Galapagos Walking Adventure Tour with 16 Reviews by Exodus Adventure Travels

14 daysDuration

Small Group TourUsually 8-12 participants, maximum 18 travelers

16 peopleMaximum group size

16 - 99 yearsAge range for participants

EnglishGuide language

Moderate

Involves sustained activity requiring a reasonable level of fitness and endurance.

Starts

Quito, Ecuador

Ends

Quito, Ecuador

Highlights

Spend nearly two weeks hiking the Galapagos Islands on an in-depth exploration

Island hop by motorboat but sleep in hotels and lodges

Hike the active shield volcano of Sierra Negra on Isabela Island

Enjoy plenty of snorkel opportunities, with the chance to see turtles, sea lions and whitetip reef sharks

Explore Quito on a guided tour of the attractive colonial capital

Itinerary

Put yourself in the hiking boots of the great natural historians to walk the Galapagos in search of incredible landscapes and unforgettable wildlife encounters. Staying in hotels or guesthouses each night, we explore four of the main islands, San Cristóbal, Floreana, Santa Cruz and Isabela, while also stopping to snorkel wildlife-rich seas, hike the active Sierra Negra volcano and wander among Galapagos giant tortoises.

day 1 - Start Quito

Welcome to Ecuador! There’s plenty of adventure on your trip, but today’s all about settling in. There are free transfers to the hotel for everyone today – check the Joining Instructions for further details. A local guide welcomes you to Quito and explains the schedule for the next few days.

Accommodation:Hotel Vieja Cuba (or similar)

day 2 - Quito city tour

This morning, we gather for the first time as a group at the welcome briefing and then take a guided tour of the main city sights. Quito is the second-highest capital in the world, standing at 9,350ft (2,850m) on the western cordillera of the Andes. It is one of the smaller and more attractive of the colonial capitals in South America. Due to the altitude, you are advised to take it easy at first and drink plenty of water.

Meals:Breakfast

Accommodation:Hotel Vieja Cuba (or similar)

day 3 - Fly to San Cristóbal; visit the Galapagos Interpretation Center

Transfer to Quito Airport and fly to San Cristóbal in the Galapagos Islands. On arrival, we settle into our hotel and have time for a light lunch in the small town and a visit to the Galapagos Interpretation Center, a great introduction to the natural history of the archipelago. This afternoon, we walk to the cliffs at Las Tijeretas to see frigatebird colonies and there’s time to swim and snorkel close to a sea lion colony.

Meals:Breakfast

Accommodation:Hotel Paraiso Insular (or similar)

day 4 - Snorkel León Dormido and walk along a white-sand beach

Travel by small motorboat to León Dormido (also known as Kicker Rock), an impressive lava tuft formation. Several species of nesting seabirds reside here, including masked boobies. We can snorkel and, with any luck, spot eagle rays, Galapagos turtles, hammerhead sharks and a great variety of fish.

Continue by boat to one of three white-sand beaches for a walk: Playa Ochoa, Playa Manglecito or Cerro Brujo. Playa Ochoa is an expanse of white sand dominated by a large sea lion colony and is home to many birds and marine iguanas. Playa Manglecito offers both the opportunity to visit a white-sand beach and a mangrove area. Cerro Brujo is in a volcanic zone, has abundant vegetation and is home to sea lions, marine iguanas and many birds.

Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Accommodation:Hotel Paraiso Insular (or similar)

day 5 - San Cristóbal highlands walk; snorkel at La Loberia

Drive to the San Cristóbal highlands after breakfast. A one-hour walk brings us to the fringe of El Junco Lake, one of the few permanent freshwater lakes in the Galapagos, where frigatebirds often bathe nearby. The highlands offer panoramic views across the smaller islands lapped by the Pacific. After, we visit a reserve where Galapagos giant tortoises roam free before snorkelling in a nearby bay. After lunch, we can visit La Loberia, a sea lion nursery, the perfect place to unwind, surrounded by sea lions and marine iguanas.

Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Accommodation:Hotel Paraiso Insular (or similar)

day 6 - Boat to Floreana; visit highlands

A three-hour navigation by motorboat takes us to Floreana, one of the first islands to be inhabited in the Galapagos. En route, we may see whales, dolphins and sea birds. After lunch, we visit the highlands and see lava caves once used by pirates and a large enclosure of Galapagos giant tortoises.

Meals:Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation:Lava Lodge (or similar)

day 7 - Visit sea lion colony on Floreana; sail to Isabela and visit the Wall of Tears

After an early breakfast, we go on a walk to discover the black volcanic beaches, which are home to red iguanas and sea lion colonies. There is also time to snorkel this morning (please note, the visit to this beach might be done in the late afternoon on Day 6 on some departures). Just before midday, we navigate to Isabela and see Tortuga Island, a huge eroded marine crater that’s home to thousands of sea birds, such as blue-footed and Nazca boobies, pelicans and frigatebirds.

