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The volcanic Galápagos archipelago
counts as a paradise on earth. Its animal world offers a lot of endemic
species. A lot of animals do not even fear the people visiting the
Islands which offer excellent opportunities for watching the animals.
There is hardly a spot on earth where you can observe and photograph
animals in the wild so good and close by. Our round trips lead you to
the most beautiful places where you will find the most animals of the
exotic Galápagos Islands.
The archipelago is located app. 1000 km from the west coast of South
America directly on the equator. It includes 13 islands, which are
bigger than 5 square km, 6 smaller islands (1-5 qkm) as well as more
than 40 islets. The biggest island is "Isabela" with a surface of 4710
km. In total the island world covers a surface of 7882 qkm. The
Galápagos Islands are oceanic islands from volcanic origin. The two
youngest Galápagos Islands Fernandina and Isabela have the most active
volcanoes; they are situated nearly perfectly above the hot spot and its
rock-stratum is not older than 700.000 years. The oldest minerals are
found on Española in the southwest; they are over 3,3 million years old.
At a visit on the Galápagos Islands you strike on a natural area with
very special environmental conditions. The unique animal and plant world
is for a large part endemic (only to be found on these islands). Besides
this interesting and wonderful landscape you will find the blue-footed
boobies, frigate birds, Galápagos turtles, the cormorant which is unable
to fly, Galápagos albatross, sea lizards, penguins, as well as the
playful sea lions and many more animals!
When being on a cruise, whales and dolphins can often be observed.
Snorkelers and scuba divers report constantly and enthusiastically about
their encounters with rays, dolphins, sharks and many other exotic
inhabitants of the Galapagos’ sea.
Amazing for every visitor is the fearlessness which the animals kept as
they do not have to fear humans here.
Climate: On the Galápagos Islands exist two seasons, which differ from
the hot-dry and humid-colder mountain regions. From January to June (in
which short heavy rain showers can occur) hot air temperatures rule (ca.
30 degrees Celsius). In the dry season from July to December the
temperatures are a bit lower. The water temperature reaches up to 20
degrees Celsius. So a wet suit for snorkeling is recommended. The
currents are rougher in this time so you will need anti-sickness pills.
The islands were untouched by humans for a long time. The first who
discovered them would be the Inca-ruler "Tupac Yupanqui", however no
evidence exists for this. The first notes were delivered by the Spaniard
Tomas de Berlanga who was a bishop of Panama. He discovered the islands
by accident in 1535 during a voyage towards the south.
The Galápagos Islands got the name "enchanted islands" from the Spanish
pirate Diego de Rivadeneira. He believed that the islands become
invisible from time to time. This idea probably arose because the
primitive navigation instruments did not always bring the navigator to
the desired position.
The first settlers came in 1793 with the whaling fleets to Galápagos.
However, a permanent colonization began not until the 50's of the 20th
century. In 1832 the Galápagos Islands were added to Ecuadorian
territory; the official name is "Archipiélago de Colón", however it is
not being used. In 1959 the archipelago was declared a national park and
in the 70's tourism started. Nowadays 4 islands are inhabited:
- Santa Cruz with about 15.000 people
in the town of Puerto Ayora
- San Cristobal with about 6.500
inhabitants in Baquerizo Moreno
- Isabela with about 1.000
inhabitants in Puerto Villamil
- Floreana with about 170 inhabitants
The National Park Galápagos is an ideal
place to explore and experience the unique animal world. Here you can
approach the fearless, but nevertheless not domesticated wild animals
very closely. Bird watching is a very special experience. On the one
hand you have the variety of birds and on the other hand the fact that
some species are endemic.
As the Galápagos Islands are founded on
volcanic formations you will be able to experience a breath-taking as
well as moon like landscape scenery. Since we represent more than 55
different boats including motor yachts, sailing yachts,
cruise ships
and catamarans varying in category from economic to luxury class and
with a choice in many different itineraries we are able to organize for
you an optimal tour on the Galápagos Islands. As we have such a broad
spectrum of boats, we can offer departures every day for 4-, 5- and
8-day cruises. You should not miss an expedition to Galápagos while this
is one of the last eco-systems on earth.
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