Santiago Island Landscapes and Wildlife

Santiago Island rewards visitors who enjoy geology and animals more than monuments. This Galapagos island of about 585 square kilometres is volcanic, uninhabited and free of buildings, so the sights are the shapes of the land and the creatures that use it. Here they are, grouped by theme rather than by site.

Volcanic landscape

Sullivan Bay is the headline. Lava that spilled out in the late 19th century, often dated to 1897, set into smooth coils and cracked plates, with small hornitos and the hollow casts of trees. The first tree molds are roughly 150 m from the start of the path. The sight is across from Bartolome, which many trips combine with it.

Puerto Egas adds black sand and a shelf of dark rock. It also carries the traces of a failed salt-mining venture from the 20th century, and the salt lagoon inland is closed to visitors.

Coastline

Buccaneer Cove, called Bahia Bucanero on maps, is a line of steep, weathered cliffs and sea stacks. It served as an anchorage for buccaneers and whalers, and visitors usually look at it from a panga.

Sombrero Chino is a small cone-shaped islet beside Santiago’s south-east tip, with lava tubes. Itineraries tend to include it alongside Santiago landings.

Wildlife

  • Galapagos fur seals and young sea lions rest on the rocks at Puerto Egas.
  • Green turtles nest on Espumilla Beach, and the lagoon behind holds white-cheeked pintails and sometimes flamingos.
  • Penguins are sometimes spotted around Sombrero Chino.
  • Sharks and rays are common sightings for divers at Cousins Rock.

If time is short

A day trip from Santa Cruz generally reaches Sullivan Bay only. A cruise adds Puerto Egas, Espumilla and the coast by panga over several days, so choose a cruise if the animals matter most to you and a day trip if the lava does.

How the sights are seen

Everything is visited on a guided landing, from a cruise or a day boat that leaves Santa Cruz around 6:00 and reaches the islands after roughly 40 minutes by road and 2 hours at sea. Wet or dry landings depend on conditions, so wear shoes you can get wet and carry closed shoes for the lava.

Visitor rules in brief

Stay 2 m from wildlife, skip flash and leave drones at home. The park fee is $200 for a foreign adult. Read the park rules and the Puerto Egas page at visitgalapagos.travel before you go.

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