Galapagos Express Tour - 4
Nights / 5 DaysDay
1: Quito or Guayaquil - Santa Cruz Island
AM
Transfer to the airport
for your flight to Baltra on the Galapagos, where you'll be assisted
and transferred via ferry to nearby Santa Cruz Island.
Check in at Santa Cruz Divers Lodge
PM
Lunch at Aventura Lodge.
Tour to Garrapatero Beach
Depart to Garrrapatero
beach, a 25 minutes bus ride to the right spot were an easy trail
start to lead you to the beach in only 15 more minutes.
This beautiful white sandy
beach is known for its flamingos and finches and a place where you
can relax and enjoy the beautiful surroundings. This is one of Santa
Cruz's most peaceful and tranquil settings, the 3 kilometers (1.8
miles) of sand that compose El Garrapatero Beach is a tropical
paradise. It is about 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) northeast of Puerto
Ayora.
Surrounded by beautiful
mangrove trees, the beach is home to an incredible array of birds,
most notably, flamingos and mockingbirds. You can also find marine
iguanas, shrimp, Galapagos penguins, oystercatchers, and patillos
amongst the white sands and clear blue water. There's also a
freshwater lake nearby that is home to even more tropical animals,
such as herons, grebes, and many of shore birds.
Briefing and Dinner at
Aventura lodge.
Overnight at Santa Cruz
Divers Lodge.
Day 2: Santa Cruz Island
- Isabela Island
AM
Breakfast at the Lodge.
The adventure will start
with a trip to "Los Gemelos" (The Twins), two enormous collapsed
lava chambers - a breathtaking visual reminder of the power of
nature. The short, easy hike to each of the twins is swarming with
endemic flora and fauna, including the remaining Scalesia Forest,
draped in liverwort, with large and small tree finches, the
beautiful vermillion flycatcher, and more.
It's a wonderful
introduction to the majestic power of the forces of nature and the
great biodiversity of the Santa Cruz Highlands.
We will visit a 600-acre
private reserve where the giant Galapagos tortoises freely roam,
graze, and sleep.
Sometimes it's a bit muddy
here, so before setting out, we provide a selection of field boots
to choose from, including large sizes for men.
You will be transported
through this tropical environment by truck, and from there you walk
through fields to blend with these gentle giants.
As prehistoric as these
creatures look, wait until you hear what they sound like! After
visiting the tortoises, we'll take a 5-minute ride to the entrance
of a 450-meter (1350-feet) illuminated lava tunnel. With a
ceiling nearly 20 feet high in most places, this is an incredible
opportunity to wander through the remnants of one of the most
powerful forces in nature-lava flows.
Stalagmites, stalactites,
sulfur, mineral-colored walls, and the rippled floor formed from
lava can all be experienced in this uniquely Galapagos stroll
PM
Lunch will be served at
the Aventura Lodge.
After that, departure to
Isabela, our navigation will take two hours approximately (According
to sea conditions).
Check into the Isabela
Divers Lodge
Enjoy the rest of the
afternoon on your own, bike, walk, swim, snorkel or simply relax at
the confort of the Lodge.
Many prefer to laze on the
beautiful beach or climb on the rocks to take photos of the marine
iguanas and blue-footed boobies. If you wish, near the main dock of
Isabela is a beautiful walk through the mangrove that leads to an
area known as Concha de Perla.
In the shallow waters
there is a sea turtle "cleaning station." It's a great place to
snorkel and see these creatures from a few feet away
Dinner at Isabela Lodge,
Overnight at Isabela Divers Lodge
Day 3: Isabela
Island
AM
Departure to "Las
Tintoreras" and Bay Tour.
After breakfast, we will
board a smaller craft to head out across the port, slowing down to
view blue-footed boobies and Galapagos penguins sharing the same
rocky sunbathing space, before turning a bend and docking.
From there we take an
intriguing walk through a jagged lava field, passing abundant
colonies of marine iguanas, to see a small canal full of resting
white-tipped reef sharks.
If the tide is low, they
are sometimes a mere two feet below the surface.
The views from here are
something you will take with you for the rest of your life! The
black, treacherous lava field, the emerald green sea, the forest
green mangrove, and the cloud-capped volcanoes of Isla Isabela
create an afternoon backdrop you are not likely to ever forget.
Once you return to the
dock, you can snorkel in this warm, shallow bay surrounded by
mangrove, for an opportunity to see white-tipped reef sharks, sea
lions, penguins, and, of course, the mystery of the mangrove below
the surface. Don't worry, white-tipped reef sharks are not
aggressive, merely fascinating.
We'll have a bit of time
to relax before lunch at Isabela Lodge.
PM
After lunch we will visit
Cuevas de Sucre. This is one of the newer Park Sites. It is not lit
inside like the lava tunnels on Santa Cruz, so a flashlight is a
must. Inside, the tunnel's ceilings look like you're walking through
a gold mine. Great place!
Next, visit El Mango
Mirador, located near the road leading to the agricultural area of
the island, well-known since the early settlers of the island
planted a mango tree that, so far, is still there.
From the top of the
highest peak on a clear day you'll have a wonderful view of the
entire southern part of Isabela Island, its nearby islands or even
other islands, such as Floreana and Santa Cruz.
Dinner at Isabela lodge.
Day 4: Isabela Island - Santa
Cruz Island
AM
Breakfast at the lodge.
Departure to Humedales
Tour. We begin with a drive out of town along the most
beautiful, white sand, palm lined beach in all of Galapagos-Long
Beach.
This beach, straight from
the cover of a travel magazine, stretches on for 3 kilometers before
the National Park, where we will walk up the trail for astounding
views from the top of Cerro Orchilla.
We visit the "Muro de Las
Lagrimas" (Wall of Tears), a unique construction built by the
backbreaking labor of prisoners of a penal colony centuries earlier.
On the path to the Wall of
Tears you will see an abundance of lava lizards-the males are larger
and striped and the females red-throated.
PM
Lunch at Isabela Lodge and
depart to Santa Cruz.
Sailing time is 1.5 to 2 hours
1:00 pm Depart from
Isabela to Santa Cruz.
Check in at Santa Cruz
Divers Lodge.
Then, to a guided tour to
the fascinating Charles Darwin Research Station where you can learn
about the whole Galapagos and meet the most famous giant tortoise:
Lonesome George.
Dinner at the Aventura
lodge
Overnight at Santa Cruz
Divers Lodge
Day 5: Santa Cruz - Quito or Guayaquil
AM
Breakfast at the Lodge.
Depart 3 hours before your flight in order to arrive back at the
Baltra Airport the requested 1.5 hours before your flight.
Transport and guide
included from the hotel to the airport.
Important Notes:
Rates
include:
- 10% Service Charge as per
Ecuadorian Law.
- All Meals mentioned on the
programs.
- Soft drinks during meals.
- Excursions with a Freelance
English speaking Naturalist guide, provided by the Galapagos
National Park.
- Free internet wireless
service while in Santa Cruz and Isabela.
- When in Puerto Ayora and
Isabela, free use of bikes.
- 25% discount for children
under 10 years old.
- All snorkeling gear.
- All diving equipment except
dive computers which can be rented separately.
Rates do not
include:
- Air ticket to /from Galapagos
- Entrance fee to the Galapagos
National Park ($100 International visitors and $6 Ecuadorians)
- Control Visitor Card ($10)
- Personal expenses
- Alcoholic Beverages
- Gratuities
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