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Trip Report
Galapagos Islands Itinerary - Santa Cruz and Isabella
Our Galapagos itinerary. Explore Galapagos Islands on a budget. Snorkeling with turtles, lying on the beach with relaxed seals and iguanas and observing tortoises.
+ 5
South AmericaEcuador9 days / January 2023
Highs & Lows
The tour “los tuneles” on Isabella island! Plus the sunsets on the beach
Having to take the ferry from island to island so many times and some unhelpful and unmotivated tour guides
Itinerary Overview
Here are the details of our Galapagos Islands itinerary. The Galapagos archipelago is a paradise for animal lovers and landscape enthusiasts! Its impressive natural scenes are awe-inspiring and you can learn a lot about ecology, evolution and animals ways to adapt to their habitat.
In total we spend 10 days on the Galapages visiting two islands: Santa Cruz where we flew in and Isabella. First we also wanted to see San Cristobal but during the middle of our trip we decided to skip it because we didn’t like the idea of taking the ferry so many times.
It is possible to do Galapagos Islands on a budget. The biggest expenses on the Galapagos are in my opinion the flights to get there, the entrance fee to the national parc (100$) and the numerous day tours that are offered. Each tour can cost about 40$ to 250$ depending on the tour, its length (half day or full day), the type of boat and your luck or succes in finding the best deals. Choose your tours wisely and inform yourself what kind of animals or landscapes you want to see and where‘s the best spot and when‘s the best time to do that. Of course there is no guarantee that you will see hammer sharks in that certain place or penguins in the other but you might be lucky. In our ten days we paid roughly 250$ on three organized day or half-day tours and explored the islands by ourselves the rest of the days.
Puerto Ayora The most touristic location on the Galapagos where you can find lots of tour operators, food options and souvenir shops
We arrived at Puerto Ayora by taking a shuttle bus, a very short boat trip and another bus from the airport in Baltra. Already within the first two hours on the Galapagos you are able to see it’s amazing fauna e.g. iguanas lying outside of the airport or seals relaxing on benches around the fish market and port areas in Puerto Ayora. I recommend you to just walk around and get a sense of the town. There are also a lot of souvenir shops selling more or less nice or funny shirts about the Galapagos. There’s nothing you can’t find! For a budget trip I recommend eating the menu of the day in one of the fish and sea food restaurants on the local food street more towards the back of the town. It’s cheap (5$) and good.
The best tours from here are in my opinion a walk to “las grietas” where you can enjoy volcanic landscapes and snorkel in a cavelike surrounding and the beautiful beach of “tortuga bay” (unfortunately there are no turtels there through). Don’t miss out on renting a bike and exploring the backland of the island, especially the tortoise reserve to admire the huge and old tortoises! You can also visit the Charles Darwin Centre if you want, I heard it’s not very informative though.
Puerto Villamil Isabella is the biggest and supposedly most beautiful island of the archipelago with an amazing wild life
2+The town is a quaint fishing village with friendly locals and a laid-back vibe. One of the highlights of my trip was exploring the beautiful beaches around Puerto Villamil. The sand was soft, the water was crystal clear, and the scenery was absolutely stunning. I also had the chance to go snorkeling and see some amazing marine life, including sea turtles and colorful fish. Another highlight was visiting the Tortoise Breeding Center and seeing the giant Galapagos tortoises up close. It was a unique and memorable experience that I won't forget anytime soon. The food in Puerto Villamil was also delicious, with lots of fresh seafood and local specialties, I recommend a visit to Puerto Villamil for anyone looking for a peaceful and beautiful getaway.
Q & A
What would you have changed?
We booked our in and outbound flight from the same airport, Baltra, and I would definitely change this the next time and fly out of San Cristobal instead or vice versa to skip one ferry trip.Anything go wrong during the trip?
Unfortunately we had a really unmotivated tour guide on the volcano tour on Isabella. Being asked a question about volcanic activities he merely answered that he can’t remember the answer and that it is time to walk now - it was quite unbelievable!Restaurant recommendations?
The local restaurants have cheap and usually good fish and sea food options for a fourth of the price in the more tourist-oriented fancy restaurants.Tips you would give a friend?
Don’t book all your day tours with the first tour agent you find but walk around and ask for prices in at least three or four to save the best deal.Packing tips?
Bring your own snorkeling gear if you have one (however you can also rent it for cheap), bring lots of sunscreen because this kind of good is more expensive on the islands.Transportation Tips?
When planning your Galapagos itinerary, book the ferry some days in advance, we heard several accounts of people that couldn’t travel on their preferred dates because all the ferry boats were booked out!Any surprises?
The beauty of the sunsets on Isabella island.
Lodging
La posada del caminante: a cute hospedaje I with private rooms but a hostel-like atmosphere with a kitchen and a common area with hammocks. The lovely owner provides free (!) laundry service and free fruits.