What does Anakata mean?

Anakata was built from the roots — ana for “up” or “through” and kata for “down” or “against”: motion through opposing forces. Land and sea. Water and fire.

Anakata is led by Santiago Dunn and Santiago Dunn Bustamante, the third generation of a family that has worked in Galápagos expedition travel for decades.

Acerca de — Una nueva forma de ver el mundo

Where Exploration Was Redefined

Our first expeditions begin where exploration itself was redefined: the Galápagos Islands. Here, wildlife moves without fear of you, cold currents from the far south meet warm equatorial ones, and a landscape still looks like the one Darwin stepped onto in 1835. It is not a place you visit so much as a place you're let into.

Our Story

A Way of Looking, Inherited

Before there was a brand, there was a relationship. In the early 1980s, Anakata's founding family saw in Galápagos something few had yet learned to see: that the archipelago isn't a destination to be consumed, it's an ecosystem to be respected. Since then, the family has dedicated deep care to the islands, built extensive relationships with the people who call these islands home, and found ways to connect the islands to the world.

That relationship became a way of life— built vessel by vessel, decade by decade, until it was recognized by some of the most selective institutions in global luxury travel.

Today, the third generation of that same family is building Anakata, carrying the same instinct to the most remote corners of the planet.

We didn't inherit a business. We inherited a way of looking.

The Timeline

Generation One

the origin

In the 1980s, Anakata's founding family saw something in Galápagos that few had yet learned to see: that the archipelago is not a destination to be consumed, but an ecosystem to be respected. They started with a land-based hotel. It didn't take long to see its limits. From the shore, guests could reach only a small part of the islands. The outer islands, the early-morning landings and most of the wildlife were too far away to reach properly. The family's answer was to take guests to sea. They built the first expedition yachts of their kind in Galápagos. The yachts were small and comfortable, and they sailed at night so guests woke up at a new island each morning. Three yachts launched the idea: Eric, Letty and Flamingo. They turned a visit into a true expedition and set the standard for travel in the islands.

Generation Two

The deepening

The second generation began by improving what they had inherited. The original yachts were upgraded, and then three new ships joined the fleet. With them came a new idea in Galápagos: premium luxury expedition. The experience on board became fully luxurious, but the expedition stayed at its center. Every comfort was designed to support time in the islands, not to replace it. The family also launched sustainability initiatives across the archipelago, so that the way they operated gave back to the ecosystem their guests came to see. The model made them pioneers. Others soon followed. It also took the family's influence beyond its own fleet. Santiago Dunn led Ecoventura for 30 years and brought Silversea here, and he built strategic alliances with other companies to advance sustainability in the islands.

Generation Three

The next chapter

Anakata is not a new family entering Galápagos. It is the third generation of the same family, and once again the fleet is being built from scratch — the way the first one was. Bespoke vessels, a broader geographic ambition: the details are new, the instinct underneath them isn't. Same philosophy, same water, carried now to the farthest corners of the planet.

Meet Our Founders

Santiago Dunn

Co-Founder, CEO

Santiago Dunn is a recognized leader and pioneer in luxury expedition travel, with nearly three decades of experience transforming the industry. As former CEO and President of Ecoventura, a Galápagos-based yacht operator affiliated with Relais & Châteaux, he oversaw the company’s evolution from traditional expeditions into a leading ultra-luxury platform, personally designing and building a bespoke fleet of yachts that set new standards for travel in the Galápagos.

From 2012 to 2018, Santiago also successfully introduced the Silversea brand to the region, repositioning Silver Galápagos as the fleet’s highest-rated ship. In 2022, Santiago orchestrated Ecoventura’s landmark sale to Abercrombie & Kent, later becoming CEO of A&K South America, where he expanded the group's regional cruise and lodging offerings.

Santiago Dunn Bustamante

Co-Founder, Director of Commercial Strategy & Sustainability

Santiago Dunn Bustamante spent much of his childhood in the Galápagos Islands, watching his father transform the region's yachting industry and lead conservation work alongside the Galápagos National Park and the World Wildlife Fund — an inheritance that shaped how he sees the world before he had the language for it.

He went on to earn a degree in Business Administration with specializations in Finance and Sustainability Management from American University, graduating in 2021. He spent several years in New York in the financial services industry. In 2025, he returned to the water that raised him, to help build Anakata, and, quietly, toward the other corners of Ecuador the world hasn't met yet.

A New Way Of Seeing The World

Two Words, One Motion