Although we do not leave for 3 more weeks, here is a bit of a preview of part of our upcoming trip. We will be spending a week on the M/Y Grace, touring the Galapagos Islands, following in the footsteps of Charles Darwin. Unlike most of the larger cruise lines that operate in the Galapagos, the Grace is a luxury yacht (formerly owned by Princess Grace and Prince Rainier of Monaco, a wedding gift to them from Aristotle Onassis) that carries only 16 passengers, with a crew that includes two naturalists. Here is a video tour.
The Grace herself is almost as exciting as the Galapagos Islands themselves, with a remarkable life story that included service to the British Royal Navy during World War II. We will be staying in one of the ship’s two master suites. Here is a view of our stateroom:
Click here for more information about M/Y Grace.
Our itinerary will take us from Baltra to San Cristobal, visiting 9 islands in the archipelago. Here is a peek at the itinerary.
We do not take many vacations, so we try to make them count. Plus, this is a very special occasion for Barbara’s birthday. I started planning this aspect of the trip in late December and early January, telling her about it 10 days ago. I will post more details about the rest of our itinerary in Ecuador, both before and after the Galapagos cruise, soon.