Blue Region Scuba is going to the Galapagos Islands!!!!!

JULY 1ST - JULY  9TH, 2012

We will be on the Humboldt Explorer as it is a brand new vessel with luxury surroundings.

The wonders of the Galapagos diving experience will be with you for a lifetime. Few will have the opportunity of diving some of the most remote and pristine seas in the world. No other place on Earth boasts such a variety of sea and land life. Your seven nights and eight days will be filled with memories to last a lifetime - thrilling dives, exotic vistas - and these will be only a small part of your experience. Our Galapagos National Park guides have a wealth of knowledge about these unique volcanic islands and are ready to share their experience with every guest, as well as provide you with the customer service and all of the amenities for which the Explorer Ventures Fleet is known.

Diving the Galapagos can be challenging, but the rewards are great - schooling hammerheads, Galapagos sharks, whale sharks, mantas and myriad other pelages frequent these waters. Nature's bounty is not confined to the waters, of course - Charles Darwin's work concentrated largely on the rare terrestrial ecosystems, which abound with flora and fauna unique to the archipelago.

The Humboldt Explorer, which began construction in August 2009 is now providing guests with exceptional amenities. All cabins are air-conditioned and have private bath and showers, an ocean view, flat screen televisions and can be arranged to provide 2 twin beds or one large bed depending on guest needs. A partially covered sundeck with jacuzzi and ample seating areas, a salon including a lounge area, a spacious dive deck with a large camera table are just some of the features.

Your underwater adventures in the Galapagos will encompass everything from sharks to nudibranchs, and more. The islands are best known for amazing shark diving around Wolf and Darwin Islands. These small and remote islands are best reached by liveaboard vessels for divers. Your diving experience here will generally include Galapagos sharks, silky sharks and lots of schooling hammerheads being cleaned by king angelfish. Seeing marine turtles, schools of tuna, eagle rays, and sea lions is very common and seeing a whale shark is very possible from June through November. All the islands you travel to are amazing sites for underwater photography.

Macro photographers will have their fill of sea horses, barnacle blennies, coral hawk fish, and many others. An abundance of rays are at many of the dive sites (including spotted rays, marble rays, golden rays and stingrays) along with sea lions, sea turtles, schools of grunts and snappers. The variety of life in these water is unlike any other place, with thick schools of the native brown stripped salema, snappers, groupers, Chevron barracuda and huge sea turtles.

There are also many unique things to view on land. Consider adding on some time to your trip to experience the land animals as well. And of course, a trip to the Galapagos would not be complete without taking time to watch their most famous inhabitants - the giant tortoise!

Make your reservation today for a once in a lifetime experience in the "Enchanted Islands."

Vessel Layout
Vessel Specifications

The 16-passenger Humboldt Explorer provides 8 air-conditioned rooms located on the main and lower decks; each has a private bathrooms, flat screen television and ocean view. All cabins have convertible beds offering either two twins beds or one queen. The yacht features partially covered sun deck with a jacuzzi and ample seating, salon area with dining, bar and entertainment area.

The large dive deck includes a bathroom, large camera table with charging station, individual storage areas, rinse bins for cameras and another for gear. Diving operations are conducted from two large pangas (tenders), easily boarded from the dive deck.

The Sun Deck features a large lounge area, the partially covered sun deck and a jacuzzi with ample seating.

The Main Deck features two guest cabins, 1 & 2, each with private bath and shower, television, ample storage and provides guests with an ocean view; the dining area and large dive deck.

The Lower Deck comprises of six cabins, 3-8, each with private bath and shower, television, window and ample storage.

Itinerary

Days aboard the M/V Humboldt Explorer generally involve a 6:30 a.m. dive followed by breakfast, a dive at 9:30, lunch at 12:00, and afternoon dives at dive at 1:30 and 4:00 p.m. Dinner is served at approximately 7:00 p.m.  Under current National Parks guidelines, no night dives are allowed by any vessels within the Galapagos National Park.

Please note that these itineraries are examples only, and will change depending on local regulation, weather and logistics at the Captain’s discretion. Currently, each week the itinerary includes the same islands. The order of the island visits, however, is dictated by the Galapagos National Park and may vary weekly.

San Cristobal Departures

All departures for 2010 and onwards will be from San Cristobal for 2010.
For those flying to and from the Galapagos on Mondays to join the vessel, a guide will meet you upon exiting the baggage claim area for transfer to the vessel. If the departure island changes, your airlines tickets from mainland Ecuador to the Galapagos Islands will automatically be changed (so long as the tickets have been purchased through our partners).

Monday: San Cristobal
Guests fly to the Galapagos Islands from Mainland Ecuador, arriving in the late morning. Guests are met at the airport and taken to the vessel.
Boarding the vessel after 11:00am, guests will depart for a short crossing to the canal for a check out dive and safety briefing. Lunch will be served before the dive and dinner will be served after the check out dive.  The vessel will make a late day departure to the next destination.

Tuesday: North Seymour
6:30, 9:30, dives. Sightings include turtles, hammerheads, sea lions.
Afternoon/overnight transit to Darwin (20 hours).

Wednesday: Darwin
6:30, 9:30, 1:30 and 4:00 dives.  Sightings often include hammerheads, whale sharks, eagle rays, Galapagos sharks, and silky sharks.  Night at anchor.

Thursday: Darwin Island
6:30, 9:30, 1:30 and 4:00 dives.  Sightings often include hammerheads, whale sharks, eagle rays, Galapagos sharks, and silky sharks.  Evening crossing to Wolf Island (2.5 hrs).

Friday: Wolf Island
6:30, 9:30, 1:30 and 4:00 dives.  Sightings often include hammerheads, eagle rays, Galapagos sharks, turtles and silky sharks.  Overnight transit to Isabela Island (15 hours).

Saturday: Isabela Island – Cabo Marshall
6:30, 9:30, 11:30 and 3:00 dives. Sightings include giant manta rays, mobula rays, turtles, hammerheads, black-striped salema. Overnight transit Cousins Rock (8 hours).

Sunday: Cousin’s Rock
6:30 dive – macro diving with excellent chance of seeing sea horses, frog fish, sea lions, eagle rays. Lunch and transit back to Santa Cruz
(3 hrs). Land trip to see the giant tortoises in the highlands of Santa Cruz and possible visit to the town of Puerto Ayora. Dinner ashore.

Monday:  Baltra/San Cristobal
Early morning trip to the beach to see sea lions and marine iguanas.
Breakfast; depart the vessel by 9 am . Transfer back to the airport for flight back to Quito or Guayaquil.