A short description of the major islands and their visitor sites (areas which are open to tourism) which should help you in your cruise planning. It tells you about the fauna and flora you will encounter there and interesting geological features and scenery. Also snorkeling and scuba sites are described for you to discover the fantastic underwater world. Clicking on the link, gets you to a page of pictures of the individual visitor site with more detailed information. For location of the islands and the sites click to map and to pictures to enter right into the visual part.




ESPAÑOLA (Hood)   older, eroded volcanic island, area of 61km2, 206m max. altitud.

Punta Suarez: cliffs, blow hole, where sea water is forced some 20m up into the air, puncture weed, shore petunia, salt bush, atriplex, lantana, purslane, mesquite, trianthema, sea lions, most colorful marine iguanas and lava lizards in the archipelago, waved albatrosses, which are on the island from March to December, masked and blue-footed boobies colonies, swallow-tailed gulls, red-billed tropic birds, Hood mockingbirds, Darwin finches, Galapagos doves and hawks.

Gardner Bay: long and beautiful white sand beach, salt bush, prickly pear cactus, Jerusalem thorn, mesquite, beach dropseed, sea lion colony, rocks off the coast offer great snorkeling with reef sharks, turtles and many tropical fish.


FLOREANA  (Charles, official name is Santa Maria) sixth largest island, populated, Puerto Velasco Ibarra main settlement with a few hundred inhabitants, 173 km2, 640m.

Post Office Bay: wooden mail barrel, lava tunnel, salt bush, Darwin's cotton, Jerusalem thorn, mesquite, sea lions, rays, sea birds.

Punta Cormorant: isthmus, large inland lagoon, flamingos and other wading birds, sandy beach cove with turtles, rays and seabirds, off the coast is Devil's Crown, a half submerged volcanic crater, great snorkeling site with starfish, sea urchins and tropical fish in the shallow center and larger fish like sharks and rays outside crater area.


SAN CRISTOBAL  (Chatham)  fifth largest island, 558km2, 730m, inhabited.

Puerto Baquerizo Moreno: provincial capital with Nature Interpretation Center, airport, ship harbor, starting point for some cruises,  Frigate Hill (Cerro de las Tijeretas) just outside town, good views of the bay and the town., frigate bird colony

La Loberia: sea lion colony, marine iguanas, warbler, finches, blue-footed boobies.

El Junco Lagoon: fresh water lake and water reservoir located at 700m, great views,  Miconias, ferns, sedges, clubmoss, tree ferns, white-cheeked pintails, common gallinules.

La Galapagera: giant tortoises reserve, mixture of lowland and moist upland vegetation, Galapagos cotton, yellow cordia, poison apple, passionflowers, mockingbirds, finches.

Other visitor sites but not described here are Isla Lobos, small island, colonies of blue-footed boobies and sea lions, Leon Dormido (Kicker Rock), two giant rocks, separated by a channel, where small vessels can pass through, scuba diving site, Punta Pitt, volcanic tuff formations and only area in isles where all three booby species nest together.


SANTA FE   (Barrington)   smaller island of 24 km2, 259m, tall opuntias, incense tree, salt bush, yellow cordia, blainvillea, maytenus, thorn shrub, Santa Fe land iguanas, pelican nesting site, sea lion colony, mockingbird, dove, finch, good snorkelling, swimming with sea lions, schools of fish, sharks.


ISLA PLAZAS    two tiny islands uplifted from the sea, separated by a channel.

South Plazas:  0.13km2, 25m   tall opuntias, carpet weed, portulaca, castela, grabowskia,  land and marine iguanas, which  are known to interbreed there freely, rocky cliff towards the open ocean nesting site red-billed tropicbirds, gulls, shearwaters, sea lion bachelor colony, nearby Gordon Rocks, a good scuba diving site.


SANTA CRUZ  (Indefatigable)  second largest island, the most populated of all islands with 10 000 people, 986 km2, 864m ( Cerro Crocker ).

Puerto Ayora & Charles Darwin Station:  research facility, mayor tourist center, National Park Information center, giant tortois and land iguana breeding program, interpretation center, natural habour Academy Bay.

Tortuga Bay (Turtle Bay): 45 min. walk from town, white sand beach, Opuntia cactus forest and other coastal and lowland vegetation, marine iguanas, shore birds, small salt lagoon, great blue heron, pelican, whimbrel, sanderling, ruddy turnstone, lava gull.

Los Gemelos: volcanic craters, sinkholes, Scalesia forest, bromeliads, orchids, vermillion flycatchers, warblers, darwin finches.

El Chato: giant tortoise wild reserve, long lava tube, small lagoon covered with red algae,, panaromic views, agricultural used land, pasture, cedar, maracuya, pintails, finches.

Las Bachas: white sand beach, nesting site for sea turtles, small lagoon, flamingos, whimbrels, heron, pelican, Sally Lightfoot crab.

Other visitor sites on the island but not desribed here are Conway Bay, lagoon with flamingos, Cerro Dragon, small lagoons with flamingos, Palo Santo trees, Opuntias, Caleta Tortuga Negra (Black Turtle Cove),  mangroves, lava herons, pelicans, marine tortoises and golden mustard rays in the water.


BALTRA  (South Seymour)  27km2, 80m, island to the north of Santa Cruz, site of the airport, public transport to Puerto Ayora by bus and ferry, incense tree, prickly pear cactusa, Jerusalem thorn, sea birds and sea lions.


MOSQUERA   0.058km2, 2m, beautiful sand beach, large sea lion colony, scuba diving site.