This afternoon, we visit the Wall of Tears, a reminder of Isabela’s very different past when the island was used as a penal colony. Between 1946 and 1959, convicts were forced to build this wall from huge lava blocks simply as a form of punishment, which, combined with the harsh conditions, led to many deaths. After this sobering visit, we hike back to the town through mangroves, wetlands and along sandy beaches. This is one of the best places on the islands to view migratory birds, including Wilson’s phalaropes, blue-winged teals and, if we’re very lucky, ospreys. This region has also seen the reintroduction of Galapagos giant tortoises and we are likely to encounter several on our walk.

Meals:Breakfast

Accommodation:San Vicente Hotel (or similar)

day 8 - Sierra Negra volcano trek

It’s our toughest hiking day, but one that’s worth the effort as we tackle trails on the active shield volcano of Sierra Negra. Our five to six-hour adventure takes us across stark, lava-strewn highlands punctuated by miconia shrubs and other vegetation. The otherworldly landscapes are incredible, and we pass many volcanic features along the way, where we can observe fumaroles and a variety of lava formations.

Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Accommodation:San Vicente Hotel (or similar)

day 9 - Snorkel in the Cabo Rosa area

We snorkel in the Cabo Rosa area today, among the best places in the Galapagos for a snorkel adventure. We start with a 30-minute walk around the tunnels formed here by volcanic activity, before getting into the water, where we have a chance to swim with sea turtles, manta rays, marine iguanas and even penguins.

Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Accommodation:San Vicente Hotel (or similar)

day 10 - Visit Las Tintoreras; afternoon free to relax

We spend the morning sailing to the islets and lava channels of Las Tintoreras, one of the best places in the islands to see whitetip reef sharks, penguins and sea lions. There is time to snorkel. On this morning’s excursion, we may be lucky enough to spot the endangered chatham mockingbird. The afternoon is free for swimming, snorkelling, walking or just relaxing on one of the beaches around Puerto Villamil.

Meals:Breakfast

Accommodation:San Vicente Hotel (or similar)

day 11 - Sail to Santa Cruz; optional visit to the Charles Darwin Research Station; visit Tortuga Bay

We navigate by motorboat to Santa Cruz very early this morning and have breakfast at our hotel. After, we have the option of visiting the Charles Darwin Research Station, which is home to the headquarters of the Charles Darwin Foundation. This is the main research hub on the islands and scientists come from around the world to study the flora and fauna here. After our visit, we have lunch at a local restaurant.

Our destination this afternoon is Tortuga Bay, a long stretch of white sand. The trail leading to the beach is paved and takes between 45 minutes and one hour, with the chance to see Galapagos finches and lizards. The beach itself is scattered with marine iguanas, who lay among the clusters of black rocks or stroll along the sand. In the water, turtles can sometimes be seen. Swimming is not recommended here due to strong currents. After a relaxing afternoon, we hike the same route back towards the main town of Puerto Ayora where our hotel is located.

Meals:Breakfast

Accommodation:Mainao Hotel (or similar)

day 12 - Explore Bartolomé Island, South Plaza Island or North Seymour

Visit either Bartolomé Island, South Plaza Island or North Seymour (depending on national park restrictions).

South Plaza has a remarkable vegetation of succulents and cacti that provide a unique habitat for land iguanas. The iguanas form small colonies at the base of the tall opuntia cacti, waiting for their flowers and dead pads to fall to the ground so they can feed. The island rocks are home to swallowtail gulls, shearwaters and sea lions.

North Seymour is a flat, boulder-strewn island and a major nesting site for frigatebirds. It’s also a good place to see blue-footed boobies performing courtship rituals and sea lions playing in the powerful surf.

Bartolomé is a spectacular scene of dramatic lava cones, clear seas and affords perhaps the most famous view of the Galapagos Islands, looking across the red cinder cones to the recent black lava fields on James Island. If possible, we snorkel today (usually around Bartolomé) where the water is calm.

Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Accommodation:Mainao Hotel (or similar)

day 13 - Fly to Quito and overnight

After breakfast this morning, we drive to the airport at Baltra and fly to Quito where we have our final night.

Meals:Breakfast, Lunch

Accommodation:Hotel Vieja Cuba (or similar)

day 14 - End Quito

Our adventure ends after breakfast and we begin our return journeys home. If you’d like to continue your exploration of Quito with extra nights, speak to your sales representative.

Meals:Breakfast

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What's Included

Accommodation

All accommodation

Meals

All breakfasts, seven lunches and one dinner included

Transport

All transport and listed activitiesArrival transfer for any flight, group departure transfer available

Guide

Tour leader throughout

What's Excluded

Customer Reviews

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