I DIE when I think about The Galapagos Islands. Have you ever been somewhere that you were so excited to see and then you show up and pictures were way better than it looks in real life? THAT IS THE OPPOSITE OF THIS DREAM PLACE!
I have honestly NEVER been anywhere where I felt so much like I was on National Geographic. The Galapagos Islands were honestly a dream and I’m here to share with you how you can make this dream happen, too! Wow that sounds so cheesy haha. But seriously just writing this post gives me severe euphoria haha.
When most people think of The Galapagos they think of rich people sipping wine on a catamaran. Okay, actually, first you think of all the incredible animals but THEN you think that you have to have an extra couple thousand of dollars to do it.
If you know me, you know I’m a budget traveler. Not only do I enjoy saving money, but I like the people I meet and the overall experience I have when I go budget style.
While living in Costa Rica I met an awesome girlfriend from Ecuador. She raved and raved about her home country, especially The Galapagos, and I was set on going.
I was determined to make this a budget-friendly trip and I am here to tell you my best advice on how to make it happen!
I am here to tell you how I did my ENTIRE 7 day trip for under $1400. This includes airfare to Ecuador, airfare to The Galapagos, all boat transfers, all taxes, food/accommodations, day tours, hiring a taxi driver for the day, entrance fees to everything, surf lessons, bike rentals, you name it. Everything down to the last penny! This may sound like a lot of money but not when some tour companies are offering a one week trip for $2500, not including airfare!
1) Do Not Book Anything Beforehand
I know, this sounds scary. And all of the websites will try to freak you out that everything is going to sell out and you will have nothing to do when you get there but sit on the beach and cry about how you could be swimming with sea lions.
I promise there was so much open when we arrived! We hadn’t booked a SINGLE activity! Yes we did HOURS of research and knew everything we were interested in doing, but we did not book a single thing until we arrived in Santa Cruz.
When you arrive you will see signs on almost every shop window advertising for last minute deals on cruises and day trips. It is kind of terrifying to think of not booking anything with the possibility that you will have nothing to do when you get there, but trust me. The Galapagos are built off of tourism!
This goes for accommodations, too! We booked ours last minute but when we arrived there were plenty of openings all over the island of Santa Cruz. In fact, there were tons of places on the islands that were not even listed online. And prices were cheaper when we arrived.
Side note, I went in March, which is not a peak part of the year. This may be different in December or US summer time when the crowds are strong.
2) Stay in Budget Accomodations
Speaking of accomodations, stay in budget accomodations! Trust me, you are going to want to spend every single second outside exploring and enjoying the island. Find something with Wifi and AC and you’re good.
We stayed in rooms that were like $40 a night (split between two people for $20 each) and they were great! We slept like rocks every night with the AC blasting, took cold showers in the morning and we were off.
There is no need to stay at some place that has amazing views and fun paintings in the room if you are going to crawl in when it’s dark, sleep and leave.
You can also look for a place that has a kitchen so you can cook your own food but I found it much more fun to eat out and just find cheaper places to eat! You are not going to want to spend one second inside (maybe I should say that a tenth time?) hahaha!
3) Stay on Land (Instead of a Cruise)
This is a very debatable topic and something that my girlfriend Kayleigh and I literally didn’t decide on until the last minute, but I am so convinced that you see more on land. Land ALWAYS seems to be the best experience for me. This does not apply if you are wanting to purely go to The Galapagos for SCUBA.
There really aren’t any good “budget options” for cruises. Any cruise worth going on to the remote places only accessible with tour guides are super expensive. Even last last LAST minute deals.
Cruises are so tempting because who doesn’t want to be a fancy person sipping champagne on a catamaran while the sun sets? Actually, me. I want to be the person doing back flips off the boat and eating dinner with the locals at night!
If you are dead set on going on a cruise, book a last minute one. But I think land is the way to go. Cruises so often say “5 days” when the 1st and 5th day are just getting on and off the boat. It is nice that all of the food/accomodations/naturalist are included, but all day trips include food and anyone you meet from The Galapagos on a tour has plenty of information to tell you and is passionate about his/her island!
You can save so much more by doing cheap accommodations/food on land and then booking a few day tours or doing free things on land. I promise there is so much to do there!
*The Islands I recommend staying on are Santa Cruz and Isabela.
Side note: Some of the more remote and unique islands are only accessible by private cruises, but these are always more expensive options. If that is something that is important to you, though, go for it!
