ACCOMMODATION

Nice spot to launch your tour Galapagos was fabulous. Haugan Cruises arranged this hotel and our tours. They did a great job with perfectl... read moreGalapagos was fabulous. Haugan Cruises arranged this hotel and our tours. They did a great job with perfectly smooth transfers, tours, cruise to islands etc. Local tour company staff greeted us as the hotel, communicated details and tweaked arrangements. It couldn't have been better.
The hotel was right on the water, great location, very good (maybe not great) food and nice staff. The rooms were quite interesting. I would recommend this to anyone. More read less

amazing and special place to stay My family was here for a week and half in mid/late August. Amazing and wonderful place to stay. There are so m... read moreMy family was here for a week and half in mid/late August. Amazing and wonderful place to stay. There are so many great things to point out:

Location: Can't beat the location. 5-10 minutes walk from the main town, shops, and restaurants. Close enough to enjoy Puerto Ayora, far enough to get away from the crowds and noise. The hotel is also ~10 minutes walking to the Charles Darwin Research Center, Galapagos National Park Visitor Center, and two small beaches.

Hotel Grounds: Most unique hotel in Puerto Ayora. It's very tranquil, as it is nestled inside a mangrove forest, and it is right next to the ocean. Sea lions and marine iguanas love to lounge on the deck area of the hotel and you can get a much more up close experience with sea lions here than even on some of the tours. Our family loved saying hi to the pack of sea lions and watch them play every morning as we started our day.

Rooms: Very comfortable and spacious rooms. We had a room with a patio/deck overlooking the ocean and it was delightful to wake up to pelicans flying by the patio and watching sea lions lounge and swim on the decks and below. Beds were comfortable and showers/bathrooms were clean and functional. Only two small critiques of the room 1) floors tend to get dusty (which was expected, as this is the Galapagos) but slippers were provided so not a big deal, 2) wish there was more shelf/dresser space for organizing and storing away clothes so I didn't have to live out of my suitcase as much.

Staff: This is where I felt the hotel really shined. The staff and front desk folks were incredibly helpful and hospitable. House keeping ensured a clean and organized room waited for us after a long day of treks and adventures. I believe they actually come in twice a day to tend to the room. Once during the day time for the main cleaning, and then once in the evening (if you're not in the room) to turn down the bedding and drapes to get the room ready for the night. The Almar/dining staff was very attentive to our dining and breakfast needs. The young man (wish I can recall his name!) in charge of the breakfast wait staff remembered our breakfast preferences (three scrambled eggs, two with veggies, one coffee with sugar and milk, one hot coco, one orange juice, one pineapple tea, and a side of ketchup) by the third day and had everything ready for us to eat within a few minutes of sitting down at the table. And the front desk staff helped with beach towels, calling taxis, and even prepped sandwiches for us to take for lunch on days we decided to go to Garrapatero Beach.

Almar Restaurant: Our package included complimentary dinner for half our stay so we were able to eat at a few other options around town and enjoy the food from the Almar. Almar's food is definitely one of the more delicious and higher-end dining options. Can't go wrong with any of the seafood dishes. The fresh fruit juices and fruit smoothies are absolutely delicious and refreshing.

Tours: We also booked our tour services thru Haguan that owns Red Mangrove and they absolutely delivered a great experience without any issues. Jefferson (our tour host) was incredibly helpful in setting expectations on what we'll encounter, what clothing we should wear on what day, travel logistics, etc... and even offered plenty of suggestion for different activities for days when we were not on organized tours. He would meet us every morning before we set off to ensure everything was in place and ready for the day.

All in all, this was an incredible place to stay as a "home base" during our time on the islands. It is one of the more pricier options in Puerto Ayora, but I would definitely stay here again when it comes time for our next Galapagos adventure. read less

beautiful setting, very helpful staff The hotel is set on the water with great views, including pelicans and frigate birds. The deck that houses th... read moreThe hotel is set on the water with great views, including pelicans and frigate birds. The deck that houses the restaurant and lounge chairs has resident sea lions and marine iguanas. The restaurant was the best we tried in Puerto Ayora. The restaurant and hotel staff was helpful in every way possible, particularly in upgrading our room when there was a problem with our first one. The second room overlooked the sea lions and had a large balcony with wonderful views of the harbor. read less

Ocean front, tree-house honeymoon suite We loved it.

We had just finished an active sailing adventure trip so we spent a lot of time enjoying our... read moreWe loved it.

We had just finished an active sailing adventure trip so we spent a lot of time enjoying our room and found the hotel to be wonderful. Our room was an ocean front suite (Darwin); large, light filled, lots of natural wood, a sky light and with a balcony and a patio. The room was beautiful and the view was amazing. We had open views south, west and east. There was a 3rd night free deal, be sure to look for that.

The resort was very pretty, the people were polite and the food was great. Breakfast was easy and included plenty of variety. No one minded when we spent two hours with coffee, a book and the sea lions. It’s a popular spot for dinner so a reservation won’t hurt. Almar's reputation was earned on their dinner which has a varied menu of fine dining.

It’s a short walk to town including Avenida Kiosko or to water taxis for your own adventures (go to las Grietas). The Darwin Research Center is next door and the nicest beach in Puerto Arroyo is a short walk.

