Dive Yacht Itineraries 2012
NOTE Land visits within the Galapagos National Park are no longer allowed on diving trips.  Therefore all land visits listed below are done outside of the Galapagos National Park

Humboldt Explorer
Monday: San Cristobal
Guests fly to the Galapagos Islands from Mainland Ecuador, arriving in the islands mid-day. Guests are met at the airport and taken to the vessel.
Boarding the vessel after 11:00 a.m., guests will depart for a short crossing to the a calm site for a check out dive and safety briefing. After dinner the vessel will depart to the next scheduled destination.
Tuesday: Punta Bartoleme
6:30, 9:30, dives. Sightings include rays and sea lions. Depart for Northern Islands.
Wednesday: Wolf Island - Landslide, Shark Bay, Pinaculo
6:30, 10:30 and 2:00 dives.  Sightings often include hammerheads, eagle rays, Galapagos sharks, and silky sharks.  Night at anchor.
Thursday: Wolf Island
6:30, 10:30 and 2:00 dives.  Sightings often include hammerheads, red-lipped batfish, eagle rays, Galapagos sharks, and silky sharks.  Night at anchor. Crossing to Darwin Island.
Friday: Darwin Island
6:30, 10:30 and 2:00 dives.  Sightings often include hammerheads,whale sharks, eagle rays, Galapagos sharks, turtles and silky sharks. 
Saturday: Darwin Island
6:30, 10:30 and 2:00 dives.  Sightings often include hammerheads,whale sharks, eagle rays, Galapagos sharks, turtles and silky sharks. Transit to Cousin's Rock.
Sunday: Cousin's Rock
6:30 and possible 8:30 dives -This is a great macro diving with an excellent chance of seeing sea horses, sea lions, and eagle rays. Lunch will be served while transiting to Santa Cruz (3 hrs). In Santa Cruz visit the giant tortoises in the highlands, have an authentic Ecuadorian BBQ lunch, visit the town of Puerto Ayora and the Darwin Centre on your own.
Monday:  Baltra/San Cristobal
Breakfast; depart the vessel by 9 am . Guests are free to visit the beach in town to see sea lions and marine iguanas in their natural habitat ortake a short wlak to the Interpretive Centre. Transfer back to the airport for 1 p.m. flight back to Quito or Guayaquil

Galapagos Aggressor I & II
Thursday:
PM: Boarding San Cristobal - Briefing PM: Welcome and Check Out Dive Isla Lobos
Friday:     AM: Punta Carrion   PM: Cousins Rock
Saturday: AM: Wolf   PM: Wolf
Sunday:   AM: Darwin   PM: Darwin

(from June to December)
Monday:   AM: Darwin   PM: Wolf
Tuesday:   Punta Vicente Roca

(from January to May)
Monday:    Punta Vicente Roca
Tuesday:   AM: Cabo Marshall, PM: Cowley Island

Wednesday:
Wednesday morning the yachts will moor in Itabaca Chanel, Santa Cruz where guests will disembark after breakfast by panga at 8 am to shore. A private bus will take everyone for a tour to see the beautiful Highlands of Santa Cruz Island. This will include Los Gemelos (The Twins, two enormous sinkholes), Scalesia Forest for a scenic view over Santa Cruz, a Tortoise Reserve to see giant tortoises, and Lava Tubes. The tour will then arrive in the quaint town of Puerto Ayora where guests will have lunch onboard the Galapagos Aggressor I & II. In the afternoon guests disembark again for a visit to the tortoise-breeding center Fausto Llerena at the Charles Darwin Research Station and a walk thru town and time for shopping. Later at night guests will have dinner at a local restaurant of their choice (the only meal not included in the cruise).
Thursday morning - after breakfast, check out is at 8 am then departure for the San Cristobal airport.

