I have a reputation of being "anti land based", and don't deny it. And to be transparent, I also run a small Galapagos travel agency, focusing exclusively on cruises (by choice, not by necessity, as I could also be promoting land based packages just as easily).

Just a few precisions: the ride was bumpy for you on the boat, because land based tour operators ferry you to other islands on smaller, faster boats (20-25 knots), resulting of course in more bumpy wave action than on a typical cruise ship (8-10 knots).

As for the local economy, it is recognized by all conservation authorities in the islands, on the mainland, and worldwide (including the United Nations) that the greatest threat to Galapagos stems from the incredible population growth. Land based tourism means more hotels (indeed, you name hotels that weren't there 5 years ago), restaurants, bars, construction workers etc... which turn Galapagos into an employment centre for mainland Ecuadorians. 20% of the population in the islands is estimated as being without proper papers (immigration from the mainly is highly restricted), and they sent 1,000 such people back this year - indicating how bad this is. If land based tourism growth continues, it won't be long before Galapagos turns into an over-commercialized, overrun place looking more and more like any other destination, with the same old chain stores and hotels popping up. Already, a mainland fast food joint has recently opened up shop there.

Boat based visits do not lead to more land based hotels, etc... 75% of the Galapagos economy is already directly or indirectly driven by tourism (the rest is conservation, fishing, agriculture and government offices). Are the locals being kept out of this? Absolutely not - ships hire crew, maintenance people, office people on land, pay suppliers, mechanics etc....Many ship owners and operators are from the original families that settled the islands in the 1930s and 1940s, or earlier. The pressure for more land based tourism comes from a small group of entrepreneurs, often with continental partners, who want to build hotels.

Trust me, the money that operators of land based tours make goes just as much to the mainland, or to US banks, as does that of any other medium to large size business operator in the islands.

I don't deny that sitting in one place for a few days at a time gives you a different perspective on that place. I used to take short 3-4 day breaks from my work on Santa Cruz island by going to Isabela Island (Villamil) - it was very nice. But I continue to express my learned opinion that a cruise gives you a wider experience of what Galapagos is (an dispersed archipelago on the edge of the world - in the middle of nowhere) than spending time in a few non-descript (and often ratty, noisy) little towns.

Warmest regards,

Heather Blenkiron