We continued our tradition of allowing the boys to help choose a destination for our family vacation the year that they turn 10. For JB, it was a no-brainer. It’s hard to find a kid who loves animals more and the Galapagos ranked high on his bucket-list of wildlife-focused vacations. Located 1,000 km off Ecuador’s coast, the Galapagos are a chain of volcanic islands most famous for wildlife viewing. The archipelago is unique not just for its variety of wildlife but for its species’ ability to evolve to survive in the harsh environment specific to each island, a feature so intriguing that it inspired Charles Darwin’s The Origin of Species.
Our trip was all booked and we were three weeks away from leaving when Covid-19 started to wreak havoc on the world. We watched in horror as the disease spread rapidly around the world, ultimately resulting in the unprecedented closing of borders between countries in an attempt to stop transmission of the disease. In a matter of days, international travel shut down, a move that has lasted to varying degrees for well over a year.
We were extremely fortunate to be able to rebook the trip for the end of May 2021, 14 months after our original scheduled departure. So although JB didn’t get to experience his 10th birthday trip until he was 11, there is no doubt that this trip was worth the wait.
Click on the photo links below to read my travel planning, trip reports, reviews, and travel tips.
Pre-Trip
Travel Logistics
Trip Reports
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