Charles Darwin, giant tortoises (think Lonesome George), blue and red-footed boobies, baby seals, hammer head sharks, penguins are few of the visuals that most of us associate Galapagos with. The stunning islands are brimming with natural wonders. It is on the bucket list of every serious traveller. Galapagos also has the reputation of being prohibitively expensive. Well, it doesn’t have to be.
Though, it is a tad difficult to travel to Galapagos Islands on a budget, it is certainly possible. The biggest hurdle is booking air tickets from Guayaquil or Quito to the Galapagos. While discounted air tickets are available online on the websites of airlines, it is near impossible to book on Ecuadorian websites unless you have an Ecuadorian credit/debit card.
The only way to find cheap tickets you can pay for is by scanning through website aggregators. We were lucky enough to find and pay for (in dollars) cheap tickets to the Galapagos. And these were almost 50% cheaper than regular tickets. They cost around 248 USD for round trip tickets. On the other hand if you are on the LAN OR TAM South America air pass and you have booked ahead, you are likely to also get tickets at half price.
If your flight is not to San Cristobal airport which is a ferry ride away to Santa Cruz, it will go to the nearby island of Baltra. On entry, every tourist is required to pay a mandatory $100 national park fee. A $10 transit tax is also levied prior to boarding your flight. From Baltra onwards to Santa Cruz requires three changes with public transportation. First take the free shuttle across the island to the ferry drop off point. The ferry costs 0.80 cents and takes you across the Itabaca channel to Santa Cruz. On the other side at Santa Cruz, catch a local bus that takes you into town, Puerto Ayora. The ticket costs 1.80 and the journey lasts about 45 minutes.
In Puerto Ayora it is possible to find accommodation upwards of $ 15 a night. It is usually also possible to look around once you get to Puerto Ayora but in high season it is advisable to book these ahead. Use a website aggregator like hotelscombined.com to look for the best deals.
There are also several tourist agencies. Here you can either bargain for a longer multi day cruise to all the islands. An economy eight day cruise starts at USD 800. There are other budget options available but sometimes dates may not match. The easier and less expensive option is to do day trips to the surrounding islands. Bartolme, San Cristobal, Ferdinanda, Espanola, San Cristobal, Floreana are some of the top islands you can take day trips to. While the prices advertised vary, with practiced bargaining skill you could potentially do each day trip for about 50$ including lunch, water, transport and guides.
It is advisable to take your own snorkelling/diving gear/mask. These are available for rent on the island and even provided for free on most day trips but a good fitting mask is of prime importance for all the water-based activities that are the highlight of the trip.
Santa Cruz itself has multiple attractions, many of which you could walk to including The Charles Darwin Research station for giant tortoises and a history of evolutionary studies, pink salt mines and a gorgeously hidden sapphire green pool (Las Grieatas) you can cliff dive at and vast stretches of beautiful virgin beaches like Tortuga Bay. For attractions farther out like the lava tunnels and multiple overgrown volcano craters, you can either use a travel agent or alternately persuade a local resident to rent out a two wheeler for solo exploration.
Lastly, if you don’t want to burn a hole in your pocket at ridiculously expensive restaurants on the island, head to the food street in the city centre for cheap street side eats that are both freshly made and filling. You can easily get a substantial meal for under $ 10.
If you add it all up, a memorable week long DIY trip to the Galapagos can be accomplished in less than 700 $ per person. That said – if you want to cut costs even further by even one tenth, you can skip the Galapagos altogether and head to what is called the poor man’s Galapagos or Isla de la Plata from the mainland. It is dubbed so for similar barren terrain and colonies of identical bird and wildlife. It is considered a smaller version of the Galapagos with all its trappings. If you are lucky, you can even spot hump back whales on the way.
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