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Snorkeling gear costs
$4,00 usd daily per person (mask, snorkel and fins)
Wet suit rent costs $4,00 usd daily
Children under 6 years are not allowed for safety
regulations.
Children 6 to 12 years old have 25% discount
Itineraries are subject to change for weather conditions
or emergency procedures or Galapagos National Park
regulations.
STRENGTHS
Floreana
is one of the best ships in her category
Local family owned and operated
Experienced tour operators
Extensive local knowledge
TANGIBLE
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE YACHT
Nicely appointed twin cabins with en-suite facilities
Power points available to recharge electrical equipment
(USA flat pin sockets)
New navigation equipment
ASSETS
:
Warm, friendly service with an eye for detail
Top quality guides
Excellent onboard chef able to cater for requests
Experienced, professional crew
BENEFITS TO
OUR PASSENGERS :
Ship extensively refurbished
annually
Very safe and stable
Onboard reference library
Snorkeling equipment and wetsuits available
Full Day to Day Itinerary
NORTH ISLANDS ITINERARY
On departing from Quito
or Guayaquil, you will take a three hour flight to the
Galapagos Islands landing on the Island of Baltra.
Here you will be met by your guide and after a short bus
ride you will board the yacht Floreana and start your
holiday.
1.-HIGHLANDS OF SANTA CRUZ: This is the second largest
island in the Galapagos, and has the most developed
vegetation zoning found in the archipelago. On the
short journey to the highlands you will drive through
Coastal, Arid, Transition, Scalesia, Miconia, and Pampa
Zones. During this visit you have the opportunity to see
the famous giant tortoises (during the rainy season) in
their natural environment; you will visit the twin
craters, formed when large caverns left empty by flowing
lava collapsed. You will also find Darwin’s finches,
vermilion flycatcher, and the Galapagos Hawk.
2.-GENOVESA (also known as bird Island): DARWIN BAY, is
the caldera of a collapsed volcano, we land on a small
coral beach, were we take an easy walk. For those that
want this will lead into a more demanding walk over lava
rock. This will allow for stunning views from the
cliffs and allow apple time and opportunity to
photograph the amazing bird life such as swallow-tailed
gulls, red-footed booby, nazca booby, large ground
finch, large cactus finch, sharp-billed ground finch,
small marine iguanas, and great frigate bird.
EL BARRANCO, This is a demanding walk up a steep cliff,
where tropicbirds, red-footed boobies and other nesting
seabirds can be found. We follow the trail through a
palo santo forest to a storm petrel colony passing
boobies and great frigate bird along the way.
3.-SANTIAGO ISLAND: SULLIVAN BAY: The main attraction of
this bay is the broad, pahoehoe or rope lava flow. It is
one of the most incredible places to compare the lava
flows and their characteristics.
BARTHOLOME ISLAND, most likely the first of the islands
to rise from the sea, Bartolome, is a small island that
has beautiful white sand beaches and luxuriant green
mangroves. Here, penguins may join us at the swimming
beach, and a hike to the summit of a once-active volcano
rewards us with beautiful panoramic views of the
often-photographed Pinnacle Rock panoramic and it’s
amazingly moon landscapes
4.- CHINESE HAT: Sombrero Chino gets its name from its
appearance, which is that of a Chinese hat. Sitting just
off the south-eastern tip of Santiago, this fairly
recently formed island makes for a pleasant visit as the
island itself is quite beautiful and is definitely worth
a trip.
To truly appreciate the shape of this island, visit the
northern end of Sombrero Chino. Here there is a tiny sea
lion colony on the north shore cove, where one can
anchor their boats and land. Galapagos penguins can also
be found swimming here sometimes.
Follow the trail around the cove and you will catch a
glimpse of American oystercatchers in action, along with
marine iguanas, lava lizards and Sally Lightfoot crabs.
Starting from a crescent-shaped white sandy beach, this
400 meter long trail provides some wonderful landscapes
to view. There are also some good swimming and
snorkelling opportunities in the cove area amidst
white-tipped reef sharks and tropical fish.
DRAGON HILL, has its name because it’s healthy
population of land iguana. Dragon Hill offers a
beautiful view of the landscapes from the top of the
hill. Two small salt water lagoons are located behind
the beach, where it is possible to see flamingos that
give a colorful touch to the scene.
5.-ISABELA: BREEDING CENTER / WALL OF TEARS & THE
HUMEDALES
Isabela, the largest island in the archipelago, occupies
over fifty-eight percent of entire landmass of the
Galapagos. It is a relatively recent island and consists
of a chain of five fairly young and intermittently
active volcanoes.