You’ll find sea lions, iguanas, pelicans and herons right at the resort or in the water nearby.

If this was helpful, click on the helpful so others can easily find it! read less

PURE RELAXATION Galapagos Habitat is an amazing hotel. The staff were friendly and very helpful. The food in the restaurant ... read moreGalapagos Habitat is an amazing hotel. The staff were friendly and very helpful. The food in the restaurant was delicious. We loved being right on the water where the sea lions, pelicans, and iguanas hung out. We would highly recommend this hotel and will stay there again. read less

Very special place Wow! Such a lovely place to stay, with the most amazing staff who were helpful and friendly. Great room with w... read moreWow! Such a lovely place to stay, with the most amazing staff who were helpful and friendly. Great room with wonderful views( thank you for the upgrade to the suite). Great food in the restaurant and great service. We enjoyed our evening meal and breakfast. Thanks for the free bike loans. Wonderful comfortable beds. Reception staff were amazing. Thank you for some very special memories and great service. read less

Great Stay The Red Mangrove is an exceptional hotel. Service was fantastic and the staff was attending to every need. ... read moreThe Red Mangrove is an exceptional hotel. Service was fantastic and the staff was attending to every need. We had the Darwin Suite and the room was large, comfortable with a very large and refreshing shower. Great views across the bay with Sea Lions and Pelicans always around. Restaurant was fantastic. Only negative is that the TV service did not have CNN International or any other english channels. Which is unusual as we did have it in Isabella which is more remote than Santa Cruz. Other than that a fantastic stay read less

Wonderful, but some issues This hotel is beautiful. We were lucky to have the Darwin Suite. All Windows, fabulous views. Staff are great,... read moreThis hotel is beautiful. We were lucky to have the Darwin Suite. All Windows, fabulous views. Staff are great, friendly and helpful. Wonderful to see all the animals and birds around the hotel. Great to have place for iguanas and sea lions to rest. Breakfast was a great show. Only a few problems which seem to me East to fix. One, the hotel is not as clean as it should be. Little things like the top of the garbage can in bathroom is dirty. They don't seem to change the little rugs used for wiping feet in the reception area. They were very dirty, never changed the 4 days we were there. Should be changed every day. Second, during the day, the reception desk was always empty unless they expected a. New guest. Always had to look for someone, also the people did not have much information about the town. These are small things that can be easily fixed. I would come back in a flash. read less

Would definitely go back! The Windrose was an AMAZING experience! After a medical scare and needing to rebook our original trip, Galapagos Habitat was heaven sent. If you’re lo... read moreAfter a medical scare and needing to rebook our original trip, Galapagos Habitat was heaven sent. If you’re looking for all-inclusive (meals), land-based, with high quality service, this is the place for you. Their customer service is top notch, both remotely before getting there, to coordinate everything, and then in person as well. Hotel: location is very convenient, easy 10 min walk to the Darwin station or down into the main town. The restaurant has many options for a hot breakfast buffet and a lot of o for dinner. It almost on the water, and thus there is a daily array of sea iguanas & sea lions resting allowing a lot of photos Windrose yacht: surprised this amazing sunseeker doesn’t have its own page on Trip Advisor. As part of the package, the hotel works with this boat. Not sure if we could have arranged other stuff on our own, but it was hassle free to book all together. The crew is super helpful, can handle all abilities getting in & out of the dingy for wet & dry landings, and the boat is beautiful. The snacks & lunches are made fresh on the boat daily by an amazing chef! The only negatives? Hotel: The signs said, per usual, to hang up towels to re-use...but they kept getting replaced every day!! Didn’t feel very eco =( Boat: some days it felt like the closer port would have made more sense... After a medical scare and needing to rebook our original trip, Galapagos Habitat was heaven sent. If you’re looking for all-inclusive (meals), land-based, with high quality service, this is the place for you. Their customer service is top notch, both remotely before getting there, to coordinate everything, and then in person as well.

Hotel: location is very convenient, easy 10 min walk to the Darwin station or down into the main town. The restaurant has many options for a hot breakfast buffet and a lot of o for dinner. It almost on the water, and thus there is a daily array of sea iguanas & sea lions resting allowing a lot of photos

Windrose yacht: surprised this amazing sunseeker doesn’t have its own page on Trip Advisor. As part of the package, the hotel works with this boat. Not sure if we could have arranged other stuff on our own, but it was hassle free to book all together. The crew is super helpful, can handle all abilities getting in & out of the dingy for wet & dry landings, and the boat is beautiful. The snacks & lunches are made fresh on the boat daily by an amazing chef!

The only negatives?

Hotel: The signs said, per usual, to hang up towels to re-use...but they kept getting replaced every day!! Didn’t feel very eco =(

Boat: some days it felt like the closer port would have made more sense instead of driving across the island, eg for Santa Cruz, but they only use it one day a week. It would have been nice to have one more day to see Pinzon, Rabida, or maybe more of Santiago (assuming permits allowed); if doing all their routes it’s only 4 days that are unique, and would have loved another day or two!

PS they changed their name from Red Mangrove, so Google Maps etc can get a bit confused More read less