We did the Red Mangrove land-based 6-day 5-nights tour, and frankly it was amazing. The tour was very professionally managed and very well run. Every aspect was well thought-out. We had such packed itineraries every single day that clearly it was meant to maximize our exposure to every aspect of life in the Galapagos. The Red Mangrove lodges we stayed at were very nice – except for the lodge at Floreana, which has more of a rustic charm, the remaining two lodges were nicer than many 4 star hotels, with killer views to boot. The rooms were spacious, beautifully decorated, squeaky clean, and even had ipod players. At the Santa Cruz lodge, we found sea lions napping next to chairs on the patio, and marine iguanas hanging out under the patio tables. The views from the Floreana lodge were beautiful, and the Isabela lodge sat on a very beautiful pristine beach – we could be on the sandy beach with spectacular views within a minute of our rooms. Overall, the experience was wonderful.

Service at the Red Mangrove lodges was consistently very professional and very customer-oriented, and the food was consistently delicious, healthy and fresh. A really nice touch was whenever we would return to the lodges after a bunch of activities, feeling kinda tired, someone would greet us at the entrance with drinks and snacks – often with really nice hot chocolate.

I also can’t say enough good things about Carlos Malo, our tour guide for the 6-day tour. He was tireless, full of enthusiasm and charm and humor, and a consummate professional to the core. Our tour group of six included two adults and a senior from our end, i.e. my mom. Thanks to Carlos’ constant helpfulness and commitment to making sure every single person got the most out of their experience, my mom had a fantastic time as well and was able to participate in and enjoy almost every single activity programs in the itinerary. Carlos has been a tour guide at the Galapagos for 17 years, has a level 5 rating and spoke just perfect English, so we really lucked out in having him as our constant companion. Overall, we had a simply amazing experience.

We were on a Galapagos tour run by Red Mangrove and staying at 5 of their properties including 1 on the mainland. We chose this land based way to avoid our seasickness issues with the more traditional small cruise boats. It worked out very well indeed. We visited 3 islands traveling between on speed boats about 2 hours each trip.
The lodges are great and the overall quality of the tour was very high. Our guide Jimmy from Red Mangrove was great and the Park Naturalist, Fabio, was outstanding. The 2 combined to make a wonderful team giving us an excellent and memorable experience.
The Aventura is their flagship and it is wonderful, obviously well managed, with a prime waterfront location. Some rooms do have a great view as does the restaurant - which is very good. Staff are really nice, happy and efficient, friendly but not overbearing.
It is a lodge as apposed to a hotel and this comes through with a more intimate and personable atmosphere right through from the people, the food, rooms and just the way the place embraces the beautiful natural setting.
If you want to visit the Galapagos without cruising, or need accommodation while there I highly recommend this place.