Natural Paradise luxury Yacht

After a full week in Puerto Ayoya we headed back to the Balta airport to meet up with our Naturalist and gather the remaining 11 passengers so that we could all board a our home for the next 8 daya to explore the uninhabited islands in the Galapagos (never thought I’d say that).

The Natural Paradise is a brand new ship in the luxury yacht category. Special amenities including a hydro-massage, 4-person Jacuzzi and spacious outside decks for relaxing, a large dining area and both indoor and outdoor bar areas. All rooms are air conditioned and four have private balconies.

The staff included a Level III bilingual naturalist guide certified by the Galapagos National Park Authority, as well as a dedicated Cruise Director (Jorge) ensuring you are in good hands both on board and on land. In addition a personal chef created amazing meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) while a dedicated sues-chef was in charge of providing hot and cold appetizers after every excursion (up to 4 per day). Our bartender, Alejandro could whip up the fanciest of cocktails as icing on the cake of pure blissful luxury all while completing 2-4 excursions each day.

James- our personal guide delivering more information than I could ever comprehend. A gem on the natural paradise staff who really made the difference in our trip.

We chose to book a junior suite so that we had a private balcony. We spent some time napping here in between multiple excursions each day. The balcony also acted as a place to dry our wet gear. In spite of being on the equator and having clothes hanging in the wind, I never could get our clothes completely dry.

The best yacht!!

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A quick walk through

We had two Dingy boats to take 13 guests to each of the activities. I ended up on boat #2 with Camelo most of the time because that dingy had a longer ladder making it easer to climb back in from deep water snorkels. Notice the crew was always waiting to do the "Galapagos Handshake" helping people enter and exit the dingy. We had not a single accident boarding. and I always felt very safe.

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Sometimes Camelo let James drive and he likes SPEED :)

Our Junior suite with balcony

Our private balcony

bathroom with a view

Stairs built for younger knees

balcony

room was HUGE for a boat this size

Perfect for star gazing- we fell asleep up here one night

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Top deck with loungers. When the ship was anchored they served meals up here too.

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The Jacuzzi was perfect after cold water activities

After each excursion (sometimes 4 in one day) the crew had hot and cold appetizers waiting. After a cold water snorkel they supplied hot chocolate too! This crew was simply the best!

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A walk through…

If the ship wasn’t moving to a new location, the crew served lunch on the top deck

Jorge our cruise Director - absolutely the best!!

We had excursions from Sun up until Sun down

There was a special saus-chef to prepare hot and cold apps served after every excursion. If we did a cold water snorkel, there was also hot chocolate!

inside dining room. The food was amazing!

As if 3 meals a day with additonal hot/cold apps after each excursion wasn't enough, these snacks were always available

Breakfast was buffet style but there was always a fish abailable and our chef made omlets/eggs to order.

Some night the chef got extra fancy and we ordered off a menu and were served plated dinners

A plated dinner (sometimes dinners were also buffet, but here was always a fish dish available)

Eating upstairs in the open air.

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On the first night the entire crew was introduced and a toast was made for a safe voyage.

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On the last night of the cruise we had another toast and the staff put together "crossing the equator" certificates for each of us and we were each assigned an animal. Bob was the red footed boobie because his feet got burned (no sunscreen) and I was a blue footed boobie because of my blue glasses.

On the last night the crew put the tables together so all 13 of us were able to share one meal together. My fellow passengers on this vessel were really really great!!! And our comradery made the trip extra special. They will always be my Galapagos Family.

Alejandro mixing up the drinks before dinner

One evening after a full day of excursions we got back to the boat and the crew gave us some free time to jump off the boat (including the third deck) and play with the water equipment. It was a much needed break to go free after many days of an intense schedule.

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Bob Jumping

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Bob Jumping

These ladies were just the BEST! I hope to remain forever friends. There is one thing about traveling to places like the Galapagos, it tends to attract people of similar interest and travel experience.

After every deep water snorkel this was the place to warm up

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Waving a final goodbye. To say this experience was amazing is a gross understatement. I would give the Natural Paradise and it's crew five stars across the board. You simply can't go wrong with this yacht and I hope to sail her again on the 8A itinerary to hit some of the islands we missed this trip.

Stock photos of the yacht:

KEY FEATURES of the yacht

• The Natural Paradise Galapagos Cruise is a recently-built luxury yatch

•  Amenities include a hydro-massage, jacuzzi plus spacious decks, indoor and outdoor bar areas.

• Comprehensive 8 day itineraries allow you to explore the islands fully

• Expert Naturalist Guide (Level III)

  
  

Technical specificationsYear of construction2016Length111 feet / 34 metersBeam26 feet / 8 metersDraft4 feet / 1. 40 metersSpeed14 knotsCapacity

• 16 passengers

• 9 Crew members + 1 Cruise Director + 1 Bilingual Guide

Main enginesCUMMINS – 2 X 400 HPGross Tonnage145 TonsGenerators2 X 50 KwAccommodation

• Upper Deck: 4 double cabins with private balcony

• Main Deck: Dining room, bar, social area, 3 double cabins

• Lower Deck: 2 double cabins

*All cabins with private bathrooms, hot water and air-conditioning

Safety & Navigation

• FURUNO Radar

• GPS

• Depth sounders

• ACR radio

• VHF – DSS radio

• ABC Fire Extinguishers

• All required navigation equipment