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Galapagos Island News

04 Sep 2019

Expedition Cruise Market Powers Ahead

National Geographic Endurance for Lindblad. Source: Ulstein Verft AS

While nothing lasts forever, the cruise industry – and particularly the ‘expedition’ cruise sector – remain on a historic run with no indication of a near-term slowdown.The leisure travel sector, of which expedition cruising is a part, offers numerous possibilities for delivering new “experiences” unlike industrial shipping businesses (or even conventional ferry and passenger transport), which can only grow as fast as the demand in a particular sector.Though there is no precise definition of “expedition”…

21 Apr 2015

Coast Guard Drops Medical Supplies to Injured Crew

Coast Guard photo by Lt. Jude Coatello

A U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) aircrew dropped medical supplies to a Colombian fishing vessel 900 miles northwest of Galapagos Island, Sunday, the USCG informs. At approximately 10 p.m., Saturday, Coast Guard 11th District watchstanders received a call from personnel aboard the fishing vessel Sea Gem, a Colombian-flagged purse seiner, requesting medical supplies for two injured crewmembers aboard. The operator of the vessel reported they were conducting routine fishing operations in air and on water when their helicopter’s cabin caught on fire.

29 Jan 2001

Galapagos’ Latest Natural Wonder … Jessica?

It seems that the stricken oil tanker that fouled Charles Darwin's Galapagos island paradise cannot be moved and is set to become an artificial reef, teeming with fish and home to seals and exotic birds, the U.S. Coast Guard said on Sunday. The Ecuadorean Navy had hoped to clear the semi-submerged "Jessica" from the tiny harbor of San Cristobal island where it ran aground last week, leaking the bulk of its 240,000 gallon fuel cargo into the archipelago's pristine waters. But while the wreck may be an eyesore in the prophetically named "Shipwreck Bay," in time it will become an artificial reef and a new habitat for marine life, Coast Guard salvage chief Ed Stanton said. "Seals will start living on it, birds will begin perching on it. It has already attracted fish," Stanton said.

26 Jan 2000

Vessel Conversion Completed

Eclipse, a converted 210 ft. cruise ship, recently began operating in the Galapagos Island Cruise business. The vessel conversion was designed by DeJong and Lebet, Inc., Naval Architects, Jacksonville. Eclipse was originally constructed as ferry vessel Aegean Sea, for service in the Mediterranean by a Spanish shipyard in 1982. The current owners bought the vessel in 1997 and began the conversion process. The original vessel was laid out as an 800-passenger day ferry. The vessel's passenger lounges were completely stripped. The second level was extended and a third enclosed level was created on a formerly open deck. The existing swimming pool was refurbished.

03 Feb 2000

DeJong & Lebet Assists On Vessel Conversion

Eclipse, a converted 210 ft. (64 m) cruise vessel, recently began operating in the Galapagos Island Cruise business. The vessel conversion was designed by DeJong and Lebet, Inc., Naval Architects, Jacksonville, Fla. Eclipse was originally constructed as ferry vessel Aegean Sea, for service in the Mediterranean by a Spanish shipyard in 1982. The current owners bought the vessel in 1997 and began the conversion process. The original vessel was laid out as an 800-passenger day ferry. The vessel's passenger lounges were completely stripped. The second level was extended and a third enclosed level was created on a formerly open deck. The existing swimming pool was refurbished.