9 days from $2999*

Includes airfare, fuel surcharges, great hotels, transfers, many meals, touring and more!

Also check out our 7-day Darwin's Galapagos Islands Hopper tour!

Ecuador is one of South America's jewels, with a remarkable collection of landscapes, animals, plants, people, volcanos, cloud forests and, most amazing of all, the Galapagos Islands. More than 600 miles offshore in the Pacific, these islands are home to fascinating species of birds and animals such as marine iguanas, giant tortoises, blue- and red-footed boobies, pelicans and even a few penguins.

These are the legendary islands that inspired Charles Darwin to propose his theory of evolution. They've inspired us to create this incredible touring program, which includes flights via LAN, first-class hotels and island lodges, most meals, National Park fees, and a truly fascinating program of exploration on Santa Cruz, Floreana and Isabela Islands. The package also includes a stay in colonial Quito, capital of Ecuador, and a special 2-night optional extension to Cuenca, a UNESCO World Heritage site and arguably the most beautiful city in Ecuador.

Don't wait a moment to book our new Darwin's Galapagos Island Explorer. Space is truly very limited, and at these prices, you won't find a better value-for-money vacation anywhere.

Itinerary at a Glance

Darwin's Galapagos Islands Explorer Day Destination 1 USA/Quito, Ecuador 2 Quito 3 Quito, Baltra & Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos 4 Santa Cruz Island & Floreana 5 Floreana & Isabela 6 Isabela 7 Isabela & Santa Cruz 8 Santa Cruz Island & Quito 9 Quito/USA Cuenca Optional Extension 8 Santa Cruz Island & Cuenca 9 Cuenca 10 Cuenca & Quito 11 Quito/USA

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1: Depart USA, arrive Quito, Ecuador. Your exciting tour to the Galapagos begins today as you depart for Quito, Ecuador's capital city. Upon arrival, you will be met and transferred to your hotel. Radisson Royal Hotel

Day 2: Quito. After breakfast, begin a panoramic tour of Quito, arguably among the loveliest of South American cities, which enjoys a spectacular setting surrounded by mountains and several snow-capped volcanoes, including the still-active Mt. Pichincha. The origins of the city date back to the first millennium, when the Quitu tribe occupied the area. Later, it was an important Inca settlement, and in the mid-1500s, the Spanish founded the modern city.

The real beauty of Quito is in its wonderful Old Town, now a UNESCO World Heritage site, where you'll find blocks of colonial architecture, some of it four centuries old. Vintage facades line the streets and large open plazas are surrounded by cathedrals and stately public buildings. Even more breathtaking than the exteriors are the interiors of some of the buildings, particularly the churches, many of which gleam with real gold leaf. Visit the Legislative Palace and Alameda Park, containing the oldest observatory in South America.

Continue on to the Monastery of San Francisco, Quito's oldest church. Built in the 16th century, the monastery is an exact replica of the Escorial Palace of Madrid. Radisson Royal Hotel (B)

Day 3: Quito, Baltra & Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos. Transfer to the airport for your flight to Baltra on the Galapagos Islands. Upon arrival you will be assisted and transferred via ferry to nearby Santa Cruz Island.

Begin your Academy Bay Tour at La Loberia, where you have the option to snorkel with sea lions. Enjoy a 40 minute sail to Tortuga Bay. As you enter the white sandy beach, you have a chance to observe different marine species like sting rays and baby reef sharks in the shallow waters of the mangrove ecosystems. You may also see the Flightless Cormorant, unique to the Galapagos and one of the world's rarest and most endangered birds. With no natural predators, these birds evolved to lose their ability to fly, and like many Galapagos species, have no fear of man and can easily be approached and picked up.

Visit the beach for a swim and a box lunch, followed by very short hike to the marine iguana nesting site. Walk through a prickly pear forest carpeted in crimson sesuvium with black lava outcroppings, home to more marine iguana colonies. Continue to the lodge, with some time to relax. In the evening, enjoy a welcome cocktail, followed by a briefing with your naturalist guide and dinner. Red Mangrove Aventura Lodge (B,L,D)

Day 4: Santa Cruz Island & Floreana. After breakfast, you'll set out on short, easy hike to Los Gemelos (The Twins), two enormous collapsed lava chambers—an awe-inspiring visual reminder of the power of nature. The path to the lava chambers a wonderful introduction to the great biodiversity of the Santa Cruz Highlands, teeming with endemic flora and fauna, including the remaining Scalesia Forest draped in liverwort, large and small tree finches, the adorable Vermillion Flycatcher and more.

