There are two options for travelers to get from Baltra to Isabela: 1) One hour vehicle transfer then a 2.5 hour boat trip, or 2) A 30 minute flight.  Neither of these transfers from Baltra to Isabela Island are included in your tour cost.  Please see approximate costs under Dates & Prices.

You will be picked up from the dock or the airport and transfered to Scalesia Lodge - your home on the island. This area is known for its solitary beaches, lava tunnels, and natural pools where you can view flamingos and other birds. This afternoon you will visit the Tortoise Breeding Station, a center created to protect the Giant tortoise.

Return to the lodge for dinner and your first night in the Galapagos Islands!

Today you will visit some of Isabela ́s best attractions, the Sierra Negra and Volcan Chico. Sierra Negra is one of the most active volcanoes of the archipelago, its recent eruption took place in 2005. Volcan Chico is the youngest flank of Sierra Negra, near its northern rim.

In the afternoon visit to Sucre ́s cave, located 14Km of Villamil Port, placed in the agricultural area of the Island. Enjoy a short walk to appreciate the typical vegetation and endemic plants. Continue to Mirador de Mango from where you have panoramic views of southern Isabela and the agricultural area. This is also a place for finch birds’ observation. Free time in Isabela stunning beach.

A 40 minute ride on a speed boat will take us to a unique place where lava flow and the ocean waves have interacted over time. This has formed the interesting tubes and bridges of Los Tuneles. This site is also a haven for marine life - white tipped reef sharks, green sea turtles, sea lions, manta rays, parrot fish, among many others. The clear, shallow, calm waters are the perfect place to snorkel.  You may also find a number of animal species that have taken up residence in the magnificent lava formations!  

Return to Scalesia Lodge for lunch and an afternoon free to enjoy the magical beach of Puerto Villamil.  Guests can also arrange biking, surfing, or kayaking excursions this afternoon for an additional cost.

Enjoy a visit this morning to the Wall of Tears. This interesting historical site, which towers 65 feet high and runs over 300 feet long, was constructed between 1945 and 1959 by prisoners in the penal colony on the island. 

This afternoon, you will enjoy snorkeling among wildlife in Concha Perla. The bay's calm waters are ideal for finding and observing the incredible array of local marine life. You may see tropical fish, penguins, turtle, and up to 20 different bird species.  

Guests can also arrange biking, surfing, or kayaking excursions this afternoon for an additional cost.

Tintoreras is a group of islets reachable only by boat. Once there, walk alongside a maze of narrow lava crevices, broken lava flows, sandy beaches, and stunning coves. The wildlife here ranges from basking marine iguanas, perched boobies and pelicans, Galapagos penguins, turtles, and white tipped sharks (locally known as tintoreras).

Enjoy lunch at Scalesia Lodge before an afternoon at your leisure.  Enjoy free time at the Puerto Villamil beach, or arrange biking, surfing, or kayaking for an additional cost.

Early this morning, you will be taken either to the dock or airport for a boat ride or flight back to Baltra. (Your mode of transportation is optional at the time of planning your trip.)  Upon arrival, you will be taken to your "home" in Puerto Ayora - the Finch Bay Hotel.

Today you will navigate one of these islands: Bartolome Island, Santa Fe Island, Plazas Island, or North Seymour Island.  After a full day of adventures, overnight at Finch Bay Hotel.

BARTOLOME / SULLIVAN BAY (Saturday, Sunday)
AM: Bartolome offers one of the most emblematic sceneries of the Galapagos Islands. A 600 – meter pathway complete with stairs and a boardwalk will take you to the highest point of the island where you will be able to learn firsthand about the volcanic origins of the Galapagos Islands.
After the walk a dingy ride along the coastline will give you the opportunity to see the Galapagos penguin. This curious bird nest amongst the fissured lava flows and ventures into the crystal clear waters of Bartolome to fish.
PM: After a short ride on board the yacht, you will disembark en Sullivan Bay on the north eastern side of James Islands. The huge eruption that happened in this place in the late 1800s is clear evidence of the volcanic past of the islands.  You will be able to do snorkeling in the peaceful waters of Sullivan Bay. - Dry landing / Wet landing

SANTA FE (Wednesday)
AM: Santa Fé offers a beautiful bay where the yacht anchors and where the visit of the island begins. You will disembark on a small sandy beach where you will be able to see a colony of sea lions and the possibility of seeing the Galapagos hawk. Following the trail, the endemic species of land iguanas from the island of Santa Fé wait beneath the large opuntia cactus to eat its fallen pads or flowers.
PM: After the visit on land you will be taken to enjoy snorkeling in the clear waters of the anchoring site of Santa Fé. You will be able to see a variety of tropical fish and a possibility of seeing sea lions underwater. - Wet landing / snorkeling

SOUTH PLAZAS (Tuesday, Friday)
AM: You will have the possibility of snorkeling in the calm waters of Punta Carrión where you will be able to observe a variety of tropical fish and possibly white tip reef sharks that peacefully rest on the sandy bottom. – Snorkeling
PM: Located a few hundred meters away from the Eastern cost of Santa Cruz Island, South Plazas and North Plazas islands were formed from uplifted seabed, giving it a tilted tabletop quality. You will disembark on South Plazas where you will be greeted by a colony of sea lions. Further up the shore a carpet of scarlet sesuvium succulents serves as groundcover for a grove of luminescent green prickly-pear cactus. Yellow-gray land iguanas sit beneath, waiting patiently for pears to drop.
The trail takes you gradually towards the southern cliff of the island where you will be able to observe nesting swallow-tailed gulls and several sea birds such as tropic birds, Nazca and blue footed boobies fly by. - Dry landing

NORTH SEYMOUR (Monday, Thursday)
AM: North Seymour Island was lifted from the ocean floor by a seismic event, reason why its low, flat profile.  Swallow-tailed gulls sit perched in ledges of the cliffs only a few meters high form the shoreline. A forest of Palo Santo trees stand just above the landing site, usually without leaves, waiting for the rain to bring them into bloom. Amongst the emblematic fauna of the island you will be able to see sea lions, land iguanas and blue footed boobies.  The trail turns inland where you will find active and dynamic colonies of both species of “magnificent” and “great” frigate birds. - Dry landing
PM: Las Bachas, a beautiful coralline beach located on the north shore of Santa Cruz Island, is the perfect place for practicing snorkeling, swimming or to simply enjoy the white soft sand. Several brackish lagoons only a few steps away from the sea are the feeding grounds of various wading birds, from stilts to flamingos. - Wet Landing

After breakfast, transfer to the Baltra airport for your departure flight. Goodbye Galapagos!