8-Day Southern & Western: Dragon Hill's Land Iguanas
7 nights aboard the ENDEMIC
7 nights aboard the ENDEMIC
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Land iguanas recovering under an active restoration program, a rock split by a channel narrow enough to swim through, the world's only waved albatross colony - eight days aboard the Endemic cover Espanola, San Cristobal, and Santiago in the southern and western Galapagos. Dragon Hill's land iguanas, once wiped out, now dot the hillside near two saltwater lagoons. Kicker Rock rises 148 meters straight from the Pacific, hammerhead sharks a real possibility in its channel. Punta Suarez brings blowholes and that albatross colony, active April through December, plus a mockingbird bold enough to approach visitors. Bartolome's 372 steps top out over Pinnacle Rock, and North Seymour's frigatebirds and Black Turtle Cove's mangrove turtles close the week.
built 2018 · 115 ft · Premium cruise
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1 available departures. Prices per guest based on double occupancy.
Single supplement: Sole occupancy of a double cabin usually carries a surcharge of 70 to 100 per cent. On many departures we can offer cabin sharing instead, in which case the supplement is waived entirely. Just mention it in your inquiry.
On top of the cruise price, budget around 200 USD for the national park fee, 20 USD for the transit control card and 400 to 600 USD for the domestic flight from Quito or Guayaquil. International flights to Ecuador come on top of that.
Good all year round. From December to May the water is warmer and the sea calmer, which is ideal for snorkelling. From June to November it is cooler and rougher, but wildlife density in the water is higher because the Humboldt Current brings more food.
Citizens of the EU, the UK, the US and many other countries do not need a visa for stays of up to 90 days. There are no compulsory vaccinations. For recommendations please speak to your doctor or a travel health clinic.
Crossings between the islands can be noticeably choppy, especially at night in the west of the archipelago. Catamarans such as the Endemic sit steadier than single-hull yachts. If you are sensitive, bring motion sickness tablets.
Yes. Either with a single supplement or through cabin sharing, where we pair you with another solo traveller of the same gender. Just mention it in your inquiry.
You send a non-binding inquiry through the website. We check availability directly with the operator and usually come back to you within one working day with a concrete offer. The booking is then handled personally by us, not online.
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Most Galapagos itineraries begin here. Baltra's airport is the world's first fully ecological airport, run on solar and wind power and built largely from recycled materials, including old oil pipes repurposed into the terminal structure. Land iguanas, wiped out here by the 1950s and reintroduced through a decades-long breeding program, now number in the hundreds again, some right around the airport grounds. From the terminal, a short bus transfer brings you to the pier for the panga ride out to your ship.
One of the few visitor sites directly tied to an active conservation program, run jointly by the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galapagos National Park, working to restore the local land iguana population. From the rocky landing, which doubles as a good snorkeling spot, a trail leads inland past two small saltwater lagoons, sometimes home to flamingos, before circling the hill itself, where land iguanas and their burrows dot the hillside.
Rising nearly 148 meters straight out of the Pacific, split by a channel narrow enough to swim or boat through, Kicker Rock is the most dramatic silhouette in the islands. Blue-footed boobies, frigatebirds, and sea lions are often seen around the rock face, and below the surface this ranks among the best diving and snorkeling in Galapagos, with hammerhead and Galapagos sharks a real possibility in the channel.
A short landing on one of the most beautiful beaches in the islands brings you into a resident colony of Galapagos sea lions, sprawled across the white sand. Between August and November you may also spot pups nursing nearby. This is one of the only places to see the Espanola mockingbird, found nowhere else on Earth and famously unbothered by visitors. After time on the beach, a relaxed snorkel just offshore is a good way to close out the visit, with spotted eagle rays often gliding beneath the surface.
Formed by geological uplift rather than volcanic activity, Santa Fe is unusually flat for a Galapagos island, and it's the only place on Earth with its own endemic subspecies of land iguana. After landing in clear, turquoise water, a walk through a forest of giant, tree-sized Opuntia cactus leads to iguanas basking beneath them. The Galapagos dove is a reliable sight along the trail, and with some luck you may also spot the Galapagos snake or the Galapagos hawk.
A short landing puts you immediately among sea lions and the endemic Plaza land iguana, smaller and more golden than its relatives elsewhere. Watch closely and you might spot a rare hybrid, the result of an occasional cross between a marine and a land iguana found only here. The trail crosses a carpet of succulent Sesuvium, red for part of the year, studded with Opuntia cactus. Along the cliffs, swallow-tailed gulls nest on the ledges beside red-billed tropicbirds, and frigatebirds circle overhead as the loop returns to the landing.
From the landing, a trail leads to a wide, shallow lagoon where Galapagos flamingos wade through the shallows, filtering shrimp from the mud that gives them their color. Continuing over a low rise brings you to Flour Beach, a nesting ground for green sea turtles between December and June. Just offshore, the eroded remains of an old volcanic cone form Devil's Crown, one of the best snorkeling spots in the islands. White-tipped reef sharks and spotted eagle rays are a near-certain sight inside the ring, and on a good day you might also spot hammerhead sharks, sea lions, or a colorful mix of reef fish weaving through the rocks.
