Isabela Island

Isabela was definitely less busy than Santa Cruz, but the animals and snorkeling were amazing! All my favorite snorkeling spots were on this island. Just walking around town and seeing all the beautiful sights, I can't describe how relaxing and spectacular it was!

Quiet and with a lot nice sites walk around.

I visited the Galapagos twice, and my second trip was with one of my best friends. Everything was great until our boat ride to Isabela. Isabela is stunning, with its wildlife like sharks, sea lions, sting rays, and more, but the people we were with kind of ruined it. Some folks just ignored basic rules like not touching the rocks or smoking in protected areas, which was really annoying. It took our guide way too long to address it. To make matters worse, I got food poisoning from eating on Isabela, which hit me hard at 4AM the next day - it was awful. Also, I'm not a big fan of boats or open water, so the 2-hour ride there and back to Santa Cruz wasn't fun for me. I'm rating this experience 4 stars purely for the natural beauty.

Isabela Island can be reached by boat from Santa Cruz in two hours. Is it easy and pleasant to travel there? Nope! Is it worth it? Yes! The boat ride is very very rough and you should take a pill before just to make sure you don’t get sick. And staying at the back of the boat is better , as you can feel any bump in the front or middle. The boat cost $30.00/person one way and then you need $1.00 for the water taxi to take you from the boat to the port. To enter the island you need to pay $10.00/person and make sure you have all cash. The island is pretty small , I mean the town of Puerto Villamil. Three days are sufficient there. Most of the roads are dirt roads and you can see very few cars which are the locals or taxis. You don’t need a car to travel there. There are enough restaurants to get food and you can also get a breakfast for $5.00. You’ll see many many iguanas , the marine iguanas which are endemic in Galapagos. You can rent bikes ( we only walked ) and get to farther places like for example the Wall of Tears , which is about 5 miles away. Although the island is big, there are only about 3000 inhabitants.

We stayed around 5 days and had the best time in Isabela! The island is quiet and feels like a village. Nature is everywhere and the activities there are really worth the trip (3 hours on a speedboat and splashes, get ready). Los Tuneles, the Volcano, some surf lessons, Concha de la Perla to swim for free with turtles, sea lions and rays! There are some cheap hotel options and if you go out of the main square, you find very affordable and fresh menus like around the market. The most expensive is to get there, with quite a lot of hidden taxes, but it's definitly worth it.

Thousands of dollars that the tourists leave here seem to disaper into thin air. Hotels are unkept no matter the price you pay. Tours are extremly expensive for what you get. Everything is simply down. Consindering the fact that you already paid 200 $ to get in plus 10 $ for the "pier tax" WHY do you still have to pay for the guide in safe and easy places? Guide that does not even speak to you. The only thing that keeps the island afloat is the wildlife.

Well, it is awesome this place, and I'm happy for you to visit this part of Ecuador 🇪🇨 you will spend money on approximately 375 USD for 4 days, so don't pay a tour only leave and discovering from yourself 🦭 and too. You can see my videos. Two 2 parts were uploaded on my YouTube! 🚶‍♂️🎬 Part 1: https://youtu.be/JgLGw1cWotE?si=RpNm_90WPin2Ec6l Part 2: https://youtu.be/t9ITm9tlsS4?si=YXyho7jdCjqglmgQ

Very unique experience, mostly untouched and a lot room to explore the island.