Galápagos: Wild, Women-Led, and Waiting
Trip Highlights
Travel with your Galapagos guide who is more than skilled naturalist. She is a storyteller and interpreter of one of the most singular ecosystems on Earth, who understands that guiding is about people as much as it is about wildlife.
Snorkel alongside sea lions, sea turtles, rays, and white-tip reef sharks at Kicker Rock, one of the Galápagos’ most iconic marine settings.
Walk among giant tortoises roaming freely in the wild, and search the highlands for the endemic Galápagos Vermilion Flycatcher, a species once scarce and now showing real signs of recovery.
Cook traditional Ecuadorian ceviche in the home of Jacky, a local creole cook whose table is a warm, personal introduction to the people who call these islands home.
Visit Galápagos Ecogarden, an organic farm and regenerative agriculture project led by founder Cecilia Guerrero, a female entrepreneur building a life around sustainability, food sovereignty, and environmental education.
Your own room is included, always. No single-supplement fee, ever. If you’re traveling with someone and you’d rather share a room, we can make that happen, too.
Locations:
San Cristóbal, Isabela, and Santa Cruz Islands
Dates:
October 7-13, 2027
Trip Cost:
$5,350 per person based on private, single occupancy accommodations.
Limit:
4–8 women
Trip Details
Few places on Earth reward close attention the way the Galápagos does. Across three islands, each shaped by its own volcanic history, this seven-day trip moves from lava-formed coastlines thick with sea lions and marine iguanas to wetlands where flamingos feed and highlands where giant tortoises move unhurried through the undergrowth.
This trip is led by an expert bilingual Galapagos-certified naturalist guide who brings the Galápagos’ natural and human history into focus in equal measure. What sets her apart isn’t just her knowledge of these islands, it’s knowing when to explain and when to let the moment speak for itself.
Along the way, you’ll meet the women shaping life in this remote archipelago as much as its wildlife does: Jacky, whose creole cooking connects us to coastal Galápagos tradition, and Cecilia Guerrero, whose organic farm is a working case study in what female-led sustainability looks like on a small, isolated island chain. This isn’t incidental to the trip. It’s the point. Every Her Wild Life expedition is built to put real recognition behind the women shaping the places we visit.
This trip builds on nearly 20 years of conservation-focused travel through our parent company, Reefs to Rockies, and Her Wild Life’s partnership with ZEISS Optics for immersive wildlife viewing.
Whether you’re arriving solo or with a friend, this is a week built around community. The community you’ll build with the women in your group, and the community of Galápagos women you’ll meet, learn from, and support along the way.
Trip Itinerary
Day 1 — Interpretation Center, Hike & Snorkel Tijeretas
After arriving on San Cristóbal Island, we settle into our boutique hotel before beginning our first adventure together. A visit to the Galápagos Interpretation Center introduces the archipelago’s natural and human history before we hike to Frigatebird Hill, where blue-footed boobies, frigatebirds, and Darwin’s finches welcome us to the islands. Our first snorkel takes place in the crystal-clear waters of Carola Beach, alongside playful sea lions, marine iguanas, and sea turtles. As the sun sets, we gather for a welcome dinner where the women in the group get to know one another, setting the tone for a week built around adventure, meaningful conversation, and shared discovery.
Walking distance: 2 miles
Accommodations: Casa Opuntia
Meals: Lunch and dinner
Please note that the trip begins at the Quito Airport the morning of Oct 7 in time for our flight to San Cristobal. We highly recommend arriving two nights earlier, if possible, to allow time to explore Quito and avoid flight delays. We can assist with pre- and post- logistics.
Day 2 — Wildlife at Kicker Rock & a Local Woman's Table
Today we venture to Kicker Rock, a dramatic volcanic formation rising from the Pacific and surrounded by exceptionally rich marine life. By snorkel, we explore the waters around this ancient lava formation, where encounters may include sea lions, green sea turtles, rays, reef fish, and white-tip reef sharks moving through the rocky channels while blue-footed boobies and frigatebirds patrol the cliffs above. (Conditions and National Park regulations determine the exact route and access points.)
Later, we step from wildlife into island life, welcomed into the home of Jacky, a local creole cook whose passion for traditional coastal cuisine reflects the close relationship between Galápagos communities and the sea. Together we prepare authentic Ecuadorian ceviche, share stories, and gather around her table for a warm introduction to the people who call these islands home.
Accommodations: Casa Opuntia
Meals: Breakfast and lunch
Day 3 — Walk the Wetlands, Explore Tintoreras
This morning we say goodbye to San Cristóbal and take a short flight to Isabela, the largest island in the Galápagos and one of the most volcanically active places on Earth. We head into Isabela’s wetlands for a naturalist walk through one of the island’s most important wildlife habitats, looking for pink flamingos, land iguanas blending into black volcanic rock, and giant tortoises moving through the vegetation. In the afternoon, we shift from land to sea and explore Tintoreras, a group of small lava islets where Galápagos penguins, marine iguanas, sea lions, and the white-tip reef sharks that give the islets their name share narrow channels and sheltered pools. As the light softens over Puerto Villamil, we return to our hotel with time to relax or wander this laid-back island village before dinner.
Walking distance: approximately 3 miles
Accommodations: Casita de la Playa
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Please note that the maximum baggage allowance for the inter-island flight is 25 lbs. If you have more than this, you can travel to Isabela with limited luggage and we can coordinate sending your extra luggage to Santa Cruz. It will be stored at our Santa Cruz hotel until our arrival. Additional cost applies.
