On board The Galapagos Explorer II we provide comfort and interpretation to 100 passengers visiting the Galapagos Islands and Galapagos National Park, a real nature paradise. Spacious suites offer outside views, some cabins are with balconies, all are fully air conditioned, equipped with marble bathrooms, spacious closets, sitting areas, TV, mini-bar, internet wireless and satellite communication.
Built in Italy in 1990, with an overall length of 89.35 m and reaching 17 knots, The Galapagos Explorer II is the safest and most elegant of the vessels cruising the Galapagos’s waters.
The Galapagos Explorer II is a vessel adapted for the ecotourism operations, it provides environmental education and interpretation on the Galapagos and has all the installations and necessary services to guarantee guided experiences on the islands.
Your itinerary allows you to perceive Galapagos through different perspectives: from underwater experiences, bird watching activities and guided walks, to wildlife observation and sunbathing on multicolored beaches. The areas of the vessel offer a variety of rest, leisure and interpretation options, while you comfortably enjoy the cruise.
Our expert naturalist guides on board will give you conferences about the Archipelago’s natural history, as well as guided experiences on the islands.
Tour Itinerary (Cruise):
Day 1, Wednesday:
- (AM) Arrival by air to Puerto Baquerizo Moreno Airport.
- (PM) Cerro Brujo, San Cristobal Island.**
Day 2, Thursday:
- (AM) Punta Suarez, Española Island.
- (PM) Bahia Gardner, Española Island.
Day 3, Friday:
- (AM) Charles Darwin Station and Puerto Ayora Town, Santa Cruz
- (PM)Rabida Island.
Day 4, Saturday:
- (AM) Visit to Bachas Beach, Santa Cruz Island
- (PM) Cerro Dragón, Santa Cruz Island.
Day 5, Sunday:
- (AM) Bartholomew Island
- (PM) Puerto Egas, Santiago Island
Day 6, Monday:
- (AM) Punta Espinoza, Fernandina Island
- (PM)Punta Vicente Roca, Isabela Island.
Day 7, Tuesday:
- (AM) Seymour Norte
- (PM) Highlands and lava tunnels, Santa Cruz Island.
Day 8, Wednesday:
- (AM) Lobería or Islas Lobos or Tijeretas or El Junco Visit or Interpretation Center, San Cristobal Island.**
Notes: **Considering the changes in the flight schedules, weather conditions and National Park Regulations, we have included several alternatives to the visits offered to our passengers on the first and last day of the cruise program. The Guide will provide information about the final program.
Cruises can be divided into 3 OR 4 night programs:
- Cruise 3 Nights/4 Days from Wednesday to Saturday.
- Cruise 4 Nights/5 Days from Saturday to Wednesday.
The Itinerary:
Day 1, Wednesday: San Cristobal Island, Puerto Baquerizo Moreno.
Fly to the Galapagos to begin the cruise, arriving to San Cristobal, easternmost of the Galapagos Islands. Puerto Baquerizo Moreno is the capital of the Galapagos province and the location of the extraordinary Interpretation Center for the Galapagos National Park. You will board ship and settle into your cabin. Your seagoing home is The M/V Galapagos Explorer II, a 293-foot, first-class ocean-going cruise ship that carries 100 passengers. Comfortable suites feature air-conditioning, private bathrooms, a small sitting area, some have balconies and walking closets, wireless services is available from your suite. Experienced naturalists lead shore expeditions to seek out wildlife and help you to learn about the fascinating natural history of these volcanic islands. When you are not exploring, you and your children can enjoy the ship’s jacuzzi, solarium and reading room without experiencing the motion of a smaller vessel.
On your first day in Galapagos you will visit one location near San Cristobal Island. At Cerro Brujo (wet landing), you will go to the beach for swimming and snorkeling activities. You can see: blue footed boobies, brown pelicans, coast bird (whimbrels, sander lings, etc.), Darwin’s finches, yellow warblers. Free time is devoted to a walk on the beach.
Day 2, Thursday: Española Island (Hood Island).
Morning: Punta Suarez, Hood Island. This morning you visit Hood Island, southernmost island of the archipelago. Because it is so isolated, the island has a large population of indigenous wildlife. You will explore Punta Suarez, one of the most spectacular spots in the Galapagos, where you will look for sea lions surfing the breaking waves and groups of iguanas basking in the sun. Further inland, Masked and Blue-footed Boobies nests beside the trails. You can hike a trail towards the cliffs to the Blowhole, a fissure in the lava cliffs where seawater jets high in the air.
