Galapagos Islands Do's and Don'ts

Dos/ Don'ts:
*Don't spend any time in Quito. Ontavalo is a miserable market and a complete tourist trap. Cuicocha Lake is only marginally better
*Book a liveaboard tour: There are accomodations on the main island, but the good stuff is at least 6-10 hours sailing from the island. So liveaboard is the way to go
*Do negotiate, do expect high prices: This is regulated tourism which is good to reduce traffic, but you will have to pay up. A couple things on the dives: you can probably get them to give you some kind of discount if you pay up front for all of them and are going every day. However, once your equipment is on board you can always go on a dive you didn't sign up for and just pay the marginal expense.
*Don't bother with the sealions: If the main attraction the day is sea lions, don't bother with the dive. It's much cooler to hang out with them on the surface where you're more agile.
*Buy a water proof case for your digital camera--Underwater photos will be worth their weight in gold  (Underwater camera link)
*Do take the second day of the Biking Dutchman tour: The lake and mountain village are amazing and the best perspective on Ecuador we got during the trip