Search Vantage
Choose Your Adventure
Subscribe to our newsletter
Galapagos: The Islands
One of Ecuador’s most valuable and most famous natural treasure is not on the mainland at all. It is the Galapagos Islands, an enchanted, volcanically formed archipelago 622 miles off of Ecuador’s Pacific coast. The Galapagos is a world unto itself composed of 13 major islands, six smaller ones and over two score of islets that became Charles Darwin’s living laboratory of evolution and inspired him to write The Origin of the Species after visiting the islands in 1835. Darwin’s Theory of Evolution emanated from this visit and the ensuing book.
Geologists estimate that the islands, themselves, emerged from the Pacific some three to five million years ago as the result of underwater volcanic eruptions. It is the resulting lava formations and volcanic rock that give the visitor that eerie, unworldly feeling. Although the scenery is barren and volcanic, it has a certain haunting beauty. The entire archipelago encompasses some 2,938 square miles of Pacific Ocean. Most of the islands are south of the equator where several marine currents converge. All of the factors were in place and just right to create this zoological, geological and botanical wonder.
When the first seafarers arrived in 1535, they found some of the strangest and most wonderful wildlife imaginable: birds that could no longer fly, seagoing iguanas and dragon-like lizards from prehistoric times, and the giant tortoises, Galapagos in Spanish, for which the islands were named. They found Antarctic seals and penguins living happily with tropical birds and animals, right on the equator! Best of all, they found that the animals of the islands were completely unafraid of man … because over the centuries they had no reason to fear. This is the way that you will find the Galapagos Islands to this day, and that is why strict rules are enforced to protect and preserve the fragile and priceless environment.
Your Galapagos cruise experience will vary slightly depending on the boat. You may cruise the islands aboard 90Âpassenger ships, which have most of the shipboard amenities, or on a variety of safe, comfortable yachts. Passengers sleep aboard, usually make two different, guided shore visits a day, and have a chance to swim or snorkel. Most boats do not land on the islands, but will ferry you ashore in dinghy-like boats called pangas. The cruises begin in the islands and you will fly from Quito or Guayaquil to either Baltra or San Cristobal Island. You will find small hotels on Santa Cruz (near Baltra) and San Cristobal, if you wish to stay ashore and take day cruises to the other islands.
Santa Cruz Island is also the site of the Charles Darwin Research Station. This is the training center, together with the Galapagos National Park Service, for the naturalist guides who accompany all visitors landing at one of the approved sites. It is also an important center where members of the international scientific community come to study. The station is the one place where you are able to easily see the famous giant tortoises which can weigh more than 500 pounds and live for a century or two.
The Galapagos Islands are truly a natural heritage of all mankind. “Well, ” you rightly wonder. “How did this all come about, and how did the animals of the Galapagos became the way they are?” The animals, birds and plants arrived on the islands by various methods. Seeds and insects were either blown to the land areas or carried there on driftwood. The birds and animals either flew there, swam, or were stranded by storms. Since no humans landed on the islands before the 16th century, both flora and fauna flourished untroubled, yet changed to meet the criteria dictated by their new environment.
As much as there is to be seen in the islands, the main sights you will be visiting (depending on the length of your cruise, are:
Barrington (Santa Fe): Has land iguanas and cactus. Bartolome: Offers a dramatic volcanic cone to climb for one of the loveliest views in the islands. Good swimming and snorkeling. Narborough (Fernandina): Has a shoreline densely populated by marine iguanas, as well as flightless cormorants, pelicans and penguins.
Floreana (Santa Maria): Is the site for flamingos and red-footed booby. Mail your postcards here in a barrel, according to an old whaler’s custom. Hood (Espaňola): Is the only breeding ground for the waved albatross, and residence for both blue-footed and masked boobies. Isabela: Has five large volcanoes and Darwin’s salt lake crater. James (Santiago): Offers interesting walks on fields of twisted and hardened black lava. North Seymour: Is home to large colonies of sea lions, frigate birds and blue-footed boobies. Plaza: Is a tiny island with sea lions, land iguanas and lots of gulls. Chatham (San Cristobal): Is a new starting point for inter-island cruising. Nearby is the spectacular, natural rock formation, Leon Dormido (Kicker Rock). Indefatigable (Santa Cruz): Is home of the Charles Darwin Research Station!, it also has marine turtles and a tortoise reserve. Tower (Genovesa): Is one of the few nesting places for the red-footed booby and thousands of other birds.
When travelers return from visiting the Galapagos Islands, their eyes sparkle with wonder as they tell marvelous tales. You may think their stories are pure fabrication: birds that no longer fly, tortoises weighing up to 500 pounds, Antarctic penguins living right on the equator, and blue-footed boobies doing sophisticated mating dances, but you would be wrong.
Vantage World Strongly Recommends Insurance for all your Travel Programs
We provide, through TravelSafe Insurance, one of the nation's largest and most respected providers of travel insurance, a TravelSafe Custom Plan, where you decide the benefits YOU want and the levels of protection YOU desire including access to their 24-hour emergency assistance service from anywhere in the world. Click the link below the Plan Benefits table for plan details.
