Western Galapagos Islands Cruise - TREASURE OF GALAPAGOS M/C

Arrival at Seymour Airport on Baltra Island (GPS)

Meet and greet your naturalist guide upon arrival at Seymour Airport on Baltra Island. Before leaving the airport, you'll pass an inspection point where your Transit Control Card will be stamped. Be sure to store this with your travel documents as you'll need to show it again when you depart the Galapagos Islands. If you haven't already, you'll also pay the Galapagos National Park entrance fee of 100 USD here. You'll then be escorted onboard the Treasure of Galapagos where your captain and crew will welcome you.

Charles Darwin Research Station

Visit the Charles Darwin Research Station on Santa Cruz Island this afternoon. As the main breeding site of the Galapagos Islands, this facility is dedicated to marine life conservation and maintaining biodiversity in the region. Learn the story of Lonesome George, the fabled final survivor of the giant tortoise species who lived at the Charles Darwin Research Station for four decades, and tour the information center, the Van Staelen Exhibition Hall and the Breeding and Rearing Center to witness tortoises live in captivity.

Enjoy dinner and evening on the Treasure of Galapagos.

Whale Bay

On the western shores of Santa Cruz Island is Whale Bay, an olivine beach at the base of Dragon Hill. Its unique color is due to a surplus of olivine crystals that formed from the crystallization of magma. Explore the grounds of one of the oldest whaling camps on this island, and with your expert naturalist guide, identify Galapagos hawks, sea lions, Darwin's finches and marine iguanas on your walk.

Dragon Hill

Visit Dragon Hill after lunch, situated on the northwestern shores of Santa Cruz some 25 km west of Seymour Airport on Baltra Island. Aptly named for the population of Galapagos land iguanas that populate this island, these mini-land dragons spend their afternoons roaming the sun-drenched sands and jagged boulders, feeding on the fruits and flowers of the Opuntia Cacti. Despite their healthy population on Santa Cruz now, these land iguanas were under threat by wild dogs, cats and goats in the 1970s and were transferred to surrounding islands for over a decade to encourage re-population. On a leisurely 2.4 km walk with your naturalist guide, discover the stark desert landscapes of Santa Cruz, winding past Palo Santo trees on your way to the summit of the hill where you'll be met with sweeping views over the bay. Conclude your visit to Dragon Hill with a stop at a saltwater lagoon where you have the opportunity to spot the elusive flamingo.

Enjoy dinner and evening on the Treasure of Galapagos.

Las Tintoreras

A group of islets just off the shores of Puerto Villamil, Las Tintoreras is the Spanish name for white-tipped reef sharks, which can be commonly spotted resting in the calm and clear waters. As you walk along the nature trail with your guide, keep your eyes peeled for Galapagos penguins and sea lions along the mangrove-lined shoreline.

Wetlands and Wall of Tears 

Journey to the wetlands of Isabela Island on the Treasure of Galapagos this afternoon, and begin by landing in Puerto Villamil. With a population of some 3000 inhabitants, Puerto Villamil boasts the second smallest population in the Galapagos archipelago. Along with your expert guide, visit the Flamingos Lagoon, recognized as the largest coastal lagoon in the Galapagos and an important breeding site for the Greater Flamingo. Then embark on a trail to the Wall of Tears, a historical site constructed by prisoners of this former penal colony between 1946 and 1959. Reaching some 20 meters in height, stroll to the top of the wall and learn from your guide how it was constructed.

Enjoy dinner and evening on the Treasure of Galapagos.

Moreno Point

Arrive at Isabela Island after breakfast this morning and visit Moreno Point on its western shores. Explore the tidal lagoons and extensive lava fields, keeping your eyes peeled for sightings of herons, frigatebirds and green turtles. Take in the shrub dotted landscape of Moreno Point, where candelabra cacti reach impressive heights of up to seven meters, towering above surrounding mangrove bushes and saltwater lagoons fringed with seagrass. Along the pristine shoreline, keep your eyes peeled for marine iguanas, brown pelicans and a striking panoramic view of the Sierra Negra, Cerro Azul and La Cumbre - the three most active volcanoes in the Galapagos. 

