Origins of Species: Galápagos Islands Vacation

Arrive to Quito, Ecuador

Arrive at Mariscal Sucre International Airport and transfer to our hotel about 45 minutes outside of Quito city. If you’d like to explore the city of Quito or the surrounding region before or after your Galápagos cruise, OARS can arrange additional services, per request.

Flight to Baltra & the Highlands of Santa Cruz Island

After an early breakfast, you’ll take a morning flight to the island of Baltra. Upon arrival, you’ll make your way to the VIP arrivals lounge where the staff will assist you with your Galápagos National Park Entry. Our islands-based guide will meet you here and accompany the group on a short ferry ride to the island of Santa Cruz.

In the afternoon, we’ll have the chance to search for giant tortoises at a local farm where wild tortoises roam freely and visit a lava formation—Los Tuneles (The Tunnels) and/or Los Gemelos (The Twins). Los Tuneles are lava tubes, remnants of underground lava channels where lava once flowed. Los Gemelos are two lava sinkholes that formed when great lava pools drained leaving empty, roofed caverns. The roofs subsequently collapsed and exposed these craters.

After our explorations, we’ll check into our luxurious accommodations for the evening. Once you have had a chance to settle in, we’ll reunite for dinner. (B, L, D)

Exploring Santa Cruz Island

After a leisurely breakfast, we offer an optional (yet highly recommended) snorkel practice in the hotel pool. After the snorkel lesson, we depart for the seaside town of Puerto Ayora, where we have lunch and visit the Charles Darwin Research Station. Here, you will learn about conservation issues as well as the tortoise hatching and rearing program. You may also see several species of resident giant tortoises up close as well as the Lonesome George exhibit. 

In the late afternoon, we’ll meet with our park Naturalist and board our yacht, the Integrity. Once aboard, everyone will participate in a safety and life jacket drill. Afterward, you have time to settle into your stateroom before dinner is served. 

During the night the yacht will get underway and you will awaken just as we anchor at the southernmost island of our cruise, Floreana. (B, L, D)

Floreana Island

This morning you’ll rise to the sounds of the sea and a view of Punta Cormorant and Champion Island. Following breakfast aboard Integrity, we’ll prepare for our first of many shore excursions. Our pangas will take us to a green, olivine sand beach next to a large lagoon usually adorned with feeding flamingos and other water birds. A short hike through one of the more varied plant communities leads to Flour Beach where sea turtles nest and small rays frolic in the surf. We’ll also hope to catch a glimpse of the rare Floreana Mockingbird.

Next up is snorkeling along the shores of nearby Champion Island with curious, playful sea lions and the array of fish that frequent these waters.

While we enjoy lunch, the yacht will motor to our next excursion, which takes us to several popular attractions – Post Office Bay, Asilo de la Paz, and Black Beach. Arriving ashore, our first stop is at the wooden barrel that has served as a mariner’s “post office” since the 18th Century. Here you’ll have the opportunity to continue the “postmaster” tradition of assisting with the delivery of a postcard or letter left by another traveler. From here we head into the Floreana Highlands to visit a collection of tortoises and learn about the island’s intriguing human history at Wittmer Caves. This is where one of Galápagos’ only freshwater springs is located. Our day ends with a walk on Black Beach before returning to the boat for a well-deserved dinner. (B, L, D)

Isabela Island

After motoring overnight, we awake at the largest of all the islands in the archipelago–Isabela. Home to five major volcanic cones, two of which erupt frequently, the island is relatively young and geologically very alive, making it a “hot spot.”

This morning’s excursion is at Punta Moreno. Here we’ll walk onto this young lava flow at the base of Cero Azul, past cacti, and other early colonizing plants. This flow is dotted with numerous “oases” of brackish lagoons containing a wide variety of life including flamingos, Paint-billed Crakes, White-cheeked Pintails, and Common Gallinules. Our Naturalist will lead us along the trail and provide a variety of interpretive information about the flora and fauna surrounding us.

As we enjoy lunch, the sights and sounds of the sea and coastline entertain us while we motor to Elizabeth Bay, a pristine mangrove lagoon. Once our pangas reach the entry to the enclosed lagoon, our guides will slowly navigate through the narrow channels while we watch for rays, Flightless Cormorants, penguins, pelicans, Lava herons, sea turtles, sea lions, Blue-footed Boobies and other species that inhabit this vital zone. Green sea turtles come here to mate before nesting. The tranquil scene sets the tone and reminds us how fortunate we are to experience this special place. (B, L, D)

Isabela Island and Fernandina Island

A short overnight cruise brings us to Urbina Bay, one of the most unique and rewarding sites we’ll visit. In 1954, volcanic activity caused a massive stretch of seafloor to be uplifted 15 feet in a matter of hours, stranding coral heads and all sea life that couldn’t escape. Here we get to walk among the skeletal coral garden, now home to marine iguanas, pelicans, and mockingbirds. Not far inland is a colony of large land iguanas. During certain times of the year, we may encounter the giant Alcedo tortoises, which come down from the highlands to nest in the warm sands of the bay. The vegetation is varied and several species of birds nest here.

