Day Tour to Isabela Island with Tintorera Islet, Snorkeling Wetlands & Flamingos
Overview
Available languages
10 hours
Mobile ticket
This tour allows you to get to know the beautiful island of Isabela with all the species it is famous for in only one day; you will see the Galapagos penguins, the blue-footed boobies, the flamingos, the whitetip reef sharks, marine iguanas, sea turtles, sea lions and much more as well as Galapagos' most beautiful coconut palm beach along which the cute little town of Puerto Villamil is built.
This tour is the perfect combination of land & water, as during the (short) snorkel activity you will get to know the abundant wildlife underwater, while the disembarkation on Tinterera Islet plus the tour to the flamingos and tortoises allows you to observe all the land species from as close as possible.
The tour includes lunch in one of the best ocean front restaurants.
You will be provided with high quality snorkel equipment and wetsuits.
Please note that the only way to get to Isabela for the day is by PUBLIC SPEEDBOAT - we work with the best one but if the sea is rough it can get choppy!
Additional Info
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Public transportation options are available nearby
Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
What To Expect
Las Tintoreras
During this boat tour, together with a naturalist guide you will be exploring the beautiful bay of Isabela Island, to see the Galapagos penguins from close as well as the blue-footed boobies. There will be a disembarkation on "Las Tintoreras", a little islet inhabited by tons of little marine iguanas a.o. The exploration walk on this island will lead you to the famous shark channel where lots of whitetip reef sharks ("Tintoreras in Spanish, therefore the name of the island") like to rest; often together with sea turtles and sea lions. Before getting back on board, you will also visit a beautiful little white sand beach inhabited by sea lions. There will also be a great snorkel activity, together with sea turtles, sharks, rays, and - if you get lucky - then the penguins might get into the water with you too.
Isabela Island Wetlands Complex
Following a beautiful trail along mangrove trees, you will explore the "Humedales", i.e. wetlands, where you will be able to see the Galapagos flamingos in their natural habitat, many other birds as well as marine iguanas. The trail leads you to the most beautiful coconut palm beach.
Options
Day tour to Isabela Island - Tintorera Islet, Snorkeling, Wetlands and Flamingos
What‘s Included
Fee charged for the use of the pier in Puerto Ayora
Lunch menu in a very nice restaurant
Boat Tour "Las Tintoreras" with a Naturalist Guide
Soda/Pop
Transport with a private driver during the entire stay on Isabela Island
Lunch
Use of Snorkelling equipment
Wetsuits (long or short, as preferred)
Boat ride to Isabela round trip on a comfortable and fast speedboat
Fuel surcharge
Entry fee to the Breeding Centre ($10 per person)
Mesh bag to store your snorkel equipment and the wetsuit
Propinas (optional)
Alcoholic Beverages
Water taxis to and from the speedboat ($1 per person)
Isabela Island
Cancellation Policy
All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations.
Reviews
133 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Great trip, fantastic tour agency
tomthacker,Jun 6, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Had a really great time on this tour of Isabela Island and would absolutely recommend doing if, for example, you are staying on Santa Cruz and want to get a brief taste of what Isabela Island has to offer. This was the second tour I went on organised by Guiding Galapagos Expeditions and I really want to highlight them here as well. Omar helped set up everything for me - for this tour in particular, I wanted to spend a bit more time on Isabela Island so he organised my ferry ticket back to Santa Cruz for the next day. Guiding Galapagos provided me with my own snorkelling equipment, and made sure to reach out the day before the tour to organise the details and fit me for the snorkelling gear. I found them to be really excellent in organising tours around the Galápagos Islands - if you are shopping around different tour agencies in the Galapagos, I would absolutely recommend reaching out to Guiding Galapagos Expeditions.
An amazing tour in Isabela: unique fauna and moments that are not forgotten
Joao J,May 2, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00I toured Isabela Island and overall it was an excellent experience. From the first contact with the agency, the care was very good. The guide was professional and friendly, and the guide at Isabela was simply exceptional. In my case, the tour was practically private (just him and me), which made the experience even more special. He was very attentive, friendly and always willing to help. As for the experience itself, it was amazing: I could see penguins (even swimming very close), marine iguanas, turtles and a variety of fauna. In addition, there is a high probability of seeing blue-footed birds, which makes the tour very complete. As a complement, the tour also includes a visit to giant turtles, so in a single day you can observe many of the most emblematic species of the Galapagos. I highly recommend this tour, but with an important observation: it is essential to bring a good camera, ideally capable of recording underwater. Otherwise, many of the best experiences will remain only in the memory. On the negative side, the organization of water taxi transportation could be improved considerably. Communication was limited, with little guidance for passengers, which at times creates confusion. It would be important to make this service clearer, more organized and more customer-oriented. Despite this detail, the overall balance of the tour is very positive and definitely worth it. I recommend it.
