7 Day Galapagos Islands, Guayaquil & Quito from $2,999

Travel Team > South/Central America Vacations > 7 Day Galapagos Islands, Guayaquil & Quito from $2,999

DAY 1, Thursday – Depart for Ecuador
Depart for Ecuador. Arrive in Guayaquil and transfer to your hotel. Balance of the day is at leisure
Overnight: Guayaquil

DAY 2, Friday – Galapagos Islands, Baltra, Santa Cruz
Embark this morning on a journey to the Galapagos Archipelago of volcanic islands, five million years in the making. Your flight from Guayaquil takes you to Baltra Airport; you’ll be met by your naturalist guides and transferred by boat to Santa Cruz Island. Here, you visit the Giant Tortoise Reserve and see their natural habitat – a once in a lifetime experience! Tortoises can be seen grazing on the vegetation, wallowing in muddy banks or in the small red ponds. The area is teeming with wildlife – woodpecker finches, mockingbirds, flycatchers, as well as ducks, herons, and gallinules. After a stop for lunch, on to Puerto Ayora, the most developed town in the Galapagos Islands, where you board the Finch Panga that takes you to Finch Bay, an eco-friendly resort-hotel in a private seaside location surrounded by mangroves, your home for the next three nights. The rest of the day is at leisure to enjoy the hotel’s pool, natural spa, white coral beach or admire the view from the comfort of your hammock. Tonight, savor dinner highlighted by local delicacies
*Please Note: Your Galapagos island itinerary is subject to change. Different islands and sites may be substituted
Overnight: Galapagos
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

DAY 3, Saturday – Excursion to Divine Bay, Charles Darwin Research Station
Today, head by boat to wildlife-rich Divine Bay, that lies a short distance away from Academy Bay and Puerto Ayora. Noddy terns, herons, marine iguanas, blue-footed boobies and Galapagos brown pelicans are commonly seen here. This morning’s visit includes snorkeling on a calm section of the cove and swimming in Playa Punta Estrada. Afterward, a dry landing and a short walk will lead you to the south shore of the island, to a small beach called Playa de los Perros (Dog Beach). This is a great place to see intertidal organisms and learn more about the rich sea life of the Galapagos. Return to the Finch Bay hotel for lunch, followed by an afternoon visit to the Charles Darwin Research Station and the Fausto Llerena Giant Tortoise Breeding Centre. Gain insight into the huge efforts being made by scientists, guides, rangers and park managers to preserve this UNESCO World Heritage Site. Dinner tonight is at the hotel
Overnight: Galapagos
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

DAY 4, Sunday – North Seymour Island
You’ll be transported on your yacht, The Sea Lion, to North Seymour Island, lifted from the ocean floor by a seismic event. Cliffs that are only a few feet high form the shoreline, where swallow-tailed gulls sit perched on ledges and a tiny forest of silver-grey Palo Santo trees stand just above the landing. This island is teeming with life! You might have to give right-of-way to a passing sea lion or a marine iguana. Along the way, perhaps you may see the famous Galapagos blue-footed booby nesting beside the trail or spot flocks of pelicans in a feeding frenzy. Keep on the lookout for the magnificent frigate bird, with its puffed- up scarlet throat sack, perched in low bushes watching over their chicks. After your enlightening walking excursion, you return to Finch Bay for leisure time. Enjoy dinner at the hotel
Overnight: Galapagos
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

DAY 5, Monday – Port of Baltra, Flight to Quito
Depart the Finch Bay Hotel. On your way to Baltra, stop at the Twin Pit Craters to view the great depressions of volcanic material formed by a long process of the sinking ground, and the exceptional view of Scalesia trees, ferns, mosses, and orchids. Then, proceed to the airport for the flight to Quito through Guayaquil. Arrive late afternoon in this historic city in the high Andes at the base of the Pichincha Volcano; transfer to the hotel. Evening is at leisure in Quito
Overnight: Quito
Meals: Breakfast

DAY 6, Tuesday – Quito City Tour & Visit to the Middle of the World
The morning’s tour begins with a visit to the colonial section of Quito to walk along the narrow cobblestone streets and feel the charm of 16th-century Quito. See the Independence Plaza, the Cathedral, Presidential Palace, and the Archbishop’s Palace before visiting La Compañia de Jesus Church, with its beautiful gilded interior or the Church and Monastery of San Francisco, one of the great religious buildings of the New World with its impressive facade and atrium. Afterward, visit the Middle of the World Monument, located at a latitude of 0º, and stand with one foot in the Northern and one in the Southern Hemisphere. Balance of the day is at leisure
Overnight: Quito
Meals: Breakfast

DAY 7, Wednesday – Depart Ecuador
Transfer to the airport for your departure flight
*Please Note: Some flights depart shortly after midnight in the very early morning of Day 7 and will require a transfer on Day 6. Transfers depart the hotel approximately 4 hours prior to flight time
Meals: Breakfast