This is an unusual hotel. Its rooms are very small with only one chair in the room. The bathroom is small as well but works very well. The walk to the hotel from the fairy that drops you off is a ten minute long walk. The walk is not fully lit at night. Now that I have told you all of the above let me tell you why you should stay there. The STAFF and the RESTURANT are fantastic. The pool is excellent and the seating around it is also excellent. The chief is a young man who produces fabulous dishes. Do not be fooled into going into the city to eat you will be making a mistake.
This is one of the best hotel in the Galapagos as well as being a worthy contender for being a top World small luxury hotel. It is a pricey place although Paradise comes at a price.... nevertheless, some aspect definitely needs to be improved to contest with the best. To set the context and the possible needed improvement, we went there on a Honeymoon, in one of their ocean overlooking Suite, with a global price tag of $1,000 average per night. Upon arrival, we were charmed by the little walk leading to the hotel, taking you via small alleyways, leading through a jungle with some parading marine Iguanas and finally a deck pathway along the beach, looking at sea lion splashing in the ocean. This is a dream place.
the hotel only has access via a water taxi followed by a significant walk to get to the hotel, which passes a beach and a few other hotels/hostels. Not too many rooms in the hotel. Trip was in June 2022 were required at the time of having the buffet breakfast. Hammocks for each room
I will start with the positivity first, hotel food is good and breakfast start early so you could have breakfast and enjoy day trip later. wifi here seems to be the fastest on the island. And the room And here is the worst part. To warn all of you that you should not stay at this hotel! The price you paid for it’s not what get! We stay there during June 6-9, 2022 for pre-Cruise embarkment in Santa Cruz Island and we paid for 2000 USD for 3 night). It was the package with Airport transfer. The first problem was the sale person - David asked us to fill so many bureaucratic form and stuff which is hotel duty like when do we stay, room type, what package did we book. We were like was all this their duty cause they should have our information. Then this guy chased us to pay for the taxi transfer from the airport for 100 USD but our package is included. All the problem sorted, once arrive at the pier you have to board another small boat with out 2-3 bags with No help at all. Entered into the room it was very disappointed. The room is so small, all room are near each other so it’s a bit noisy. The aesthetic outside looks okay with the swimming pool for ducks and bird to poop in. On the checkout day, my friend confirmed about the transfer to airport since it included and we have been told to leave hotel by 9:00. After we left, we waited at the pier no sign of our transfer to the airport at the pier. We ran out a bit late. A hotel boat man helped us contact front desk and it all said that they didn’t arrange the taxi at all and ask us to pay for taxi to airport 50 USD by ourselves (I repeat Our package included transfer). We feel so disappointed for the poor management of this hotel to what the price we paid for was not worth it. It’s not even a 5 stars hotel and over PR with National Geographic logo. I even felt worse that I also gave them tip. So, please consider you might get something like this what you paid such a price to Finch Bay Hotel. To travel is to create a wonderful memory but this hotel left such a bad feeling for during our stay in Puerto Ayora. Will never ever recommend and stay here again.…
We are just checking out of Finch Bay after a lovely relaxed three night stay. These were the last nights of an action packed 15 night stay so we have been winding down and relaxing. The entire team at the hotel are charming, friendly and helpful and made us feel very welcome. The bay is secluded and lovely for a very gentle snorkel. It is a short walk to Las Grietas and an easy boat ride back into town. Importantly, the bed was really comfortable with good pillows so easy to get a good nights sleep. The food in the restaurant was excellent and eating out by the pool very relaxed and chilled
This was a lovely hotel situated away from the main town, and accessed via a boat transfer. It was in a beautiful setting, and very quiet. The bedroom was not large (as has been noted in other reviews) but there is a largish bathroom which includes the clothing storage as well, but I suspect you won’t spend much time in the room. There is only wifi in the main ‘public’ areas, including pool and restaurant. There is a great pool, but you have to share this with many different species of birds, including ducks, most of the time. The cocktails were imaginative, and the food in the restaurant was really good. We did not do any excursion whilst staying as this was our chill-out time at the end of our holiday, so cannot comment on these.
Laid-back quality. Exceptional food & great service. A great place to relax between adventures in the Galapagos. Pool area is amazing with ducks & herons for company. Pool was warm. Beach is steps away. We were offered free snorkelling equipment as well.