Afternoon: Gardner Bay, Hood Island. About 1 km long beach that is among the most magnificent in all Galapagos. It is home to many sea lion colonies and the turquoise colored water makes a beautiful contrast to the white sand that consists of shell dust. Mocking birds fight for their territory and inspect the backpacks of the tourists. About 50 m of the coast there is a rock where you can encounter tropic fish and rays while snorkeling. But more spectacular is the Gardner Rock that can be reached with a dinghy. It is home to white-tipped reef shark, cactus finch and other colorful sea dwellers and very popular among snorkel.
Day 3, Friday: Santa Cruz Island – Rabida Island. Wildlife viewing, hiking, Charles Darwin Research Station and Rabida island.
Morning: Charles Darwin Station, Santa Cruz Island, Puerto Ayora Town, Charles Darwin Station. You will visit Santa Cruz Island, landing in Puerto Ayora Town. Then visit Darwin Station to learn about the research conducted on the island. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is a Galapagos tortoise breeding and rearing center, where tortoises of different subspecies are prepared for reintroduction to their natural habitats. Afterwards, you can stroll through Puerto Ayora, largest town on the islands.
Afternoon: Rabida Island. A small island (5 km2), covered by dry and coastal vegetation, and has a central volcano of 367 m2. Rabida contains the largest variety of lava types, being red the dominant color. A salt-water lagoon provides occasional sights of Flamingos. While the beach holds a large sea lion colony, fur seals also may be seen here. Red sands and teal waters characterize this island. Sea lions cover the waterfront, and the bull is always making a show of his bravado. There is a short walk to the top of the trail where you can take fabulous photos of the clear waters and volcanic peaks. There is also great snorkeling. Keep near the rocks and keep your eye out for sharks and rays.
Day 4, Saturday: Santa Cruz Island.
Morning: Bachas Beach, White sand beach where you can see some nesting site for sea turtles, it is a delightful swimming beach, with a small lagoon behind, where you can see flamingos and marine iguanas frequent the shore. Whimbrels, blue heron, pelican, Sally Lightfoot crab and other species.
Afternoon: Dragon Hill, a bay located at the northwest site of the Santa Cruz Island, known as Cerro Dragon since long time ago by the whaling men because of the important colonies of land iguanas that lived in this area. During almost all the year, you can see flamingos in marshland lakes as some migratory birds. You will also have the opportunity to see Darwin Finchs, hood mockinbird, lava lizards. This area has an arid vegetation where you can find some oppuntia cactus, palo santo (bursera) and some other endemic plants.
This place has a wonderful landscape as you can see the Rabida Island at the west and Santa Cruz Island at the East. In the beach zone you can see some endemic coast plants and also some marine iguanas, sea lions, American oystercatchers, pelicans and a small blue-footed bobbies colony.
Day 5, Sunday: Bartolome Island and James (Santiago) Island. Wildlife viewing, hiking, swimming, snorkeling.
Morning: Bartolome Island. The first destination is Bartolome, an island of varied volcanic formations with a 350-foot summit and a fabulous 360º view. Depending upon the weather, you may be able to spot five other islands, one of the most spectacular views of the archipelago. You will make a wet landing in a cove to see a small colony of Galapagos penguins—the only penguins north of the equator. Sea lions are also found here. Behind the beach can be found red and white mangroves, salt bush, morning glory and prickly pear cactuses.
Afternoon: Puerto Egas, James (Santiago) Island. This afternoon you will visit Puerto Egas on James (Santiago) Island. The landing is on a black beach with eroded rock formations in the background. The trail crosses the dry interior, where the remains of a salt-mining enterprise can still be seen and then continues along the coast. Intertidal pools are home to a variety of invertebrate organisms. Land iguanas are scattered around feeding on exposed algae while Oyster Catchers try to capture Sally Lightfoot Crabs. The trail then leads to the Fur Seal Grottos, one of the only places in the islands where Fur Seals can be seen. Puerto Egas is a good spot for taking pictures.
Day 6, Monday: Fernandina Island and Isabela Island. Wildlife viewing, hiking, swimming, snorkeling.
Morning: Fernandina Island. On the youngest and westernmost island in Galapagos, you will land at Punta Espinoza, a narrow stretch of land where some of the most unusual Galapagos species can be seen. While the panga driver skillfully eludes the reef to reach the landing site near a small mangrove forest, look for penguins diving off the rocks into the water. Sally Lightfoot Crabs disperse on the lava near the shore and herons, sandpipers and wimbrels explore the mangrove roots. Marine iguanas congregate in larger groups here than on any other island. They are everywhere, basking in the sand, swimming near the shore, grazing on the exposed seaweed in the lava and blocking the way at the landing dock. This is one of the few places where there is the opportunity, if the water is clear, of watching them feed underwater while snorkeling.
