Arrive Quito. Transfer from the airport to your hotel for the night.

Upon arrival at the Baltra Airport, meet your guide & chef who will stay with you for the week. Transfer to your first stop in the hills of Santa Cruz, a primary forest on the lower slopes of the island in the middle of the giant tortoise territory. El Manzanillo, a small open air restaurant named after the native trees in this unique dry forest, sits beautifully among grassland and provides sweeping views. Enjoy a lunch that includes a sampling of delicacies, including free range chicken from Santa Cruz. Your guide will then give you a briefing about the week's program. Afterwards, explore the terrain in hopes of your first giant tortoise encounters in the forest! Continue to Puerto Ayora to check into the Angermeyer Waterfront Inn, where you will stay the first 4 nights of your trip. Once settled in your room, enjoy some time to relax until you raise a glass to celebrate the start of your foodie adventure! You will be served a delicious three-course dinner this evening.

After breakfast, leave the hotel to explore Shark Bay by kayak! Land in a small cove to hike a short trail along the Salinas of Punta Estrada. This trail leads to a cliff over a pristine body of water trapped in big lava fissures, where you can take a swim! Walk back to the hotel, where a lunch with several Ecuadorian dishes awaits you.

In the afternoon, visit the Tortoise Rearing Center across the bay and learn about the science of breeding endemic reptiles. One of the major impacts on the tortoise populations is the introduction of non-native mammal vertebrates, like pigs and goats. Feral pigs still prey on young tortoises, while goats are competitive herbivores. Therefore, to save the tortoise populations, the National Park has several programs to help remove goats and pigs from the islands. While eradicated on most islands, there are still small populations of both feral pigs and goats on Santa Cruz.

Tonight, prepare an Indonesian style satay of young feral goat over a charcoal grill. This feast will be accompanied by Gado Gado salad and Longton rice, folded in banana leaves.

Today, venture out on the ocean and catch your own fish! On a comfortable, spacious yacht  set out to catch yellow fin tuna and wahoo, both on the National Park Green List. A naturalist guide will be on board to help spot wildlife and educate you more about fishing in Galapagos.

By providing fishing tourism opportunities, the National Park hopes to encourage local fishermen to treat the marine reserve more like a stewardship. The fishing industry in Galapagos is strictly regulated. Quota and fishing methods are advised by marine biologists and typically become mandatory in the marine reserve.

After a sufficient catch to provide lunch and dinner, anchor in a calm bay to enjoy freshly cut sashimi, fruit salad, and ceviche made with locally grown citrus. Choose to swim or snorkel in the bay before returning to your accommodation in Punta Estrada. Later in the afternoon, prepare your dinner of sushi, vegetable tempura, miso soup, and green tea sorbet.

After breakfast, board a comfortable boat that will take you to Santa Fe, an uninhabited island where a calm bay provides excellent snorkeling. The local sea lion colony will provide plenty of action while snorkeling! Explore the island by foot through a unique cactus forest and among land iguanas, endemic only to Santa Fe. You will have a free afternoon to enjoy your last day in the bay.

Dinner is centered around the excellent organic beef raised in Santa Cruz. Your meal might include marinated beef carpaccio, a fresh herb salad, and a roast of short rib with béarnaise sauce. The dessert is chocolate-themed to complete this classic French dinner.

Check out of your hotel and send your luggage ahead to the highlands. You will spend the remainder of the week at Semilla Verde Lodge, a family run Coffee Farm where giant tortoises freely roam.

The first stop of today is Lava Java, an organic farm run by Scott Henderson and his wife Maria Helena, both conservation workers. They bought their farm ten years ago and restored it into a sustainable, organic permaculture. Their shadow grown coffee is now sold in several countries. Learn about growing coffee, organic farming, and why many farms in Galapagos need restoration. Stop to enjoy freshly brewed coffee and fruit from the farm on a beautiful platform overlooking the slopes of Santa Cruz. In this comfortable setting, you will learn more about chocolate, the cocoa bean, and why Ecuador produces some of the world’s finest cocoa. You will be able to taste an assortment of chocolate, and see how it is made from raw ingredients.

Continue by mountain bikes on a 10 Km ride, (mostly downhill), to the pristine beach of El Garrapatero. Go for a swim and enjoy the quiet bay. For the day's finale, prepare grilled snapper, vegetable brochettes, and a quinoa salad on the beach for a picnic dinner!

After breakfast, get ready to see colonies of Blue Footed Boobies, Magnificent and Great Frigate Birds, Swallow Tailed Gulls, and Land Iguanas in North Seymour. This island is one of the most popular visitor sites in the Galapagos due to its abundance of wildlife and great scenery. Upon your return, the boat will stop at Bachas Beach where we can swim and snorkel. Once back at the lodge it´s time to gather around the wood oven. Tonight you can make your own pizzas, focaccias, calzones, and caprese salad while watching the sunset over the hills of Santa Cruz.

Get up early to enjoy local coffee and fresh fruit. Then, head out to Puerto Ayora to visit the local farmers market. This bustling place is a sensation for the eyes, the ears and the nose! Both food lovers and photographers will be delighted by the variety of colors and scenes. Your guide will explain all the exotic produce and market customs. Along the way, sample and compare local and imported veggies, fruits, and herbs. Several stands offer street food and your guide will help you choose a delicious breakfast and a freshly cut coconut to quench your thirst.

With your freshly purchased greens return to Semilla Verde where you will make a salad, gazpacho, and sandwiches for a light lunch. Back at the lodge, the smell of southern BBQ will keep your mouths watering, since the roasting of a feral pig started early this morning. Spend the rest of the day and evening enjoying the wonderful property of the lodge until it is time for dinner.

Sit around the fire to enjoy the roast while sampling a full range of South American wines. Hands on cooking classes are available to learn how to make green papaya salad, several sauces, and how to properly cut the roast pork. On this final evening, look back at a week full of wildlife encounters, adventures, new friends, knowledge, and recipes.

After breakfast you will be transferred to the Baltra airport. Your guide will accompany you and help you check in. Fly to Quito and then homeward!