from $5,660* per person	11 Days	Year-round
Boutique accommodations		Exertion level: 4
Operator: Geographic Expeditions		18 people max

The Galapagos Islands need little fanfare. Darwin started the chorus of praise, amazement, and enchantment in 1835, and the music hasn’t slowed.

We’re very aware that all serious travelers aim to tour the Galapagos Islands, and that there is a lot of competition to take them there. With the launch of the new, 48-passenger, environmentally state-of-the-art yacht La Pinta, we offer travelers the opportunity to explore the fabled islands in good conscience – and comfort. We are confident that no other ship in the Galapagos combines such a high level of luxury and modernity with an attention to environmental impact. We cordially invite you to call us for comparisons and details about these claims!

Among its innovative amenities, La Pinta is the only Galapagos vessel that offers interconnecting cabins, ideal for families (Adds our president, Jim Sano, “Having been down to the Galapagos with my wife and pre-teen kids, I bear witness that they are a wonderful place for a family trip.”) The yacht also features central air conditioning with individual controls in each cabin and convenient in-cabin recharging stations, with available adaptors, for laptops and cameras. The yacht’s 24 cabins are all outside and located on the same deck. Other facilities include a spacious bar/salon, well-stocked library, sky bar, sundeck, Jacuzzi and gym with cardio machines.

The new ship’s ecology-conscious features include engines that emit very low amounts of carbon dioxide, an ultra-modern waste treatment plant, an on-board desalinization plant that allows the yacht to avoid transporting water from island sources, and four-stroke outboard Zodiac motors that minimize noise and exhaust. All inorganic waste generated aboard is taken to a recycling center at Puerto Ayora, the Galapagos’ main town. In addition, following the recommendations of the Charles Darwin Research Station, La Pinta’s deck lights are designed not to attract large numbers of nocturnal insects, thus vastly decreasing the chances of inter-island insect dispersal.

La Pinta has also been granted an excellent itinerary by the Galapagos National Park. Each of the 80+ vessels operating in the waters of the Galapagos has permission to visit only certain landing spots, and quite frankly – some are better than others. La Pinta’s itinerary currently includes a bevy of wonderful island visits, but some that will cause even your over-qualified naturalist guide to get excited, week after week after week. Fernandina generally steals the show with a combination of marine iguanas (thousands, literally), flightless cormorants, penguins, tortoises, hawks, herons, crabs, and more. Bartolomé gives you a view of the iconic Pinnacle Rock and a chance to snorkel with penguins. And Española, home to the gigantic waved albatross, has a beach that will make you want to retire there and become a sea lion. Put simply, a great itinerary makes you forget about the boat – even if it is La Pinta – and La Pinta has a great itinerary.
Embodying an unprecedented combination of comfort and conscience, La Pinta represents the latest innovation in the evolution of cruising among the Enchanted Islands.