Galapagos Islands Tours: Santa Cruz Luxury Cruise 3 Nights

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Price from:
1,500.00 USD
per person

Fuel surcharge: 72.00 USD

Galapagos explorers can enjoy a unique expedition adventure, with comfort and safety, aboard the 90-guest M/V Santa Cruz’s 3, 4 or 7 night voyages.

The expedition includes daily outings to explore the wonders of the islands on nature hikes, boat rides, glass-bottom boat trips as well as swimming and snorkeling activities; daily lectures and briefings and the most modern equipment to enhance the voyage’s experience.

Itinerary

DAY	MAIN ITINERARY
Friday	Puerto Baquerizo Moreno (San Cristobal Island) Cerro Brujo (San Cristobal Island)
Saturday	Punta Suarez (Española (Hood) Island) Punta Cormorant (Floreana Island)
Sunday	Punta Espinoza (Fernandina Island) Punta Vicente Roca (Isla Isabela)
Monday	Santa Cruz Island and Baltra Island

Included

•  Accommodation
•  All meals
•  Island sightseeing
•  All guide and lecture services
•  Taxes and transfers in the island.
•  Glass - bottom boat outings

Not Included

•  Air transportation to/from Galapagos
•  Galapagos National Park entrance fee (US $100 subject to change without notice) 
•  Bar
•  Gifts and items of personal nature

Important Facts

The M/V SANTA CRUZ offers 3, 4 and 7 night expeditions.
Please read this Expedition Itinerary as a guide only.  The route and program vary according to National Park policies and regulations, weather conditions, seasonal changes, safety reasons and wildlife encounters. Our crew is trained to deal with all the elements of the nature of this expedition. Safety will be always part of the daily programming of activities. Kindly follow all suggestions.  It is compulsory to wear a life vest during the rides in the dinghies between the ship and the shore.  Flexibility is essential in order to cope with nature's outstanding features.
Given the islands' volcanic origin, and the fact that most walking is done over pristine and irregular volcanic terrain, guests must be in suitable physical conditions for these kind of outings. The ship also organizes activities like shorter walks, boat rides, glass-bottom boat trips, snorkeling, swimming, lectures, all complimenting everyone's experience.

The Expedition Staff will provide you with snorkeling gear (mask and snorkel, fins, floating vest and net bag). Please note that the operation does not carry prescription masks. A shortie wet suit is highly recommended from June to December. Cooperation of guests is a key point when complying with the rules of the National Park. This alone can guarantee a major success in the expedition.

Dry landing: guests step from the dinghy onto rocks or a dock.

Wet landing: as the dinghy edges onto a sandy beach, guests step into knee-deep water and wade ashore.

Island Highlights

BALTRA (SOUTH SEYMOUR)
Arrival and departure from mainland Ecuador to this island's airport. During WW II, from 1941 to 1948, this island was known as Beta. It was occupied by the US Air Force and the US Navy as a Military Base. Back in those days, this airport had the largest airstrip in South America. This uplifted island is a great visual introduction to Galápagos.

The pier is a 5-minute drive from the air terminal. If you happen to start your voyage in Puerto Ayora, you will take a bus ride to the Itabaca Channel, cross it by ferry towards Santa Cruz Island, and then an interesting ride from the lowlands up to the highlands and down again to the lowlands. The changes in vegetation that guests will experience will be a rewarding way to start your Galapagos Expedition. 
     
FERNANDINA (NARBOROUGH) 
The youngest island of the Galapagos group. The landing point is Punta Espinoza. Walk among the hundreds of marine iguanas on black lava rocks. See flightless cormorants, penguins, pelicans, sea lions and mangrove forests. The walking grounds will reveal the beautiful shapes of lava once it has cooled off. At this location, few rocks are older than 400 years of age. Fernandina's colossal dome shape can enchant anyone who visits, perhaps the most remote island in the Pacific. 
     
HOOD (ESPAÑOLA)  
Gardner Bay:
a coral white-sand beach with sea lions and mockingbirds. Swimming and snorkeling at the beach and nearby islets.
Punta Suarez: Walk on lava rocks along a trail dotted with nests of blue-footed boobies and masked boobies, a colony of marine iguanas (endemic to Hood), waved albatrosses and a blow hole. There are also sea lions, Galapagos doves and Darwin's finches. 
     