Chinese Hat, or Sombrero Chino, is a small islet of delicate lava and spatter cones just off Santiago's southeastern coast. A narrow channel of turquoise water between the islet and the Santiago shoreline makes for excellent snorkeling, where sharks, sea lions, and rays are regularly reported, and a Galapagos penguin occasionally turns up too.
Reachable only by sea, Black Turtle Cove is a mangrove-lined lagoon on Santa Cruz's north shore, protected as a turtle sanctuary. A slow, quiet dinghy ride carries you between four species of mangrove while sea turtles surface for air around the boat, one of the most reliable sightings in the islands. Look down and you'll often see golden and eagle rays moving beneath the hull, and white-tipped reef sharks resting in the shallows.
Also known as Witch Hill, Cerro Brujo greets you with towering cliffs before the dinghy even reaches the beach. Once ashore, you can relax alongside the sea lions, snorkel straight from the sand, or walk to a hidden lagoon where shorebirds work the shallows. Blue-footed boobies, swallow-tailed gulls, and marine iguanas are often somewhere along the shoreline and cliffs too.
A short crossing from Puerto Baquerizo Moreno on San Cristobal, Isla Lobos takes its name from the sea lion colony that calls it home, and doubles as a seasonal nesting ground for blue-footed boobies. Frigatebirds have begun nesting here in recent years too, and fur seals turn up now and then. The walk covers roughly 850 meters of mixed rocky and sandy trail.
A dry landing among the rocks puts you right at the start of one of the richest walks in the islands. The trail follows dramatic cliffs where blowholes send spray high into the air with every swell, and along the way marine iguanas bask on the black rock. Between December and March, the males here turn a striking red and green for the breeding season. Punta Suarez is the only place on Earth where waved albatrosses nest, and between April and December you'll find the colony in full swing, their courtship displays peaking in October. Blue-footed and Nazca boobies nest along the same stretch of cliff, red-billed tropicbirds circle overhead, and the endemic Espanola mockingbird, famously bold, often comes right up to visitors. Keep an eye out too for the Galapagos hawk and the Galapagos dove working the scrub beside the trail.
Set on the grounds of the Galapagos National Park Service on Santa Cruz, this station was once home to Lonesome George, the last known tortoise of the Pinta subspecies. A series of interpretive buildings walks you through the conservation science underway across the islands, and the surrounding native vegetation is a good place to look for Darwin's finches going about their business.
A wooden staircase of 372 steps climbs Bartolome's extinct volcano from a lava-and-concrete dock or sandy beach, depending on conditions. Along the way, red, orange, black, and even green volcanic layers mark the slopes, home to pioneer plants like the island-endemic Tiquilia nesiotica, lava cactus, and scattered Scalesia. With some luck, a lava lizard crosses the trail. At the top, the view over the twin bays and the iconic Pinnacle Rock is the reward for the climb. Back at sea level, a snorkel around the coral reef and submerged lava rocks is a good bet for Galapagos penguins and white-tipped reef sharks, with sea turtles and manta rays turning up now and then too.
One of the few places in the islands where human history takes center stage over wildlife. In 1793, a whaling captain installed a wooden barrel here as an informal mailbox, and the tradition has never stopped: you're welcome to leave a postcard without a stamp, and to sort through what's already inside for anything addressed near your own home to hand-deliver in person. After a wet landing on the sandy beach, a short walk brings you to the barrel, then on to a lava tube you can climb down into by ladder. It is one of the most memorable traditions anywhere in the islands.
A dry landing sets you down on North Seymour's flat, sun-baked terrain, and the trail wastes no time getting to the action: magnificent frigatebirds display from low shrubs right along the path, males inflating their scarlet throat pouches into balloons to catch a female's eye. Blue-footed boobies are a near-constant presence along the same stretch, and during the breeding season you may catch their high-stepping courtship dance just a few feet from the trail, showing off the bright blue feet that give the species its name. Land and marine iguanas share the coastline as the trail loops back toward the water, and sea lions haul out along the shore. Keep an eye on the cliffs above the surf too, where swallow-tailed gulls sometimes perch between flights out to sea.
The return transfer is straightforward: a panga ride from your ship to the pier, then a short bus ride to Baltra's airport, the world's first fully ecological terminal, run on solar and wind power. Land iguanas, reintroduced here after being wiped out decades ago, are sometimes seen right around the grounds on the way to your flight.
Endemic is a premium catamaran whose curved hull design echoes the islands themselves, carrying 16 guests through 3 to 14 night Galapagos itineraries in panoramic Golden Suites with floor-to-ceiling sliding doors and private balconies.
The semi-covered sky deck balances sun and shade, while the interior lounge offers 180-degree panoramic views, a cozy salon, and a fully stocked bar. Each Golden Suite has personalized marine air conditioning control. The Epicure Cuisine program pairs elegant, ocean-based dishes with the freshest available ingredients.
Ideal for travelers who want maximum route flexibility, from a quick 3-night glimpse to a 14-night deep-dive immersion.