Breeding Center; the giant tortoise rearing center of
Isabela is located 1.5 kilometers from Pto. Villamil,
this important center has a captive breeding program for
tortoises from the populations of southern Isabela. In
total there are 330 tortoises between juveniles and
adults.
Humedales: This site is a series of lagoons know for its
migrant bird populations the black-necked is one of the
most famous birds of the area. The vegetation
around the lagoons is dense and there are no trails,
although the road to the highlands and the open beach
does provide reasonable access.
TINTORERAS It takes approximately 10 minutes from Puerto
Villamil to arrive at The Tintoreras. The islet of the
Tintoreras is situated to the south of Puerto Villamil.
It has a small lbya of completely tranquil turquoise
water, where is possible to appreciate sea lions, sea
turtles, marine iguanas, rays, etc. This bay is
connected to a shallow crevice of crystalline waters
whose entrance closes when the tide is low. In this
crevice, it s possible to see how sharks swim with other
small fish and sea lions.
It is not advisable to swim in these beaches because of
the presence of the colonies of sea lions which may be
disturbed.
6.-FERNANDINA ISLAND: PUNTA ESPINOSA, Fernandina Island
is the youngest and most active volcano in the
Galapagos, with eruptions taking place every few years.
The flat lava of Punta Espinosa offers a stark and
barren landscape, but here flightless cormorants build
their nests on the point, sea lions sprawl on the beach
or play in the tide pools and large numbers of marine
iguanas dot the sand. We also will have the opportunity
to compare the aa and pahoehoe lava types here.
TAGUS COVE (ISABELA ISLAND) is situated directly east of
Fernandina Island on the west coast of Isabela Island.
It is a beautiful, well-protected cove sheltered by the
shoulders of two volcanic craters and has been used as
an anchorage for over 300 years. A nature trail here
ascends through the typical dry vegetation zone and
offers spectacular views of Darwin Lake, a saltwater
crater lake and the long narrow inlet that appears to
connect with it. At the top of the trail it is possible
to observe the different vegetation zones, catch a
glimpse of Darwin and Wolf volcanoes, and observe
Galapagos penguins, Flightless cormorants and pelicans.
7.-SANTIAGO ISLAND: PTO. EGAS, with its black sand
beaches, was the site of a small salt mining industry in
the 1960’s and a hike inland to the salt crater is an
excellent opportunity to sight land birds such as
finches, doves and hawks. Here we can also swim and play
with Galapagos sea lions in a quiet grotto cut into the
lava cliffs. We may see sea lions basking on the rocks
beneath a natural rock bridge, diving blue-footed
boobies, sally light foot crabs and colorful lava
lizards scurrying at our feet. RABIDA ISLAND, One of the
special features of Rabida Island is its remarkable red
color, which is a result of the high percentage of
oxidized iron in the composition of lava. Here we will
witness the nine varieties of finches also the
large-billed flycatchers and brown pelicans. Here a
small salt-water lagoon where greater Flamingos can be
seen and a beautiful colony of sea lions.
8.-BLACK TURTLE COVE is one of the most beautiful marine
sites; located in a small mangrove lagoon. It is a
nursery grounds for many marine species such as sharks,
spotted eagle rays and sting rays. Also it is a favored
breeding ground for the sea turtle. It is also a
wonderful site for watching, herons, finches and
blue-footed boobies feeding. This site does not
involve a land visit; it is all seen from the small
zodiac boats.
Return to Baltra Island and finally your flight home.
We Hope you enjoy your visit with us.
SOUTH
ISLANDS ITINERARY
On departing from Quito or Guayaquil, you will take a
three hour flight to the Galapagos Islands landing on
the Island of Baltra. Here you will be met by your guide
and after a short bus ride you will board the yacht
Floreana and start your holiday.
1.-BALTRA AIRPORT /NORTH SEYMOUR ISLAND
North Seymour’s topography is flat and strewn with
boulders due to its origins as an uplifted, not
volcanic, island. You should expect to see large
populations of magnificent Frigate birds due to the idea
nesting sites, Blue- footed boobies perform their
courtship dance in the more open areas and
swallow-tailed gulls perch on the outer shore. Sea lions
and Marine iguanas can also be seen hauled out on the
beach.
2.-DRAGON HILL/WHALE BAY
DRAGON HILL: On entering the trail you pass a stunning
lagoon which is often frequented by flamingos. As
expected the trail leads up a hill where land iguanas
can be found and wonderful sea scapes.
