Day 1: Arrival and Bartholomew Island
I had an early flight from Quito to Baltra departing at 7 am. This means you should be at the airport 2 hrs prior to your flight. Once at the airport you will have to get your TCT card at the INGALA counter. Be advised that the line can be very long even at 5:30 am. You can fill out the required form online the night before. A good tip is to pay for your TCT card online as well. If you just fill it out and don’t pay for it you will have to wait in line for a long time and will have to fill out the form with the teller at the counter and pay in cash. If you manage to pay for it online you will only have to show your QR code at a special window and be set.
On the flight you won’t get anything to eat or drink. They charge $5 for water, $4 for coffee and $12 for a sad looking panini sandwich. I suggest you take a sandwich from the hotel or the airport. I was able to stop on my way down from Quito at a Flamingo Express gas station and got a sandwich and snacks for the flight. Best idea ever!
I slept a bit on the flight and arrived at Baltra airport. Baltra airport is small but handy. You have some souvenir shops, ATMs, bathrooms, and a food court and cafeteria on the outside. Food and drinks at the Baltra airport are quite expensive I got a crappy cup of coffee for $3. Once you arrive at Baltra you have to pay your National Park Entrance Fee ($30 for locals, $200 for foreigners). As I was waiting to meet the guide, I saw a couple of iguanas roaming around and plenty of finches.
Once I met up with the guide, we boarded the Lobitos Bus which takes you down to the Ithabaca Channel. At the channel you can take a ferry ($1.50) that takes you to Santa Cruz Island or you can take a dinghy to your cruise ship. The Letty was anchored close to the channel, on the way to the Letty we got to see some other boats like the Nat Geo Lindblad boat, the Elite Catamaran, and the Tiburon Explorer diving boat. Once onboard the Letty, I was shown my cabin and I took a quick shower. We were waiting for the rest of the passengers to arrive and I was able to spend some time on the sundeck. We had lunch once the rest of the group arrived.
For our first visit, we sailed to Bartholomew Island. On the way there I spotted a pod of dolphins swimming alongside the Letty. We all went to the Bridge observation area and got to see them swimming, splashing and welcoming us to Galapagos.
Once we arrive at Bartholomew, our first activity was snorkeling. We got to see penguins, sharks and sea lions. This was a great first snorkeling experience. The water was nice and clear and you I could see the penguins torpedo next to you. Penguins in the Galapagos are the cutest thing you will ever see. They are tiny and so fast once they start swimming.
After some great snorkeling we returned to the boat to change, take a shower and get ready for the late afternoon visit to Bartholomew Island. We climbed the 350 steps up to the lookout point. Not much to see on the way up the stairs so I popped on my earbuds and put on my Galapagos vibes playlist and had an amazing experience walking up the steps. I really recommend taking your headphones or earbuds with you to the Galápagos Islands. I would always head up to the sundeck and catch the best views of the islands as I grooved with great tunes.
Once we made it to the top of the steps you get a 360 degree view of Bartholomew and the Galapagos as a whole. It’s amazing and you can get the quintessential Galapagos pic up there.
We got back onboard the Letty and got ready for dinner. Dinner was great, served buffet style. After dinner we got our next day’s briefing and had some time to spare before the boat began its overnight navigation to Genovesa Island.
I truly love Galapagos. But to be honest I was a bit hesitant about going this time around. It was tough getting flights that worked and weren’t overpriced, I got a horrible early flight, and I had all that stress at the TCT counter. But, once I got up to the sundeck with a cup of coffee, earbuds playing my Galapagos Vibes playlist, feeling the breeze on my face and taking in the paradise around me I felt the stress melt away and was truly happy. Galapagos is amazing, you have to be there to understand how magical it is.
Day 2: Genovesa Island
After sailing throughout the night we arrived at Genovesa Island early in the morning. After breakfast we went for a hike on the western part of the island. We saw red-footed, blue-footed and Nazca boobies. The sun was intense. Always wear sunscreen and cover-up. Sun at the Equator is brutal. I forgot to apply sunscreen on my back for the first snorkeling activity and it turned bright red. Once I learned this lesson I always snorkeled with a shirt on. I used a Florence X Marine shirt which has 50 SPF protection.
