Programme Details
You will spend three weeks on three different lslands with the unique opportunity to get involved with a variety of volunteer projects as well as taking in all the culture, sights and sounds around you!
Week 1: Santa Cruz - Sightseeing and Conservation Volunteer Work
The second largest of the Galapagos Islands after Isabela Island, Santa Cruz is a large dormant volcano and estimated that the last eruptions occurred around a million and a half years ago. It's capital Puerto Ayora is the most populated urban centre in the islands.
You will spend your first week on a reserve at Santa Rosa, approximately 20 minutes from Puerto Ayora (a taxi will cost around $10). Santa Rosa is a rural area whose inhabitants work in agriculture and cattle raising.
For the first part of the week, you will enjoy a trip to los gemelos and primicias ranch where you may get to watch Galapagos Giant Tortoise in the wild (this trip is only available from March to November), a visit to the Charles Darwin Staion and Breeding Centre and a trip to Tortuga Bay Beach.
Your last two days in Santa Cruz, will be spent working within the local community in Santa Rosa. You will assist with responsible projects in order to strive for sustainable development and ensure that the future of the Island is protected. You may get involved with the following conservation projects; reforestation, removal of foreign plant species, organic farming, production of compost and organic fertilisers and the care of domestic animals.
Week 2: San Cristobal - Environmental, Community and Social Volunteer Work
You will spend one week at San Cristobal Ranch. The Ranch is located at La Soledad lookout point, around 20 mintues from the town of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno (a taxi will cost around $4). The ranch shares an independent spring as a water source, crucial in these dry islands, but it also has access to the town water supply as a backup. It is on the electrical power grid. Adjacent land, donated to the community by a previous owner, has a school, a church and the La Soledad lookout restaurant. La Soledad lookout is a location favored by locals who come out especially on Sundays to the church, and to savor the spectacular views of the northern coastline as well as local delicacies.
The aim of the Ranch is to bring as much benefit to the local people, especially the children. There is widespread international support for protection of the animals and the environment in Galapagos but not quite as much attention has been paid to the human population.
You will have the opportunity to get involved with environmental, community and social volunteer work. Activities may include; reforestation, restoring native forests and endemic plants, control and eliminate the introduced plants, assiting in the plant nursery, educate community to plant local vegetation, help local families to collect fruit in the ranch to provide to a children's dining room, teach local children how to plant and maintain the gardens, if you have physio therapy experience you can work with disadvantaged children and get involved with Hipo-therapy. Please note: The activities that you will get involved with will vary as it depends on the project requirements at that time.
Week 3: Isabela
Isabela is the home to wild tortoises, more than any island on the archipelago and its rich animal, bird, and marine life is beyond compare. Isabela's large size and notable topography created barriers for the slow moving tortoises; the creatures were unable to cross lava flows and other obstacles, causing several different sub-species of tortoise to develop. Today tortoises roam free in the calderas of Alcedo, Wolf, Cerro Azul, Darwin and Sierra Negra.
You will be staying in Puerto Villamil, a small port village located on the southeastern edge of the island. On the southwestern edge of town the park, there is a boardwalk that leads through mangrove environments passing along saltwater lagoons filled with flamingos and other animals that come here to sweep the mud in search of brine.
Your final week enables you to enjoy many tours of the local area and the chance to take part in extra activities.
(For a more detailed description of each week and daily itinerary, please see the Itinerary tab).
What’s Included in the Programme
- Pick up transfer on arrival
- Two nights in Quito on arrival plus breakfasts(hostel accommodation)
- Orientation in Quito
- Transfer from hostel in Quito to airport for the Galapagos flight
- All breakfasts and some lunches and dinners in Santa Cruz
- Breakfast and dinner in Isabela
- Shared volunteer accommodation on all Islands (see Accommodation section)
- Boat transfers: Santa Cruz - San Cristobal, San Cristobal - Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz - Isabela
- One night accommodation in a hostel in Quito on arrival from Galapagos
- Transfer from hostel in Quito to airport for return international departure
What’s Not Included in the Programme
- International flights
- Flight from Quito to Santa Cruz- we can organise this for you for £279
- Return transfers from the Islands back to the hostel in Quito
- Personal travel insurance
- Airfare, or taxes, and National Parks entrance fee ($110) to enter the Galapagos
- Lunch and dinner in Quito at the first two nights hostel accommodation
- All meals in San Cristobal
- Return boat transfer from Isabela to Santa Cruz (approx. $30/$35)
- Return bus transfer to Baltra airport on Santa Cruz (approx. $15)
- Tours to other protected islands, including fishing
- Any activities over and above your planned itinerary
Please Note: You will need to budget $110 to pay the park entrance fee as you pass through customs. This is required by all visitors to the islands and cannot be included in the programme cost. You will also need to budget around $30 for return transport from Isabela to Santa Cruz.
Prices and Durations
Galapagos Experience - 3 weeks £1,599