Urbina Bay 

On the western shores of Isabela Island at the base of Alcedo Volcano, Urbina Bay is an area that was a result of an uplift from the sea in 1954, causing the land to rise some five meters in height. Following a wet landing on the beach, you'll follow a 3.2 KM trail with your naturalist guide, observing land iguanas, tortoises and Darwin's finches.

Enjoy dinner and evening on the Treasure of Galapagos.

Punta Espinoza

As the third largest island in the Galapagos, Fernandina is also the youngest. Visit Espinoza Point, home to the flightless cormorant and recognized for its large colonies of marine iguanas. Free of any introduced species, Fernandina is one of the world's most pristine islands, and despite its barren landscape, the lava cacti thrive here, against a dramatic backdrop of Volcán La Cumbre. Tread with care between January and June, during the nesting period of the marine iguana.

Tagus Cove

This afternoon, the Treasure of Galapagos will cross the Bolivar Channel and reach Tagus Cove on the northwestern shores of Isabela Island. This site was historically frequented by pirates who left their mark by carving the names of their ships onto the cliff faces that surround the cove. Following a 3 km trail with your guide, reach Darwin Lake, a saltwater lagoon reaching nine meters in depth contained within a tuff cone. The cliff faces of Tagus Cove provide a number of nesting sites for sea and coastal birds, where you'll have the opportunity to see flightless cormorants, storm petrels and flocks of blue-footed boobies and brown pelicans.

Enjoy dinner and evening on the Treasure of Galapagos.

Puerto Egas

Reach Puerto Egas on Santiago Island this morning and disembark on its black sand beach by wet landing, a site named after entrepreneur Hector Egar who opened a salt mine here in the late 1920s. The site, which operated briefly, is now home to white-cheeked pintails and flamingos, though it remains closed to visitors. Admire the view of the 395 meters high Pan de Azúcar, and with your guide, learn the factors that made the salt mine business impractical on this island while roaming its scenic shoreline for a chance to see marine iguanas, sea lions and Sally Lightfoot crabs. Here, you'll also have the opportunity to see a colony of Galapagos fur seals bask in the shade provided by the area's rock arches and grottos.

Rabida 

Otherworldly Rabida boasts a landscape of strewn boulders and large prickly pear cacti, as well as a striking red sand beach backed by matching rust-colored cliffs. A result of oxidized iron, sunrise and sunset give these geologic features an intense glow. Outside of the mating season, visitors to the red beach are greeted by a large colony of Galapagos sea lions. Here you will also visit a small saltwater lagoon, and because it's the arid island's most fertile place, it attracts a range of marine wildlife like pintails and flamingos. With your naturalist guide, look for varieties of songbirds in the surrounding mangrove bushes. Rabida is also a favorite stop on this Western Galapagos Islands cruise for its breeding brown pelicans. Watch from the beach as they hover above the surface of the sea and hunt in V-shaped formations, plunge-diving for their prey.

Enjoy dinner and evening on the Treasure of Galapagos.

Bachas Beach

Arrive at Santa Cruz Island on the Treasure of Galapagos on your final morning on board and visit the dazzling white sand Bachas Beach on its northern shores. This beach earned its name after World War II when the American army abandoned their barges on the beach. Unable to pronounce "barge" in the English language, "bachas" is the result of a mispronunciation, resulting in the name of the beach. Stroll the pristine coastline where its sands meet the turquoise bay, and orange Sally Lightfoot crabs scurry between the rocks at your feet. Reach a brackish lagoon on your walk, where white-cheeked pintails and hunting herons wade in the water, and catch a glimpse of the American flamingos that inhabit this island. From your naturalist guide, learn about the role Bachas Beach plays as one of the island's main sea turtle nesting sites. 

Transfer to Seymour Airport on Baltra Island

Your visit to Bachas Beach concludes this seven-day Western Galapagos Islands cruise on the Treasure of Galapagos. Your guide and friendly crew members will transfer you by shuttle to Seymour Airport on Baltra Island for your onward journey, and accompany you to the check-in counters and departure hall.