Santa Cruz Island (Galapagos)
Cruise Port schedule, live map, terminals, news
Santa Cruz Island is the Galapagos Islands archipelago's 2nd largest - after Isabela Island. The largest settlement is the Galapagos islands' capital Puerto Ayora (population around 12,000). On the island there are also several small villages, whose inhabitants are engaged in cattle raising and agriculture. Santa Cruz Island has a large dormant volcano (last eruptions around 1,5 million years ago).
Popular Santa Cruz Island shore excursion destinations are:
- Charles Darwin Research Station
- lava tunnel (length over 2000 m / 6600 ft)
- Los Gemelos holes (translated "The Twins")
- Galapagos National Park Service (headquarters)
- Giant Tortoise Preserves
- Playa las Bachas (beach)
- Black Turtle Cove - mangrove estuary on the northern coast
- Itabaca Channel - separates Santa Cruz and Baltra. It is crossed by water taxis with ferry passengers from Baltra Island.
- Tortuga Bay - has a 1,6 ml (2,5 km) long walking path (open between 6 am - 6pm), which is a 20-min walk from the Puerto Ayora's water taxi dock. Tortuga Bay has a huge beach with volcanic rocks. It is preserved for the wildlife - marine iguanas, galapagos crabs and tortoises, birds (incl brown pelicans). The bay has a separate cove where swimming is allowed.
- Cerro Dragon
- El Eden
- Stand of Scalesia - daisy trees
Santa Cruz Island cruise terminal
Cruise ships to Santa Cruz Island dock (anchor) at Puerto Ayora - port town on the southern coast.
The following map of Galapagos Islands cruise itineraries shows the two main routes and all island stops (ports / landing sites) in the archipelago.
Santa Cruz Island tours, shore excursions, hotels
City Tours and Shore Excursions
- Puerto Ayora town tour
- cruise ship embarkation with a welcome aboard cocktail
- Giant Tortoise Reserve tour
- guided walks. snorkeling, sea kayaking, daily lecture on the ship
- visiting Charles Darwin Research Station
- El Eden (near Puerto Ayora)
- Los Gemelos
- Las Bachas / Playa las Bachas (beach / northern coast)
- Cerro Dragon (northwestern coast)
- Usually follows a cruise itinerary sailing portion in the Galapagos National Park, visiting La Galapaguera (giant tortoises),, with one professionally guided tour each day.
Port Santa Cruz Island cruise ship schedule shows timetable calendars of all arrival and departure dates by month. The port's schedule lists all ships (in links) with cruises going to or leaving from Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos. To see the full itineraries (ports of call dates and arrival / departure times) and their lowest rates – just follow the corresponding ship-link.
| Day | Ship | Arrival | Departure |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 February, 2019 Friday |  Xavier III | ||
| 1 February, 2019 Friday | Monserrat | ||
| 2 February, 2019 Saturday | Xavier III | ||
| 2 February, 2019 Saturday | Yolita II | ||
| 2 February, 2019 Saturday | Monserrat | ||
| 3 February, 2019 Sunday | Yolita II | ||
| 3 February, 2019 Sunday | Xavier III | ||
| 4 February, 2019 Monday | Yolita II | ||
| 4 February, 2019 Monday | Monserrat | ||
| 5 February, 2019 Tuesday | Yolita II | ||
| 5 February, 2019 Tuesday | Monserrat | ||
| 8 February, 2019 Friday | Xavier III | ||
| 10 February, 2019 Sunday | Monserrat | ||
| 12 February, 2019 Tuesday | Yolita II | ||
| 12 February, 2019 Tuesday |  Silver Galapagos | ||
| 14 February, 2019 Thursday |  Celebrity Xpedition | 07:00 | 12:00 |
| 15 February, 2019 Friday | Xavier III | ||
| 15 February, 2019 Friday | Silver Galapagos | ||
| 16 February, 2019 Saturday | Xavier III | ||
| 16 February, 2019 Saturday | Yolita II | ||
| 16 February, 2019 Saturday | Monserrat | ||
| 16 February, 2019 Saturday | Celebrity Xpedition | 07:00 | 19:00 |
| 17 February, 2019 Sunday | Yolita II | ||
| 17 February, 2019 Sunday | Xavier III | ||
| 18 February, 2019 Monday | Yolita II | ||
| 18 February, 2019 Monday | Monserrat | ||
| 19 February, 2019 Tuesday | Yolita II | ||
| 19 February, 2019 Tuesday | Monserrat | ||
| 21 February, 2019 Thursday | Silver Galapagos | ||
| 22 February, 2019 Friday | Xavier III | ||
| 22 February, 2019 Friday | Silver Galapagos | ||
| 22 February, 2019 Friday | Celebrity Xpedition | 15:00 | 21:00 |
| 23 February, 2019 Saturday | Celebrity Xpedition | 07:00 | 19:00 |
| 24 February, 2019 Sunday | Monserrat | ||
| 26 February, 2019 Tuesday | Yolita II | ||
| 26 February, 2019 Tuesday | Silver Galapagos | ||
| 28 February, 2019 Thursday | Celebrity Xpedition | 07:00 | 12:00 |
The Santa Cruz Island cruise port map is interactive. It shows the port's exact location, along with the real-time cruise ship traffic (if any) in its vicinity - today, and right now. By zooming-out you can see other cruise ship ports located near Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos.
If you lose the Santa Cruz Island location on the map, simply reload the page (also with F5 button). This feature is integrated with the CruiseMapper's cruise ship tracker tracking the vessels' current positions at sea and in ports.