Beautiful hike in Genovesa. After seeing all those birds nesting and living their best lives we returned to ship. We had some time to rest and recharge and we went for more snorkeling. Our objective for today’s morning snorkeling activity was to see hammerhead sharks. I really enjoyed this snorkeling activity, the water was calm and clear and I got to see hammerhead sharks, Galapagos sharks, sea turtles, and a plethora of colorful fish. I was so happy that I was finally able to see hammerheads, this was my first time seeing them in the Galapagos. Our guide Wilo was like a magician. Whatever he said we might be able to see we got to see. It was like he willed it.
In the afternoon we got back into the water and snorkeled with Fur Sea lions. This was amazing. The water was crystal clear and incredibly calm and the afternoon sun pierced it and the underwater looked celestial. The fur sea lions were swimming with us and if you turned around underwater and looked up it seemed like they were floating in the sky with diamonds. This was a soul-reviving experience.
Genovesa is well named “bird island”, birds are everywhere. They squawk, whistle and feed their young. You can get so close and they don’t care at all. They aren’t afraid of us and they let you take your pics and ask you to move along. If you start diverting from the marked path they will squawk at you loudly. Birds own this island!
After dinner and the briefing we had some time on our own before we began our navigation to South Plazas. We were going against the current so it got a bit rough. I hung out on the sundeck and kept low as we sailed away from Genovesa.
Day 3: South Plazas and Santa Fe
We sailed all throughout the night and arrived at South Plazas in the morning. South Plazas is a small island close to Santa Cruz. Sailing here was rough, hard to get good sleep but I managed to keep my dinner in. Some passengers didn’t fair as well. In order to not get too sea sick you have to literally anchor yourself. In bed you lay down face up and can use your left leg as an anchor on the floor or you can grab a hold of the side of the bed with your hand and offset the motion a bit.
We had an early hike on South Plazas. I really liked this island, its very colorful and seemed like an island from England or Iceland. We saw plenty of marine iguanas and the elusive hybrid iguana. The hybrid iguana is a mix between land and marine iguanas, it cannot swim but can climb up cactus. Birds are all over this island as well, and once you make it to the top of the island you can see the non-alpha or beta male sea lions in their hideout. On the way back to the boat we saw a mother sea lion who had just given birth to her pup. Placenta and all reminding us about the circle of life.
In the afternoon we visited Santa Fe Island. Ive been to this island a couple times before. Here you will be able to spot the Santa Fe land iguana. Its a nice island with a lovely beach and a nice loop around trail.
In the afternoon we sailed to Puerto Ayora in Santa Cruz Island. We would spend the night there and continue with our activities the next day.
Day 4: Santa Cruz Island
After breakfast we disembarked at Puerto Ayora. Puerto Ayora is the largest town in the Galapagos and it has changed quite a bit since the last time I visited (2022). The town is lovely, you can find a well-stocked supermarket, great restaurants, lively pubs, amazing coffee shops, bookstores and plenty of souvenir shops. Our first activity was a bus ride to the Highlands of Santa Cruz with a stop at the Twin Craters. Ive always heard about this visit to the Twin Craters and always though it was a bust. But, having experienced it first hand now I can say its a pretty cool visit.
After the twin craters visit we hopped back on the bus and made our way to a Highlands Ranch where we got to see the Giant Tortoises. I like this visit, Ive done it before but its really nice to see the Giant Tortoises up close and in the wild. They also have great coffee at the restaurant and you can take a load off with a local beer. If you like coffee you can get some tasty beans here as well. At the ranch they have a lava tunnel which you can explore.
We returned to Puerto Ayora for lunch at a local restaurant. After lunch we visited the Charles Darwin Research Station and Tortoise Breeding Center. We had sometime to explore Puerto Ayora. I was able to get a really cool t-shirt with a Hammerhead in the back from a shop called “the Lava Rock”.
We returned to the boat and got ready for our last dinner and briefing.
Day 5: Mosquera Islet and Departure
The last day in the Galapagos is always bitter sweet. We got to go for a short visit to Mosquera islet in the morning. Not much to see or do here but take mental pictures of the islands and say your goodbyes.
All in all, my most recent Galapagos Experience was amazing. The only thing I didn’t like was knowing that my time in Galapagos had come to an end. On this trip, I realized that Galapagos is truly my Happy Place. I can’t wait to go back.
