Bartolomé Island

A must visit! Did a day trip that included a hike to the volcano top (gorgeous views!), Then saw penguins on a beach, then finally did snorkeling. Saw turtles, sharks, sea lions, lots of colorful fish and some corals. Also took a walk on lava rocks.

We snorkeled for an hour and walked up the volcanic hills on the island for 90 minutes. There were penguins and sea turtles who swam with us! The way was a little long and steep on the island, but nothing too intense. The views of the surrounding islands were absolutely breathtaking! We didn't see any wildlife on the island, though, beyond Lava Lizards and Sea Lions near the water. We went here as part of a 2-week yacht cruise on Coral I with "Go Galapagos" around the Galapagos, in December 2024

The Santa Fe Yacht took us to Bartholomew Island, and the views were SURREAL. The waters got a bit choppy, but the captain navigated us smoothly back to Santa Cruz Island. The hike up on Bartholomew was slightly intense, but it was all stairs. The views absolutely made it worth it!

Bartolomé Island was a late part of our first day cruise itinerary through Galapagos Boat Cruises. It was kind of sandwiched into a really busy day that started out grey and dull and then bloomed into the best evening. It is hard to believe that such a tiny island commands so much adoration. May be its the Pinnacle Rock, an iconic piece of angular volcanic protrusion that you can see from far away on the very nearby Santa Cruz Island, or indeed your ship. We took a small team of two zodiac tenders right up and past the Pinnacle. And yes, we got to see a few penguins too and the odd pelican that we disturbed. The sandy bay and dusk light were probably my two best highlights. No wonder the beach was voted one of the best "Wonders of the World". Absolutely wonderful. They joys of being no a cruise and not a day tour was immense. We got to see so much more, both on the mother vessel, the zodiacs and the land. Rightly so, this is a bucket list cruise you all need to do!

Volcanic Island with amazing views. There's almost nothing alive on the island itself, a few crabs and lizards and some cacti so don't come here looking for wildlife. It's all about the landscape and the view of the two back to back beaches that's one of the iconic photos of the Galapagos Islands

Despite an extremely choppy boat ride from Baltra…it was so worth the view! A cool walk up the mountain with some great landscape views. And more importantly I was able to get some pics of the Sally Lightfoot Crab!

Great place to see volcanic landscape and penguins. The boat ride from Santa Cruz was over 2.5 hours one way and the sea was rough. Make sure you have something for sea sickness and bring sun protection stuff because there’s no shade on the island .

An absolutely amazing view. To get there from Santa Cruz we took an hour bus from the main town. Then a 2 hour boat to get there. So it’s about 6 hours in travel and you spend maybe 2 hours there. We left at 6am and got back by 5pm. It’s pretty go go go the whole time except for the 2 hours on the boat back and forth. Once you are there the guide will take you up the hill. It’s not that hard and it’s a very well maintained wooden track the whole way. I’d only recommend wearing lots of sun protection so hat, sun glasses and lots of sun screen. I had a jacket for the boat as it can be windy depending on the boat you take. It cost $180 for us on the cheapest boat we could find. After going to the top and seeing the stunning view you then go snorkelling. We were so lucky we got to swim with the penguins!! We also saw turtles and lots of fish. Absolutely amazing. The food is ok. We are vegan so breakfast was just fruit and bread with jam. But lunch was pretty good with lots of vegetables and rice followed by more fruit for dessert. I’d bring snacks if you are a big eater. Totally worth doing even though it’s quite expensive.