Following a trail inland, two different types of lava flows can be seen and compared. At the tip of one of the small peninsulas, Flightless Cormorants are found. Without predators on the island, these serpent-necked birds adapted for swimming and not for flight, another example of evolution at work in 'nature’s laboratory'.
Afternoon: Punta Vicente Roca, Isabela Island. Largest of the Galapagos islands, Isabela is composed of six shield volcanoes merged into a single land mass. Wolf Volcano on Isabela is also the highest point in the archipelago. The Galapagos Explorer II is one of only a few faster, better-equipped boats able to make the long journey from the central islands to the visitor sites on the western side of Isabela. The trip is more than worthwhile, however, for the unique species that occur only in this part of the archipelago, and because the landscape, with massive volcanoes silhouetted against the sky, offers a striking contrast to the lower-lying islands of the east.
Located on the north-western tip of Isabela island, the visit of Pta Vicente Roca is completely by dingy. The dingys are launched on a coastal dingy-ride that skirts 400-500-feet cliff sides. Blue-footed boobies, masked boobies & pelicans can be seen here. Also, very many sea-turtles feed along this shoreline. Reaching a rocky pile of large basalt, there are colonies of fur-seals and marine iguanas in groups, basking in the sun. Sea lions are also present.
Continuing along the sheer cliffs, the dingy now, approach a secluded cove where, at it's end, dark and yellow rock are superposed. Now we are close to the large cave that allows for snorkeling or sight seeing. Snorkeling at the cave produces a great variety of marine life, specially marine invertebrates. One starts at the intersection between the dark and yellow rock and swims all the way around the small point into the cave, all the way into the cave and then out of the cave until the next point.
Along the cave there are Galapagos penguins, marine iguanas, swallow-tailed gulls, masked boobies, brown noddy 's, blue footed boobies and a breathtaking scenery unparalleled.
Day 7, Tuesday: North Seymour & Santa Cruz Island. Wildlife viewing, hiking, swimming, snorkeling.
Morning: North Seymour. A small flat island. Rocks then a long sandy stretch where sea lions and marine iguanas hang out next to a surf wave. The interior has a Palo Santo small Opuntia cactus forest with Bluefooted boobies and magnificent Frigate bird colonies. An hour and a half visit. Dry landing.
Afternoon: Highlands and Lava Tunnels. You and your family will board a bus for a 45-minute ride through changing vegetation zones to the Santa Cruz Highlands. Here, about 40 giant tortoises live in the wild. By approaching quietly, you can find and observe a turtle on your own. You also hike to tunnels made by cooling lava.
Day 8, Wednesday: San Cristobal Island/Guayaquil - Quito.
Considering the changes in the flight schedules, weather conditions and National Park Regulations, we have included several alternatives to the visits offered to our passengers the last day of the cruise program, some of the options are detailed below:
- La Loberia: Sea lion colony, marine iguanas, warbler, finches, blue-footed boobies.
- Isla Lobos: Situated less than an hour's ride from Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, Lobos Islet is a seasonal nesting location for the Blue-footed Booby. Snorkeling.
- El Junco Lake: Fresh water lake and water reservoir located at 700m, great views, Miconias, ferns, sedges, clubmoss, tree ferns, white-cheeked pintails, common gallinules.
- Interpretation Center: Donated by the Spanish Government in 1998, this state of the art facility offers both tourist and the inhabitants a complete education on the Islands. Your visit to the Archipelago is taken to a new level, since its inauguration.
Afternoon: Return flight to Quito or Guayaquil.
Services available on board: alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages, internet wireless, satellite communication, boutique for souvenirs, snorkeling gear and wet suits available for rent, walking sticks and rain coats available free of charge.
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Not included: Fuel surcharge US$26 per night per passenger, apply to adults or children (starting May 31st 2008). Galapagos National Park fee. Control Visit Card Ingala. Alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages. Transfers from the Hotel to the Airport. Round trip airfare to the Galapagos Islands. Government taxes are not included.
Note: Rates are per person. Single and Triple occupancy rates are available upon passengers’ request. Cruises include: guided visits to the islands, all meals. The Galapagos Islands and/or other tax fees (not determined by our company). Our rates are subject to change without prior notice. Children under 12 years of age pay 50% of the rate accompanied by an adult. For the cruises children under 12 years of age pay 75% of the rate accompanied by an adult in the same cabin. One discount apply per cabin. Children under 7 years of age are not permitted on board.
Also see tour packages in:
South America
Ecuador
National Parks
Ecotourism
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