. I am sure the tour operator has done this many times so can give good advice. Generally, the exchange rate for cash USD will be far more favorable to the published rate, so cash is the way to go, but it has its attendant risks of course.

    We did not take any vaccines.

    You may want to consider getting the following from your Dr., just in case: Cipro, for intestinal distress, SCOP patches, for seasickness, and Diamox, for altitude sickness.

    I just used the Scop patches on a trip and they were so helpful. Made me a tad drowsy but totally solved motion sickness for me. We took Diamox in advance of our arrival in high altitude, and had mixed results. My one daughter seemed to get ill from it (though I can't be sure), so we all stopped taking it and were fine. But I know another family who could not have gotten thru their vacation without it.

    It felt odd to travel with 15 prescriptions (3 types for all 5 of us), but you don't want to have a problem on vacation in a lesser developed country ...

    I am sure she will have a blasT!

  • daisychain01
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Hi Mtn, thanks so much for the info. Most of the food, etc. is covered in the cost of the trip, but they've let us know that on some travel days, the girls are responsible for buying their own food. They do a few days in Ecuador first where they will be doing some service work prior to going to the islands.

    So nice that your son gets to go in June. Is he also going with his school?

  • mtnrdredux_gw
    9 years ago

    Yes, he is taking a trip through his school in June. I thought it might be the same tour operator since I think EFTours is pretty big in international school tours and I know they have a Quito/Galapagos trip (but he has been to the Galapagos, his group is going to China).

  • daisychain01
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    China! Wow. That is a major trip. Not her tour company, but we are in Canada.

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