Happy New Year, everyone! I hope your plans for 2026 include chasing your own freedom to fun and unusual places!
The holiday season for many of you is a magical time filled with family, decorations, children, and presents. Some of us don’t have the same affinity for the season, and if you are like me, travel can be the perfect alternative to the hype and stress. Six years ago, I took my first trip to the Galapagos Islands with REI Adventures. I met some great people on that trip and fell in love with the Galapagos–the unusual wildlife, the simplicity of the towns, and the fantastic food. My favorite island was Isabela. It is charming, laid-back, and a wonderful place to just be.
We spent Christmas on Isabela and it ranks in my mind as one of the best holidays ever. Our lodging was a local no-frills hotel directly on the beach. We spent Christmas Eve day hiking the Sierra Negra Volcano and then visited the tortoise breeding sanctuary. We walked back to our hotel on the boardwalk where huge marine iguanas were sunning themselves. I actually had to leap over one big guy who was really intent on working on his tan!
What stays in my mind the most is the Christmas Eve dinner we had at a local restaurant. It was an all-you-could-eat buffet of fresh grilled swordfish, octopus, and lobster. You took your plate to the patio and waited until your seafood was ready to be transferred directly from the grill onto your plate. There has been no Christmas feast before or since that has matched that one!
After dinner, I walked with some new friends in my group down the beach to a little bar next to our hotel. We sat on pieces of driftwood, drank beer, and played Jenga. And congratulated ourselves for trading turkey and stuffing for fresh seafood, traffic jams for wildlife speed bumps, and holiday stress for crashing waves and serenity.
Thanks, Isabela, for bringing the magic to the holiday season❤️