FLOREANA (CHARLES)  
Post Office Bay:
Visit the famous barrel, a do-it-yourself postal service set up by 18th century whalers. Cruise by "Lobería" islet with sea lion colonies.

Point Cormorant:
Has an olivine-crystal beach and pink flamingos inhabiting a secluded lagoon. A short walk away is a white-sand beach where sea turtles nest (December to May).
Nearby is Devil's Crown with beautiful coral formations and great snorkeling.    
 
ISABELA (ALBEMARLE)  
The largest island in the Archipelago. It is the result of six large volcanic domes fused together.

Tagus Cove:
Is a natural harbor where centuries ago whalers and pirates left their ship's names painted or carved on the rocks. A walk uphill takes you around Darwin's Crater salt-water lake for a superb view. A dinghy ride along the shoreline lets you see penguins, flightless cormorants, boobies, pelicans and Sally Light foot crabs.

Urbina Bay:
Is located at the central-west coast of Isabela Island at the foothills of Volcanoes Alcedo and Darwin. Land on a dark volcanic sand beach. Highlights include large and colorful land iguanas, since the inland area includes excellent nesting grounds for them. Good possibilities of seeing giant tortoises in the wild (all year, numbers may vary according to seasonal conditions). Along the rocky shoreline, possible sightings of flightless cormorants, blue-footed boobies, penguins and large marine iguanas. Quite impressive is the coral uplifting from 1954.

Punta Moreno:
Is located in the central-south western coast of Isabela Island. Spectacular view of volcanoes Alcedo, Sierra Negra and Cerro Azul. Highlights: impressive lava flows from eruptions years ago. Desolate, extremely pristine landscape. A textbook of pioneer plants, extraordinarily varied and unusual arid-zone vegetation. The main attraction is a compound of small brackish lagoons very much like a desert oasis with lagoon birds, including seasonal flamingos. Ideal place for observing the rare and reclusive gallinules. Frequent sights of frigates, pelicans and other sea birds doing salt cleansing dives to the lagoon's surface.

Punta Vicente Roca: 
A magnificent landscape shows the uniqueness of the western volcanos of Galápagos. We are now looking at the youngest geological features of the archipelago, and we are at the northern tip of the Galápagos' largest island, Isabela. This area is part of Ecuador Volcano, where a collapsed caldera floor is revealed after a major sinking of half of the whole volcano structure. The anchoring place lies in front of tuff-stone layers of a parasitic cone, next to the slopes of the host volcano. Lava intrusions, called sills and dikes, reveal the relatively recent volcanic activity of this area. Since there is no landing site at this location, our outing will include coastal exploration where our Naturalists will commit to explaining the dramatic geology of the area. Wildlife here will definitely surprise everyone; few hours before we crossed the Equator and yet this tropical area can have surprises like dolphins, whales, sea lions, sea birds, turles, and more. Where is all this life coming from? The answer is the Cromwell Current; a deep submarine current that upwells right at the volcanic platform of the western islands. These cool nutrient-rich waters attract plenty of sea-depending species which include brown pelicans, blue-footed boobies, noddy terns, shearwaters, and the only tropical penguin on Earth, the Galápagos penguin. Depending on sea conditions (current and visibility), we will schedule a snorkeling outing too.     
 
SAN CRISTOBAL 
Follow the route of Charles Darwin and visit his first-ever island in Galápagos. Visitors sites include the Interpretation Center at Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, as well as Isla Lobos. A walk up in the highlands is arranged for guests who take the week expedition. Great landscape photography. 
     
SANTA CRUZ (INDEFATIGABLE) 
Academy Bay (Puerto Ayora): The Finch Bay Hotel is located here, as well as the Charles Darwin Research Station. Giant tortoises are seen here and seasonally in the highlands where they graze on the pastures of local farms. Up in the highlands, the Pit Craters (Los Gemelos) is an outstanding area for birdwatching, and observation of flora of the highlands. It is up here where amazing encounters with woodpecker finches have occured. Moist conditions keep this epiphyte-laden environment with a fresh green look. Visit the town of Puerto Ayora.

