6 days cruise yacht Seastar Journey – A6

Morning – Arrival at San Cristobal Airport: At the mainland airport, you have purchased your TCC or Ingala card and a luggage inspection has already been conducted to ensure that no foreign plant or animal species are introduced. Upon your arrival at the San Cristobal airport, your TCC (Transit Control Card) will be stamped. This must be kept in a safe place during your trip, as it must be presented again on your return flight. In addition, the Galapagos National Park entrance fee is due upon entry (US$200), if not already paid. Your guide will meet you at the airport, help you with your luggage and take you to the ship. After greeting the crew and captain, you will be assigned your cabins and then have your first lunch together.

Afternoon: Cerro Colorado. In the afternoon, you will visit the Turtle Conservation and Breeding Center in Cerro Colorado, about 40 minutes by bus from the southeast of the island. This center was built to improve the population of turtles on the island. The center has a large enclosure, a visitor center, a hatchery and a walkway along which it is possible to see different species of native and endemic plants, as well as birds such as the San Cristóbal mockingbird, the golden warbler and many species of finches and the Galápagos flycatcher.

Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner

Morning – Suarez Point: This rocky area is home to the most impressive and diverse seabirds of the archipelago. The endangered Galapagos Albatross returns to Española Island annually (March – December). This allows visitors to marvel at the whistling and bowing courtship dance (especially in October). Blue-footed and Nazca boobies, fork-tailed gulls and red-billed tropicbirds are also native to this island. Along the southern coast, high cliffs offer spectacular views of soaring birds and seawater shooting up through air holes like fountains.

Afternoon – Gardner Bay: On the north-eastern coast of Española Island, the Gardner Bay is a wonderful place to refresh in the turquoise sea and admire the large number of colourful reef fish. Snorkel side by side with green sea turtles or enjoy the proximity of playful Galapagos sea lions. The white sandy beach is also an important breeding ground for green sea turtles. You may also spot whales in the crystal clear ocean.

Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner

Morning – Cormorant Point:  The peninsula of Cormorant Point forms the northern cape of Floreana, which was formed by a series of smaller volcanic cones covered with tropical dry forest (palo santo). At the landing beach, you will be greeted by a small Galapagos sea lion colony. The green sand on this beach contains a high percentage of glassy olivine crystals blown out from the surrounding tuff cones. The ‘flour sand’ beach on the south side of the peninsula consists of even whiter coral sand that feels very smooth on the feet. Parrotfish have provided pulverization by grinding up calcium-bearing skeletons of still-living corals. You may spot schools of stingrays that like to bury themselves in the sandy bottom. During the first months of the year, green sea turtles come ashore to bury their eggs.

Afternoon – Post Office Bay: During lunch, you will navigate back to Post Office Bay (approximately 1 hour). Throw your vacation greetings into the historic barrel, one of three nearby visitor sites to the north of Floreana (short detour, wet landing) and relax. In addition to Galapagos sea lions, sea turtles and the golden cow-nosed ray, you can spot Galapagos penguins here. This is the only place in the South-Eastern archipelago where penguins live. Explore by rubber boat – or at your own pace by kayak – another submerged crater rim by the shoreline off Baroness Lookout. After climbing up the small basalt cone, you can enjoy magnificent views.This lookout was the favorite spot of one of Floreana’s first colonists, the eccentric baroness and self-proclaimed ‘Empress of Galapagos’ Eloisa von Wagner Bosquet, who even built her house a few meters behind it. She and one of her lovers were the first in a series of mysterious disappearances and deaths in the 1930s.

Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner

Morning – Santa Fe: After lunch, you will be met directly by a Galapagos sea lion colony on the beach, where you will have time for either a refreshing swim or exceptional snorkeling surrounded by tropical reeffish in the crystal clear waters of Barrington Bay. In addition, you will see vast opuntia cactus forests. The largest cacti on the island have extremely thick trunks and can grow over 10 meters tall. After a wet landing on Santa Fe beach, take a guided nature walk. This extraordinary island is a remnant of what is probably the oldest volcano in Galapagos. Your guide will decide if an easy, short walk or a strenuous, longer hike inland will follow (moderate difficulty, approximately 3 km).

Afternoon – South Plaza: You will take an unforgettable guided walk on South Plaza, the best place to encounter the native Galapagos land iguanas. Also, note the unique mix between a male marine lizard and a female land iguana. Once on the top ledge, you’ll get an impressive view of booming waves crashing against the cliffs some 20 meters below. Clouds of petrels, storm petrels, shearwaters and noddi terns delight you with their spectacular flights. Take your binoculars and watch the red-billed tropicbirds with their graceful tails and and their spectacular mating fights. These cliffs are also the nesting sites of the native fork-tailed gulls.Before lunch you will sail to Santa Fe, possibly accompanied by bottlenose dolphins.

Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner

Morning – North Seymour: The shallow little island of North Seymour is an elevated part of the seabed. You can spot Galapagos iguanas among the scraggy bushes. You will also see many seabirds such as the brown pelican, red-billed tropicbirds, fork-tailed gulls and, depending on the season, Nazca boobies. The main attraction, however, is Galapagos’ largest breeding colony of blue-footed boobies – be careful not to step on their nests! – and frigatebirds. At the beginning of the breeding season, the adult male frigatebirds inflate their bright red throat pouches to almost the size of a football.

Afternoon – Bachas Beach: The two small beaches of Bachas are located to the west of Turtle Bay. The sand is made up of decomposed coral, so it is very white and soft, making it a favorite spot for nesting sea turtles. Behind one of the beaches is a small, salty lagoon. Occasionally you can see flamingos or other shorebirds here, as well as the American stilt and the whimbrel. The other beach is longer and on it lie two old barges from the Second World War, when the USA used Baltra Island as a strategic point to protect the Panama Canal. Over time, however, these ship ruins have been washed over by the sand and are now barely visible.

Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner

Morning – Mosquera: Mosquera is located in the middle of the Itabaca Channel, between Baltra and North Seymour. Mosquera offers beautiful white coral sand and simplifies the landing unlike their neighbors Seymour and Baltra with their rocky coastline. The Galapagos sea lions are real beach lovers. These flink fishermen come through the Itabaca Channel, which is a natural trap for marine life due to the submerged elevation between Baltra and Santa Cruz. Here you will have time to snorkel or take a walk on the beach. Among the rocks, red cliff crabs are waiting to play hide and seek while you try to snap the perfect photo. If you’re lucky, you might even see crab egrets or even a red-footed booby. After this excursion, you will be transferred to the airport and say goodbye to the guide and crew!

Meals: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner