5 Day Galápagos Trip in Santa Cruz Island Land-based

5 Day Galápagos Trip in Santa Cruz Island Land-based

This 5-day  program you will experience the highlights of the Galapagos Islands, you can choose from tourist  to luxury Class hotels.  Transportation, accommodation in double or single rooms, some meals included (Ecuadorian menu), and a bilingual naturalist guide, who will accompany you during the tours. If you are a single traveler it is possible to join the group tour and to stay in a private room upon a single charge. The highlights of this program are: in Santa Cruz 

, El Chato, Tortuga Bay, Las Grietas, Charles Darwin Station and  uninhabited island ( North Seymour or Pinzon or South Plazas or Floreana)

Itinerary

Day 1: Santa Cruz Island/ Transfer in + El Chato + Twin Craters

Stop At: Reserva El Chato, Isla Santa Cruz, Puerto Ayora 200350 Ecuador
You will be picked-up at the airport by your private certified guide. Then, you will take the public bus to the Itabaca Channel, which you will cross on a ferry. Subsequently, you will go in the taxi to a ranch (El Chato) in the highlands to see giant tortoises in the free environment.
Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Los Gemelos, Ecuador
We will visit the Twin Craters which are located in the highlands of Santa Cruz Island and are surrounded by lush and green forests, dominated by the endemic Scalesia plants. It is possible to walk along the rim of the craters to better appreciate the magnitude of the holes as well as the local flora and fauna. This site is also one of the most likely places to observe the endemic short-ear owl of the Galapagos
Duration: 2 hours

Meals included:
• Lunch
Accommodation included: Selected hotel in Santa Cruz

Day 2: Uninhabited Island

Stop At: Santa Fe Island, Ecuador
You will participate in a yacht tour to an uninhabited island. That will either be Santa Fé, Plazas, Bartolomé or Seymour. The destination will depend on availability, weekday and program of the National Park. We will let you know immediately which island is available when you book the tour. On Santa Fé and Plazas you can spot endemic land iguanas. Bartolomé is known for beautiful lava sceneries and on Seymour, you can see frigate birds, land iguanas, and blue-footed boobies.
Duration: 5 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch: Box lunch
Accommodation included: Selected hotel in Santa Cruz

Day 3: Santa Cruz Island / Tortuga Bay (snorkeling)+ Charles Darwin Station

Stop At: Galapagos Beach at Tortuga Bay, South-West of the town of Puerto Ayora, 200350 Ecuador
Tortuga Bay is a beautiful and isolated beach located on the south side of Santa Cruz Island. Sea turtles use the white and soft sand for nesting, hence the name “Tortuga Bay.”

Marine Iguanas, brown pelicans and Sally Lightfoot crabs populate the beach, which is next to a brackish lagoon surrounded by the typical coastal vegetation of the islands; cacti, salt bushes, and Palo Santo (Holy Stick) trees.
Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Charles Darwin Research Station, Ave Charles Darwin, Puerto Ayora 200350 Ecuador
ou will visit the Charles Darwin Station that is primarily an international scientific research station situated on the outskirts of Puerto Ayora. You will be taken to its visitor center to learn about the geology, climate, natural history and the conservation of the Galapagos Islands.
Duration: 1 hour

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
Accommodation included: Selected Hotel in Santa Cruz

Day 4: Floreana Island

Stop At: Santa Cruz Island, Ecuador
You have the chance to visit the first inhabited island that has an exciting human history. There are freshwater wells as this area was used by the early settlers who found refuge in the caves nearby. It is also home to the endemic medium tree finch that only exists on this island. Pink flamingos and Green sea turtles nest (December to May) on this island. The Galapagos storm petrel is also found here, a sea bird which spends most of its life away from land.
Duration: 4 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch: Box Lunch
Accommodation included: Selected Hotel in Santa Cruz

Day 5: Transfer to Baltra Airport

Stop At: North Seymour Island, Ecuador
Your driver will take you to the Itabaca Channel, which you will cross on a ferry. Your driver will accompany you until the check-in point where your program ends with your return flight to the mainland.
Duration: 1 hour

Meals included:
• Breakfast
No accommodation included on this day.