How long do you need for a Galápagos cruise?

To do the Galápagos justice, aim to spend at least five days on the islands, either on a cruise or a land-based tour. Four-day/three-night cruises are available but will feel rushed and might not get beyond the busier inner islands.

A really important thing to know is that cruises depart with lunch on the first day and end after breakfast and a short last excursion on the final day, so the first and last day are very short. It’s better to think in terms of nights rather than days, for example a seven-night cruise rather than an eight-day cruise.

Six night/five-day cruises generally rotate around the main inner islands, plus one or two outer islands. This will give you a balanced view of the islands and a good range of wildlife, without everything feeling too rushed.

For example, the Comorant five-day eastern itinerary starts at Baltra and visits Santa Cruz, Genovesa, South Plaza, Santa Fe and San Cristobal, with morning and afternoon excursions at each stop. Or the five-day Ocean Spray western itinerary, which heads from Baltra to Bartholomew, Genovesa, Santiago and back via Santa Cruz.

Six and seven night cruises tend to be the sweet spot if you have the time and budget. These itineraries will either focus on the western or the eastern islands, and spend plenty of time at all the highlights. Note that you’ll still see just half of the full archipelago, but with plenty of time for a greater range of activities and excursions.

Longer 14-night cruises are formed by combining a ship's eastern and western itinerary into a single trip. The main advantage to this is you get to see the full archipelago from the younger islands to the older islands, observing how the wildlife has evolved differently on each.

The tour programme will be action packed but you may choose to spend some more leisure time on board. Note that some activities may start to feel repetitive, and you’ll need a good guide to keep you engaged.

Unless you’re doing something specialist such as a diving course or a birdwatching cruise, two weeks is probably too much—use your spare time on the mainland instead, the rest of Ecuador is just as fascinating!