Meet Your Guides
Jose Luis was born on San Cristóbal Island and has been working as a Naturalist Guide for over 18 years. Jose Luis, or Pepo as most know him, began volunteering at the Charles Darwin Research Station after finishing high school. During his two years as a volunteer, he completed his Dive Master Certification and Galápagos Marine Reserve Dive Guide certification.
He then worked at a dive center for five years, exploring the underwater world of the Galápagos. Many of the incredible underwater photos on this website were taken by Pepo himself. Following in his sister's footsteps, he completed the Naturalist Guide Course in 2005 and has worked on both boat- and land-based tours since. Today, Pepo continues to live on San Cristóbal with his wife and daughters.
Pepo is always excited to get in the water, especially in search of his favorite sea creature: the giant manta ray. On land, he’s especially fond of the marine iguana. Friendly, passionate, and deeply connected to the islands, Pepo brings a unique local perspective and a warm sense of humor to every tour.
"It will be my pleasure to show you around my homeland. Saludos."
What our travelers say about Pepo:
"Pepo was awesome. He definitely exceeded our expectations of what a guide could offer, and how a guide enriches your experience. Knowledgeable, flexible, patient-we have only glowing things to say." - Laura McCudden, USA
"He did a wonderful job because he is Galakiwi-style: professional, efficient, resourceful, smart and funny. I saw him getting excited and taking a lot of pictures in places where I guess he had been hundreds of times before... he is really passionate for the place and he gets that across." - Patricia Roldan, Spain
"Pepo was simply great in all respects. I cannot say enough good things about him." - Larry Katz, USA
"Not much more to say aside from Pepo being perfect - his knowledge was as deep as his obvious passion and he was just an all around great guy, perfectly suited for a guide. For not having lived in an English speaking country, his English was impeccable. "Superplan" has become a common term in our life :)" - Jamie Jacobs, USA
"Pepo is the absolute best. He is so knowledgeable (as a science teacher I was deeply impressed), funny and understanding. We couldn't have asked for better "super plans". He is an epic guide." - Amy Salomone, USA
"He was great - patient, cheerful, knowledgeable (when he wasn't he was good at making something up) and he was fun. It was interesting having someone who had grown up on the island as our guide. His English was perfect too." - Dan Chubb, USA
"The man with the super plan was perfect. You are very lucky to have Pepo as a guide. He is so knowledgeable and funny and personable. No matter what I asked him, he was very informed. If he didn't happen to know something specifically, he made sure to find it out and let me know. I am sure that all your guides are wonderful. We did meet Pablo and Jessica briefly and really liked them, too.." - Cyndi Crayton, USA
"Pepo was awesome! A walking encyclopaedia on the Galápagos Islands, history, wild life, all told with great humour & patience with all our endless questions!" - Annette McGrevy, New Zealand
"Our guide Pepo was fabulous! I enjoyed his personal family history of growing up and living in the Galapagos. I admired his deep knowledge of the area and the devotion he showed to protecting the flora and wildlife of the islands." - Leianne O'Brien, New Zealand
Pepo - Galapagos Naturalist Guide