4) Do Budget/Free Activities
Though The Galapagos Islands are not known for being a backpacker’s scene, there are plenty of fun and free things to do! I will save more details for another post, but in Santa Cruz alone we went running on Tortuga Bay beach (turned out to be my favorite beach the whole time there), snorkeling in Las Grietas, walking along the pier to watch all of the sea lions and pelicans eat fish, and met some fun locals.
On Isabela we rented bikes to ride around the island, grabbed a surf board, swam in the ocean and hiked in a cave. Often free things are the most fun to do!
Side note, seriously wake up early here. The animals are more active when there are not hordes of people taking pictures in their faces. I went running two mornings really early at Tortuga Bay and both times I saw so many animals just chilling out on the beach. Small sharks swimming by the shore, hundreds of crabs, a whole group of marine iguanas. Save your sleep for when you get home! You will be running on The Galapagos High and won’t need it there!
5) Meet Locals
Oh I JUST LOVE meeting people when I travel! I met so many people that I just loved on this trip. From the moment I landed, I met some friends from Latvia and France who ended up splitting a taxi ride with me and brought my cost from $20 to $4.
My first evening there I met up with some other girls from Europe who wanted to split a few dishes at dinner.
My girlfriend Kayleigh and I met a friend (RIP Moises hahahaha) who showed us a really awesome place to go snorkeling, and I met an awesome tour guide who is half of the reason we had such an amazing time on our trip! He showed us local secrets and saved us some money on booking our day trips.
Kayleigh and I also met some friends on our day trips and though it has nothing to do with saving money, making friends when you travel just makes it so much more fun. We ended up exchanging information and we hope to visit them in Israel some day!
6) Travel With Friends to Split Costs
One of the reasons I didn’t go to The Galapagos with my husband Dan (beside the fact that he actually has a job he has to go to and I could NOT picture us snorkeling with sea lions with our two year old Beckham hahaha) is that everything is double the price if you go as a couple.
Going with my girlfriend Kayleigh helped me split costs of things like accommodations, taxi rides, tips, food, etc.
I ended up paying about $120 for a whole week of accommodations, for example, by staying with a friend!
7) Negotiate
While The Galapagos is not “haggle city”, it is still possible to negotiate prices. We were able to get a few taxi rides for cheaper. Another way to get a discount is to book multiple excursions with the same company.
8) Watch What You Eat/Drink
There is absolutely no reason to get wasted on this trip. There is way too much to see and the best of it is seen at early hours of the day! Skip drinking several beers and opt for water instead, or one of the AMAZING natural fruit drinks. I had a coconut drink that changed my life! (This is when some of my friends/family would call me dramatic, but it really did change my life hahaha.)
As far as food goes, eat where the locals eat! Those places have the most fun atmospheres, anyway. No matter where you go you will have amazing sea food so head away from the ports and touristy spots and grab some amazing food with the locals!
Kiosk Street in Santa Cruz is SUCH a fun place to eat. They line the street every night with the fresh catch of the day and you can have your pick!
You can also buy groceries and stay at a hotel that has a kitchen (a ton do) but I wanted to eat seafood every day!
If you do a day trip, I don’t know of a single one that doesn’t have lunch provided. It can be anything from a ham sandwich to a full on fish and rice meal but there will always be something if you are out all day.
9) Bring Your Own Gear
I brought my own snorkel to the Galapagos and while this did not save me any money on my day trips, it saved me from having to rent a snorkel every time I wanted to go out. There are plenty of free places to snorkel and if you have your own gear the whole thing is free!
10) Go During the "Off/Shoulder Season"
The Galapagos Islands are busiest during December/January and June-August, which means going during the other months makes it easier to find last minute deals and negotiate prices on everything from accommodations to day tours.
You can see different types of animals at different times of the year, so take that into account as you are booking your trip, but there is plenty of amazing wildlife to see year round. We went in March and saw blue footed boobies, frigate birds, giant Galapagos tortoises, sea turtles, sea lions, you name it!
December-May is also the “rainy season” but when we went we literally had one morning of rain. I loved when we went!
All of the information here is my own opinion. Really no matter what you do on The Galapagos Islands, you will have an incredible time. It is a magical place and unlike any place I have had the opportunity to visit. The people there love their home and take such care of the animals that live there.
I hope you make a trip to The Galapagos happen because it truly is a once in a lifetime experience. I will never ever forget my beautiful week there. <3