Essential Ecuador

Today, we will head to the Quito airport for the flight to the island of Baltra in the Galapagos. On arrival, we will continue to Santa Cruz, crossing the narrow Itabaca Channel by ferry. From here, we will continue by car to our first stop in the highlands of Santa Cruz. The highlands are home to the iconic giant Galapagos tortoises. Here we will visit a private ranch for lunch before we go on a turtle spotting hike. We can witness some lava tubes, which are formed when the surface of a lava stream solidifies. Enjoy the rest of the evening at leisure to relax and explore this beautiful Island. 

After breakfast, we will visit the Academy Bay. Optional snorkel equipment will be provided free of charge to anyone who wishes to use it. We will take a boat to the Bay where you can swim and snorkel with all kinds of exotic fish and marine life, as well as the famous sea lions; they are inquisitive animals and like to approach you or swim next to you underwater. We will also see the rare blue-footed boobies. From here, we will head to a lookout point to see white-tipped reef sharks swimming in the ocean below us.  We will then take a walk along the Playa de Los Perros, where sea iguanas can be found sunbathing. The enormous cacti, the deep, red colour of the rocks and the contrasting turquoise ocean are all set up for the perfect photo session. 

In the morning, we will visit the Charles Darwin Research Station. We can learn all about the endemic species found on the islands, as well as the ongoing conservation work on the Galapagos Islands. In the afternoon, you will travel by speedboat to The San Cristobal Island. We can observe dolphins and whales during our island crossing if we are lucky and weather permitting! We will spend the night on this pristine island.

After breakfast, we will head to the dock, where you will take a short boat ride to the nearby Isla Lobos. During this boat trip, we will be able to observe many marine animals before we even reach the island. The island is the home to frigate birds, blue-footed boobies, manta rays, sea lions and sometimes sharks who live on land or in the surrounding ocean. The white coral beaches of San Cristobal are spectacular to walk around. We can relax or swim here before heading back to Puerto Baquerizo Moreno.

Today we will leave these amazing Islands to head back to the capital. There will be a final opportunity to take some photos of the sea lions before we fly back to the mainland. We will arrive at the hotel before heading out for our final evening in Quito!

Today we will leave this amazing country and its unique islands to head to the international aiport for your onward flight!