Galapagos Sky
SUNDAY PM Lobos (Day of Arrival) Check out dive. Nice protected area at 20 feet depth. Look for Sea Lions. This is a short dive in a sandy bottom with the focus of checking the skills of every diver. As the sun sets you will circumvent Kicker Rock where you want to look for the Blue footed bobby birds.MONDAY AM Marshall Island (1 dive)  At Cape Marshall, on the eastern side of Isabela island, we encounter rocky volcanic cliffs which drop down to the ocean floor as an almost vertical wall. You might see large animals like manta rays, marble rays, hammerhead sharks, mola mola (oceanic sun fish) and marine turtles. Also keep an eye out for Chevron barracuda, snappers, yellow fin tuna, rainbow runners, wahoo and groupers. There are also a lot of smaller fishes like creole fishes, parrot fishes, scrawled filefishes, pacific box fishes and tiger snake eels.Monday PM Vicente Roca  (2 dives), Colorful sites with many marine invertebrates, anemones, lobsters, shrimp with occasional Mola Mola sightings. Plus the opportunity to have a panga ride and snorkeling to see the Penguins, Marine Iguanas and Blue Footed Booby Birds.
TUESDAY AM Wolf (2 Dive). Look for schools of Hammerheads, Silky Sharks, Galapagos Sharks Dolphins and rays.
TUESDAY PM Wolf (1 dives) during the afternoon.
WEDNESDAY AM Darwin (2 dives) at Darwin's Arch. Hammerheads, Galapagos Sharks and HUGE schools of tropical fish enjoy this area. Seasonal sightings of Whale Sharks are common.
WEDNESDAY PM Darwin (1 Dives) at the Darwin Arch.
THURSDAY AM Darwin (2 dives) at the Darwin Arch.
THURSDAY PM Wolf (1 Dive) 
FRIDAY AM Marshall Island (1 dives)  At Cape Marshall, on the eastern side of Isabela island, we encounter rocky volcanic cliffs which drop down to the ocean floor as an almost vertical wall. You might see large animals like manta rays, marble rays, hammerhead sharks, mola mola (oceanic sun fish) and marine turtles. Also keep an eye out for Chevron barracuda, snappers, yellow fin tuna, rainbow runners, wahoo and groupers. There are also a lot of smaller fishes like creole fishes, parrot fishes, scrawled filefishes, pacific box fishes and tiger snake eels.
FRIDAY PM  ROCA BLANCA (2 dives)- NEW TO THE ITINERARY for 2012, This site provides opportunities for encounters with  up to 6 species of sharks,  sea lions, Mantas, eagle rays and moray eels.  There is always an abundance of yellow tailed surgeonfish, king angelfish, moorish idols, steel pompanos, snappers, grunts, creolefish, and barracuda.
SATURDAY AM Cousins Rocks (1 dive)-this dive is done along a beautiful wall and allows for great viewing opportunities for coral, frog fish, sea horses and octopus. Sea Lions will be your companions on the safety stops. This dive is then followed by a Land Visit to the Highlands of Santa Cruz to see the Galapagos Turtles in their natural environment. A visit to the very special "Scalecias Forest", the Twins and the Lava Tube also is included during the morning ashore.
SATURDAY  PM Land Tours continue in Puerto Ayora to the Charles Darwin Research Center. This is where we will also disembark guests who have chosen to extend their holiday in Pto. Ayora, prior to returning to San Cristobal for Sunday morning cruise completion.
SUNDAY AM (Day of Departure) Arrive San Cristobal - (land excursion) visit the Interpretation Center where an interesting human history of Galapagos is presented, town walk (last chance for shopping).  Late morning departure.

Deep Blue
Mon:     Arrival in San Cristobal Galapagos-- Isla Lobos check dive
Tues:    AM 2 dives Punta Carrion,  PM land visits toLos Gemelos and El Chato on Santa Cruz Island
Wed:    Darwin 3 dives      
Thur:    Darwin 3 dives                 
Fri:       Wolf 3 dives
Sat:      Wolf 3 dives (June - December) or Cabo Marshall (Jan-May) 3 dives    
Sun:     AM 2 dives Cousins Rocks.  PM visit the Darwin Station.        
Mon:   visit the Interpretation Center then departure for the San Cristobal airport for your return flight to mainland Ecuador


MV Darwin Buddy MV Wolf Buddy (scheduled to begin operations in Sept 2011)
Saturday (day of arrival)
You will arrive aboard at San Cristobal Island, followed by a check out dive at Isla Lobos. This site is the home for many sea lions, as well as sand dollars, black-blotched stingrays, puffers and sea stars.

Day 2 - Sunday
Three dives are scheduled at North Seymour and Mosquera which gives the opportunity to see Galapagos garden eels, sea turtles, sea lions, fur seals, golden eagle rays, yellowtail grunts, bigeye jacks, schools of snappers and frequent sightings of whitetip reef sharks, hammerheads, and Galapagos sharks.

Day 3 - 5 Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
Every day three dives will be made at Wolf Island or Darwin Island. These dive sites are very well known for the high presence of hammerheads, and big Galapagos sharks. There is also the likelihood of seeing marine turtles, various types of rays, mantas, dolphins, moray eels, and invertebrates.

Day 6 Thursday
Three dives are scheduled at Roca Redondo and Vincente Roca where often sun fish, hammerheads, white tip reef sharks, manta rays, sea horses and Galapagos sharks can be spotted.

Day 7 Friday
On this day two dives at Cousins Rock and Bartolome island are made in the morning, followed by a Guided visit to the town of Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz Island in the afternoon. Cousins Rock is a perfect site for seeing black juvenile corals, Galapagos seahorses, octopuses, hammerheads, Galapagos sharks, green sea turtles, eagle rays, and schools of barracudas.

Day 8 Saturday (day of departure)
Check out day and departure from San Cristobal.