Galapagos Islands, Ecuador

7 June 2025

We thought that after Peru, anything else we would visit in our last month on this continent could not possibly bear comparison. Of course, we had listened to our friends (both wildlife enthusiasts to be fair) raving on about the Galapagos, a must-see they had insisted. We worked out the budget needed to cover a week there - the airfares, the hostels, the tours, etc. and wondered if we could really afford it. It would be the costliest week of the whole trip. But then we thought, YOLO. So, we went.

It turned out that everything we had been told was true (including the high prices). It is really like no other place on earth that we had ever seen. Imagine an island where the well-being of the wildlife takes priority over humans, who are tolerated as long as they stick to the rules (of which there are many) and leave them in peace (a distance of at least two metres is recommended, like in the good old days of social distancing with Covid).

Everything here in this ultra-protected environment is set up to preserve, sustain and promote the fauna and flora, many of which are unique to these islands. Imagine, 95% of the land area of the 127 islands there is off-limits.

By the time we had paid our air fares from/to Quito, forked out our $200 visitor’s fee (per person) on arrival and travelled by bus, boat, bus again and finally taxi from the airport to our hotel in Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz, we had already  spent over $1000 and no tours had yet been booked. So, we set about checking out the offerings of the various tour operators and negotiating hard for the best possible discounts. Finally, we arranged four different tours in and around three different islands.

Obviously, seeing the animals is the coolest things the islands have to offer. It did not take long after our arrival until we saw the first sea-lions. Swiftly followed by giant tortoises, iguanas, red crabs and pelicans, and later, by penguins, dolphins, sharks and flamingos. There isn’t only wildlife on the islands, though. A keen snorkeler, Mylene also discovered the colourful underwater world of the Galapagos.

We also checked out other activities, apart from snorkeling, that we could do for free. The highlights were Tortuga Bay, located in a sheltered inlet, with a beautiful white sand beach, lapped with azure turquoise waves; Las Grietas, a channel between two cliff aces for bathing  and the Darwin Research Center, where we learnt about the breeding programs put in place with the goal of ensuring that the giant tortoises reach their original, pre-human population.

Every morning, we would walk from our hostel down to the wharves of Puerto Ayora from where the tour boats would leave to the various islands. The shops were mainly what you would expect in a  town filled with tourists  but the sight of the sea-lions lounging lazily about the seafront as if it was theirs (as it actually was) added a lighter, more exotic touch. We also found a couple of first-class restaurants on the way, such as 1835 Restaurant and Café, in which we could enjoy delicious salads, freshly prepared seafood and grilled meats.

The absolute highlight was the trip to Bartolome Island, originally an extinct volcano.  After an early morning pickup, followed by a 40-minute bus ride to the Itabaca Channel, we boarded a yacht for the two-hour journey to the island. We were a very international group of about 15 people and we would strike up many interesting and humorous conversations with our fellow passengers as our comfortable boat sailed serenely to its destination.

Upon arrival, we disembarked and hiked up a path of stairs to the island's summit for panoramic views of the volcanic formations and Pinnacle Rock. We then dropped anchor at Playa Dorada, for snorkeling and where we also spotted sea lions, turtles, exotic fish, and even a few Galapagos penguins. After lunch on board the yacht, we returned to Puerto Ayora, accompanied part of the way by a school of dolphins. 

If other days on Galapagos had been all about the wildlife, our Bartolome Island day tour was  all about geology and the incredible views; a picture perfect crescent-shaped bay with crystal clear blue waters, views of the nearby Santiago Island and the famous Pinnacle Rock towering above it. Relaxing on the yacht on the way back home, our heads were full of the incredible images we had been privileged to see there.

Isabela Island, in contrast, was a disappointment, apart from the snorkeling in the nearby bay.  The main town, Puerto Villamil, was mostly notable for the trash strewn everywhere. Despite that, out trip to the Galapagos had been worth it. It is a truly unique place and well worth preserving, at the very least as an example of what life could be like, living in harmony and respect with unspoilt nature and the wild and wonderful creatures that inhabit it.