The base
Three towns. Two airports. The third island is a boat.
Pick the town you want to wake up in. The wildlife is not evenly assigned, and neither are the flights.
Puerto Ayora is the busiest town in the islands. The Charles Darwin Research Station is here. The airport is not: you land at Baltra and cross to the island. Day boats leave from this harbor more often than from the others. If you want the most chances to be on the water without changing hotels, this is the base. The Santa Cruz day tours are the booked version.
Puerto Baquerizo Moreno is the provincial capital. The airport is on the island, which makes the first and last day simpler. It is a real town, sea lions on the waterfront included, and it is quieter than Puerto Ayora. A week that starts and ends on the same island, with no dawn crossing, fits here.
The largest island, and the one people describe as slower. Puerto Villamil is the town. Most land travelers reach it by boat from Santa Cruz, not by the mainland jet. Use it as a second stop, not as the island you must leave on the morning of a flight home. The hopping guide is the boat warning from the FCDO.
The $200 park fee and the $20 transit card do not change with the island. They are in the cost chapter. The two-week route is where a mainland week sits in front of this decision.
Sources: the three towns and the two mainland airports are the ones in the Galápagos chapter of this guide. Boat safety is the FCDO note linked from the hopping guide. No hotel prices are printed.
Plan your trip
A short, practical list. Nothing here is required.
A partner
Galápagos day tours, once you are on the islands.
A partner
Galápagos day tours, once you are on the islands.
A partner
Galápagos day trips and island tours.
A partner
An eSIM for Ecuador, ready before you land.
“A partner” is a sponsored link. “A resource” goes to that company’s own homepage. UIO Transfers belongs to the owner of this site. Affiliate disclosure.
The islands
Hotels, ferries, and day boats. A cruise sees more sites. This sees the towns.
The fees
Two official numbers. Everything else is a quote, and a quote goes stale.
The islands
A national park that happens to be a province. Go with rules, not a wish list.