Galapagos Islands
Wonder at flora and fauna found nowhere else on earth when you sail the fabled waters of these isolated islands.
Book with All-Travel and receive savings up to 68%. All-Travel Cruise Match Program guarantees you the lowest prices available on Cruises.
Vacation Search
Home Destinations Galapagos Islands
Galapagos Islands
Top Specials
- Oceania Cruises 2013 Summer Collection
- Shore Excursions
- Holland America Europe Suite Sale
- Celebrity Cruises Cruise for a Cure
- Club Med Semi-Annual Sale!
Related Blog Entries
Why Travel With Us?
Knowledge & Destination Expertise, Exclusive Privileges, Global Network, Peace of Mind, & 24-Hour Planning...
Read More
Meet Our Staff
Take a look at the real people working hard to make your next trip a memorable one.
Meet our Staff
Wonder at flora and fauna found nowhere else on earth when you sail the fabled waters of these isolated islands.
Española (Hood) Island
One of the oldest of the islands, it is small and flat, with no visible volcanic crater or vent. Gardner Bay on the eastern shore offers the island’s most magnificent beach.
Around the small islets nearby, snorkelers will find fish and sometimes turtles and sharks. The trail leads from here to Punta Suarez, on the western tip of the island. Along the way you'll pass the nesting site of almost all the world's Waved Albatross, huge birds with a 6-foot wing span. Punta Suarez is one of the most outstanding wildlife areas of the archipelago, with a long list of species found along its cliffs and sand or pebble beaches. When heavy swells are running, Punta Suarez is also the site of a spectacular blowhole, with thundering spray shooting 30 yards into the air.
San Cristóbal (Chatham) Island
This island is geologically one of the oldest, reflected by its eroded volcanic peaks in the north and densely vegetated slopes in the south. The town of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno is the capital of Galápagos Province. A bus ride through highland farms brings you to El Junco, the only freshwater lake in Galápagos. Cruise to spectacular Kicker Rock, or Leon Dormido, the jagged remains of an old tuff cone whose flanks are covered with seabirds.
Santa Fé (Barrington) Island
One of the most picturesque anchorages within the archipelago, its beauty is best appreciated from the trail which climbs the fault cliff overlooking the southern half of the bay. This plateau is also the best place to find the large land iguanas that are endemic to this island. The two beaches are sleeping grounds for sea lions, and snorkeling near the small island by the entrance of the bay can also be rewarding.
Santa Cruz (Indefatigable) Island
One of the largest human populations of the five inhabited islands, it holds some 4,000 residents distributed between the cattle-farming communities in the lush highlands and the coastal town of Puerto Ayora. Here you can visit the Charles Darwin Research Station to see the huge land tortoises, or galápagos, which once flourished in the islands. A bus ride into the highlands takes you to Los Gemelos, two deep pit craters situated in the Scalesia forest with lots of interesting bird life, or for a trek through the giant lava tubes, or to the Tortoise Reserve to search for giant tortoises in their natural surroundings. On the north shore of the island is an extensive mangrove lagoon called Black Turtle Beach. Here in the peacefulness of the mangroves turtles break the surface of the still waters, while fish, rays, and small sharks cruise below.
James (Santiago) Island
James Island has several sites to visit, such as Puerto Egas, with its black sand beaches. Hikes inland to the salt crater and down the rugged shoreline, especially at low tide, will turn up many land birds and marine species. Just north of James Bay is Buccaneer Cove, a particularly scenic area of steep cliffs and dark beaches. On the eastern coast of the island is Sullivan Bay, a large area of fresh pahoehoe (ropey) lava flows dating from an eruption in 1897. A walk over this glazed black rock gives the impression of the still-molten lava, as every ripple, swirl, and bubble in its surface has been preserved.
Bartolomé (Bartholomew) Island
This small island off of James offers beautiful white sand beaches fringed by luxuriant green mangroves. The eastern end of the island has many volcanic cones and lava tubes. Climb to the summit of the island for one of the most breathtaking views in the islands. The tall, leaning spike known as Pinnacle Rock is the eroded remains of an old tuff cone. At its foot is a beach for swimmers and snorkelers, and a tiny colony of Galápagos penguins.
Rábida (Jervis) Island
Rábida Island has a different look, with its reddish beach, cliffs, and steep slopes of volcanic cinders. A noisy colony of sea lions lives on the beach, and a short trail inland is a good place to observe finches, doves, yellow warblers, and mockingbirds. Hidden behind a narrow strip of green salt bush is a briny lagoon where flamingos may be found, sometimes even nesting. Snorkeling along the rocks at the east end of the beach may reveal many of the reef fish common to these waters, and the ever-present sea lions.
Fernandina and Isabela Islands
These two islands lie on the western edge of the archipelago. Fernandina is the youngest and most active volcano in the Galápagos, with eruptions taking place every few years. It is also one of the most pristine of the islands, with none of man’s introduced species to date. The flat lava of Punta Espinosa gives a feel for this stark and barren landscape. Flightless cormorants build their nests on the point, and sea lions sprawl on the beach or play in the tidepools. Isabela is the largest island, made up of six volcanoes joined by extensive lava flows. There are various sites to visit around the island. A two-day trek up Alcedo Volcano will lead you to some of the last of the wild tortoises found in the islands.
355 Offers Found.