We had an excellent three days on our arrival at Santa Cruz. The hotel is excellent in a wonderful location and the relatively high cost was justified. Normally, I would give it 5* , despite the fact that the rooms are actually quite small. As the hotel points out, most guests will not be spending much time in their room but enjoying the fabulous excursions which are available. After a trip to another island, we returned to Finch Bay Hotel for a fourth night. We were escorted to room 12 and were tentatively asked if this was alright. It was not the same as our previous room, it was much smaller. It had a plastic chair and small dressing table and place to put a suitcase. Two single beds had been pushed together and , when lying in bed side by side, we could touch the wall on either side of the room. The clothes cupboard was located in the shower room, but the door couldn’t be fully opened due to the waste bin and wash basin. The room was not practicable when you have suitcases and hand luggage to walk around. The outside had a small tapered veranda due to being squashed into a corner next to the other apartments. The view was a board walk and a large shrub. We complained that the room was not the same size as the previous three nights and was far too small and not acceptable for the price we had paid. The staff replied they could understand what we were saying, but they were full and “sorry.” When I asked if we could have a complementary meal, as a gesture of good will, I was told they could book a table but we would have to pay. I sent photos to our agent in the uk and she contacted the local agent who has not received a satisfactory reply. Room 12 is not acceptable as a standard room, at full cost, but would suit a children’s room adjoining the apartment next to it, or to be used as hotel storage. It’s a shame because it really let an excellent hotel down and leaves a bad taste in the mouth.…
Finch Bay is a world-class place. The Galapagos is difficult to get to, and the Finch Bay even more difficult. To get there from GPS airport (FB personnel meet you at the airport), you have to take a bus to a water taxi, then a 20-mile taxi ride to Puerto Ayora, then FB's motor launch to a dock across the harbor, then walk 500 m to the hotel. But it is well worth the difficulty. You don't expect such an elegant setting -- a beautiful beach (complete with resident sea lion), a spectacular pool, a charming dining area, and friendly helpful staff. The room was not luxurious, but then one doesn't visit the Galapagos for luxury. It was nicely appointed, clean, air conditioned, with excellent wi-fi. We had signed up for several tour programs. The first was Los Gemelos and the Tortoise Preserve. We had a private guide, Luis, who was excellent. Walking with tortoises! And a surprisingly fine lunch (ceviche plus chicken) at the preserve, which is literally in the middle of nowhere. The next day we took 10-person tour aboard FB's private 70-foot yacht to Bartholme Island, and then a zodiac shoreline ride seeing penguins, sea lions, boobies, and more. Then a climb to the summit for a spectacular view. Followed by a gourmet lunch (china and wine, prepared by an onboard chef, not a box lunch) on the yacht. The next day we took the yacht to North Seymour, and walked among courting blue-footed boobies, frigate birds, and land iguanas. And we had the same excellent guide assigned to us each day. The food at Finch Bay was outstanding and reasonably priced. There are several outdoor tables near the pool, making for a magical evening. I've seen some complaints about the breakfast -- these are incomprehensible. The breakfast buffet was extensive, and very delicious. True, if you were looking for steak and eggs, or biscuits and gravy, you might be disappointed. But they had everything else, with cooked-to-order eggs, waffles, etc., and you could have as much as you wanted. Another pleasant surprise was that there was no tipping at Finch Bay. Good thing, because there were so many staff that you'd go broke having to tip them all. But even without tips, the service was impeccable. Finally, for our return to the mainland, FB provided a personal driver to get us to the airport and saw to it that we were checked in. All in all, this was a marvelous experience. We've been to a lot of first-class places, and this ranks with the best of them. And there was no TV! Hooray!…
My husband, 7 year old son and I stayed in the Finch Bay Hotel in December 2021 for 3 nights. The hotel was beautiful and quiet, and the people working in the hotel were amazingly accommodating and kind. When we arrived, the staff took us into a room and gave us some delicious lemonade to drink while they went over our itinerary with us. They were extremely helpful in explaining our schedule for the tours we did through the hotel, including what we should bring with us and what the tour included. We did a half day tour of the highlands with a great guide (Mario). He was extremely patient with my son's questions and was great at pointing out different birds and all of the iguanas and tortoises. We also did a tour of Bartolome, which was amazing. We saw almost every animal we were hoping to see on our trip during this 1 tour! The hotel's boat is really beautiful, and the guides were great at finding animals and making sure you saw the best views and got some amazing photos. We took some boat tours on Isabela island and San Cristobal during our trip as well, but this boat is by far the nicest and most comfortable boat we were on. Mario was our guide on this trip as well, and again was very patient with my son and made sure my son was able to see all of the amazing animals. My son also absolutely loved the walking around the hotel and eating in the restaurant and by the pool. The breakfasts were fantastic and the dinners and cocktails were delicious. We loved staying at this hotel. It lived up to all of the good reviews. Thank you for making our trip so amazing!…
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