Charting the Galapagos Ecuador March 21-28, 2015 EF Tours

Argese website Argese website Cochrane website (under Tigers) Cochrane website (under Tigers)

Our itinerary: Itinerary!

All travelers are responsible for securing necessary documentation Carry a copy of your passport with you and also leave a copy at home. Passports must be valid for 6 months after tour. Passports and visas Valid passports are required for all travelers. Name and gender listed on your EF account must exactly match passport information. Non-U.S. citizens may require special visas or other travel documents.

Hotel Information 3/21 - 3/23: Tambo Real, Av 12 de octubre y patria Quito, Ecuador (0)

Hotel Information 3/23 - 3/26: Hotel Palmeras, Thomas de Berlanga s/n e Islas Plazas Puerto Ayora Santa Cruz, Galapagos, Ecuador

Hotel Information 3/26 - 3/28: Tambo Real, Av 12 de octubre y patria (0)

Argese’s & Lennox Flights- JXRAYF Departure: March 21, :20 a.m. AA #955 to Miami 9:45 a.m. AA #1673 to Quito Arrive at 1:07 p.m. Return: March 28, :05 a.m. American Airlines #932 to Miami 3:20 p.m. American Airlines #1525 to RDU Arrive at 5:30 p.m. *** Quito is in the same time zone, but does not switch to Daylight savings. Therefore, we will be 1 hour behind in Quito and 2 hours behind in the Galapagos. We depart at 6:20 a.m. I will be at ticket counter at 4:30 a.m.- please be no later than 5am!!

Cochrane’s Flights – G7428N Departure: March 21, :00am Delta Airlines Flight #1294 to Atlanta 5:35pm Delta Airlines Flight #673 to Quito Arrive 9:50PM Return: March 28, :30PM Delta Airlines #680 to Atlanta 8:30AM Delta Airlines #1294 to Raleigh We depart at 11:00am. I will be at the ticket counter by 9:00. You should be there NO LATER THAN 9:00! *** Quito is in the same time zone, but does not switch to Daylight savings. Therefore, we will be 1 hour behind in Quito and 2 hours behind in the Galapagos.

Airport Phone numbers American Airlines: (7 days a week) AA1-CALL, (group travel, M-F) Delta Airlines: , Our seats will be assigned at check in.

Contact Information Please take a look at the emergency contact information. Make sure your information is correct and up to date. If you have additional numbers/ addresses, please add it to the list and give it to us before leaving tonight! All changes can be made on your personalized website as well. EF will use the emergency contact list if they need to communicate any information while we’re on tour. Emergency contacts cannot be traveling with this group and must be available for the duration of the tour.

Allergies/ Special Med Needs PLEASE let us know if you have any allergies or dietary needs by filling out the medical and health profile on your table. We need to contact the hotels and EF in order to prepare separate meals or accommodations for you.

Medicine List Parents not accompanying your student travelers- please turn in the OTC medicine release forms tonight if you have not done so already.

Expert Topics You have all drawn an expert topic. What we would like you to do: Complete research on your expert topic. Assume that people have never heard of this topic! Find AT LEAST 3 interesting facts. Be ready to present on this topic while we are in Ecuador. It will be informal- you may choose to hand out a summary of your topic. Ideas- book marks, stickers, etc.

Journals / Blog / Twitter We HIGHLY recommend buying a journal that you can keep to record your experience! It’s a great tool to look back on and refresh your memory about your experiences. We will be posting to a blog on the trip and updating it as much as possible. We will send out the link to this blog closer to departure. Please encourage your friends/family to visit the blog, ask questions, & respond to our posts!

Backpacks/passport holders If you have not received a backpack or a passport holder, please do not leave without one! You can keep your passports in their holders around your neck, your spending money, and small day trip items in your backpacks.

Our dedicated Tour Director will be with us the whole time to handle logistics and provide suggestions for activities. All Tour Directors are trained to handle challenging situations and emergencies that might arise. Tour Directors have 24-hour access to local EF offices, as well as our worldwide and North American headquarters. Our Tour Director: Edison Garcia

For those who didn’t confirm other rooming requests already: Students are roomed 3-4 per room in a combination of twin and shared double beds. Adults will share twin rooms with other adults (unless upgraded) Some rooms will be slightly different in the Galapagos since we’re using every room in that hotel! Rooming

Meals Breakfast typically includes cereal, bread, juice, coffee and tea. Lunch is on our own on the mainland, but included for our days on the Galapagos Islands Dinners will be a mix of local cuisine and familiar dishes and will be a preset meal for our entire group, rather than ordering from a menu. Food portions are smaller than they are in the U.S. Table water is included; other beverages are an additional cost. Bottled water is included in countries where it is deemed necessary. Inform us of any allergies.

Photo Stream We would like to set up a website where we can all share pictures during and post-trip. PLEASE download the necessary apps (Photostream) before we leave in 3 weeks! Free international calling apps: MagicJack, Skype, and Facetime Don’t forget to contact your bank and your cell phone provider before you leave!

Tip Money! Please turn in your tip money tonight to your leader if you have brought it. ($70) If you have not, please provide your leader with the tip prior to departure so we have time to deposit it in the bank.

Please stay if you were unable to attend the Feb meeting! ??? Don’t forget! Leave us with: Traveler health & medical profile Over- the counter release form (if necessary) Update/Edit your emergency contact info if needed Take a backpack/passport holder!

Just a MUCHAS GRACIAS to all our parents and travelers for making this trip happen! ¡¡¡Mil gracias por venir!!!