NORTH SEYMOUR  (Seymour Norte or just called Seymour) uplifted, 1,9 km2, 30m, incense tree, yellow cordia, croton, salt bush, maytenus, merremia, opuntia, evolvus, nesting grounds magnificent frigate bird, blue-footed booby, sea lion, marine iguana.


DAPHNE  two small eroded volcanic islands, Daphne Major  0.32 km2, 120m, incense tree, chamaesyce, purslane, gray matplant, prickly pear cactus, puncture weed, masked and blue footed boobies colonies, red-billed tropic bird.


SOMBRERO CHINO  (Chinese Hat) volcanic island, 0.25km2, 52m, lava formations, lava cactus, purslane, carpet weed, puncture weed, sea lion, marine iguana, Galapgaos penguin, snorkeling and swimming in its small cove.


BARTOLOME   (Bartholomew)  volcanic island, 1.2km2, 114m, volcanic landscape, tuff cones, panoramic views from summit, Pinnacle Rock , maytenus, mat plant, lava cactus, mollugo, thorn shrub, white and red mangrove, pectis, sand beach, swimming, snorkeling, Galapagos penguin, blue footed booby, pelican, marine turtle, sea lion, tropical fish.


RABIDA  (Jervis) small island, 5 km2, 367m, dark red coral sand beach, sea lion, sea lion bachelor colony, pelican nesting sites, blue-footed booby, salt water lagoon, flamingos, white-cheeked pintails, snorkeling site at the end of the beach.


PINZON  (Duncan) 18km2, 458m, no visitor sites, cliffs, nesting site for sea birds.


SANTIAGO  (James Island, official Spanish name is San Salvador)  585km2, 907m.

Sullivan Bay: 100 hundred year old lava flow field, pahoehoe formations, lava bubbles, mollugo, lava cactus, marine iguana, sea lion, marine turtle, Sally Lightfoot crab.

Puerto Egas (James Bay):  salt mine, Sugar Loaf Volcano, lava shoreline, poison apple tree, incense tree, castela, heliotrope, sicklepod, yellow cordia, thorn shrub, opuntia, marine iguana colony, fur seal,  lava lizard, crab, American oystercatcher, lava heron, sanderling, ruddy turnstone, whimbrel, Galapagos snake.

Other visitor sites on the island but not desribed here are Buccaneer Cove, beautiful rock cliffs, nesting seabirds, Espumilla Beach, good swimming, small lagoon, wading birds.


GENOVESA  (Tower) eroded flat volcanic island, 14 km2, 76m , natural harbor, being actually the submerged caldera of this volcanic island.

Darwin Bay: prickly pear cactus, incense tree, chamaesyce, salt bush, heliotrope,  colonies of red-footed boobies, masked boobies and  great frigate birds, swallow-tailed gulls, herons, large cactus finch, sea lions, snorkeling and diving, hammerhead sharks.

Prince Philip's Steps (El Barranco):  cliffs, incense trees, lava cactus, chamaesyce, large masked booby colony, red-footed booby, storm petrels,  short-eared owls, doves, finches.


MARCHENA   (Bindloe)  volcanic island, 130km2, 340m high, active volcano last eruptions occurred in the beginning of the 1990's, no land visitor site but scuba diving site.


PINTA  (Abington) volcanic island 60km2, 777m, no official tourist sites, former home of Lonesome George.


WOLF (Wennam ) 2.85km2, 253m, scuba diving site, schools of hammerhead sharks, whale sharks.


DARWIN  (Culpepper) 2.33km2, 168m, Monumental Darwin Arch nearby, scuba diving site, schools of hammerhead sharks, whale sharks.


ISABELA   (Albemarle) largest of the Galapagos islands, 4588 km2, formed by five active volcanoes fused together Wolf volcano, highest point at 1707m in the entire Galapagos.

Puerto Villamil: town of 2000 inhabitants, Tortoise Breeding Station, white sand beach, wetlands, marine iguanas, flamingos, whimbrels, gallinules, stilts, lava gulls, sanderlings.  

Muro de las Lagrimas: until 1959 a penal colony,  Wall of Tears erected by convicts, dry lowland vegetation, wetlands, mangroves, flamingos, finches, pelicans, booby.

Volcan Sierra Negra: caldera with a diameter of 10km, Volcan Chico, fumaroles, recent lava flows,  moist highland vegetation, agricultural, pasture land, introduced plants, anis.

Los Tintoreras:  lava formations, marine iguanas, sea lions, white tipped reef sharks.

Elizabeth Bay: panga ride, inlet cove, tall red, white and black mangroves, marine turtles, rays, flightless cormorant and Humboldt penguins, blue-footed booby, pelicans.

Urbina Bay: incense tree, Darwin's shrub,thorn shrub, cotton, yellow cordia, petunia  flightless cormorants, pelicans, marine iguanas, rays, turtles, land iguanas, giant tortoises.

Tagus Cove: natural harbour site, century old wall graffiti, water filled caldera, view to coast and darwin volcano, incense tree, castela, cotton, lantana, waltheria, macraea, penguins, flightless cormorants, darwin finches, Galapagos hawk.

Other visitor sites on the island but not desribed here are Punta Garcia, aa lava formations, Punta Moreno, lava beach, pioneer plants, white-cheeked pintails, common gallinules, Punta Albemarle, WW II American radar station, flightless cormorant.


FERNANDINA   (Narborough)  youngest ( some 700 000 years old ) volcanic island, 642km2, 1494m, active volcano  La Cumbre, most recent eruptions in 1995.

Punta Espinoza: wide lava flow, pahoehoe and aa lava formations, Brachycereus or lava cactus, shore petunia, red, white and black mangrove, large colony of marine iguanas, sea lions, flightless cormorant nesting site, lava herons.