Compare Galapagos Small Ship Cruise and Safari by Walking Connection
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| Trip |
5 | Excellent
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| Duration | 7 days |
| Price From | $ 4,825 |
| Price Per Day | $ 689 |
| Highlights |
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| Trip Style | Small group tour |
| Lodging Level | Premium |
| Physical Level |
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| Travel Themes |
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| Countries Visited | |
| Cities and Attractions |
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| Flights & Transport | Ground transport included |
| Activities |
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| Meals Included |
5 Breakfasts, 5 Lunches and 6 Dinners |
| Description |
The Galapagos Archipelago is one of the last places on the planet to be relatively untouched by man. With only 3 percent of the landmass inhabited, the islands support a remarkable ecosystem and have one of the planet’s most important marine reserves. The “Enchanted Islands” lie at the crossroads between science, nature, literature and exploration. And we have found the perfect place for exploring the Galapagos by land and sea to maximize your time at this world heritage site. |
Day 1: Baltra on Santa Cruz Island
Meals: Dinner
Board the M/Y Odyssey (or M/Y Grand Odyssey) and visit Dragon Hill. The visitor site at Dragon Hill has been open for visits on 1993. This site is located in northwestern Santa Cruz Island and consists of a trail that lead to a hyper-saline lagoon behind the beach, frequented by flamingos, pintail ducks and other species of birds. This site has been re populated with land iguanas from Seymour, Isabela and Santa Cruz islands. There is a short walk to the Hill, which offers a beautiful view of the bay.
Day 2: Rabida – Black Turtle Cove, Sombrero Chino Island
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
AM: Rábida Island is unique because the red color of the rocks and sand. The volcanic material in this island is very porous and external factors as rain, salt water and sea breeze have acted as an oxidizing agent. A short walk along a trail lead us to a coastal lagoon behind the beach permits the observation of land birds as finches, doves, yellow warblers and mocking birds. At the lagoon there is a colony of flamingos.
PM: In the afternoon visit a small islet (1 sq km) located just off the southeastern tip of Santiago Island. It is a recent volcanic cone, shaped like a Chinese hat when seen from north side. On the west it can be seen lava formations, formed under the sea and raised upward, this is why coral heads are found on the lava. This is an excellent visit for interpretation of geological features such as lava tubes and lava flows. The landscape is covered by sea lions colonies, marine iguanas and Galapagos penguins.
Day 3: Genovesa – El Barranco & Darwin Bay
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
AM: This bay has origin when the crater of this island collapsed below sea level. The wet landing is on a beautiful white coral sandy beach. This is a favorite island for birdwatchers: red footed-booby, masked boobies, wandering tattlers, lava gulls, whimbrels Yellow-crowned, black-crowned and lava herons, with and yellow warblers can be seen in the area.
Continuing on the trail, visitors climb gradually to the edge of the cliff seeing Red-Foots nesting in the Mangrove trees below. Bird watching includes sightings of Sharp-Beaked Finches, Large Cactus and Ground Finches, Galapagos Doves and Swallow-Tailed Gulls. Reaching the end the trail at the cliff’s edge offers an incredible view of the island and the many birds living there.
PM: El Barranco is located in the southern part of Darwin Bay and it is also known as Prince Philip’s Steps, passengers will climb to a plateau that is part of the stretch of land that surrounds Darwin Bay on its eastern side. There is a big population of Masked boobies and Red-Footed boobies in the tree; Storm petrels and Short-eared Owls have found in Genovesa lava flows the ideal place for nesting.
Day 4: Bartolome Island, Santiago Island – Sullivan Bay
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
AM: Bartolomé Island
Bartolomé Island is situated across Sullivan Bay. It has an altitude of 114 meters, from where we can observe one of the most beautiful sceneries of the Galapagos Islands such as: Volcanic cones, lunar-like craters, lava fields, and the famous Toba formed pinnacle eroded by the sea. There is very little vegetation on this island.
It has two breathtaking beaches where marine turtles exist and at the base of the pinnacle, as well as a very small colony of Galapagos penguins.
PM: The Sullivan Bay, Santiago Island
Santiago, also called James, or San Salvador Island, is located in the west central part of the Galapagos archipelago. It is the fourth largest island in the archipelago (following Isabela, Fernandina and Santa Cruz). Along with some of the large western volcanoes of Isabela and Fernandina, Santiago is also volcanically active, with many young flows and cones to be seen, particularly along the south, west, and east coasts. These may even be seen from the summit of Darwin Volcano and from space. A number of historic eruptions have been reported over the last 2 centuries. Santiago actually consists of two coalesced volcanoes: a typical shield volcano on the northwest end and a low, linear fissure volcano on the southeast end.
Day 5: Santa Cruz – Highlands tour & transfer to Galapagos Safari Camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Today you transfer to the unique Galapagos Safari Camp. Make your way to the highlands leaving from Bellavista and pass through the agricultural zone, near the National Park boundary, the Miconia Zone, and then travel through the Fern and Sedge zone. With clear weather (unpredictable) this area affords beautiful scenes of rolling hills and extinct volcanic cones covered with grass and lush greenery all year round.
Day 6: Santa Cruz Island – Garrapatero Beach or Tortuga Bay with option to walk, sea kayak and mountain bike
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
It’s your day to choose which option best suits you!
Day 7: Transfer to Baltra for departure flight
Meals: Breakfast
