MV Origin 14AB

an extremely high specification small cruise boat

MV Origin is a relatively small but very upmarket boat, which offers two different seven night explorations of the islands of the Galápagos.

Please note that MV Origin, MV Theory and MV Letty are three sister ships that are virtually the same in terms of construction, are under the same ownership and operate almost identical routes on the same days of the week. In other words, they are completely interchangeable.

The boat is unusually comfortable, verging on luxurious, surprisingly so for a vessel of this size.

The itineraries are designed to provide a good range of experiences, visiting a mix of remote uninhabited islands and larger more populated islands.

In terms of difficulty, most of the activities involve taking Zodiac rides to access various islands, with many of the landings involving awkward steps onto a jetty or shallow wading onto a beach. In almost all locations guests can either take it easy or choose to be more active. As well as longer hikes, the boat provides equipment for snorkelling, paddle-boarding and kayaking.

The boat has four decks. The upper level is an outside sundeck area, much of which is covered and which includes an eight-seater jacuzzi. The main deck contains the lounge and dining areas, as well as a small fitness centre. The next deck down contains all of the guest cabins. The fourth deck is for staff quarters and back-of-house.

The food service is excellent, being mainly focused on local cuisine from Ecuador. There is an open bar, where guests can simply help themselves at any time.

Every member of the 14 member crew is superb and the naturalist guides are particularly knowledgeable. This is a genuinely slick operation. Notably the guest-to-guide ratio is unusually low and (we think) represents a significant advantage, since it means that you will mostly be heading out in a group of just eight guests.

The fact that the operator often has three boats at the same landing sites encourages elegant traffic management, providing a much more wild and authentic experience.

Cabins

Guest accommodation is in 10 cabins of 145 sq ft, each on the same deck level, with picture windows, private bathroom with shower and individually controlled air-conditioning.

The cabins can be made up with one large bed or two small beds, plus a further elevated child bed. Some pairs of cabins can be interconnected for families.

The Galapagos islands can be visited in isolation, you do not necessarily need to combine with mainland South America, although you will need to fly in via Ecuador.

The islands are most commonly combined with the Yasuni Amazon in Ecuador, with a night or two in Quito in between.

It is also possible to combine with the Inca Highlands and Iquitos Amazon in Peru, although the flight connections can be a little more arduous.

Itinerary 14A

This San Cristóbal to San Cristóbal 14 night itinerary explores almost all of the main islands in the group …

Sunday : Isla de San Cristóbal
Monday : Isla de San Cristóbal
Tuesday : Isla Española
Wednesday : Isla Floreana
Thursday : Isla Santa Cruz
Friday : Isla Santiago : Isla Bartolomé
Saturday : Isla Santa Cruz : Isla North Seymour
Sunday : Isla de San Cristóbal
Sunday : Isla de San Cristóbal
Monday : Isla Genovesa
Tuesday : Isla Santa Cruz
Wednesday : Isla Isabela
Thursday : Isla Fernandina : Isla Isabela
Friday : Isla Rábida : Isla Santa Cruz
Saturday : Isla Santa Cruz
Sunday : Isla de San Cristóbal

This longer 14 night itinerary is actually the combination of two seven night trips.

These two itineraries have been designed in such a way that they can be combined back-to-back to provide a more comprehensive exploration. Inevitably there is some overlap, with returns to both of the two main islands of San Cristóbal and Santa Cruz, but more generally the combination provides a great deal of variation and is, arguably, the very best way to explore Galápagos.

Please note that the itinerary is very much dependent on weather conditions, park authorities, mechanical failure and other factors, so may vary considerably. The descriptions are provided simply to provide you with a taste of the kinds of experiences that the trip will include.

only a lucky few are able to do two weeks