TEAM GALÁPAGOS

A dream come true…

‘Our first retreat sold out in one week so we knew this location was a special one!’

How these trips came about?

Michelle fell in love with the Galápagos Islands when visiting on a surf trip. She had been thinking about expanding and offering a new location for her surf retreats but wanted to find somewhere special, off the beaten track, which had amazing waves which had not really been discovered by surf tourism yet.

Her now husband Gael had been coming to the Galápagos for years and was good friends of Carolina, Diego and Hannah, so when everyone was brought together in this island paradise, they immediately knew they wanted to create this dream surf trip together!

Hannah and Carolina had been dreaming of running surf retreats in the Galápagos for over ten years. With Carolina’s surf/nature guiding experience in the archipelago, Hannah’s high end yachting background, extensive diving knowledge/experience, and many years spent living in the Galapagos, and Michelle’s growing surf tourism business they truly are the dream team - combining fun vibes and exceptional service!

These retreats have been running twice a year since 2023.

From left to right : Hannah (Divemaster), Michelle (Head Surf Coach) and Carolina (Local Naturalist Guide )

Carolina and her partner Diego (also a Naturalist Guide and Surf Coach)

Carolina

Your Local Naturalist Guide

While growing up between two contrasting worlds, the wild Galápagos Islands and the civilised mainland, Carolina decided to follow her island family lineage, permanently moving to the Galápagos in 2010. Carolina went on to study Environmental Management (including a year studying abroad in Australia), became a divemaster and undertook the rigorous Galápagos National Park Guide Course. Since then, between her own sailing adventures with her partner, she has been working in the tourism industry, guiding on some of the most renowned expedition yachts in the Galápagos Archipelago. More recently, Carolina has been using her invaluable guiding skills and knowledge of the islands to create the ultimate Galápagos Experience for retreat hosts. She specialises in ocean based adventure tourism, where she is able to combine her passions surfing, swimming, sailing, diving, freediving and kayaking.

  • Bachelor of Environmental Management

  • Galápagos National Park Guide Course

  • PADI Divemaster and Galápagos Dive Guide

  • 10+ Years working in the tourism industry in Galápagos Islands

  • Co-creator of Galápagos Nature Connection Retreats (collaboration with Bocas del Toro Surfing) 

Hannah

Host/ Divemaster 

In 2011, at the age of 20, Hannah first ventured off to the Galápagos Islands to complete her studies in Marine Biology and become a divemaster. 13 years later she still calls the Galápagos her second home, basing herself in the Galápagos for months at a time each year to work on research projects, sailing yachts or more recently to co facilitate retreats. In between you will find her doing yachting stints in the Pacific, Mediterranean or Caribbean, teaching high school students in Australia or on surf or dive adventures to some other remote islands.

  • Bachelor of Science, Marine Biology Graduate

  • Graduate Diploma of Learning and Teaching (Secondary School)

  • PADI Divemaster

  • 10+ years working on sailing vessels in the Caribbean, Pacific and Mediterranean

  • Co-creator of Galápagos Nature Connection Retreats (collaboration with Bocas del Toro Surfing)