Day 4 — Sierra Negra Volcano, Sulfur Mines & Volcán Chico
Today we venture into Isabela’s volcanic highlands. As we ascend the slopes of Sierra Negra, the landscape shifts from arid coastal scrub to humid highland forest. This is prime habitat for the brilliant, once-scarce Galápagos Vermilion Flycatcher, now showing encouraging signs of recovery, along with Darwin’s finches, Galápagos flycatchers, yellow warblers, and Galápagos hawks. We continue to the Sulfur Mines, where steam vents and vivid yellow deposits reveal the island’s ongoing volcanic activity, and on to the surreal lava fields of Volcán Chico featuring spatter cones, fumaroles, and mineral color that make the islands’ geologic story impossible to ignore.
Hiking distance: 2.79 miles
Accommodations: Casita de la Playa
Meals: Breakfast and lunch
Day 5 — Galápagos Ecogarden & Giant Tortoises
After traveling to Santa Cruz Island via speedboat, we head into the lush highlands for an exclusive visit to Galápagos Ecogarden, where founder Cecilia Guerrero welcomes us to her organic farm and regenerative agriculture project. Walking through orchards, vegetable gardens, and coffee plants, Cecilia shares her journey as a female entrepreneur committed to sustainability, food sovereignty, and environmental education in the Galápagos. Together, we’ll sit down to a farm-to-table lunch built from ingredients we just walked past. In the afternoon, we continue to El Chato Giant Tortoise Reserve, walking among tortoises roaming freely in their natural habitat, then explore one of the island’s lava tunnels. We return to Puerto Ayora with a clear sense of the connection between conservation, community, and female leadership that defines this island.
Walking distance: 2 miles
Accommodations: La Isla
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Day 6 — North Seymour
This morning we visit North Seymour, one of the finest seabird colonies in the eastern Galápagos. The island is home to one of the largest breeding colonies of Magnificent Frigatebirds, whose males inflate their brilliant scarlet gular pouches in one of the world’s most spectacular courtship displays. Blue-footed boobies perform their famous courtship dance just steps from the trail, while swallow-tailed gulls, brown noddies, lava gulls, and Darwin’s finches round out an exceptional morning of birding. Land iguanas rest beneath giant Opuntia cacti nearby. Conditions and time permitting, we finish with one more snorkel before returning to Santa Cruz for a farewell dinner celebrating a week we won’t forget.
Walking distance: 1.5 miles
Accommodations: La Isla
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Day 7 — Transfer to Baltra Airport
We transfer to Baltra Island to connect with return flights to the mainland. So long, Galápagos. Until we meet again.
Meals: Breakfast
What to Expect
Every Her Wild Life expedition is built for women who want full, active days and authentic wildlife encounters — which sometimes means being out early and moving when the wildlife is most active. We put you in the right place at the right time, while acknowledging that the best encounters take a mix of guide expertise and genuine luck.
This Galápagos expedition involves:
- A moderate activity level. No previous experience required. Most hiking, snorkeling, and birdwatching outings run 2 to 4 hours.
- Inter-island travel, including a roughly 40-minute flight between San Cristóbal and Isabela, and speedboat crossings of about 2 hours where applicable.
- Snorkeling in open water at several stops, with equipment provided.
- Warm-season temperatures of 77–83°F (January–May) or cool-season temperatures of 70–75°F (June–December), cooler at higher elevations.
- Pack your sense of adventure, wonder, and humor — plus lightweight hiking shoes, water shoes, a rain shell, reef-safe sunscreen, and binoculars for the birdwatching.
Accommodations
- 2 nights in a comfort hotel on San Cristóbal
- 2 nights in a comfort hotel on Isabela
- 2 nights in a comfort hotel on Santa Cruz
What's Included
- Lodging for 6 nights as listed, in a private room — no single-supplement fee, ever. Prefer to share? A discounted double-occupancy rate is available.
- Galapagos certified naturalist guide throughout.
- Meals as listed in the itinerary.
- All ground and marine transportation, including the inter-island flight between San Cristóbal and Isabela.
- Snorkeling equipment.
- All activities and excursions as described.
- A conservation donation made on behalf of every traveler to Galápagos Reef Revival.
What's Not Included
- Round-trip flights between mainland Ecuador and the Galápagos ($550 per person; subject to change and fuel surcharge until booked)
- Galápagos National Park entrance fee ($200 per person)
- Galápagos Transit Control Card (INGALA) ($20 per person)
- Personal expenses
- Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages not included with meals
- Gratuities
- Travel insurance (highly recommended)
Cost
$5350* per person, private room included with no single-supplement fee. A discount of $1040 per person is available for travelers sharing a room.
*Reflects payment by ACH. Credit card fees assessed based type of card used at time of payment.
Conservation Impact
Galápagos Reef Revival is a science-based coral restoration project working to bring back the archipelago’s historic reefs, more than 95% of which were lost during the severe El Niño event of 1982–83. Using coral gardening techniques, the project has restored thousands of corals in the waters off Isabela Island, working to re-establish reef ecosystems that once supported some of the richest marine life in the Eastern Tropical Pacific. A conservation donation to support Galápagos Reef Revival’s efforts will be made on behalf of all trip participants.