Where are the Galapagos Islands located? 🧐

How to get to the Galapagos Islands? ✈️

The answer to this question depends on where you are flying from. But in all cases, you’ll need to get from your country to Ecuador mainland, since there are no direct flights to Galápagos. The reason for this is because you need to pass to several controls and the government needs to make sure you comply with all the Galapagos Entry Requirements and the way to make sure you don’t introduce anything that might harm the Galápagos environment is an exhaustive luggage control on the mainland airports before you enter Galápagos. Most commercial flights land in Ecuador’s two main cities: Guayaquil (José Joaquín de Olmedo Airport) and the capital Quito (Tababela Airport).

You can do a stopover for a few days there (which we highly recommend) or do a scale flight straight to the Galápagos Islands and skip those cities.

Flights to Galápagos go to the 2 commercial airports the islands have. The most popular and visited one is located in Baltra Island and its called Seymour International airport. The other airport is located in San Cristobal Island. 

There are only 3 airlines tha flight from those cities to Galápagos:

• LATAM AIRLINES
• AEROGAL / AVIANCA
• TAME. This a local airlines company, but we don’t recommend it if you are on a tight schedule since they tend to delay flights and an awful customer service.

To which Island should it buy my flight to?  🏝

The answer to this question mostly depends on what are your plans on the Galápagos Islands and how many days you have there. Here’s your comment on both

Baltra (beside Santa Cruz) Airport

Baltra Island has the main airport and is located besides Santa Cruz Island (the capital). The good thing about this is that Santa Cruz is at the center of the archipielago and gives you a good chance to move around many islands like Isabela or day trips to Bartolomé.So basically this gives you a good checkpoint to move around different places, although in Santa Cruzitselfl besides Tortuga Bay and las Grietas there’s not much to do compared to other islands, since is the most “cosmopolitan” city. Another con about landing here is that the ride from Baltra Airport and Puerto Ayora in Santa Cruz where mosthotels aree located  is a bit long and you’ll have to get a bus, a mini boat and a taxi to reach to your hotel. Onthe bright side the ride from the airport to the city center you get the chance to see Santa Cruz highlands and see the giant turtles and lava tunnels. 

San Cristobal Airport

The greatest thing about San Cristobal airport is that is located 5 minutes by car from the city center, so as soon as you land you’ll be able to enjoy the beauty of the islands. Flights to San Cristobal are usually a bit cheaper and this island has a lot amazing beaches and free activities to offer. This is also a great place to surf in Galápagos. 

The cons about landing here is that if you don’t have many days in the island is going to take you more time to move to other islands like Isabela, since you’ll have to stop in Santa Cruz first before taking another ferry and that would make you lose a lot of time.

Why not both?

We usually advice for people who want to make the most out of their Galapagos Trip and want to cover all the main highlights in less time tochoosee a mixed option, meaning landing in Baltra and departing from San Cristobal. Its a bit more than a round flight but not so much and you’ll save in island transfers.

 We’ll help you build and organize a personalized itinerary so that you make the most of your budget and time in the Galapagos Islands.