Bahia Ballena, Santa Cruz Port

Santa Cruz is one of the Galapagos Islands, and it offers so many amazing things to see that luxury cruise ships often spend more than one day on this island alone. It is home to the famous Charles Darwin Research Station and the Fausto Llerena Breeding Center, where you can see giant tortoises and land iguanas being reintroduced into the wild. From here you’ll no doubt want to visit Cerro Dragon on the island, where you can see the success of that iguana reintroduction. The island is also home to the Las Bachas beaches, an incredible stretch of sands that serves as a place to look for sea turtles in the ocean, and potentially flamingos in their natural shallow pool habitat.

Visits to Santa Cruz may also incorporate Eden Islet, just off the coast. The unique landscape includes a thick mangrove forest and tall cacti, growing from the remains of an ancient volcano. The wildlife here is equally rich and varied, with the chance to see green sea turtles, sea lions, reef sharks, exotic crabs, eagle rays and more.

The currency in Santa Cruz is the US Dollar. Santa Cruz is 6 hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT -6).