Your Travel Experience with Galapagos PRO
Day 1
Arrival at San Cristóbal
You will be met at the airport in Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, San Cristóbal, by your naturalist guide and driven to a restaurant in the middle of town. Your lugagge will be taken directly to the hotel.
After a tasty lunch, you will be taken to your hotel where you can get some rest.
"La Lobería" - The Sea Lion Beach
Following the siesta, try out your snorkelling and swimming equipment for the next few days.
After a short ride in an off-road wheelchair, you arrive at La Lobería beach. The fine white sand of La Lobería melds in to the aqua blue ocean lapping at the shore. Keep your camera ready for the large colony of sea lions who sun themselves amongst the endemic marine iguanas, frigate birds and darwin finches here in the bay. This is the perfect chance to unwind after your journey here.
Finally, you will reach the place where you will go into the water. The trained staff will take as much time as you need to ensure that your entry into the water is smooth and safe. In the water, you wear a life jacket and hold on to a swim ring. The bay is the ideal place to marvel at the underwater world of the Galapagos Islands while snorkelling. You can see shells, parrot fish, sunset wrasses, sea cucumbers, sea urchins and, if you are lucky, sea turtles, among other quatic animals.
You will spend some time on the beach and on the way back you can watch a breathtaking sunset.
In the evening, a delicious dinner awaits you and a stroll along the boardwalk gives you the perfect opportunity to round off the evening.
Day 2
Visit the Giant Tortoises
After breakfast, you will enjoy a drive through the highlands of San Cristóbal to see the changing vegetation and landscape. The destination is a breeding station for giant tortoises. This is a semi-natural place where more than 20 adult giant tortoises romp around. You can admire these giant reptiles eating one of their favourite foods: the "manzanilla de la muerte" - "little apple of death" - which is highly poisonous to humans.
Puerto Chino Beach
The adventure continues in an off-road wheelchair through a dry land where you will meet two of the three species of cactus on the islands. As you get closer to Puerto Chino Beach, you can observe different species of birds on branches, evergreen plants and lava iguanas.
On a sunny day, the beach has turquoise, crystal clear water and fine sand. You will have some time to enjoy the beach. The next stop is a restaurant on the hills overlooking the beach. Here you can enjoy the beautiful scenery while eating organic food. Afterwards return to the city.
Kayaking Excursion
In the afternoon you will be taken to the beach where the kayaks are already waiting for you. Each kayak carries one guest with an experienced kayaker at the stern who does the paddling. Off you go in the crystal clear waters of the bay.
As you paddle through the bay, you will be accompanied by frisky sea lions and may see blue-footed boobies plunging into the sea in search of fish.
You will reach places only accessible by kayak and get so close to the lava rocks that you can watch brown pelicans nesting.
At sunset you will return to the bay to finish your kayaking experience. Enjoy delicious seafood for dinner and another stroll along the boardwalk.
Day 3
Boat trip to Cerro Brujo and León Dormido
Today starts early with a transfer to the San Cristóbal pier. You will be safely transferred to small boats where you will remain seated in your wheelchair. The boats will take you to the shipping port where you will change to your boat for the day.
On deck you can enjoy ice tea, coffee and fruits by passing lava rocks, blue-footed boobies and pelicans. The journey continues slowly so that you can admire the magic of the ocean as peacefully as possible. Sometimes dolphins and spotted rays can be seen as they join the tour.
Two big formations appear on the horizon while you continue the journey. One is Léon Dormido (Kicker Rock) and the other is Cerro Brujo. After about two hours of boating, you will arrive at the white sandy beach of Cerro Brujo. You will go ashore wet, which means using wheelchairs that can float to reach the beach.
On the beach you will have the opportunity to dive into the crystal clear water and watch the brown noddy tern lying on the rocks.
We continue by boat to León Dormido. This is the perfect time to enjoy a delicious lunch. León Dormido is an ancient, eroded volcanic lava cone. Two rocks that rise 150 metres vertically from the Pacific Ocean, forming a narrow channel. From a distance, locals thought they saw a sleeping sea lion in the rock formation. Hence the name "León Dormido" - "Sleeping Lion".
But there is far more to observe than the rock form: Numerous tropical birds inhabit the islets and enchant every visitor with their daring flight manoeuvres. There is also a lot to marvel at underwater: if you want to, you can go equipped with a life jacket, swim ring and snorkelling gear in search of sea turtles, Galapagos sharks, sea urchins, yellow tail surgeonfish and many more. Exit into the water is via a shallow platform at the rear of the boat. Personal assistance will be provided. The main idea is to make you feel safe, so you can fully enjoy the experience. But you can also stay on board and watch the animals from the boat.
Once back from the water, you can relax with snacks and a cup of coffee and enjoy the leisurely ride back to the hotel.
Day 4
The National Park Interpretation Center
The adventure finishes.
After breakfast, you will visit the National Park Interpretation Centre located on San Cristóbal. It provides a good overview of the Galapagos Islands. The tour takes you through the history of the islands in the context of nature, humankind, and conservation. It also tells the story of the discovery of the Galapagos by Tomás de Berlanga in the 16th century and the first attempts to establish settlements on the islands.
Afterwards, enjoy the unique path up to the "Cerro Tijeretas" - translated directly from Spanish to English: "Frigate Bird Rock". As the name already suggests, this visitor point is home to innumerable frigatebirds, who also choose this place as a nesting site. Marvel at the "Pirates of the skies" with their red throat sacs and black plumage. Did you know that frigatebirds can not dive into the water and are often forced to steal prey from other seabirds to survive? Did you know that they can fly for weeks at a time? Cerro Tijeretas is the ideal place to enjoy a spectacular view of the rooftops of the provincial capital of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, and the volcanic rocks contrasting against the white sand of the Island's dazzling bright beaches.
Return Flight
Finally, you reach the beach promenade one last time to do some souvenir shopping and say goodbye to this spectacular, cosy island. Transfer to the airport, end of the adventure.