Nemo II Galápagos Cruise

It's said nothing is perfect but our 4-day, 3-night cruise on the Nemo II catamaran pretty much was. The group, the crew, the food, the guide and the excursions more than exceeding our expectations. There was a long list of sea life and wildlife on the itinerary that it said we might see and, with the exception of hammerhead sharks, we saw the lot. We even saw orca and albatross. Maybe we were just lucky. I was told by a friend that Galapagos is the one place you can swim with sea lions and penguins at the same time, which seemed a little far-fetched but that's exactly what happened on our tour. Our guide probably had a lot to do with this. His enthusiasm and knowledge was a credit to the Galapagos. Not only did he make sure that everyone who wanted to got the chance to experience these natural wonders close up but there was often a National Geographic style photo to prove it. Four days isn't long, for us though just right, I think. There was a decent mix of underwater and land-based activities. I was fascinated by the different landscapes and birds on each of the islands. We fell in with a super group of fellow passengers - we were just 13 made up of six nationalities and for those few short days we were one big happy world family. The crew operated quietly and anonymously in the background to somehow make sure our three meals were haute cuisine, the cabin housekeeping was done by magic and the inflatable boat (water taxi, RIB, I can't remember what it was called) was always there to transport us to the next adventure - and back! On paper it seemed expensive, in reality it really wasn't. And the benefit of a three-night trip means that although this is supposed to be once in a lifetime, we'd happily do it again.

Une aventure FANTASTIQUE ! Quel voyage inoubliable ! Mon guide, Rual, connaissait très bien tous les oiseaux, les animaux et l'histoire des îles. Le terrain que nous avons parcouru était plus difficile que ce à quoi je m'attendais. Beaucoup d'escalade sur de hauts rochers escarpés avec des surfaces irrégulières était la norme. Bien que je n'aie pas participé au snorkeling, d'autres l'ont fait et ont pris beaucoup de belles photos sous-marines. J'ai vu les tortues géantes, les fous à pattes bleues et à pattes rouges, les formations volcaniques et d'autres animaux que l'on trouve uniquement sur certaines îles. 7 jours - 6 nuits, c'était juste la durée parfaite. Merci pour votre aide et votre patience dans la planification de cette grande aventure ! Judy

Eine wirklich unvergessliche Reise Was für eine unvergessliche Reise! Unser Guide, Rual, war sehr gut über alle Vögel, Tiere und die Geschichte der Inseln informiert. Das Gelände, das wir bedeckten, war etwas anstrengender, als ich erwartet hatte. Viel Klettern auf hohen, steilen Felsen mit unebenen Oberflächen war die Regel. Obwohl ich nicht am Schnorcheln teilgenommen habe, haben es andere getan und viele tolle Unterwasserbilder gemacht. Ich sah die Riesenschildkröte, die blau- und rotfußigen Tölpel, vulkanische Formationen und andere Tiere, die nur auf den Inseln zu finden sind. Meine 7 Tage (6 Nächte) waren einfach eine perfekte Zeitspanne. Vielen Dank für eure Hilfe und Geduld bei der Planung meines großen Abenteuers! Judy

This adventure was GREAT! What an unforgettable trip! My guide, Rual, was extremely knowledgeable about all of the birds, animals and history of the islands. The terrain we covered was more strenuous than I had expected. A lot of climbing on high steep rocks with uneven surfaces was the norm. Although I did not participate in snorkeling, others did and got a lot of great underwater pictures. I saw the giant tortoise, blue footed and red footed boobies, volcanic formations and other animals only found on the islands. My 7 days - 6 nights was just a perfect amount of time. Thanks for all your help and patience in planning my great adventure! Judy

We had an amazing time! We used Galapatours for a trip in April 2018 and found them to be very helpful. Both Tom and Babett were responsive and always available if we had questions. We booked somewhat last minute, and they were amazing at helping to find a boat that fit our requirements, organizing flights and coordinating all the details. We just returned from our trip, and it was like being in a National Geographic episode! The islands are enchanting, the boat (Nemo II) was perfect, and we had an amazing time. Feedback from: https://goo.gl/FJb2JN