WHALE BAY: On the cost of Santa Cruz Island, this is a
semicircle beach, which is green in color, due to a high
volume of olivine crystals. It extends 25 meters from
the base of the hill. The beach has some historical
interest as it was the first trail to the highlands used
to search for fresh water. There are a number of pieces
of ceramics strewn about, although no verified
information exists concerning the origins of the
ceramic. Here can be found a curious Galapagos Hawk.
3.-CHARLES DARWIN RESEARCH STATION: Founded more than
Twenty years ago to assist the National Park Service in
its efforts to save Galapagos wildlife, the station
plays an important part in monitoring and assessing the
state of the islands. Today you will find buildings
housing the different scientific areas of the station, a
library and homes of scientists and tortoise keepers.
The museum at the station has a facility for rearing
tortoises, a project to increase the depleted
population. Also the world famous lonesome George can be
found with in the stations breading program.
EL CHATO: An amazing opportunity to see the magnificent
giant land tortoise in its natural habitat, having just
seen the tortoise in the breading program in the
station, you can now see them bathing and eating in the
wild (depending on the season). This area is vegetated
with transition zone vegetation and is located in the
humid zone of the highlands of Santa Cruz. The walk to
the reserve is one of the best places to observe ground
birds, tree and ground finches, the vermillion
flycatcher, cattle egrets and occasionally Galapagos
rails.
4.-FLOREANA ISLAND: As one of the oldest islands,
Floreana has the most interesting human history. It has
stories of marooned whales, prisoners and colonists as
well as bizaree disaperances and even murders! It is
made up of numerous extinct volcanic cones and has an
established extensive scrubby vegetation.
Morning visit: Post Office Bay, significant for its
human history. In 1793, James Colnett, the captain of a
whaling vessel, established the wooden post barrel on
Floreana. Whaling ships, typically offshore for two
years at a time, frequented the archipelago Outbound
ships would drop off letters after rounding the cape and
the ships returning home would mail them. Over the
years, thousand of ships have stopped to send and
receive mail at Post Office Bay. This will be your
opportunity to partake in this amazing postal service.
You will be given letters to take home and mail to their
intended recipients, and also have the opportunity to
drop off letters ourselves.
Afternoon visit: Punta Cormorant offers two highly
contrasting beaches. The landing beach is of volcanic
origin and is composed of olivine crystals, giving it a
greenish tinge. At the end of the short trail is a
carbonate beach of extremely fine white sand, formed by
the erosion of coral skeletons, it is a nesting site for
green sea turtles.
5.-ESPAÑOLA ISLAND: Española, the southernmost island,
has the densest and most diversified concentration of
wildlife.
Punta Suarez is home to Blue footed boobies, Nazca
boobies, swallow-tailed gulls, oystercatchers and the
majestic waved albatross breeding grounds. This makes
this site one of the richest wildlife locations in the
Galapagos Islands. The area is famous for it marine
iguanas with unique copper-red patches, Gardner bay, An
amazing white sand beach with stunning turquoise
shallows beautiful to walk, swim or snorkel. You could
just sit and admire the extrovert mockingbirds and the
sea lions.
6.-SAN CRISTOBAL ISLAND:
LOBOS ISLAND, as its name suggests is famous for its
population of sea lions and fur sea lions. You will also
encounter a nesting ground for the great frigate bird
and a small number of blue footed boobies BREEDING
CENTER; here it is explained, in a simple manner, the
natural phenomena that created the Galapagos Islands.
They explain the series of natural processes, such as
volcanic eruption and marine current locations that have
lead to the amazing islands that you are now visiting.
7.-SANTA FE ISLAND: This Island offers the unique
opportunity to see the hybrid iguana, a land and marine
iguana mix. There is also the opportunity to see an
unusual prickly pear cactus forest.
SOUTH PLAZAS, an uplifted island, like Baltra, it is
highly populated by sea lions, over 1000 inhabit this
island residing in 10 harems each one attended by a
male. One of the characteristics of this island is its
vegetation of Opuntia Cactuses and sesuvium plants. This
small island offers cliffs with swallow-tailed gulls,
red-billed tropicbirds
8.-BLACK TURTLE COVE is one of the most beautiful marine
sites; located in a small mangrove lagoon. It is a
nursery grounds for many marine species such as sharks,
spotted eagle rays and sting rays. Also it is a favored
breeding ground for the sea turtle. It is also a
wonderful site for watching, herons, finches and
blue-footed boobies feeding. This site does not involve
a land visit; it is all seen from the small zodiac
boats.
Return to Baltra Island and finally your flight home.
We Hope you enjoy your visit with us.
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