Sea Lion Yacht

Sea Lion Yacht

The Sea Lion Yacht, owned by Finch Bay Galápagos Hotel, has a capacity for 20 passengers, with two bathrooms, two changing rooms, and three decks. We offer daily departures aboard the yacht to various official visitor sites within the Galápagos National Park.

Our Sea Lion Yacht is also one of the few day tours in the Galápagos that features two naturalist guides on board (compared to just one), which means your clients will enjoy better service, more enriching explorations, and enhanced safety.

The Sea Lion Yacht also has an onboard chef and a full crew dedicated to ensuring that your clients' journey to the island of their choice goes as smoothly as possible. Each tour offers opportunities to observe wildlife.

Itinerary

Day 1: Visit to Las Bachas and North Seymour

We leave the hotel at 7:45 a.m. and head to Puerto Ayora to board a bus that crosses Santa Cruz Island on the way to the Itabaca Channel.

We board a panga (motorized inflatable boat) that takes us to the Sea Lion Yacht, and we depart for Las Bachas Beach (a 35-minute trip).

We will walk along a beautiful white sand beach with several brackish lagoons nearby, just steps from the sea. These lagoons serve as feeding areas for various wading birds, from plovers to Caribbean flamingos.

We'll also enjoy activities like swimming and snorkeling on the beach. Back on the Sea Lion Yacht, we’ll have a light snack as we head towards North Seymour Island.

North Seymour is the result of a submarine uplift, which is why it’s relatively flat; a long time ago, it was part of the sea floor! While our guide shows us around the island, we'll observe some of the largest colonies of frigatebirds and blue-footed boobies in the islands!

We'll also see endemic land and marine iguanas, fur seals, and the curious Nazca booby. After this 90-minute journey, we’ll return to the Sea Lion Yacht to enjoy a delicious lunch. We’ll depart for the Itabaca Channel (35-minute trip) and return to Puerto Ayora.

Day 2 and 5: Visit to Bartolomé Island and Sullivan Bay

We leave Finch Bay Galapagos Hotel at 7 a.m. and head to Puerto Ayora.

We’ll take a bus to the Itabaca Channel, passing through lush Scalesia forests and large farms in the highlands of Santa Cruz. From the Itabaca Channel, we’ll board a motorized inflatable boat to board the Sea Lion Yacht and set off on our journey to the picturesque Bartolomé Island (approximately 2 hours).

Along the way, our guides will share interesting details about the islands and, if we’re lucky, we might see dolphins swimming alongside us.

Once we arrive at Bartolomé, we’ll make a dry landing at the base of a wooden dock. Here, we’ll climb multiple stairs and paths as we make our way to a breathtaking viewpoint at the top.

We’ll make several stops along the way to learn about the ecosystems and wildlife of one of the most photographed Galápagos Islands by visitors. This excursion lasts approximately 90 minutes.

Then, we’ll return to the Sea Lion to enjoy a snack and visit Sullivan Bay on Santiago Island. We’ll walk over a very recent pahoehoe lava field, dating back to 1897.

We’ll also have the chance to snorkel in the crystal-clear waters of the area alongside the world’s northernmost penguin: the Galápagos penguin. After finishing this activity, we’ll relax onboard the Sea Lion and return to the Itabaca Channel and Puerto Ayora.

Day 3: Visit to Punta Carrión and South Plaza

We leave Finch Bay Galapagos Hotel at 8:15 a.m. in Puerto Ayora. A bus will take us across Santa Cruz Island to the Itabaca Channel, where we’ll board a panga (motorized inflatable boat) to embark on the Sea Lion Yacht and head to the Punta Carrión area.

Upon arrival, we’ll have amazing opportunities for snorkeling, where we’ll admire a wide variety of fish, rays, and possibly even white-tipped reef sharks! Back on board the Sea Lion, we’ll enjoy a delicious snack and continue our journey to South Plaza Island.

Our guides will take us on a tour of the island, teaching us about the impressive flora and fauna of South Plaza, home to marine iguanas and Galápagos sea lions. The turquoise waters of the channel contrast with the coastline made of black volcanic rocks and covered with green algae and fluorescent orange sally lightfoot crabs.

We’ll observe red-billed tropicbirds, Nazca boobies, and blue-footed boobies before returning to the Sea Lion Yacht to enjoy our lunch and head back to Puerto Ayora.

Day 4: Visit to Santa Fe and La Encañada

We leave the hotel at 7:45 a.m., head to the Sea Lion Yacht, and set off for Santa Fe Island (approximately 2 hours).

Santa Fe was formed by uplift, as evidenced by the lava formations visible along the coast. The island is home to the Santa Fe land iguana, which has a mustard color and is endemic to the island, as well as opuntia cacti, Galápagos hawks, blue-footed boobies, sea lions, frigatebirds, and marine iguanas.

We’ll make a wet landing and disembark on the beautiful white sand beach of Santa Fe Island, where we’ll immediately encounter multiple sea lion harems.

Then, we’ll enjoy activities like swimming and snorkeling in La Encañada—a wonderful visiting spot just off the coast of Santa Fe Island. This activity will be followed by a delicious lunch on board the yacht, before we begin our return journey to Santa Cruz Island.

PLEASE NOTE: Some activities are subject to change due to weather conditions.

Day 5: Visit to South Plaza and Punta Carrión

We leave Finch Bay Galapagos Hotel at 7:15 a.m. in Puerto Ayora. We head to the Sea Lion Yacht and depart for South Plaza Island (approximately two hours). 

Our guides will take us on a tour of the island, teaching us about the impressive flora and fauna of South Plaza, home to marine iguanas and Galápagos sea lions.

We’ll observe red-billed tropicbirds, Nazca boobies, and blue-footed boobies before returning to the Sea Lion Yacht, where we’ll enjoy a delicious snack while heading to Punta Carrión.

Upon arrival at Punta Carrión, we’ll have amazing opportunities for snorkeling, where we’ll admire a wide variety of fish, rays, and possibly even white-tipped reef sharks! Back on board the Sea Lion, we’ll enjoy a delicious lunch and spectacular views before starting our return to the Itabaca Channel (approximately 15 minutes) to take a bus back to Puerto Ayora.

Day 7: Visit to North Seymour and Las Bachas

We leave the hotel at 7:45 a.m. and head to Puerto Ayora to board a bus en route to the Itabaca Channel.

Here, we board a panga (motorized inflatable boat) that takes us to the Sea Lion Yacht and depart for North Seymour Island (a 45-minute trip). Upon arrival, we’ll make a dry landing.

We’ll also observe endemic land and marine iguanas, fur seals, and the curious Nazca booby.

After our tour, we’ll enjoy a snack aboard the Sea Lion Yacht and head to Las Bachas Beach (approximately 35 minutes away).

We’ll also enjoy activities like swimming and snorkeling on the beach.

Afterwards, we’ll enjoy a delicious lunch aboard the Sea Lion and begin our return trip to the Itabaca Channel (35-minute journey). Once there, we’ll board a bus that will take us back to Puerto Ayora.