Nemo II Review-March 31 to April 7 We went on the Nemo II catamaran the first week of April on the northern route and have nothing but great reviews for the boat and the crew. The boat was immaculate, the crew was friendly, courteous and very efficient. It seemed as if they were always working, but willing to take time to talk if we initiated a conversation. We did find out that the crew rotates about every six weeks so there is no guarantee that you will have the same people each time, but I don’t think it matters too much since they all seem to enjoy what they do. I will say this is not a luxury boat, but they don’t sell themselves as such. The cabins are small, but you don’t spend much time in them so it doesn’t matter too much. My husband and I had cabin 3, which has a top double bunk and a lower single. We mostly used the lower one for storage although our daughter did sleep in it one night when she was ill. She mostly stayed in cabin 5 with her aunt, which has two single upper bunks and some storage below. We also had two other friends traveling in our group who had cabin 6. Their cabin, with one upper and one lower bunk, was near one of the engines and a bit smaller than cabin 5. The common areas are spacious, with a lounge inside and covered dining outside. It was never an issue with bad weather, although it did rain a couple of times, mostly at night. The upper deck area was always available to sit on and did have a couple of awnings that were open to provide shade most of the time. It was amazing to sit up there at night and look at all of the stars in the sky. We found the shower to be inconsistent in our cabin, some days the water would be warm, others downright cold. My sister-in-law always had hot water in her shower and we never heard anyone else complain about cold showers. We joked that since our cabin was right across from the galley that the dishwasher must be using all the hot water on that side of the boat. We never did ask anyone to see if it could be fixed as it wasn’t that big of a deal for us. It was hot outside and most days the cool shower felt really good. Our guide, Graciela, was extremely knowledgeable, having worked in the Galapagos for over twenty years. She obviously cares about the islands and knows the history and wildlife well. While she was nice, she did not go out of her way to be overly friendly. We did notice that we would never see her before breakfast and she always seemed to disappear into her cabin immediately after dinner each night. During any down time we had, she was pretty much no where to be seen. I don’t know if this is common with other guides, but we found it odd. The last afternoon she did join us on deck as we were moving to the next island. Each night before dinner she would explain the next day’s itinerary, and we found that on a few occasions she gave erroneous information, getting us mixed up with a different boat that she sometimes guides. It was confusing but we get it sorted out eventually. I don’t know how often she works on the Nemo II, but one crew member did tell me that whenever they have children on board (there were three girls aged 8-11) the owner tries to make sure they have a female guide. Overall, we were extremely happy with this boat. As I said, it’s not a luxury boat but we didn’t want that. The passenger to crew ratio is 2:1 and the attentiveness of the crew is amazing. We were lucky to have Antonio, Mauricio, Jorge, Ernesto, Daniel and Victor helping us this week. When our daughter became ill for a few days, I was amazed at the concern they all showed for her and how happy everyone was when she recovered. Victor (the chef) even prepared chicken noodle soup for her, something I’m sure wasn’t originally planned for the week. Some people have said that they have problems with crews because most of them don’t speak English, but it wasn’t really a problem for us. I speak a little bit of Spanish and as the week went on I tried to learn more, and the crew appeared happy to help me with this. Mauricio helped me quite a bit, plus he speaks English pretty well, much better than he realizes. That seemed to be the case with most of the crew; they do understand English even if they don’t speak it much. It certainly doesn’t hurt if we try to speak a bit of Spanish either! I would highly recommend this boat to anyone interested in touring the Galapagos. The smaller size may put some people off, but I think the size played a big part in our total experience. You get to know your traveling companions pretty quickly and there is much more interaction with the crew. Our immediate group made up half of the passengers, plus a family of four from Canada and a younger couple from Australia. We all meshed fairly well, plus our daughter was excited to have other girls her age to play with. I don’t believe it’s typical to have children on board, but everyone (crew included) seemed to enjoy having them there. Most of the crew members have children themselves and they were are very patient with the girls. The bottom line is this: the Nemo II is a good boat, has a friendly and attentive crew. The cabins are small, but you don’t spend much time in them. The food was surprisingly good, especially given the small area the chef has to work in. They work hard to ensure you have a good time, but you can also tell they enjoy what they do. I would not hesitate to travel on this boat again if we return to the Galapagos, but next time on the southern route.