Tribes Travel

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Tribes Travel, 12 The Business Centre, Earl Soham, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP13 7SA, UK

Tribes Travel

The art of travelling with respect

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    Review

     

    1. Ms S Radice, UK
    2. 23/08/2009
    3. 4
    4. Ecuador, Galapagos Islands

    5. Overall level of satisfaction

      • Excellent

      Excellent

    7. It was the best trip we have ever done. A view shared by my 14 year old daughter, 18 year old son and my husband. We loved this holiday so much that is really hard to come back to normal life....

    8. Tribes service

      • Excellent

      Excellent

    10. Tribes was great. I had a clear itinerary and everything went to plan. We were met in Quito and taken to the hotel and had a very good tour from the guide Fabian.

    11. Expectations

      • Excellent

      Excellent

    13. It went beyond my expectations. It has expanded all our horizons - so much more than a holiday. My children have really understood about evolution in place where Darwin saw the way that species have evolved according to the different enviroments on each of the islands. It was fascinating to see the way that species have adapted without man's interference - that is also why the animals are so unafraid - there are hardly any natural preditors so that they don't feel they have to flee. Turtles will swim next to you, birds will sit on a twig right next to your shoulder, and seal lions will swim round you. Magical.

    14. Guides

      • Excellent

      Excellent

    16. The guide in Quito - Fabian - was very helpful and interesting and made sure we got to the airport on time even when it was the crack of dawn.
      Juan Tapiq is a real star. Tribes did\'t tell us that we were getting the best guide in the Galapagos. Juan lives in Santa Cruz (one of the islands on the Galapagos) and has a young family there. He has twenty years experience and is still thrilled by all that he finds on the islands. His knowledge amazed us all - he wasn't thrown by anything...and we all asked him questions all the time. He has done alot of research and has been involved in many scientific field trips around the island and so there is the sense that he still feels there is a lot to discover about the Galapagos. His sense of awe was infectious. He was equally at home in talking about birds, plants, mammals and sea-life and was constantly at work - spotting whales, sharks and dolphins as well as birds as we journeyed from island to island. If you can possibly get Juan as your guide you are so lucky...... he also plays the guitar and tells a great story.

    17. Social & Environmental Responsibility

      • Excellent

      Excellent

    19. All of the crew were local and Juan Tapiq, our wonderfully talented guide lives on the Galapagos and has a family there. I can't say our visit was beneficial to the wildlife but you have to be extrememly careful not to alter anything - shoes must be decontaimated each time you come back from an island ( because a seed from one island could pass to another) and you have to stick close to the guide. Juan was extremely proud and protective of his amazing homeland and there is a complicated debate about if tourism helps preserve the wildlife ( money is needed to get rid of non endemic species such as goats that were introduced by people that have tried to live on the islands in the last hundred or so years) or will eventually destroy it.... I'm not sure. There do seem to be very tight regulations.

    20. Other comments

    21. Just that if you get a windfall or feel like doing something really special (there were quite a few honeymooners ending a trip to South America in the most amazing way) I really recommend this...
      Tribes seemed to know exactly what we were looking for...........thanks Paul

    1. Experiences

    1. The Galapagos Islands

    2. The Galapagos Islands
      • Don't even think about missing this!

      Don't even think about missing this!

    4. The Galapagos is a fascinating place, with dark volcanic islands and animals so tame that you get used to swimming with sea-lions and turtles. The boat (Samba) was perfect. Not too big, very good looking - it's hard to describe the feeling of sitting on deck and cutting through the water with whales and dolphins and frigate birds as escorts. This tour goes to places that few other boats go to - a very interesting itinerary - so there was a real feeling of discovery as we got off on these dark volcanic islands. We saw very few other boats. Oh and the food on the Samba was absolutely amazing - how did they manage to produce such delicious meals three times a day? Lots of fresh veg and fruit, fish and shellfish. Most of it was Ecuadorian. We loved this holiday so much that is really hard to come back to normal life....
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