On Day 9 of my trip to Ecuador, Sierra and I traveled from Ecuador's mainland to the Galápagos Islands. It was a long day of traveling but well worth it!
Montanita to Puerto Ayora
We started our day at 4am with a short walk from our hotel in Montanita to the bus stop. At 4:30, we climbed aboard the first bus to Guayaquil, arriving at Guayaquil Land Terminal just after 8am. From there we walked about 15 minutes to José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport (GYE).
Before we were allowed to check in for our flight to Galápagos, we were required to purchase Transit Control Cards for $20 per person. To purchase the cards we had to show proof of our future flight leaving the Galápagos Islands.
Our flight departed Guayaquil around 10am and we landed at Galápagos Ecologic Airport (Aeropuerto Seymour) on the Galápagos island of Baltra, about 90 minutes later. However, the Galápagos Islands are in a different time zone so we gained an hour.
After we deplaned on the tarmac and entered the terminal, we went though what felt like a typical customs and immigration line. But, instead of getting our passport stamped to enter a foreign country, we paid a $100 per person National Park fee to enter the Galápagos Islands.
Our day's journey wasn't over yet. We rode a bus from the airport on Baltra ($5) to the dock on the other side of the island. Then we took a ferry a short distance across the water to Santa Cruz Island ($1). From the dock on Santa Cruz we rode a bus, for over an hour, to Puerto Ayora on the opposite side of the island ($5). Just a short walk from the bus stop in Puerto Ayora and we were finally to our hotel... almost 12 hours after leaving our hotel in Montanita.
Puerto Ayora
Puerto Ayora is the largest town on the Galápagos Islands with many hotels, restaurants, shops, and activities. After Sierra and checked into our hotel, we walked about 10 minutes toward the waterfront where we stopped for a late lunch.
After lunch we walked along the waterfront about 20 minutes to Galapagos National Park. Along the way we saw many sea lions, marine iguanas, and crabs.
Entrance to the national park is free as part of the required fee to enter the Galápagos Islands. It has several beaches and a variety of exhibits. For an additional fee of $10 per person, you can take a guided tour of the tortoise breeding center. People are not allowed to visit the breeding center without a guided tour.
Slideshow
Here are pictures from Day 9 of our trip to Ecuador.
Expenses
I'm doing my best to track expenses in this spreadsheet for anyone that's interested in a similar, relatively low-budget trip.
Ecuador Fun Fact
Discoveries made by Charles Darwin during his visit to the Galápagos Islands led to Darwin's Theory of Evolution through Natural Selection.
Comentários