Galapagos Cruise
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The luxury-class Cormorant catamaran is sleek, fast and stable – perfect for taking a Galapagos tour in style. The 16-passenger yacht offers 8 generous and comfortable accommodations that each preserve the relaxed exclusivity of a smaller vessel cruising the Galapagos Islands. Plus, the friendly well-trained 11-member crew (including a bilingual naturalist guide to lead excursions onto the islands), the delicious menus of Ecuadorian and international cuisine, and the ship’s pure comfort combine to make the Cormorant a great choice for the ultimate island holidays. This 5-day/4-night Galapagos cruise will take you through the central islands of the archipelago, offering you a chance to explore rocky lava terrain, walk through lush forests teeming with birdlife, and snorkel in crystal waters full of unique and endemic marine life. Sailing on board the luxury-class Cormorant catamaran, your appreciation of the wonders of the world will be transformed on this Galapagos Island tour.
“I had a great trip with the liveabord at Agressor II, everything was just perfect, the boat, the trip, the team and the dives. I would like to thank for all the support from Surtrek team.”
AM: In the morning, you will fly from Quito or Guayaquil (on the Ecuadorian mainland) to Baltra Island, in the heart of Galapagos archipelago and the main point of entrance to this natural paradise. Upon your arrival at the airport, you will need to pay the national park entry fee, which goes to protecting both the Galapagos National Park and Marine Reserve. A member of the ship's crew will welcome you and accompany you to your yacht: the M/C Cormorant.
PM: This afternoon, we will disembark onto the northern coast of Santa Cruz Island, where we will visit the long and sandy Bachas Beach, one of the most important nesting beaches for sea turtles. Here you can find flamingos, Black-winged stilts, sea lions, herons, marine iguanas, and — with a little bit of luck — tiny Galapagos penguins. In addition, this beach is one of the main nesting sites of sea turtles in the Galapagos. A female can lay eggs 3 or 4 times with an average of 70 eggs each, but they then spend 3 to 5 years without breeding. At this paradisiacal site, we will also find the remains of barges that sank long ago, once the property of the United States Navy when they operated an airbase on Baltra Island during World War II. That is why the beach is called “Bachas” because the word “barges” in English was hard to pronounce for the local people. You will also have the opportunity to swim on this soft white sand beach or explore the fascinating underwater by snorkeling.
AM: Our destination for this morning is Genovesa Island, considered one of the wildest and most pristine islands in Galapagos National Park. Known as “Bird Island,” Genovesa is one of the few places in the islands where you can see Red-footed boobies. Our first stop on the island will be the El Barranco cliffs. Located on Genovesa Island, along the southern part of Darwin Bay, a one-mile (1.5 km) trail stretches out over volcanic rock that leads to this cliff (this hike takes about two hours to cover). The second half of the trail is very delicate, so please stay on the path. It can get very hot so make sure to bring water. Because of the natural erosion, this is the ideal place for the nesting of Storm petrels. Two other species of petrels that can be seen here are the Galapagos petrel and the Wooden petrel. Red-footed boobies and Nazca boobies can be seen here as well as fur seals and several species of seabirds.
PM: From there, we will proceed to Genovesa Island’s Darwin Bay, we will walk along a short path that leads to the nesting sites of booby and frigatebird colonies. On the beach, you can observe the interesting spectacle of how frigate birds try to rob the prey of different species of boobies.
AM: Today we will explore South Plaza Island, located east of Santa Cruz Island. After a dry landing on the northern part of this life-filled islet, you will encounter colonies of sea lions and land iguanas. While on the steep banks you can see numbers of birds like nesting Tropicbirds and Fork-tailed seagulls, but most of all, you will enjoy the beautiful views from either atop the steep banks or while strolling along the base of the cliff. Opuntia cactuses grow on this island and the vegetation changes color throughout the year.
PM: Today we will visit Santa Fe Island, a small rocky island covered in small Palo Santo trees and six-meter-high opuntia cactuses. The island is inhabited mainly by large yellow land iguanas, Galapagos buzzards, Blue-footed boobies, and pelicans. While snorkeling in the wonderful blue-green bay in which the ship anchors, you can observe the many inhabitants of this underwater world, including countless tropical fish, rays, sea turtles and playful sea lions.
AM: This morning we will make a wet landing on San Cristobal Island to visit Punta Pitt, on the eastern side of San Cristobal Island. After a high-intensity hike on rocky terrain along a 1.4 km-long path and several magnificent lookout points, you will make your way through colonies of Frigatebirds and Fork-tailed seagulls. What’s more, this is probably the only site in the world where you can see all three species of boobies – Masked, Red- and Blue-footed ones. In addition to its great range of seabirds, Punta Pitt is also excellent for dinghy rides and snorkeling.
PM: In the afternoon we will visit Cerro Brujo, a fascinating lava hill located on the northeastern coast of San Cristobal Island with exceptional views of Kicker Rock, the southern part of San Cristobal and the adjacent coast. On the rocks, you can observe Blue-footed boobies, seagulls, Black-necked Stilts, Ruddy Turnstones, Whimbrels, other sandpiper species, White-cheeked pintails and some pelicans. The protected bay is also popular among young sea turtles and rays, which makes swimming and snorkeling particularly exciting here.
AM: In the morning, you will visit one of the main attractions of San Cristobal Island: The Tortoise Breeding Center, where you will see enormous Galapagos tortoises, as well as iguanas. As the natural population of tortoises from San Cristobal Island is seriously threatened by animals introduced onto the island by humans – mainly wild goats, cats, and rats – the center is attempting to increase the number of tortoises as well as eradicate threatening species. Close to the center is an easy trail that covers a distance of 900 meters; along this trail, you will see different species of native and endemic plants of the Galapagos, like cat’s claw, manzanillo, romerillo, and acacia. Be careful not to touch or eat the manzanillo fruits, as these are toxic. San Cristobal Island is also one of the few islands where you can see the plant calandrinia galapagosa, which is in danger of extinction.
Afterwards, we will visit Lobos Island, located across from San Cristobal Island. This is a seasonal nesting spot for Blue-footed boobies and Frigatebirds. You also can enjoy swimming and snorkeling with sea lions in the island’s calm bay.
PM: From the dock on San Cristobal Island, we will take a short bus ride to the San Cristobal airport for your flight back to the mainland. Enjoy the last view of the “enchanted islands,” a unique paradise with fascinating natural highlights.
| Room | Premium Suites | Suites |
| 5 Days | US$ 7,645 PP | US$ 6,945 PP |
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“The trip was excellent from beginning to end. The Isabella II was a fine ship and the crew and guides were all of the highest quality. I would recommend them to others. For us, the ship was the perfect size – not too small and not too large.”