GALAPAGOS ISLANDS

Day 1
Fly to Quito.

Day 2
Free time today to relax, recover from the flights and explore this fascinating city. Quito is one of the smaller and more attractive of the capitals of South America; at 2,850m in the western cordillera of the Andes, it is the second highest capital in the world, and it is a good idea not to do anything too strenuous.

Day 3
This morning we will have a half-day tour of Quito. Various optional activities can be organised for the afternoon.

Day 4
We return to Quito airport for the flight to Galápagos. From Quito the flight is to the island of Baltra via Guayaquil, and from here we drive by minibus to the harbour where our boat is moored. Lunch on board will be followed by an afternoon visit to Isla Plaza (approximately 2 hour walk) where we may see magnificent frigate birds, swallowtail gulls, sealions, land and marine iguanas as well as a cactus forest. We return to the boat for dinner and in the evening sail to Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz Island.

Day 5
This morning we visit the Charles Darwin Research Station to learn about the valuable study and conservation work which is being undertaken on the islands. After lunch on board Cachalote, we will then take a trip into the highlands. Apart from Isabela, this is the only place to see giant tortoises in the wild (apart from Isabela), and is home to many birds including a variety of finches, cuckoos, vermilion flycatchers and yellow warblers. There are lava tunnels and a pair of large pit craters, Los Gemelos (‘The Twins’). We will pass through seven vegetation zones as we drive up to the top and see a variety of endemic and native trees and shrubs. There is time afterwards to visit the town of Puerto Ayora

Day 6
We will have travelled to Española Island overnight and our first visit will be to Gardner Bay, a beautiful white sandy beach dotted with sealions and iguanas. Walking along the beach we should see yellow warblers, Galapagos doves, three species of Darwin’s finches, mockingbirds, marine iguanas and, of course, sea lions frolicking in the water. We return to the boat where there is time for snorkelling before lunch. This is a good site for swimming and snorkelling – the waters are clear and the variety of fish amazing. During lunch we sail to Punta Suárez, one of the best sites in the Galapagos Islands. Endemic hood mocking birds, red-billed tropicbirds, brightly coloured marine iguanas, and lava lizards reside here. Nesting colonies of masked and blue-footed boobies can also be seen and, from March to December, the entire world population of waved albatross make their home on Española. The Galapagos Hawk and yellow-crowned night heron are often seen here too. Later in the day we sail to Isla Floreana.

Day 7
At Punta Cormorant there is a green sand beach that leads to a lagoon where there may be flamingos, stilts and pintail ducks. An interesting walk through an area with a rich variety of plants leads to a white beach. Sea turtles and stingrays, ghost crabs, Galapagos flycatcher and cuckoo may be seen. Afterwards there should be time to snorkel at the Devil's Crown nearby before setting sail again. We visit Post Office Bay, where 18th century whalers used to leave mail to be picked up by a passing ship. The afternoon is spent under sail to Isla Isabela. En route we may be lucky enough to see whales, sharks, dolphins, orcas, manta rays and frigate birds.

Day 8
At Punta Moreno on Isabela there is a typical pahoehoe lava flow, and a rich life exists in its numerous rock pools and cracks, including whitetip reef sharks. You may see flamingos, great blue herons and pintail ducks here, as well as pelicans nesting in the mangroves. On board the panga we ride north to Elizabeth Bay, located on the Perry Isthmus, passing rocky islets that are breeding grounds for a small colony of penguin. Flightless cormorants and the biggest specimens of marine iguana are often seen here. A narrow cove lined with tall red mangrove trees is home to marine turtles, rays and shore birds.

Day 9
A wet landing on a white sand beach takes us to Urbina Bay, where you should see giant tortoises and both land and marine iguanas. A short walk takes you to a lagoon where flightless cormorants should be seen. We then continue on to Fernandina Island. On the shores of one of the world’s most active volcanoes, at Punta Espinosa, you will see flightless cormorants, pelicans, sea lions, Sally Lightfoot crabs and an abundance of marine iguanas. Overnight we set sail to Isla Santiago (James).

Day 10
By dawn, we will be anchored at Puerto Egas where there will be opportunities for tide-pooling, and then a walk to a series of rocky pools, including the Fur Seal Grotto, where sea lions and fur seals bask around the edge, or swim in the clear water below. In the afternoon, we will sail round the island to Bartolomé. You will be visiting one of the most photographed visitors sites in the Galapagos Islands: Bartolomé and Pinnacle rock. Wooden steps, built to protect a fragile and eroding environment, lead to the top of this small island, past spatter and cinder cones and occasional clumps of lava cactus. The view is worth the rather strenuous climb (114m); a panorama with Pinnacle Rock, white beaches and mangroves, and the vast volcanic landscape beyond. Having returned to sea level, the panga (dinghy) will take you to the beach with swimming and snorkelling opportunities.

Day 11
We will be at Turtle Cove by dawn; a memorable way to finish your cruise. The panga’s engine will be turned off as you enter this peaceful world of inlets and coves surrounded by mangroves, and in the water you should soon be aware of pairs of mating turtles, white-tipped sharks and rays. After a late breakfast you will disembark for the journey back to Baltra to transfer to the airport and the flight back to the mainland. A short stop at Guayaquil is followed by what is often an exciting flight over the volcanoes of the Andes to Quito.

Day 12
Depart Quito.

Day 13
Arrive London.