MV Origon: is it as good as it gets in the Galapagos?
 

I'm researching cruises in the Galapagos. There is a new ship, the MV Origon, that had its inaugural cruise in February this year. It's a small ship with 10 staterooms for 20 passengers. It advertises itself as having understated luxury with "amenities catering to guests with a highly evolved lifestyle". It had two different 7 day cruises, alternating them.

Has anyone taken this cruise? planning to do so? Thoughts about it? Is there better? Perhaps with a 4 or 5 day itinerary? The small capacity of the boat has a lot of appeal. I understand that smaller boats have access to more islands.

owner/operator >

routes vary for cruises, some good cruise accommodations may have 'bad' routes

wish there was listing by site of which operators visit site
"70 terrestrial visitor sites and 75 marine visitor sites"

wonder if any cruises under 10 cabins still have 2 guides

seems there are custom charters (not with cruise operators)

MacMyDay's link came up in past discussion here
pikaia lodge is on most populated island, santa cruz
there are also accommodations on 3 smaller islands
(two islands reached by air, one by 2-hour fast boat)

I know it's not what you're asking, but are you aware of http://www.pikaialodgegalapagos.com ? It's where we're going to stay next year when we go to the Galapagos and looked to be the best option.

We looked at Galapagos camp, and personally found it to be the most interesting.

Any more thoughts?

a few other FTers had brief posts re doing ecoventura on their other boats, and recommending them, but no full reports that i saw.

We had friends who have sailed twice on the Silver Galapagos and rave about the ship, guides, and staff.

I have not taken a Galapagos cruise but have done a bit of research.

Itineraries are highly regulated, and IIRC, all cruise ships must follow a similar 2-week plan in order to insure that the "best" sites do not get over-run. Individual boats can customize itineraries, but they can only go to any one site in a 2 week period.

Especially in terms of deck layouts, this boat looks really appealing to me compared to most of the others in the same size range. No bad cabins on lower decks, all rooms about equal, etc. I was researching regarding possibility of booking a larger group, so this was potentially an issue (still may go in a few years when kids are a bit older).

I had also seen that boat recently. I can tell you that people seem to think that EcoVentura, the operators, are among the most reputable in the Galapagos, so that's a good sign.

I've been on Celebrity's Xpedition twice, with different itineraries. All-inclusive 95 pax ship. Well-maintained, well-connected with the local scene. They've been around the longest, have spread lots of $$ in the local community, always seem to get preference for best guides, itineraries, landings etc. Not "luxury" but very nice and they provide a First Class "expedition."

We used Ecoventura over Thanksgiving couple of years ago. Superb crew and we had a fantastic time overall. They have three boats each of which has ~10 rooms if I remember right. Not the absolute top-notch in terms of luxury but made more for more than a comfortable ride, and the guides were top-notch.

Have you posted a trip report, by any chance?

We've just come off a one week cruise on the MV Origin. I'll write a trip report when time permits. I think it is the best choice currently available in the Galapagos. The guides work free lance, and I asked them lots of questions about land and water options. MV Origin was launched last year as a luxury ship. It carries 20 passengers, considered the ideal size for reasons I'll try to remember to cover later. Apparently there are several ships being built for the luxury market. A catamaran was launched 3 weeks ago.

Ecoventura has 3 ships, the MV Letty, the MV Eric, and the MV Origin. Each carries 20 passengers max. The Letty and Eric were built in 1994 and don't target the luxury market. (As an aside, Jeff Bezos was on the Letty when he had his medical emergency and had to be medivaced out.) Ecoventura was able to take lessons learned from those ships when it had the Origin built. We loved the huge windows in our room. Service was fantastic from every single cruise member. Food was good with lots of fresh fruit and vegetables. Is it the best ship in the Galapagos? Honestly, I don't know - but I do know it is an excellent ship and worthy of consideration.

Can't wait for the trip report!
Did anyone have trouble with seasickness?

Can't wait for the TR. How was the air con in the staterooms/suites? :D