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Isabela — two nights, the full drill
The Isabela overnight shape: ferry over from Puerto Ayora, two nights in Puerto Villamil, ferry back. Isabela is where the penguins are (Los Túneles, Las Tintoreras), and it is the gentle island for Mom: flamingo lagoon, Concha de Perla, short local boat trips instead of long day boats. This page is the logistics drill for getting there and back with luggage. Hotel options and tour quotes live in the land-stays sweep and on the Day tours page.
At a glance
FerriesPuerto Ayora → Isabela at 7:00 AM and 3:00 PM · Isabela → Puerto Ayora at 6:00 AM and 3:00 PM · $55 per person each way · about 2 to 2.5 hours on the water
Cash neededFerry $55 pp each way, $1 dock tax, $1–1.50 water taxi each end, $10 pp Isabela entry fee on arrival, ~$2 taxi in Puerto Villamil — small bills
LuggageBags are biosecurity-inspected and tagged, ride the water taxi's bow, then the ferry's cargo hold. Spray risk: rain cover on the case, nothing fragile inside. Full detail on the Luggage page
Book whenDecember ferries sell out — book weeks ahead, not days
📅 Windows checked live, 4 adults (Oct 27)
Prices are totals as shown on Expedia, Booking.com or Airbnb for the stay, not per night. Expedia totals may exclude 15% VAT charged at the property. Nothing booked — these are checks only.
| Window | Iguana Crossing | Isamar | Cormorant | Mi Playa (Airbnb) | Yellow Heron (Airbnb) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 21–23 · 2n · same day off the cruise | $1,028 · 1 room sleeps 4 | $801 · 2 rooms | $943 · 2 rooms | $1,046 | $1,755 |
| Dec 22–24 · 2n · 1 buffer night in Ayora | SOLD OUT | $1,231 · 2 rooms | $943 · 2 rooms | $1,046 | $1,755 |
| Dec 22–23 · 1n | $514 · 1 room sleeps 4 | $453 · 2 rooms | $471 · 2 rooms | 2-night min | $892 |
| Dec 23–24 · 1n | SOLD OUT | $576 · 2 rooms | $471 · 2 rooms | 2-night min | $892 |
| Dec 23–25 · 2n · Christmas Eve/Day on Isabela | SOLD OUT | $1,153 · 2 rooms | SOLD OUT | $1,046 before taxes | SOLD OUT |
| Dec 27–28 · 1n | $514 · 1 room sleeps 4 | SOLD OUT | SOLD OUT | SOLD OUT | SOLD OUT |
| Dec 26–28 · 2n · the original slot | SOLD OUT everywhere on public channels — only a direct inquiry (drafts exist) could unlock it | ||||
Read on it: 1-night stays are real (Isamar $453, Cormorant $471 fully refundable to Dec 20), but 2 nights fits both tours comfortably — one tour a day plus Concha de Perla and the flamingo lagoon in the gaps. Best flexible hold: Cormorant, refundable to Dec 19–21 depending on the window. Iguana's own terms are 100% non-refundable; its Expedia rate is the better one (50% refund before Nov 7–12).
⛴️ The ferry, step by step
- Be at the pier an hour early, with cash in small bills.
- Bags get biosecurity-inspected and tagged about 30 minutes before departure.
- Pay the $1 dock tax, then a water taxi ($1 to $1.50 each) out to the ferry: the big bags are piled on the bow, then transferred into the ferry's cargo hold.
- The case can get sprayed on that transfer, so a rain cover goes on it and nothing fragile goes inside.
- On arrival: another screening, the $10 per person Isabela entry fee, then a ~$2 taxi or a 1 km walk into Puerto Villamil.
- On the island, both Los Túneles and Sierra Negra are daypack-only — the case waits at your hotel.
The weight question depends entirely on who sells the ticket: Ferry Galapagos enforces 20 kg with a $10 to $15 fee over it, while Galapagos Seaways' stated allowance is 23 kg. If the case travels, buy the ferry through the seller whose limit covers it and the fee question disappears.
📌 Where Isabela stands
🐧 Why Isabela
It covers the one wildlife goal the Tip Top V route misses: penguins.
Los Túneles and Las Tintoreras are short local trips at Mom's pace, and a non-snorkeler still sees plenty from the boat at Los Túneles.
Los Túneles and Las Tintoreras are short local trips at Mom's pace, and a non-snorkeler still sees plenty from the boat at Los Túneles.
🏨 Hotels — window check (Oct 27)
Seven windows checked live (Oct 27) — full grid in the table above.
Dec 26–28: sold out on every public channel; only direct inquiry could unlock it.
Workable windows: Dec 21–23 and Dec 22–24 (2n), plus 1-night Dec 22–23 and Dec 23–24.
Scalesia Lodge: sells 2–4-night stays, so 2 nights fits.
Dec 26–28: sold out on every public channel; only direct inquiry could unlock it.
Workable windows: Dec 21–23 and Dec 22–24 (2n), plus 1-night Dec 22–23 and Dec 23–24.
Scalesia Lodge: sells 2–4-night stays, so 2 nights fits.
🛥️ Day-trip fallback
If the overnights don't land: Windrose $160 pp (Dec 22–31), OceanPass $185 pp all-in.
But it's the longest day for Mom — ~2.5h of open water each way. Exactly what the overnight shape avoids.
But it's the longest day for Mom — ~2.5h of open water each way. Exactly what the overnight shape avoids.
💬 Jorge's pitch (Galapagos Destiny)
Go directly to Isabela after the cruise, stay at Coral Blanco.
A modest family-run hotel, a tier below the leaders above. Don't lock it sight unseen.
A modest family-run hotel, a tier below the leaders above. Don't lock it sight unseen.
Next step: pick the Isabela nights (the working shape is 2 nights inside Dec 21–26), then book ferries and hotel together — December ferries sell out weeks ahead.