The following section gives you parameters based on allowed activities for visitors to the Galapagos Islands.

Tourism:.
The Galapagos is one of the few sites in the world where tourism is orientated distinctly around the nature, constituting a educational activity.

Tourism in the Galapagos was started in 1969 with the arrival of the first tourist boat the "Lina A", and today it is the principal force of the economy of the region and responsible for the principal changes in structure of the insular space.

The areas of the National Park that are established for public use are found clearly marked and distributed in almost all of the main islands of the archipelago. There are 54 land sites to visit and 62 marine sites. Most of the sites are accessed by sea and for this tourism has principally developed to be carried out in organized groups, with an authorized guide, that arrive at visitor sites on board tourist boats. Furthermore there exists sites in the four populated islands (Santa Cruz, San Cristobal, Isabela and Floreana), with land access, where it is permitted to visit without a guide.

Visitors to the PNG (Galapagos National Park) require the presence of one or more guides, the same that help the PNG in the work of control and vigilance of the visitor sites, a job of great importance considering the size and dispersion of the archipelago and the high cost of management.

A system of fixed annual itineraries for the tourist trips have been organized, these itineraries are carried out taking into account the capacity of burden of each site, limiting the anchorage in account of size and number of boats and fragility of the site.

There exist various tour agencies, both nationally and internationally, that offer a great quantity of tourist services at different prices, however for more information you can contact the Galapagos Chamber of Tourism.


Posted by: JoAnn    Source

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