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Galapagos Islands cruise - 5 nights / 6 days

Suggested Itinerary

Sunday: San Cristóbal / Cerro Brujo / Leon Dormido
Arrive at Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, SAN CRISTOBAL Island, where our crew meets you at the airport and escorts you to your anchored yacht. This afternoon, visit Cerro Brujo, where we enjoy a subtle introduction to the Galapagos with a beautiful, white, powder-sand beach. As the sun sets, we cruise around Kicker Rock (Leon Dormido), a vertical tuff cone formation that abruptly juts up almost 500 feet out of the ocean. Watch sea lions, blue-footed boobies, masked boobies and magnificent frigate birds on the cliffs.

Monday: Darwin Bay / Prince Phillip´s Steps , Tower
We spend the entire day on TOWER (Genovesa), one of the most spectacular Islands in Galapagos. After a wet landing on Darwin Bay's coral beach, wind your way past tide pools where swallow-tailed and lava gulls gather. Enter a forest of mangroves where colonies of great frigatebirds nest. The males inflate their red-throated pouches to attract females that fly overhead. After swimming or sea kayaking, take a panga ride along the jagged shoreline. See the beautiful red-billed tropic bird. At Prince Philip's Steps, find storm petrels and the elusive short-eared owl, and watch the famous red-footed boobies nesting in Palo-Santo trees.

Tuesday: South Plaza/ North Seymour
This morning, we visit South Plaza, a geological uplift with tall cliffs offering spectacular views. After a dry landing, the trails lead us through "Prickly pear cactus" or Opuntia and Sesuvium. Here, we find the Galapagos land iguana feeding on the cactus leaves. Toward the end of the cliff, we encounter a colony of bachelor sea lions. The dominant bulls are in various stages of recovery from battles lost over prime beach territory. We also find swallow tailed gulls, shearwaters and red-billed tropicbirds who build their nests along the cliffs. This afternoon, we disembark on North Seymour, also a small geological uplift. After a dry landing, we follow a trail that leads us to sea lions, swallow-tailed gulls and blue-footed boobies. Visit the largest colony of magnificent frigatebirds found in Galapagos. As we stroll along the beach, watch for sea lions body surfing the northern swells.

Wednesday: Tagus Cove , Isabela / Punta Espinoza , Fernandina
This morning, we visit Tagus Cove, ISABELA. Six volcanoes flowed together and formed Isabela, the largest Island in Galapagos. On a nature walk, discover a salt-water lagoon, a scenic overlook, and a spectacular view of lava fields, volcanic formations and the ocean. Note graffiti dating back to the 1800's is written on the rocky cliffs. Explore Tagus Cove in pangas or sea kayaks and find Galapagos penguins and other seabirds. After lunch, we cross the Bolivar Canal and disembark at Punta Espinoza, FERNANDINA. Located in the western part of the archipelago, Fernandina is the youngest and most pristine Island found in Galapagos. Hundreds of marine iguanas, the largest colony in Galapagos, bask in the sun along the rugged shoreline. Observe sea lion harems with resident bulls carefully guarding their territory. Flightless Cormorants build their nest on the point and Galapagos Hawk fly overhead. Evidence of recent lava flows formed by an active volcano stretch their way around the coast.

Thursday: Puerto Egas, Santiago/ Bartolome
This morning, stroll along the shore at Puerto Egas, SANTIAGO (James) looking for octopus, starfish and other sea life caught in the tide pools. At low tide, catch a glimpse of marine iguanas as they feed on exposed green algae. Watch for great blue herons, lava herons, oystercatchers and yellow-crowned night herons. Our walk ends at the grottos, deep pools of clear water where we encounter fur sea lions once on the verge of extinction. On Bartolome, it seems like we are walking on the moon. This young Island is inhospitable to most plants and animals. After a dry landing, climb 30 minutes up a steep slope to the summit of a once active volcano. Pause along the way to marvel at lava bombs, spatter cones and cinder cones. From the top, gaze out across the island for a panoramic view including the famous "Pinnacle Rock", an eroded tuff cone. Down below, crystal clear water invites you to snorkel with schools of tropical fish. Penguins often swim in this area. On the other side of the Island encounter sea turtles and white-tipped sharks.

Friday: Darwin Station/ Baltra
This morning, we visit the Charles Darwin Research Station. Scientists from all over the globe work at the station and conduct biological research from anatomy to zoology. Get your picture taken with the giant tortoises. Observe year-old tortoises and learn about the captive-breeding program. Afterwards, we climb aboard a bus taken us through the highlands of SANTA CRUZ Island. Watch the scenery change as we wind our way through all seven vegetation zones found in Galapagos. We arrive to Baltra in time for your flight back to the mainland on Tame Airlines.

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