Santa Cruz Island and Puerto Ayora

The main city is Puerto Ayora (the name of this city comes from a former Ecuadorian president).

Puerto Ayora has a privileged location, along the shores of Academy Bay. During most of the year, it receives a refreshing breeze which gives the city a wonderful weather.

The months of the hot season make Puerto Ayora in Santa Cruz island a tropical paradise.



Puerto Ayora in Santa Cruz
The turquoise waters of the bay are a fine location for pelicans, marine iguanas, herons, sea lions, and many numbers of blue-footed boobies.

These beautiful boobies always delight visitors with their amazing fishing strategies, and plunge diving behavior.

The Galapagos island main airport is


located on Baltra Island, and it can be reached from Puerto Ayora when you take a combination of land/marine transportation.

Once away from the populated area, the paved road takes you through the different vegetation zones of Santa Cruz island, then you climb up to 500 meters of elevation (1,500 feet) at Los Gemelos, and start heading down towards the coast again.



This trip takes altogether about 27 minutes. The meeting point once at the other end is called the Itabaca Channel (Canal de Itabaca), where a ferry takes visitors to Baltra Island.

Once at the other side, a bus will take you to the airport.

Although logistically this procedure may seem complex, in reality it is the simplest thing, and the highlight will be seeing the changes in vegetation and the always breathtaking azure waters of Itabaca Channel.

This beautiful city of Puerto Ayora has the greatest variety of services, commerce, and tourist options throughout the archipelago.

Those who purchased any land-based tour option like an extension at Finch Bay Eco Hotel will find amusing and rewarding to sit by the main park, and see how Ecuadorians live in this ever-motivating paradise.

Santa Cruz island holds a very important communications infrastructure, including several cybercafes all with Internet access.

Pacific National Bank (Banco del Pacifico) is located by the main road, and is ready to assist travelers in national and international transactions, mostly through its affiliation to the international ATM's network.

Hotels in town can offer various types of lodging options, while restaurants and pubs can add to the island experience.

Puerto Ayora is also the home base for the Darwin Foundation and the Galapagos National Park Service.



For those who enjoy beach landscapes without skyscrapers, a walk to Galapagos beach of Tortuga bay will be a great highlight of the trip.

Who would think that there are still beaches with white sand, but without high-rise buildings, or hotels everywhere with human masses of visitors? This is famous Tortuga Bay in Santa Cruz island.

Right in front of Puerto Ayora you find the only neighborhood that is physically isolated from the city.

Punta Estrada is the place to meet for an in depth contact with untouched nature, peacefulness, and spectacular landscapes. Right at this location you can find Finch Bay Eco Hotel, next to the most extensive beach.

You can also walk to Las Grietas for more contact with nature. Transporting yourself to/from Punta Estrada is easy: if you are staying at Finch Bay Hotel you can return anytime you want to during the designated schedule.

Otherwise, the aqua taxis service will take you to "the other side" for a minimal fee.

Puerto Ayora is a town that shouldn't be missed in any Galapagos travel visit. From an expedition point of view, there's nothing more exciting than being able to see all of the islands that compose this Archipelago in a once-in a lifetime visit.

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