Galapagos Cruise Holiday

Fly from London to Quito to begin your Galapagos adventure!

On arrival, transfer to Casona de la Ronda for 2 nights (B&B), a colonial-era boutique hotel set along one of the city’s oldest streets. Its traditional interiors and artisan flair offer an inviting warm, character-rich welcome.

Join your private guide for a walking tour through the Old Town: visit the Basilica, La Compañía de Jesús with its gilded interior, and the Independence Plaza. Explore La Ronda’s artisan workshops and enjoy sweeping views from El Panecillo. Fancy more? Add a visit to the Equator monument, or a private chocolate and coffee tasting with a local expert.

This morning, fly from Quito to Baltra, your gateway to the Galápagos. You’ll be met on arrival and transferred to the Bonita, a stylish 16-passenger yacht offering personal service, elegant social areas, and well-appointed en-suite cabins. After lunch on board, your first landing is often at Mosquera Islet, a low-lying sandbar between Baltra and North Seymour. Here, a colony of sea lions often greets guests ashore, while lava gulls and sally lightfoot crabs decorate the rocky shoreline. Your guide will lead a gentle walk along the coast and introduce you to the landscape and rules of this protected world.

In the evening, enjoy your first sunset at sea from the upper deck – and toast the start of your Galápagos voyage over a welcome dinner.

Upgrade option to M/V Evolution, one of the finest vessels in the Galápagos with a high naturalist-to-guest ratio and impeccable service. 

Call 01273 923100 to start planning your holiday

Today you’ll wake to the stark beauty of Fernandina Island, the youngest and most volcanically active island in the Galápagos. Disembark at Espinosa Point, where a carpet of black lava hosts hundreds of marine iguanas, piled in silent clusters to absorb the sun’s warmth. Flightless cormorants nest nearby, drying their stunted wings, while sea lions lounge beside tidepools.

After lunch, cross to Isabela Island and visit Tagus Cove, once a pirate hideout. Hike a trail past graffiti left by 19th-century whalers, climbing to a lookout over Darwin Lake, a saltwater crater lake in a collapsed caldera. End the day snorkelling off the cove, where green sea turtles, penguins, and reef sharks often cruise through the sheltered bay.

Call 01273 923100 to start planning your holiday

This morning, land at Urbina Bay, a remarkable site where the land was thrust upward in 1954, leaving corals stranded above sea level. Walk trails through coastal scrub, home to giant tortoises, land iguanas, and Galápagos hawks. This is one of the few islands where you might spot wild tortoises on foot near sea level.
In the afternoon, explore Elizabeth Bay by panga (dinghy). Drift silently through a maze of mangroves, watching for spotted eagle rays, sea turtles, and the occasional flightless cormorant perched on twisted roots. With no landing site, this is a place to watch and listen – a contrast to the morning’s dramatic hike.

Land today at Punta Moreno, where a stark black lava flow hides shallow lagoons that are home to flamingos, white-cheeked pintails, and gallinules. Your guide will explain how life takes hold in one of the island’s most barren-looking landscapes. This is a great spot for seeing how volcanic terrain slowly turns to habitat.
After lunch, sail along the southern coast of Isabela and stop for a snorkel in the open sea – a wild underwater stretch to spot turtles, and even mola mola (sunfish) have been spotted. Conditions can be more open-water here – thrilling and highly memorable for keen snorkellers.

Arrive at Puerto Egas, one of Santiago’s most dramatic landings!

Walk along a black sand beach where fur seals shelter in lava grottos and marine iguanas dot the rocks. Your guide may show you sponges growing in tidal pools and explain the layers of volcanic formation. The snorkelling here is often superb – with clear water, caves, and a good chance of spotting octopus or moray eels.
Later, visit Chinese Hat (Sombrero Chino), a small islet with a postcard-worthy volcanic cone and white sand beach. You’ll hike a short trail past lava formations and snorkel in calm waters known for penguins, sea lions, and reef sharks.

Call 01273 923100 to start planning your holiday

Disembark at Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz. From here, head up into the lush highlands to see giant tortoises roaming freely through misty grasslands. Walk through lava tunnels, some over 1,000m long, and learn about the geology of the island. After lunch at a local farm or lodge, you’ll transfer to Baltra for your flight back to Quito. On arrival in Quito you will transfer to your return flight home!

Prefer a slower farewell? Ask us to add a night on Santa Cruz at a boutique hotel with optional day trips to Bartolomé or North Seymour.

Need more? Extend your adventure to the Amazon rainforest or Mindo cloud forest for a complete Ecuador experience.