Latin America, Galapagos Trip Leader

Silvia Vargas

Languages Spoken: English, German & Spanish

Guide Since: 1990

Silvia Vargas is in love with the Galápagos Islands and has been since high school, when she first visited from her hometown of Guayaquil, Ecuador. Her passion for the islands drew her back to live in the Galápagos where she works as a certified naturalist—the perfect job for someone with such deep knowledge and a generous spirit. Exploring the same islands over and over?—it's a dream for this Trip Leader. “The wildlife here has to adapt to weather so variable,” Silvia notes, “it's fun to see how each species figures it out." With a university degree in Linguistics and time spent living in Europe, Silvia is fluent in both German and English. Her passions include ecological design for both furniture and homes. She also hopes to work with Ecuadorian people to raise their awareness and stewardship of the local environment. As Silvia explains, "Understanding nature has allowed me to understand human nature better. I feel blessed to work in the Galápagos because on almost every trip, we swim with dolphins and sea lions! And sometimes even whales! How lucky we are!”

Our Team

Client Testimonials

Silvia made the trip an experience I will never forget. She is so personable and professional that she made every moment a joy.

Alison B.

Oakland, CA
Enchanted Isles

Silvia's deep experience, knowledge, and commitment to the environment showed clearly.

Anthony L.

Princeton, NJ
Ultimate Galapagos

Silvia made the trip very special. She was personable and incredibly informed about the islands and their flora and fauna.

Bill P.

Ocean Springs, MS
Enchanted Isles

The best possible guide. Her intensity and depth of knowledge were impressive and her passion for the islands was contagious.

Bonnie R.

Philadelphia PA
Galapagos Adventure

Silvia made a big difference in our ability to truly experience the environment. She was great with adults and kids alike.

Caroline L.

Scarsdale NY
Ultimate Galapagos

Silvia was extremely knowledgeable on all aspects of Galapagos, and it was a real treat to travel with her!

Claire S.

Cincinnati, OH
Enchanted Isles

Sylvia was wonderful. Her knowledge and love of the Galápagos and sharing of it was outstanding. She made the trip!

Elisabeth T.

Moraga, CA
Galapagos Adventure

Silvia was wonderful in every way: stunning range of knowledge—her 30 years of experience is both broad and deep from marine life, geology, ornithology, plant life, reptiles, and even the constellations. And she was personable, sensitive to group dynamics, conversational rather than scripted in the way she communicated information. She's a treasure!

Holly H.

Cumberland Center, ME
Galapagos Adventure aboard the Mary Anne

Silvia Vargas was knowledgeable, professional, and made the trip and voyage safe and interesting for everyone.

Joshua D.

San Francisco, CA

Silvia Vargas was outstanding. Very knowledgeable, caring, competent—the best!

Judy T.

Guilford, CT

Silva's love for the environment and animals that live in the Galapagos was so apparent and my respect for her is of the utmost. I was so impressed at her concern for the Islands and their inhabitants. She is knowledgeable, willing to answer all questions put to her.

Kandace S.

New River, AZ
Enchanted Isles

I was so impressed with the breadth and depth of Silvia´s knowledge about the Galapagos, from geology to wildlife—she knows it all! She was also a fun person to be with.

Karen J.

Rio De Janero, Brazil
Enchanted Isles

Sylvia was very outgoing and fun—a terrific trip leader.

Katherine K.

Kiawah Island, SC
Fitzroy Cruise

Silvia Vargas was an amazing guide. She has passion for the island and it was great see she cares so much about the animals. She truly added to the experience and we felt lucky to have her as our guide.

Kim D.

Denville, NJ
Ultimate Galapagos

Silvia is SUPERB! Her knowledge is substantial and she has such genuine caring for the Galápagos. We got to see wildlife that other groups did not, based on her knowledge of the area and what wildlife was likely to be present.

Lisa B.

Orono, ME
Enchanted Isles

Silvia is passionate and devoted to the preservation of the Galápagos, and knows it like the back of her hand.

Lisa L.

Venice, CA
Galapagos Adventure

Silvia was very knowledgeable and always taught us something insightful about the Galapagos and the animals there.

Marty S.

Orinda, CA
Enchanted Isles

Sylvia really made the trip for me. She is knowledgeable personable and clearly cares deeply about the Galapagos. She was always available and flexible regarding the timing of activities. Having a native guide is really imprtant to me.

Molly L.

Gladwyne, PA
Galapagos Adventure

Sylvia was fun to be with in all phases of the trip. Her in-depth knowledge and love of the islands were real assets to the overall experience. She handled all 15 of us with care, as often we have individual needs.

Paul G.

Seattle, WA
Galapagos Adventure aboard the Mary Anne

Sylvia was quite passionate about her love for the Galápagos and properly respecting its environment and our impact to the islands as visitors. She clearly knew her subject matter and answered all questions with confidence.

Raymond G.

Livermore, CA
Galapagos Adventure

Sylvia is a real keeper. We felt lucky to have her. She’s well informed, articulate, and extremely competent.

Sally S.

Tiburon CA, Highland and Islands

Silvia was an amazing guide—informative, insightful, compassionate, and made each of us feel like we were important.

Sandi G.

Mariposa, CA
Ultimate Galapagos

Wonderful person and guide. It was a real pleasure to have spent the week getting to know her and learning from her.

Sara D.

Sacramento, CA
Galapagos Adventure

Silvia is terrific, knowledgeable and generous with what she knows. She is passionate about the flora, fauna, geology, and history of the Galapagos and shares her passion with excitement and patience.

Stacey S.

San Anselmo, CA
Fitzroy Cruise

Silvia's passion for educating travelers about the Galapagos environment, geology and wildlife is remarkable.

Sue P.

Bronx, NY
Enchanted Isles

Sylvia was an exceptional leader, adept at organizing the group and taking care of everyone. Her knowledge of the area, including historical-cultural-scientific aspects of the Galapagos was inspiring.

Susie W.

Land O Lakes, WI
Galapagos Adventure aboard the Mary Anne: Western Islands

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