Nortada — a compact Galapagos dive boat built around small groups

Nortada is for divers who choose the Galapagos for the water, not for a large ship and a long list of facilities. Her normal eight-guest arrangement keeps the group small enough for direct contact with the guides and makes the tender rotations less congested. The route reaches Wolf and Darwin Islands, then returns through the western islands of Isabela and Fernandina on the longer itinerary pattern. Up to four dives are planned on the main diving days, with the chance of schooling hammerheads, Galapagos sharks and, in season, whale sharks. The boat also suits divers bringing more specialised equipment: technical diving and rebreathers are supported, and the dive deck has dedicated camera and rinse facilities. A minimum of 50 logged dives and AOWD or equivalent certification are required. This is a practical choice for a diver who wants demanding sites, a small group and a boat arranged around repeated entries into the water.

Nortada arrives as a working dive boat rather than a floating resort. The fiberglass hull was rebuilt in 2014, and the layout is organised around the dive platform, tenders and equipment rather than decorative space. Boarding leads into an air-conditioned saloon and dining area, with the dive deck immediately part of the daily route between cabin, tank and water. The boat is compact enough that the same faces are quickly familiar, while the normal eight-guest format keeps movement on board manageable. Two engines and two generators support the liveaboard systems, but the experience remains that of a small vessel: the diving operation is close at hand, and the crew is never far away. The upper areas provide an open-air saloon and sun deck, while the lower deck carries the cabins. Nortada makes most sense to divers who value access to the sites and a specialised working layout over the scale of a larger yacht.

The atmosphere comes from the small operating group rather than from a formal programme. Nortada normally carries eight guests, with six crew members and two guides listed for the full arrangement, so the people running the boat are present throughout the day: on the dive deck, in the tenders, around meals and during the briefings. English is the crew language. After a morning spent moving tanks and divers through the tender rotations, the evening is comparatively simple: food, equipment preparation, conversation in the saloon or time on the open deck while the boat navigates. The compact layout means guests learn the crew's working rhythm quickly, and the same is true among divers. Charter groups can use the boat differently, with more control over guide arrangements and the pace of the trip. Nortada suits people who want a close-knit dive operation without the social scale of a larger vessel.

The eight-day, seven-night Baltra-to-Baltra route opens with a check dive at Punta Carrión or Baltra NE, followed by Cousin Rock. Wolf Island then takes the focus, with Shark Bay Point, El Derrumbe, La Ventana Islet and La Banana visited across repeated diving days. Darwin follows with El Arenal and El Arco, the area known on the route for schooling hammerheads and whale sharks in season. The itinerary returns to Wolf before moving toward Cape Douglas and Vicente Roca Point, where the western islands bring a different setting and colder-water wildlife. Cape Marshall and Roca Blanca follow before the route ends with a visit to the Fausto Llerena Breeding Center and Los Gemelos. Up to four dives are scheduled on the main days, with one optional night dive during the Wolf section. No verified site depths are available for this route, so none are given here.

The guides work with groups of roughly eight to 12 divers per guide, depending on the departure arrangement. English is the working language, and the required level is AOWD or equivalent with at least 50 logged dives. The first dives at Carrión Point or the north-eastern side of Baltra are used as warm-up dives: procedures, equipment and group organisation are checked before the boat heads for Wolf. Briefings then set the entry plan, site conditions and tender rotation for each group. Nortada supports private guiding at extra cost, as well as technical and rebreather diving, but no on-board training programme is specified. Safety equipment includes oxygen, life jackets, emergency rafts, VHF and satellite communications, an EPIRB, fire systems and first-aid equipment. The operation is structured for divers who already know how to manage themselves in current and remote-water conditions.

The dive deck is the centre of Nortada's design, with personal storage, rinse hoses, a separate camera and photography station, warm-water showers and facilities for rebreathers. The standard cylinder is a 12-litre aluminium tank with weights included; 15-litre cylinders are available at extra cost. DIN adaptors are carried, while equipment rental and nitrox are paid extras. Two Nuvair Mini Tech compressors fill the tanks, and a Marine LP280 Nuvair membrane system produces nitrox. The boat supports technical diving, although the exact gas plan belongs in the trip briefing. Two 15-foot Nautica inflatable tenders, each with a 25 HP outboard, take divers to the sites and allow groups to enter the water in staggered rotations rather than crowding one boat. After surfacing, the tender brings divers back to the dive platform, where the outside shower and rinse stations are immediately available.

Between dives, the upper deck is the natural place to settle: there is a sun deck, an open-air saloon and an observation area above the main indoor spaces. Those areas give divers somewhere to dry off, watch the water during a crossing or stay in the shade between briefings. The main saloon is air-conditioned for the hottest part of the day, and audio and video entertainment is available when the boat is under way. Surface intervals are also used for breakfast, lunch or the next equipment check; on some days the navigation itself becomes the long pause between sites. The two tenders keep the main boat clear while groups move through their dives in staggered rotations. Nortada offers enough separation to make a quiet interval possible, but not the vast deck areas of a much larger liveaboard.

A diving day starts before the boat feels fully awake. On the first full morning, the check dive at Carrión Point or Baltra NE usually starts at 6 am, followed by breakfast while Nortada refuels. The boat then navigates to Cousin Rock for one or two dives. At Wolf and Darwin, the pattern expands to up to four dives: a morning pair, a meal and surface interval, then afternoon entries. Meals are fitted around the diving rather than the other way round. One optional night dive may be offered during the Wolf section or on the later return. The boat leaves for Wolf after the opening dives, and the Darwin crossing begins overnight; navigation then becomes part of the trip rather than dead time. Later, a long passage toward Cape Douglas can be rough, so the day is shaped by sea conditions as much as by the planned site order.

Meals are served buffet-style, with Western and local food, snacks throughout the day, and hot and cold soft drinks. Dietary restrictions can be accommodated, and alcoholic drinks and spirits are available on board. On diving days, breakfast follows the first morning dive, while the remaining meals are fitted around the dive sequence and navigation. That timing is useful on a route where the best part of the day may begin before the boat has properly warmed up. The galley has to feed divers who may enter the water up to four times, so the table is less about a formal sitting than about putting food in front of people when they are ready for it. Water, coffee, tea and juices are included. Local dishes give the meals a Galapagos setting without turning the boat into a restaurant.

The four air-conditioned cabins are on the lower deck, each with an en-suite bathroom, lockers and drawers. Their layout uses two lower twin berths and an upper bunk, although the usual arrangement is twin occupancy. The cabin deck gives the boat a practical sleeping area away from the main saloon, while the air conditioning matters after repeated dives in warm water and long days in the tenders. Space is arranged for diving equipment and personal storage rather than for spreading out luggage. Above, the air-conditioned saloon and dining room provide the main indoor refuge, with an open-air saloon and sun deck for anyone who wants air moving through the evening. Nortada is not presented as a spacious hotel at sea; its appeal is that the rooms support a week built around diving. The cabin is where the day ends, not where the trip happens.

The recorded route departs from and returns to Baltra, while the boarding instructions place guests at the Passenger Pier in Puerto Ayora for the initial meeting and lunch. Transfers are not included, so the journey between the airport, port and meeting point needs to be arranged separately. Arriving in the Galapagos the night before gives more margin for flights, luggage and the transfer to the boat.