Galapagos Cruise Full schedule

The complete itinerary of the island cruise is 15 exciting days on board the luxury Seaman II catamaran. There are opportunities to embark / disembark on various islands -which enables you to have a  1 / 5 / 6 / 10 or 11 day Galapagos Islands cruise. Each day there will guided walks with opportunities to snorkel in the protected bays.

Day 1 - Fly from UK to Quito - overnight in Quito.

Day 2 - Explore Quito - overnight in Quito  

Day 3: San Cristobal Island.

In the afternoon Leon Dormido or Lobos Island ( lobos marinos - sea lions ).  At Lobos Island you will see lots of sea lions, blue-footed boobies and great frigate birds nesting.

Day 4 - San Cristobal Island.
 
am: Visit the Natural Galapaguera,  a great place to observe Galapagos tortoises in their natural environment.
pm: Pitt Point is formed from volcanic tuff substrate and is the only place in the Galapagos where you can see the three species of boobies and two species of frigates nesting in the same area.

Day 5 - Espanola Island

am: Gardner Bay has two beaches with a total length of 1300 metres. A large colony of sea lions inhabit the beach during the breeding season.
pm: Punta Suarez. At Punta Suarez the albatrosses, endemic to Espanola Island and the largest birds in the Galapagos, are there from mid March to early January.

Day 6 - Floreana Island

am: Cormorant Point and Champion Island. Cormorant Point has the magic mixture of green inorganic sand and white powdery organic sand, a nesting ground for sea turtles. The hyper saline lagoon hosts a number of birds, including flamingos. Champion Island is considered one of the most beautiful places in the Galapagos. Snorkelers and divers an excellent opportunity for dolphin watching.
pm: Post Office Bay so named as the focal point for mail, arriving and leaving on the sailing ships. Visitors also have the opportunity to send letters of their own.
 
Day 7 - Santa Cruz Island

am: A visit to the Fausto Llerena tortoise breeding centre is an excellent opportunity to photograph these wonderful creatures - the iconic image of the Galapagos - the islands of the Tortoises.
pm: El Chato is a reserve in the highlands of Santa Cruz where giant tortoises can be observed in the wild. The tour takes you to see the famous Pit Craters.

Day 8 - Isabela Island

am: Las Tintoreras. This islet has a small bay of completely calm and crystal clear turquoise waters, where sea lions, sea turtles, marine iguanas and rays can be seen.
The Arnaldo Tupiza breeding centre is the home to a total of 330 juvenile and adult tortoises. The centre provides the visitor with another opportunity to enjoy the gentle giants of the Galapagos.
pm: Humedales is a number of natures trails -  lots of beautiful sights and spectacular scenery. The day ends with a visit to Muro de las Lagrimas - the wall of tears - built by convicts in the early 1900s - when the area served as a penal colony.

Day 9 - Isabela Island

am: Moreno Point - several coastal and inland lagoons dotted in between the stark, black lava flows, which although a striking, barren landscape is a nesting area for several species of birds.
pm: Elizabeth Bay is home to a colony of penguins living on several small rocky islets, which you will visit by a dinghy.

Day 10 - Isabela Island & Fernandina

am: Urbina Bay -  you will see large coloured land iguanas and giant turtles, flightless cormorants, blue-footed boobies, penguins and marine iguanas.
pm: Espinoza Point is famous for its large colonies of marine iguanas and as the habitat of unique species like the flightless cormorant, Galapagos penguin, Galapagos hawk, and Galapagos snake.

Day 11 - Santiago & Rabida Island

am: Egas Port is a wet landing on the dark sand beaches of James Bay and a walk along the rocky coast, with some of the Galapagos Islands' best tide pools. Sponges, snails, hermit crabs, barnacles and fish including the endemic four-eyed blenny can be seen. A variety of shore birds, marine iguanas, sally light foot crabs and sea lions.
pm: Rabida Island has a striking red sand beach, some glorious scenery,  arid zone vegetation and many endemic creatures.

Day 12 - Santa Cruz Island

am: Bachas Beach is one of the main nesting sites of sea turtles on Santa Cruz. It is also a good place to see flamingos, and lots of other migratory and aquatic birds.
pm: Black Turtle Cove is a mangrove swamp on the north shore of Santa Cruz Island. This is a great place to see large schools of golden rays, green sea turtles (very rare and endangered),  white tip sharks, Galapagos sharks, lava herons, yellow warblers and a variety of other bird species.
 
Day 13 - Genovesa Island

am: Darwin Bay has nesting colonies of the magnificent frigates, the nazca booby, swallow-tailed gulls and the red-footed booby, the largest nesting colony of the Galapagos for a pelagic bird.
pm: El Barranco is the youngest area of the island, from a geological point of view. The cliffs in the south are composed of very fragile lava. The natural erosion that has occurred in these lava flows has given the storm petrels a perfect nesting habitat. 

Day 14 - Santiago & Bartolome Island

am: Sullivan Bay is of great geological interest. The area is covered by Pahoehoe lava flows (solidified lava in corrugated waves) - in which moulds of some trees can be found, in small crevices where soil and moisture accumulate.
pm: Bartolome is the most photographed island in the Archipelago. Unusual volcanic lava landscape, and spectacular views.

Day 15 - Santiago & North Seymour Island

am: Chinese Hat is a cone shaped, volcanic island - hence the name. The island is home to marine iguanas and penguins. A good snorkeling spot, in the channel that separates this island from Santiago.
pm: North Seymour is the perfect place to observe the nesting grounds of frigates, boobies, gulls, and many other species of birds. Visitors will find lots of sea lions and both marine and land iguanas.

Day 16 - Plazas Islands & Santa Fe Islands

am: Plazas are two small islands, created by land uplift where marine and land iguanas are known to interbreed and produce offspring with shared characteristics.
The walk goes along an impressive cliff where sea birds nest.
pm: Santa Fe could be the oldest Galapagos volcano according to Geist D.J. Studies suggest that there are rocks dating back 3.9 million years. Here visitors will see the unique pale land iguana, and see the largest prickly pear cactus in the world.

Day 17 - San Cristobal Island

am: Check out -  then a tour of the Interpretation Centre of the National Park Service - with exhibits on geology, evolution, human history and conservation. You will also have time to visit the village. 

pm: transfer to hotel on San Cristobal- overnight in San Cristobal.

Day 18 - San Cristobal Island

pm: transfer to airport and fly to Quito - overnight in Quito

Day 19 - Quito 

am: free time with the opportunity to explore Quito 
pm: fly back to UK.

We recommend a minimum of two overnight stays on the outward journey. You can have more if you wish, to give more time to explore Quito. Extra nights are not expensive - around £60 per person including breakfast.

Our local agent can arrange local tours etc. This helps you acclimatise and rest before the cruise. 

For the return we also recommend two overnight stays - one on San Cristobal and one in Quito - which will take any rush out of the return journey. 

It is possible to leave the Galapagos on the last day and fly back to the UK the following day. So, just one overnight on the return, if you wish.