Isabela and Santa Cruz 8 Days / 7 Nights

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. This crater is considered one of the largest in the world with a whopping 10 Kilometre diameter. Volcan Chico is the youngest flank of Sierra Negra, near it´s northern rim. The walk along the crater provides spectacular vistas of the barren volcanic floor, where the older and recent volcanic flows contrast in different shades of black basalt. A box lunch is served alongside the crater rim.
This is an approximately 6 hour’s walk tour to appreciate all the splendor of the volcanoes..
In the afternoon, return to the Scalesia Lodge.
Overnight at Scalesia Lodge.

“Tintoreras” is a group of islets, located a short distance from Puerto Villamil. Reachable only by boat, Tintoreras includes a short walk alongside a maze of narrow lava crevices, broken “AA” lava flows, sandy beaches and stunning coves framed by Mangroves. Its wildlife ranges from basking marine iguanas, perched boobies and pelicans, stalking herons, Galapagos penguins, Sea lions, turtles and white tipped sharks (locally known as tintoreras).
Back to Scalesia Lodge for lunch.

In the afternoon free time to enjoy the magical beach of Puerto Villamil or enjoy one of the following activities for extra cost: biking, surfing or kayaking.

Overnight at Scalesia Lodge.

Fly from Isabela Island to Baltra Island.
Upon arrival, guests are met by the hotel naturalist guides and accompanied directly to the yacht.
North Seymour was up-lifted from the ocean floor by past seismic events, and its origins as a seabed give the island its low, flat profile. Cliffs only a few meters high form the shoreline, where swallow-tailed gulls sit among the ledges and rocks.
This island is teaming with life! You might have to give way to a passing sea lion or marine iguana; blue-footed booby nests sit beside the trail where mating pairs perform their courtship dance. This is a walking excursion and involves uneven rocky terrain. Dry landing. Lunch is served on board yacht Sea Lion.
After the visit, the yacht sails to Itabaca channel, from where we cross by bus faster over Santa Cruz Island to reach the south shore (42 km by bus is shorter and faster, than 50 km by boat), where the Finch Bay Hotel is located.
Overnight at Finch Bay Hotel.

After breakfast, our guests will leave Academy Bay to the lush highlands of Santa Cruz Island. From there a short drive across the farming area will lead us to El Manzanillo.
Manzanillo is on the natural path tortoises take every year as they migrate to higher moist locations during the garúa season (June-September), or when they descend to the warmer lowlands during the wet season. Year round, tortoises can be seen grazing on the surrounding vegetation or wallowing in muddy banks or in a small red-coloured pond (impressively coloured by surface red pondweeds).
Lunch will be served in the cooler highlands, with the stunning views of Santa Cruz Island.
After lunch, we visit a small farm, where coffee, sugar cane and cocoa beans are grown, harvested and prepared – all organic and sustainable. We have the chance to taste the products while learning about the artisanal way to burn island spirits! We then return to the hotel to enjoy its pool, beach, or ask for suggestions for activities.
Overnight at Finch Bay Hotel.

Santa Fe offers one of the more beautiful and sheltered coves in the archipelago. Its turquoise lagoon is protected by a peninsula of tiny islets forming an ideal anchorage.
A wet landing on a sandy white beach brings us into contact with one of the many sea lion harems. Bulls vie for the right to be Beach Master, while smaller males masquerade as females and make stealthy mating moves. Galápagos hawks are often easily approached, perched atop saltbushes.
The giant prickly pear cactus found here live up to their name, with tree-sized trunks! Our goal is to spot one of the large species of land iguana, native to Santa Fe. Beige to chocolate brown in colour with dragon-like spines, these huge iguanas truly resemble dinosaurs.
An indigenous species of rice rat also inhabits the thickets, and lucky hikers can spot harmless Galápagos snakes. After the hike, there is nothing more inviting than a swim in the calm waters of the bay, a great snorkelling opportunity with diverse marine life. Lunch on board yacht Sea Lion. Sail back to Puerto Ayora.
Overnight at Finch Bay Hotel.

This is the magic of Galápagos: a short distance away from Academy Bay and the bustle of Puerto Ayora, lies the quiet and wildlife-rich Divine Bay. Named after one of the islands first settlers, this cove is protected from the swells by natural volcanic reefs on one side, by a gallery of mangrove trees on the other and cliffs created eons ago by the uplift of the lava plateau. The whole provides a wonderful natural shelter for wildlife.
We can explore this lovely cove by boat while more adventurous guests could take the tandem, sit-on-top kayaks straight from the hotel’s beachfront. The morning’s visit includes snorkelling on a calm, but active, sector of the cove. This is next to a wooden dock we use to explore Punta Estrada. A dry landing and a short walk (0.5 km) will lead us to the south shore of the island, to a small beach called “Playa de los Perros” (Dog Beach). This is a great place to see intertidal organisms and learn about marine iguanas in their nesting sites. Also, there’s a nearby natural terrace from where young white tipped reef sharks can be observed from above as they swim about the lava crevices.
After this morning’s visit, we return to the Finch Bay Hotel. Afternoon visit to the Charles Darwin Research Station and the giant tortoise-breeding programme, with time to enjoy the town, or the hotel’s facilities.
Overnight at Finch Bay Hotel.

After breakfast, we leave the Finch Bay Hotel and on the way to Baltra, stop at the Twin Pit Craters, great geological depressions of volcanic material, formed by a long process of slow sinking of the ground, where exceptional Scalesia trees, ferns, mosses and orchids can be seen in the surroundings. Then, overland transfer to the airport in Baltra to take the flight back to the continent.