Santa Cruz is perhaps the second largest of the Galapagos islands and is mostly wilderness, with the Parque Nacional Galapagos taking up much of the island.

Puerto Ayora is Santa Cruz's largest town and the main port and on the southern end of the island. The airport is on the far north, on its own small island that you need to take a boat across to, with your bags loaded up on the roof. It is comparatively vibrant for a Galapagos town, with some restaurants and bars, some running till very late in the morning.

Museums & Galleries

Charles Darwin Centre

The Darwin Centre is doing some of the most critical work in the Galapagos Islands, breeding the tortoises and giving them safe harbour. One star male, Super D, has fathered over 900 children. The baby tortoises are kept in batches and their shells painted (with harmless paint) with a number for tracking based on the island they are 'nati’ to.

Lonely George, the 'face' of Galapagos tortoises passed away a few years ago, but he was stuffed and is presented in a climate-controlled room behind glass. It is a peculiar sight.

The centre also homes a few iguanas, which are incredibly territorial and so kept in their own enclosures.

Parks & Gardens

Tortuga Bay

A short walk to the entrance from the town centre, it can be tough to get in if you are a group, as they require a guide. We had a long wait for one to arrive. The 'correct' approach is to split up into groups of two or three at the foot of the hill and go up in batches. Even though the ticket office can see you doing this, they'll play along.

You then have a beautiful, long paved walk down to the beach, past cactus trees, which have evolved to look like 'real' trees, but when you touch the bark, you realise it is cactus flesh. On the way, you'll pass numerous small iguanas.

Once you reach the white sand beach, you may be tempted to stay put.

But carry on walking, past the rocky peninsular with many iguanas, and you'll find the real Tortuga Bay, a protected sandy beach with mangrove trees on either side.

An infrequent ferry runs from here back to the mainland, bouncing over the waves. Worth the $10 cost.

Parque Nacional Galápagos

There are three elements to the Parque Nacional Galapagos, the first is the Cafe and Visitor Centre, where you can climb inside a giant tortoise shell. And they serve you locally grown coffee or lemon-grass tea, either of which is worth trying.

A guide will provide information on the Giant Tortoises and the park in general, to give you context before you head off to explore.

The second area is the lava tunnels, formed by the volcanic nature of the islands, these tunnels run under the park, and are strange, straight and almost organic looking. Spooky to walk through.

*Lava tunnels at Parque Nacional Galápagos*

The final area is the park itself, where the Giant Tortoises live. Dozens of them, freely roaming and fed by small guava fruits as treats which they manage to get their faces covered in. It is a fantastic experience to see them so close, without barriers or restrictions. Various birds also make their home on the grounds, living off the dropped fruit seeds and interacting with the tortoises, like many birds in the Galapagos, they're slightly comical in appearance.

Restaurants & Bars

El Muelle de Darwin

A new cafe, next to the hotel we were staying at. Good, though a little pricey.

1835 Coffee

An excellent, small boutique coffee shop, offering excellent coffee. The staff are friendly and knowledgeable, and you can even order on-line, though international shipping is prohibitively expensive.

Isla Grill

Good food, with an Argentinian flavour, the restaurant offers a lovely outdoor space for seating.

Los Kioskos

A long street, operating something like a Singaporean Hawker Centre, the Los Kioskos street is lined on both sides by restaurants with outdoor tables down the centre of the road. Sit where you like and order up some delicious fresh food.

Bongo Bar

A large bar with a roof terrace, pool table and salsa lessons, Bongo Bar, is open late and offers a fun vibe and good crowds. You'll need some kind of photo ID to get in.

Sushi Grill

We had very little time to eat here, so put them under pressure and paid before the food even arrived. The staff delivered everything fast and well prepared, precisely as we needed, though I don't think any of us tried the Sushi...

Lemon & Coffee

An upstairs restaurant, they were slow to serve us, though, with a group of 14 or so, that's not surprising. There were quite a few mistakes, however. The location offers a beautiful view of the water from the second floor.

Sports & Activities

Souvenirs

There are more souvenir shops in Puerto Ayora than anywhere else I've encountered in the Galapagos, all selling variations on the same themes. You'll find a lot of Darwin or Evolution themed shirts, towels and postcards, various animals in carved woods and the general fridge magnets and shot glasses you find everywhere. Finding something unique will post a challenge, though there are a few fair trade and art shops producing items locally, but given it’s not a particularly common destination you can brazen it out with friends and family if you so choose.

Shark Watching

Every night, at the end of the pier, attracted by the lights and sounds of the port, sharks gather, swimming just below the surface. Dozens can be seen if you are patient and floodlights make them obvious, turning the water a peculiar green colour. I returned on the second evening with my zoom lens to get some better images, as the dock is quite far from the water at evening tide.

Las Grietas Crevasse

The Grietas Crevasse is a swimming spot, past a salt flat that is worth a visit on its own and on the other side of the island, requiring a short journey in a water taxi. Down a flight of steps to a small pontoon, you can then leap into the clear water of the crevasse. As you swim further down the crevasse, you'll be climbing over some fairly sharp rocks into new pools before you finally reach the end. It is a chilled out and interesting place to swim.

Isla Santa Cruz