This Might Be the Best Time to Visit The Galapagos Islands in a Generation

PUERTO AYORA, Ecuador - July 15, 2021 - PRLog -- With everyone eager to resume traveling, some destinations – such as the Galapagos Islands -- are ahead of the curve in welcoming visitors back successfully. And with the number of tourists still at a fraction of what it was pre-Covid, this could be one of the best times to visit the Galapagos in a generation.

As of July 1, 2021, fully vaccinated travelers no longer need to test for entry into Galapagos. Visitors are now able to enter both Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands by presenting proof that they've received full doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and will no longer be required to present a negative PCR or antigen test.

The Galapagos is among the most successfully vaccinated locations in the world right now. Thanks to a successful campaign to fully vaccinate the adult population of the islands, nearly 100 percent of the over 30,000 adults in Galapagos have received both doses of the Pfizer vaccine.

With tourism still just ramping back up, there will be fewer visitors in and around the islands during the first stages of the anticipated tourism rebound.  What this means for those lucky enough to get down there in these next few months is that there will be fewer tourists in the Galapagos than at any point in the last 30 years.

When tourism suddenly ceased in March 2020, thousands of people were thrown out of work and the islands lost 85 percent of their GDP. Restaurants and hotels were shuttered; passenger vessels sat empty in harbors and thousands of guides, crew members and other workers reliant upon tourism found themselves without employment.  Many locals ran out of cash and turned to bartering for staples such as fish and rice, according to local news reports.

International Galapagos Tour Operators Association (IGTOA)
See: http://www.igtoa.org/

Media Contact:
IGTOA
Matt Kareus, Executive Director
Email: exd@igtoa.org