Information Price per Person (USD) Main Deck Twin Standard 1,500.00 Upper Deck Twin Standard 1,580.00 Boat Deck Twin Standard 1,728.00 Boat Deck Standard Plus Twin 1,806.00 Boat Deck Superior Twin/ Double 1,884.00 Boat Deck Junior Suite Twin 1,973.00 Boat Deck Master Suite Double 2,272.00 Boat Deck Single Standard 2,604.00 Fuel surcharge 72.00

M/V Santa Cruz

The 44 cabin M/V Santa Cruz, built exclusively for Galapagos Islands cruising  was completely renovated in 1998, having been redesigned and refurbished inside and out. The Santa Cruz has gained worldwide recognition for its excellent standards, including superb service, expert crew, the most knowledgeable multilingual naturalist guides and menus that feature the very best international cuisine and celebrated Ecuadorian dishes. Its capacity is for ninety guests.

Our Expedition Team consists of a Chief Naturalist and five Naturalists. All will delight guests with diverse natural history explanations, superb on-deck talks and eye-catching lectures regarding natural history issues. Their multimedia presentations and recaps will complement the day's activities. Together with the Captain, they will plan every day's program. They are masters of Galapagos' knowledge. Soon enough, our Naturalists will become the highlight of your voyage. At night, when pitch-dark starry skies are seen, stargazing is an amazing nocturnal activity. The southern skies are beautifully arranged with awesome constellations.

On the Boat Deck, there are two master suites with double beds (plus a sofa bed for a child) and a private balcony, and two junior suites with twin beds (plus a sofa bed for a child). Six Superior-Class cabins have twin or double beds and, the remaining Standard Cabins on the Upper and Main decks, offer a variety of accommodations, all meeting the same high standards for comfort and style. Family guests have ample choices to opt among single, double and triple accommodations.

The Sun Deck features a bar and Jacuzzi, along with the observation platform for dolphin and whale watching. The dining room, lounge and bar are elegantly appointed, as is the well-stocked library/reading room. As an alternative to snorkeling, the glass-bottom boat offers another opportunity to observe the marine life.

The entire ship is air-conditioned. A carefully planned itinerary includes the Galapagos' main highlights plus a flexible program allowing guests to enjoy several alternatives for their daily activities. In essence, an expedition to the most unique National Park, aboard the only ship exclusively built for exploring the Galapagos.

 

Technical Specifications

• Construction : Bilbao, Spain, 1979
• Reconstruction : Talcahuano, Chile, 1998
• Category : First Class
• Gross Tonnage : 1675
• Capacity : 90 guests
• Length : 72.35 meters (237.3 feet)
• Beam : 11.85 meters (38.86 feet)
• Speed : 13 knots
• Electricity : 110 Volts in the cabins with  220 Volt sockets available in Reception and Dining area.
• Engines : 2 Sulzer engines, 1620 BHP each
• Navigation : Gyrocompass, auto pilot, radar, echo-sounders,
• Equipment : GPS and Radio Director Finder
• Safety Classification : ABS classification +A1E +  AMS #7907 853 SOLAS (safety of life at sea) ISM certificate Complying with the IMO resolution A.788(19) Automatic fire controls
• Life Jackets : In each cabin
• Lifeboats : Two 66-man, two 25-man, 
• Life Rafts : Two  16-man, two 10-man
• Zodiacs : 5 for ship to shore transportation 
• Boston Whaler :  1 with glass-bottom  for underwater observation
• Owner : ETICA / Metropolitan Touring
• Decks : 4 (Sun deck, Boat deck, Upper deck, Main deck)
• Crew : 52
• Naturalist : 6 multilingual (includes Chief Naturalist) 
• Medical Officer :  Permanently on board

Services and Facilities

• Bar - Lounge, Boutique
• Gift Shop
• Email, radio, telephone, and Fax communications.
• PA system.
• Snorkeling Equipment
• Multimedia natural history lectures
• Stargazing Program
• Glass bottom boat
• Jacuzzi
• Reading Room and Natural History Library
• Air conditioned throughout
• Safety boxes
• Hair dryers

Sun Deck

Bar and relax area

Boat Deck

• 2 Master suites double bed + sofa bed
• 2 Junior suites twin beds + sofa bed
• 4 Superior cabins twin beds
• 2 Superior cabins double bed
• 5 Standard cabins twin beds
• 1 Standard cabin double bed
• 1 Standard single cabin
• 2 Standard Plus Twin beds

Upper Deck

12 Standard twin cabins

 

Main Deck

13 Standard twin cabins