Marchena Island is the largest of the northern islands. There is no terrestrial visitor sites on this island, this is why it is rarely visited by anyone, including scientists. Even if there are no tourist landing sites on the island itself, Marchena is surrounded by exceptional diving and snorkelling spot : Punta Espejo and Punta Mejía.
Dive site
Punta Espejo and Punta Mejía are very beautiful diving sites. Punta Mejia is situated on the southwestern side of the island, where rays, eels and numerous species of fish can be observed. Punta Espejo is a wonderfull dive site where you can observe hammerhead sharks, Galapagos sharks, sea lions and much more.
This island is home to an endemic Lava lizzard and fur seals.
Floreana is one of the 4 inhabited islands of the archipelago. It has only around a hundred inhabitants. The island offer very good wildlife watching opportunities. You can see flamingos, Nazca boobies, Blue-footed Boobies, Floreana Mockingbirds, sea lions and more. The island is full of important history for the Galapagos archipelago and which is worth learning about! Floreana can be visited by cruise, day trip or by staying overnight in the only hotel on the island: The Wittmer Pension.
Point of interest: Cormorant Point
Cormorant Point is located on the northern part of Floreana Island. It features a golden-greenish beach that is compose of a mixture of minerals, all of which are responsible for the sand’s unique color. Not far inland, a brackish lake home to a variety of migratory and coastal birds, is also ideal for flamingo-watching. Here, there’s quite a large percentage of flamingos living in one single pond ,considering the small population of Galapagos Flamingos.
Floreana also offers a couple of interesting dive sites: Devil’s Crown, Champion Islet, Cormorant Point
Puerto Egas, located on the western side of Santiago island (south end of James Bay), was once the site of a salt mine. It is now a beautiful tourist site that can visited by foot. The rough volcanic rocks make for some interesting walking. Puerto Egas offer two separate trails: The first along the coast to the fur seal grottoes and the second inland to the Salt Mine Volcano. The Galapagos fur seal prefers rocky coastlines where shade is available and the grottoes of Puerto Egas are ideal. The coastal trail ends at the grottoes. The inland trail is approximately 3 km long and ends at the top of the salt mine crater. During your hiking in Puerto Egas, you can easily spot sea lions, fur seals, marine iguanas, pelicans, blue-footed boobies and lava herons. Excursions to Puerto Egas are offer on naturalist cruises.
Dive site
Puerto Egas also offer amazing scuba diving. Dives sites offer shallow dives suitable for beginner level divers. The bottom consists of a irregular slope, mainly made up of sand and no deeper than 12 meters (40ft). Current is usually very little here, thus making it a enjoyable dive. Marine life is abundant, however, visibility may be a little limited. You can almost always see fur seals and sea lions during the dives. You can also find some animals here that you usually only find around Isabela Island such as sea pens, horn sharks, sea horses and sand anemones.
Dive Site
This site is located on the north of Floreana Island, just a little further from Punta Cormoran. The islet is made up of the eroded cone of an extinct volcano, with lots of small rocks emerging from the water to form a crown, hence its name. The underwater floor is very interesting, with its pinnacles, caves and rock formations.
Dive site
Champion islet is the remain of an ancient conical volcano located northeast of Floreana Island. The site offers drift diving, more or less strong depending on the current, which generally leaves from the northeast corner of the island and brings divers towards the northwest. The site has a long wall with plateaus, which descends to very great depths, towards a sandy bottom. It is possible to observe sea turtles, sea lions, schools of white salamas and white-tipped sharks. The islet has 2 colonies of sea lions that can be encountered while scuba diving or snorkeling. This site is accessible from daily trips departing from Santa Cruz.
Dive site
Enderby is a small crescent-shaped islet on the northeast of Floreana Island. This site is accessible from daily trips departing from Santa Cruz. The dive generally begins inside the crescent. The dominant current, arriving from the south, enters the crescent and is separated on either side of the islet. The action generally takes place in the shallow end, at the top of 50 feet (15 m), but the site has a slope down to over 130 feet (40 m). It is possible to observe hammerhead sharks, sea lions, Galapagos sharks, silky sharks and much more.
Rabida is one of the small islands located south of Santiago Island. This island has the greatest diversity of rocks and volcanic lava of the entire archipelago and is often identified as the geographic center of the Galapagos. It is possible to go scuba diving or snorkeling near the coast of the island. This island is visited as part of some naturalist cruise itineraries.
Dive site
Most of the action takes place on the northern portion of the islet, where it is possible to observe turtles, white-tip sharks and large schools of fish. The site is perfect for beginners, with maximum depth reaching around 60 feet (18 m).
Dive site
This site is made up of 3 large rocks exposed on the surface, which are the remains of an ancient cone of volcanic tuff, located in the southeast of the island of Santiago. The dive is normally a drift dive along a wall starting at 45 feet (12 m) descending to over 140 feet (40 m). This site has a large quantity and variety of reef fish and, during the warmer season (December to June), it is possible to come across hammerhead sharks and manta rays. The wall is covered in black coral and sea fans. This site is visited with daily outings, but the boat trip takes almost 2 hours.
Dive site
Albany is a crescent-shaped islet located in the northwest of Santiago Island. The site is composed of a wall with terraces descending to a depth of more than 140 feet (40 m) into a sandy bottom. Galapagos sharks, eagle rays and manta rays can be seen here, in addition to playful young sea lions. This dive site is rarely visited by divers. Only rare dive operators and diving cruises stop here.
Dive site
James Bay is located on the west coast of Santiago Island. The bay opens to the north, making it a protected site and perfect for beginners. The site has a depth varying between 25-60 feet (8-18 m) and is composed of a mixture of brown sand and volcanic rock. The water is generally cold, which makes it possible to observe species that are generally only found on Isabela Island, such as horned sharks, sea robins and red-lipped batfish. You can also spot sea lions, fur seals and young Galapagos sharks. This site can be enjoyed by diving or snorkeling.
