Your Travel Experience with Galapagos PRO
Day 1
Transfer from Baltra Airport to Santa Cruz
Arrival to the airport and transfer to Santa Cruz to visit the highlands before boarding. Dress appropriately for a hike.
Highlands of Santa Cruz
Afternoon: As you venture into Santa Cruz's higher altitude areas, you will notice the changes in the vegetation as the climate becomes wetter and warmer. The earth in the upper altitudes is rich in minerals. Coffee plantations and fruit orchards line the streets and giant tortoises roam around at ease in their natural environment.
The Scalesia forests in this area offer the opportunity to discover endemic species of the Galapagos Islands, as well as giant cacti and a variety of deciduous trees and edible fruits.
Here you can also visit the twin 'craters' Los Gemelos. While they are not craters in the technical sense, these 70 meter vertical gullies with a carpet of lush vegetation are an impressive sight to behold.
Day 2
Las Tintoreras and Sierra Negra Volcano, Isabela Island
Morning : Take in the gorgeous scenery and unique wildlife on Las Tintoreras. On the sandy beach, the sea lions loll in the sun or laze in the shade of the mangroves and along the shores, the blue-footed booby males show off their striking blue feet in an attempt to woo the females. Marine iguanas warm themselves up on the black lava rocks next to the Galapagos penguins and Galápagos sea lions, recovering after their dives. Even white tip reef sharks are not uncommon to find in the calm waters of the bay.
Spend the morning exploring the volcanic landscape of Isabela Island, created by five side by side shield volcanoes, whose lava flows have united to form a landmass.
Although Sierra Negra is not the highest volcano at 1,200 meters, it has the second largest volcanic cone on earth, with a diameter of about 9 kilometers. From the edge of the crater, visitors are treated to a magnificent view out over the island of Isabela.
Note: Please remember to bring high SPF sunscreen. The Sun's harmful rays can be very strong here.
Arnaldo Tupiza Breeding Center
Afternoon: Only one and a half kilometers from the small town of Puerto Villamil, you will find the Breeding Station Arnaldo Tupiza. The station dedicated to the protection and repopulation of the endangered giant tortoise subspecies of Isabela Island. The most threatened species at the station are the Cinco Cerros and Cerro Paloma, however guests will also see Cazuela, Roca Unión, San Pedro, and Tablas.
After the eruption of the volcano Cerro Azul in September 1998, rescued Cinco Cerros tortoises were brought to safety with the help of the Ecuadorean Army. Thanks to the breeding program, there are now 17 Cinco Cerros living in the station today.
Day 3
Punta Moreno, Isabela Island
Morning: Punta Moreno is a rugged young lava bay. At first it appears to be a lifeless landscape, however as you walk over the cooled lava, you'll see new green areas and lagoons hosting a wide variety of birds. Marine iguanas and lava lizards are usually found in the lagoons you'll often meet flamingos foraging here for their favourite meal. While the sharp rocks make this hike a little tricky, its path itself is easy enough to be enjoyed by everyone and provides an unforgettable landscape set against a backdrop of the volcanoes Sierra Negra and Cerro Azul.
We recommend bringing plenty of water during this visit, as the lava field reflects the sun making the temperature higher than average. Don't forget to apply sunscreen!
Elizabeth Bay, Isabela Island
Afternoon: The wide and sheltered Elizabeth Bay, on Isabela's east coast, hosts a bevy of the archipelago's unique wildlife. The mangrove-lined shore contrasts starkly against the surrounding lava fields. The myriad of small islets and rocky reefs make this is a particularly rich area for wildlife.
The waters here are particularly clear, and this makes Elizabeth Bay a great place to spot the rays, sharks, green sea turtles, Galapagos penguins, pelicans, and Galapagos sea lions known to gather here. Nearer to the shores and mangroves you'll see Galapagos flightless cormorants and the sunbathing marine iguanas.
Day 4
Punta Espinosa, Fernandina Island
Morning: Today you are heading towards Fernandina, the westernmost and, with only about 700,000 years, the youngest island in the archipelago. Surrounded by hills amidst a lava landscape covered with cacti and mangroves is the visitor location Punta Espinoza. Meet sea lions and hundreds of marine iguanas basking on the black lava rocks and on the beach. While snorkeling you might come close to the resident penguins darting quickly through the water.
