
Galapagos Islands
A week to the wild western islands: Fernandina's iguana colonies, uplifted seafloor at Urbina Bay, Floreana's mail barrel, and snorkeling most days.
How the levels compare
Short walks on mostly even ground at low elevation, with vehicles between sites and a gentle pace throughout.
Half days on foot with some stairs and uneven stone underfoot, and time to rest between them.
Several hours of walking most days, steep stone steps, and days spent above 11,000 ft where the altitude is felt.
Long active days with sustained climbs and early starts, including at least one that rewards being in good shape.
Consecutive long days of trekking at altitude, with big ascents, high passes, and nights in simple conditions.
Ratings describe the trip, never the traveller.
The route
Six nights aboard La Pinta, and the only program on the ship that reaches the far west, where the cold current surfaces and the wildlife concentrates. Fernandina holds the densest marine iguana colony in the islands, Urbina Bay is seafloor a volcano lifted out of the ocean within living memory, and the route home collects Rabida's rust-red beach, the tortoise pens at Puerto Ayora, and a letter left in Floreana's 1793 mail barrel for a stranger to hand-deliver.
Trip facts
Day by day
Overnight: Yacht La Pinta - Luxury Cabin, Darwin's Legacy 6 nights · Meals: Dinner
Overnight: Yacht La Pinta · Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
The morning is a panga ride along the sheer volcanic face of Punta Vicente Roca, where the cold Humboldt water rises and the cliffs hold penguins, cormorants and turtles below the spray. The afternoon lands on Fernandina at Punta Espinoza, the youngest island and the densest marine iguana colony in the Galapagos, with flightless cormorants drying stub wings on the lava.
Overnight: Yacht La Pinta · Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Urbina Bay is seafloor that a volcano lifted bodily out of the ocean within living memory, coral heads stranded among the brush where giant tortoises and land iguanas now graze. The afternoon at Tagus Cove climbs past Darwin's crater lake, with kayaking and snorkeling off the historic anchorage where whalers once carved their names.

Rabida is a beach the colour of rust, iron-red sand with a flamingo lagoon behind it and some of the clearest snorkeling water on the route off its point.
Overnight: Yacht La Pinta · Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Rabida is a beach the colour of rust, iron-red sand with a flamingo lagoon behind it and some of the clearest snorkeling water on the route off its point. The afternoon crosses to Dragon Hill on Santa Cruz, named for the land iguanas that patrol its cactus forest above a salt lagoon.
Overnight: Yacht La Pinta · Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
A day on Santa Cruz, the inhabited heart of the islands. The Charles Darwin Research Station shows the tortoise breeding pens and the science that keeps the archipelago what it is; the highlands above town put the same animals in the wild, grazing farmland in the mist. Lunch is up there, among them.
Overnight: Yacht La Pinta · Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Floreana carries the islands' strangest human history, and the mail barrel at Post Office Bay has been forwarding letters hand to hand since 1793; leave one and take one. Champion Islet offers the best snorkeling of the week, and the lagoon at Punta Cormorant holds greater flamingos feeding a few steps from a green-sand beach.
Meals: Breakfast
Farewell breakfast aboard as the ship comes alongside Baltra, then the transfer to the airport for the flight back to the mainland.
The package
Included
Not included
Where you stay
Luxury cabin. The price shown is for a Luxury cabin, the ship's standard. The four Luxury Plus cabins sleep three and sell at the same per-person rate; tell us your group and we will hold the right one.
Pricing
Cabin category and single occupancy move this price most, and the rate year is the other factor. The island flight is ticketed from Quito; departing from Guayaquil changes the fare slightly. The National Park entrance fee and the transit card are set by the park authorities and are included at their current rates. Prices shown are for 2026-2028. Inquire to check rates for future years.
On board
Scroll the table sideways for the other 1 season.
| Cabin | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Luxury Cabin | $9,920 | $10,080 |
| Luxury Plus Cabin | $9,920 | $10,080 |
Prices are per person, two people sharing.

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