A day with Penguins
michele f531,Apr 20, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Excellent experience from start to finish. Very communicative and informative guides. Snorkeling was great! Highly recommend Guiding Galápagos Expeditions!!
Not Worth the Money
Marijo E,Apr 6, 2026
- Review from Viator
3.00We didn’t do this trip as described. We are photographers so we didn’t want to snorkel. We had to meet at 6:10 am and then sit on the high speed ferry until it started moving toward Isabela at 8 am. The ferry ride was OK but when we arrived at 9:30 am we had to wait for 30 minutes to meet the tour guide because they don’t start until 10:00 am (which we didn’t know). We went to a lava tunnel which was unimpressive, an overlook of the island, a turtle breeding area (very good although similar to that at Charles Darwin Research Center on Santa Cruz, and a small lagoon with 2 flamingos. Then we ate lunch at a restaurant by the ocean. We ordered our meals in advance and when we arrived at restaurant at 12:30 pm we had to wait 40 minutes for our food. After lunch we had to go back to the pier by 2 pm to catch the 3 pm ferry back to Santa Cruz. We spent a lot of money for a 2 1/2 hour experience. I wouldn’t recommend this tour. Perhaps the snorkeling would make the trip worthwhile but we didn’t find our tour worth the money we paid. The ferry ride back was very hot and uncomfortable. I wouldn’t recommend using The Wolf ferry unless you could not get a seat on any other ferry. The crew was not friendly or helpful.
Great way to visit Galapagos
N846UHmarcusd,Apr 1, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Excellent overall experience. Very knowledgeable and helpful staff along the way, each part of the tour was well organized and very enjoyable.
A Truly Personal and Magical Adventure
LisaK inB,Mar 31, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00I also did a second tour to Isabela with Guiding Galapagos, and it was just as incredible—if not even more special, as it was a private tour just for me. Jonathan and Nelly were incredibly warm and welcoming, and they gave me a deep insight into the local flora and fauna. They were always attentive, helpful, and made the entire experience feel very personal and unique. I can’t recommend this experience enough—it was truly something special.
Amazing experience
168nadiae,Mar 30, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00From beginning to end I felt taken care of; the tour guides were all extremely knowledgeable. The took into account the small child I was traveling with. They made our day incredible and memorable!
Not a good use of time
FrankTripAdvis,Mar 21, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
3.00I recently took a tour to Isabela Island with Guiding Galapagos and wanted to share my experience. Overall, the day was enjoyable, but the tour did not match the advertised itinerary, which was disappointing. There is a lot of wait before and during the trip, which unfortunately limits what you actually experience after what is a long boat trip. A major issue for me was the snorkeling portion. I had been told it would last around 30 minutes, but it ended up being the main activity (over 1 hour), which was not ideal since I don’t snorkel. This significantly impacted my enjoyment of the day. Other parts of the tour also felt shorter or different than described. The Tintoreras visit lasted about 30 minutes with limited highlights, and the wetlands visit was reduced to a brief stop at the flamingo ponds rather than the more extensive walk that had been advertised. There was also some confusion around Playa Puerto Villamil, as it seemed to be just the lunch location rather than a separate visit with several highlights indicated on their itinerary. I also recommend that the company be more transparent regarding pricing. While a 20% discount was offered for booking directly, additional credit card fees meant the final price was actually higher than booking through platforms like Viator where you can already get 15% with Rakuten or Chase/Amex discounts. That said, I do appreciate that the company responded professionally to my feedback, acknowledged the issues, and explained that some variability depends on weather conditions and park regulations. It’s clear they are trying to improve communication with guides. Nevertheless no partial refund was offered despite selling something not as described.
Magical day at Isabela Island!
Nancy58 13,Mar 20, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00I am a Travel Agent and brought a small group of 10 people to the Galapagos Islands. I looked at several different companies offering day tours to Isabela Island from Santa Cruz. The communication with Daniel from the start was outstanding and the attention to detail was just what I was looking for. Once in the Galapagos, we were contacted by Omar and met before the tour to go over the itinerary and equipped with top of the line snorkel equipment. The activities were wonderful from the kayaking to the snorkeling to the flamingoes and the tortoise breeding center - all of which included knowledgeable guides. The day was well planned out and Jonathan made sure we got from point A to point B without incident. I highly recommend Guiding Galapagos for a fun and professional experience. Great value for money!
Full day out
Claudia S,Feb 17, 2026
- Review from Viator
4.00A full day with lots of activities. Beautiful island and a great lunch. Guides very helpful. Take lots of sunscreen and water
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Operated by Guiding Galapagos Expeditions