Afterward, drive through a 600-acre private reserve where giant Galapagos tortoises freely roam, graze and sleep. Feel free to mingle with these gentle giants. As prehistoric as these creatures look, wait until you hear what they sound like! Galápago is Spanish for tortoise, and the islands were named for these amazing creatures.

Next, you'll have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to explore the remnants of an illuminated lava tunnel. Created by lava flows, this tunnel is 1350 feet long with a ceiling nearly 20 feet high in most places, adorned with stalagmites & stalactites, mineral-colored walls, and a rippled lava floor.

Return to Aventura Lodge for lunch, then sail to Floreana Island (about 1.5-2 hours). Arrive at the main dock in Floreana, where you often have to 'shoo' sleeping sea lions from the steps. On the other side of the dock, the black lava rocks are typically covered with an abundance of Floreana's red and turquoise-colored marine iguanas.

Floreana is one of the first inhabited islands and has perhaps the most interesting history. In the 18th century, whalers maintained a wooden barrel at Post Office Bay which served as an informal post office; homebound ships would pick up letters addressed to their destination. To this day, mail is still placed in the barrel without postage, and visitors sift through to find cards and letters that they can deliver by hand in their home countries.

Check-in at Floreana Lodge. You'll have time for swimming and snorkeling at Black Beach. Keep an eye out for pink flamingos and green sea turtles, which nest on Floreana from December to May. Tonight, enjoy a BBQ dinner at a local restaurant, where you will sample the Galapaguena gastronomy and warm hospitality of one of the island's first families. Hear from them about the mysteries of Floreana Island. Red Mangrove Floreana Lodge (B,L,D)

Day 5: Floreana & Isabela. After breakfast, depart in an open-air bus for the highlands. En route, your naturalist guide will fill you in on the history of Floreana, the first settled island in the Galapagos. Walk up to the Asilo de la Paz (Peace Asylum), site of an artesian spring, one of the few year-round sources of fresh water in the Galapagos, which attracted pirates, whalers and later settlers to Floreana. You'll also see the Cueva de los Piratas (Pirate's Cave), where pirates carved temporary shelter out of soft stone. This was also where Margret Wittmer, one of the original settlers, gave birth to her son Rolf, who promotes responsible tourism to the Galapagos Islands through his foundation.

Continue on to Cerro Pajas (Bird Hill), where you'll see a profusion of Floreana finches, some of the 13 native varieties of finches, along with spectacular views of the island and the sea below. Visit another tortoise reserve, where you can watch many of the giant tortoises up close.

Set sail for Isabela (about 1.5–2 hours, weather and tides permitting). As you approach the island, experience a visual feast as you watch sea turtles, sea lions and penguins in the stunningly clear turquoise water below. Arrive at your lodge for check-in and lunch.

Afterward, you'll board a smaller craft for a tour of the bay, slowing along the shore to view blue-footed boobies, colorful Sally Lightfoot crabs, and Galapagos penguins, the only tropical penguin on earth. Walk through an intriguing jagged "AA" lava field, passing abundant colonies of marine iguanas and a small canal full of resting white-tipped reef sharks. Keep an eye out for the unique birdlife of the island, including cormorants, pelicans, Darwin's finches, Galapagos Hawks and Galapagos Doves.

Return to the dock to snorkel this warm shallow bay, where sea lions, penguins, and more of the (fascinating but harmless) white-tipped reef sharks swim amongst the gnarled mangrove roots. Return to the lodge to relax and before the daily briefing and dinner. Red Mangrove Isabela Lodge (B,L,D)

Day 6: Isabela. After an early breakfast, depart in 4x4 vehicles through the transitional zone and into the humid highlands on the slopes of Volcan Sierra Negra, the second largest volcano in the world. Hike to the caldera of Sierra Negra, a gaping 4 miles across, where you can relax and have a snack while enjoying the breathtaking views. For hardier hikers, there will be an another optional hike across the lava fields to the slopes of the adjacent Volcan Chico.

Lunch today will be at Campo Duro, which offers guests an opportunity to become a "patron" of their chosen tortoise. You can name your chosen tortoise, add stories to the Patron's book, and invite your friends to 'visit' the tortoise.