Punta Vicente Roca, Isabela Island
Afternoon: The sea-horse-shaped island of Isabela is the largest of the archipelago and the most volcanically active. Punta Vicente Roca is considered one of the most impressive and spectacular places of the enchanted Galapagos Islands with high cliffs and tuffstone giving this area a majestic feel.
While you explore the two coves and the large bay with spectacular sea life, keep an eye out for seahorses, sea turtles, and the weird and wonderful mola-mola, also known as sunfish. In good conditions, Punta Vicente Roca is considered one of the best snorkelling sites in the Galapagos.
Day 5
Puerto Egas, Santiago Island
Morning : After landing on the black sand beach of Puerto Egas, Santiago Island hike along a 2km long coastal area boasting sea lions, Sally Lightfoot crabs, lava lizards, Galapagos hawks and lava herons. The rugged lava coast with natural pools, where sea lions bathe and herons play marks the end of your hike.
An excursion to Santiago Island is also one of the rare chances to see Galápagos fur seals in the wild, though not in large numbers.
Buccaneer Cove and Espumilla Beach, Santiago Island
Afternoon : Buccaneer Cove is evidence of Santiago's long history as a haven for British buccaneers. These pirates were likely anchoring in this sheltered bay to make repairs and, among other things, to increase their supplies of turtle meat. The steep cliffs surrounding the bay, where hundreds of seabirds settle on the dark red sand beach, are an impressive sight to behold.
Espumilla Beach is known for its marine iguanas and red cliff crabs, also know as Sally Lightfoot crabs. The crabs attract hunting herons, who perform their hunter-prey dance. The richness of marine fauna, such as octopus, moray eels and various sharks lends a unique feel to snorkelling in the waters off Espumilla.
Day 6
Bartolomé Island
Morning: Bartolomé Island in the northern part of the archipelago was nominated as the most beautiful beach in South America at the 2012 World Travel Awards. It was not only the white sandy beach that played a role, but also the striking “Pinnacle Rock”, which is particularly popular with photographers. Equally worth seeing are the black lava fields with the lava lizards flitting back and forth, the millions of years old tufa forms and the view from the top of the island. If you go snorkeling, you may come across penguins and sea turtles.
Sullivan Bay, Santiago Island
Afternoon : After lunch on board your excursion boat, you cross over to Santiago Island. With a bit of luck, you will be accompanied by dolphins on your way. Here you can cool off in the Pacific in Sullivan Bay. Enjoy snorkeling with sea lions, sea turtles and white-tip reef sharks in the underwater world. (Daily itinerary may vary, depending on the boat in reverse order).
Day 7
Chinese Hat, Santiago Island
Morning: “Sombrero Chino”, as the island is called in Spanish, is a small volcanic island off the south-east coast of Santiago. The name comes from the shape of the island, which resembles a Chinese hat.
Dragon Hill, Santa Cruz Island
Afternoon : Dragon Hill represents a great conservation success in the history of the Galapagos Islands. By 1975, almost all the land lizards of Dragon Hill were extinct, as introduced dogs hunted them and drastically decimated their numbers. The breeding program of the Galapagos Islands was able to increase the population again and in 1991 the last land lizard born in captivity was released into the wild. Since then, the breeding stations have been controlling populations and trying to restore and support the population of the species as much as possible. But not only the mountain has a lot to offer, even the coast is impressive! The rocky beach is a beautiful place to get to know the underwater world and see rays, sharks and sea turtles. At the bottom of the mountain you will pass two saltwater lagoons where you may see a flamingo or two, and during the short hike to the top you may also come across Darwin's finches and mockingbirds.
Day 8
North Seymour Island
Morning: The small island of North Seymour is one of the most diverse islands in the Galapagos archipelago. It is only about two square kilometers in size and above all known for of the intensive courtship rituals of many magnificent frigatebirds, taking place here during mating season. The island is also home to large colonies of land iguanas, marine iguanas and sea lions. The characteristic bush landscape features diverse species of animals amongst the aromatic endemic balsa trees.
Transfer to Baltra Island
Transfer to the airport for your returning flight to Ecuador’s mainland or continue with your planned Galapagos program.