Lunch aboard Integrity is served while we motor along neighboring Fernandina Island to our destination at Punta Espinosa. Fernandina is the most pristine and youngest island of the Galápagos and is volcanically active, the most recent eruption occurring in 2008. Upon landing ashore, we are met by an abundance of small, dark marine iguanas and brightly colored Sally Lightfoot Crabs. Here we’ll walk out on a pahoehoe lava flow—younger than the one at Punta Moreno—past a few pioneering plants. Along the sandy shore, you can see Flightless Cormorants, pelicans, and numerous lounging sea lions. Sunsets from here are often stunning. (B, L, D)

Isabela Island

This morning’s excursion takes us to Tagus Cove, a deep and secluded bay surrounded by high cliffs. Pirates and whalers in the 19th Century using Tagus Cove for anchorage left their marks on the cliffs of this sunken caldera, a tradition of graffiti that continues today. A short, steep hike passes Darwin Lake, which sits within a tuft cone and is filled with salt water. This site is an excellent place for viewing land birds, including Ground and Tree Finches, Galápagos Hawks, Yellow Warblers, Large-billed Flycatchers, and sometimes the Woodpecker Finch. A rare sighting of land iguanas is a treat. A panga ride or kayaking jaunt along the cliffs provides views of geologic features, as well as penguins and other bird species.

Our afternoon destination is Punta Vicente Roca, a huge collapsed tuft cone that foots the northwest corner of Isabela Island. The large cave, cleaved tuft cone, and caldera wall are impressive geological formations and provide a beautiful backdrop for nesting birds, including Blue-footed and Nazca Boobies, gulls, Storm Petrels, and Brown Noddy Terns. It also forms a calm gathering area for sea turtles. There is no landing at this site, so we explore the cliff faces by panga or by snorkeling. Along with sea turtles, snorkelers can see many species of colorful fish, penguins, sea lions, sea anemones, small jellyfish, and other sea life. As we depart this site in the late afternoon, we’ll enjoy refreshments aboard the yacht as we cross the equator. (B, L, D)

Santiago Island

We wake up to the prominent island of Santiago, a large, varied, and dramatic island. Black lava flows and volcanic cinder cones, their gray slopes dotted with silvery Palo Santo trees, combine to create a stunning geologic panorama

Our pangas deliver us to Puerto Egas, where two separate trails are found. The first meanders along the coast to the fur seal grottoes, a safe haven for the shy Galápagos Fur Seal amongst the crags and swimming inlets. This area is also home to American Oystercatchers, marine iguanas, and ubiquitous sea lions.

The second, less-used trail heads inland to a lagoon at the Salt Mine Volcano where flamingos and other birds are found.

We return to the yacht for lunch and then cruise to Espumilla Beach and Buccaneer Cove. Espumilla is a red-sand beach and a sea turtle nesting site, with an inland trail that passes a small lagoon and into the arid zone where it is possible to view many land birds in a beautiful landscape, including Galápagos Hawks.

Buccaneer Cove is located on the north side of Santiago and is a legendary hideout for pirate ships preying on Spanish Galleons. At Buccaneer Cove we’re able to snorkel or kayak. Here you may see sea lions, fur seals, sea turtles, rays, sharks, pelagic fishes, and amazing underwater geologic formations. (B, L, D)

North Seymour Island and Santa Cruz Island

North Seymour is the flattest island of our Galápagos cruise. The trail at North Seymour heads inland where you will see the largest colony of Magnificent Frigatebirds in Galápagos, Blue-footed Boobies and occasionally bush-climbing land iguanas. We’ll then head along the coast where you will have ample opportunity to observe sea lions and marine iguanas. Snorkelers will enjoy their last underwater experience in the channel between North Seymour and Mosquera, which can be one of the most interesting sites.

This afternoon, we’ll come ashore at Bachas Beach. Here we’ll enjoy Bachas’ fine white sand beach. Two small lagoons just over the dunes sometimes host flamingos. The name “Bachas” comes from the remains of a barge that ran aground decades ago, leaving just a few rusty spines visible today.

Next, at Caleta Tortuga Negra, we are propelled silently in our pangas by our guides pushing us along with a pole. We may see Spotted Eagle and Golden Rays gracefully swimming in formation just below the surface of the water. You’ll also see sharks, egrets, and Lava Herons. Caleta Tortuga Negra is a shark nursery and we may see very small sharks in the shallows. Sea turtles hang out in this lagoon most of the year but are here by the hundreds during their mating season between December and March.

Afterward, we’ll gather for our final sunset and dinner aboard Integrity. (B, L, D)

Baltra and Return to the Mainland

Bird life abounds as the morning sunrise lights up pink skies. You’ll have breakfast on board Integrity, then disembark at Baltra Island. The group will fly back to the mainland and, depending on your flights, either connect to your international departure, or have an extended day-use room for your late-night departure, or overnight if your flight is the following morning. (B)

Departure

OARS will arrange transport to the Quito International Airport for departing flights. (B)