After lunch, visit Las Cuevas de Sucre, a park of lush green endemic plants. Here you will find the lava tunnels of Santa Cruz, where the ceilings look as if you are walking through a gold mine. Next, visit the El Manga Mirador, named after a mango tree planted here by early settlers. On a clear day, from the highest peaks, you can view the entire southern part of Isabela Island and other islands, both near and far such as Floreana and Santa Cruz. In the evening, briefing followed by dinner. Red Mangrove Isabela Lodge (B,L,D)

Day 7: Isabela & Santa Cruz. After breakfast, drive out of town along the 2 miles of picture-perfect, white-sand, palm-lined Long Beach, the most beautiful beach in the Galapagos. As you enter the National Park, stop to walk up the stairs for astounding vistas from the top of Cerro Orchilla.

Next, you'll visit the Muro de Las Lágrimas (Wall of Tears), constructed from jagged volcanic rock carried long distances by penal colony prisoners. The path to the Wall of Tears is abundant with lava lizards—large, striped mailes and red-throated females—and you may see their nests along this trail.

As you continue your drive, you'll very likely see the largest of the Galapagos marine iguanas sunning by the side of the road. And don't be surprised if you have to wait for a Galapagos tortoise to cross the road in front of you. Isabela has more tortoises in the wild than any other island, with several sub-species, each evolving independently, separated from the others by the island's lava fields. On your way back to town, you will visit the Interpretation Center, a breeding center for the giant Galapagos Tortoises and the only place to view the rare flat-backed "tabletop" Galapagos tortoises, many of which still bear the scars of volcanic activity from Sierra Negra.

Set sail from Isabela for Santa Cruz (about 1.5–2 hours). Arrive in Puerto Ayora and check in at your lodge. After lunch, enjoy a guided tour of the fascinating Charles Darwin Research Station. This afternoon, you'll have some free time to browse the shops along Charles Darwin Avenue in Puerto Ayora. Red Mangrove Aventura Lodge (B,L,D)

Day 8: Santa Cruz Island & Quito. Transfer to Baltra Airport for the return flight to Quito. Or take advantage of your already-included airfare and extend your stay on our Cuenca 2-night optional extension.

Upon arrival in Quito, you'll be met and assisted in transferring to your hotel. Enjoy the balance of the day at leisure for last minute shopping, or choose an optional tour to the Equatorial Line. Stand simultaneously on the northern and southern hemispheres at latitude 0' 0' 0". A monument marks the place where a French Geodetic Mission determined the position of the line Ecuador during the 18th century. Visit the monument and the Ethnographic Museum. Radisson Royal Hotel (B)

Day 9: Quito/USA. Transfer to the airport for your return flight to the USA. Or, take advantage of your already included airfare and continue your tour on our 2-night Cuenca extension. (B)

Cuenca Optional Extension

Why not take advantage of your already-included international airfare...

Day 8: Santa Cruz Island & Cuenca. Transfer to Baltra Airport for your return flight to Quito, connecting to Cuenca. Upon arrival, transfer to your hotel in Cuenca. Hotel Oro Verde (B)

Day 9: Cuenca. This morning, tour Cuenca, the capital of the province of Azuay and the third largest city in Ecuador. Cuenca has been honored as a UNESCO World Heritage site and is considered one of the most beautiful cities in Ecuador, enjoying spring-like climate year round. The city was founded in 1557 on the site of the Inca settlement of Tomebamba, and it has preserved much of its colonial air.

Visit the hill of Turi with its panoramic view of the colonial section as well as the new commercial area of the city. You then continue to the flower market and visit the huge marble Cuenca Cathedral, and the more colorful Indian Cathedral. Its worn cobble stone streets, tile roofs, iron scrolled balconies, parks and plazas recreate a miniature old Spain. Cuenca is the most important handicraft center in Ecuador, where you will find many stores that offer embroideries, weavings, ceramics, gold artifacts and the so-called Panama Hats, which are actually made in Ecuador. Balance of the day at leisure. (B)

Day 10: Cuenca & Quito. Enjoy the morning at leisure to explore this beautiful city and some last minute shopping. In the afternoon, transfer to airport for flight to Quito via Guayaquil. Upon arrival, transfer to your hotel and check in at the Radisson Royal Hotel. (B)

Day 11: Quito/USA. Transfer to the airport for your return flight to the USA.

Destination FAQs

Quick answers to Frequently Asked Questions about Ecuador.

Darwin's Galapagos Islands Explorer
Included Features

• Round trip flights from Miami via LAN Ecuador including fuel surcharges (flight schedule)
• All ground transportation and transfers
• Superior accommodations with private bath at the Radisson Royal in Quito
• Superior and tourist Mangrove view accommodations with private bath at the Red Mangrove Aventura, Floreana, & Isabela Lodges on the Islands
• 18 lavish meals, including 8 breakfasts, 5 lunches, and 5 dinners
• Comprehensive sightseeing tours with a naturalist guide on the Galapagos Islands
• Professional English-speaking tour guide in Quito
• Galapagos National Park Fee ($100) & Transit Control Card ($10)

The Red Mangrove hotels on this tour are the finest properties available on the Galapagos. These are small, intimate and unique hotels, with all necessary amenities, but accommodations are more basic than lavish, as the delicate island ecosystems cannot support large luxury hotels. Click the hotel names above for more details.

Darwins Galapagos Island Explorer Departures & Prices* Depart Return Book by Oct 6 After Oct 6 2010 DEPARTURES Sep 23 Oct 1 $2299 Sep 30 Oct 8 $2299 Oct 7 Oct 15 $2399 $2799 Oct 14 Oct 22 $2499 $2899 Oct 21 Oct 29 $2499 $2899 Nov 4 Nov 12 $2499 $2899 Nov 11 Nov 19 $2499 $2899 Nov 18 Nov 26 $2499 $2899 Nov 25 Dec 3 $2499 $2899 Dec 2 Dec 10 $2499 $2899 Dec 9 Dec 17 $2499 $2899 2011 DEPARTURES Jan 6 Jan 14 $2999 $3399 Jan 13 Jan 21 $2699 $3099 Jan 20 Jan 28 $2999 $3399 Jan 27 Feb 4 $2699 $3099 Feb 3 Feb 11 $2999 $3399 Feb 17 Feb 25 $2999 $3399 Mar 3 Mar 11 $2999 $3399 Mar 10 Mar 18 $2699 $3099 Mar 17 Mar 25 $2999 $3399 Mar 24 Apr 1 $2999 $3399 Mar 31 Apr 8 $2999 $3399 Apr 7 Apr 15 $2999 $3399 Apr 14 Apr 22 $2999 $3399 Apr 21 Apr 29 $2999 $3399

Tour prices are per person, double occupancy, including airfare. Prices in red reflect an early booking discount if you reserve by Oct. 6, 2010. * Prices do not include Additional Taxes, Fees & September 11th Security Fee for this tour of $100.

Taxes & Fees Service Price Additional Taxes, Fees & September 11th Security Fee +$100 Departure Tax* (paid separately) +$45

* All departure taxes are paid locally at the time of departure. Amount is approximate and reflects current exchange rates.

Options & Upgrades Service Price Single Supplement +$500 Superior Ocean View* Per person double   Jan 6, Jan 13, Jan 20, Jan 27, Feb 3, Mar 3, Mar 10, Mar 17, Mar 24, Mar 31, Apr 7, Apr 14, Apr 21 +$265 All other departures +$240 Per person single   Jan 6, Jan 13, Jan 20, Jan 27, Feb 3, Mar 3, Mar 10, Mar 17, Mar 24, Mar 31, Apr 7, Apr 14, Apr 21 +$530 All other departures +$480 Suite Ocean View** Per person double   Jan 6, Jan 13, Jan 20, Jan 27, Feb 3, Mar 3, Mar 10, Mar 17, Mar 24, Mar 31, Apr 7, Apr 14, Apr 21 +$600 All other departures +$540 Per person single   Jan 6, Jan 13, Jan 20, Jan 27, Feb 3, Mar 3, Mar 10, Mar 17, Mar 24, Mar 31, Apr 7, Apr 14, Apr 21 +$1,200 All other departures +$1,080

* Ocean View rooms are on-request basis and subject to availability. All rooms at Floreana Lodge have ocean view ** Ocean View Suites are only available at Aventura Lodge, and are on-request basis and subject to availability

Cuenca Extension Service Price Cuenca Extension   Jan 6, Jan 13, Jan 20, Jan 27, Feb 3, Feb 17, Mar 3, Mar 10, Mar 17, Mar 24, Mar 31, Apr 7, Apr 14, Apr 21 +$389 All other departures +$359 Single Supplement   Jan 6, Jan 13, Jan 20, Jan 27, Feb 3, Feb 17, Mar 3, Mar 10, Mar 17, Mar 24, Mar 31, Apr 7, Apr 14, Apr 21 +$130 All other departures +$100

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* Prices shown are good while inventory lasts, may reflect an early booking discount, and do not include Additional Taxes, Fees & September 11th Security Fee.

Though we do our best to provide accurate and up-to-date information on our site about our tours, sometimes oversights and typographical errors can occur. Please confirm all tour prices and details with us via email or phone prior to booking. We will not be held responsible for misunderstandings arising from such errors.