San Cristobal Island`s Visitor Sites

1) Interpretation Center & Tijeretas Hill, 2) Cerro Colorado Tortoise Reserve, 3) Cerro Brujo, 4) Punta Pitt & Islet.

San Cristobal Island´s location

Located on the east of the archipelago, which means it is the farthest of the hot spot of all, about 200 kilometers away from it with no volcanic activity.

San Cristobal Island´s capital

This island is the capital of the archipelago, Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, with a population of about 7 thousand people. Human development started on the early 1832, firstly on the highlands on a sugar production settlement.

San Cristobal Island´s animals species

1) Red Footed Booby. 2) Sea Lion. 3) Galapagos Giant Tortoise

South Plaza Island Information & Visitor Sites

Find sea lion colonies, land and hybrid iguanas and countless birds soaring by the cliffs. It is an unpopulated island.

These islands are interesting formations without a volcano resulting from an uplifting from underwater. Conformed by two islands, one flat and the other inclined, they create very special ecosystem dynamics. North Plaza is visited only with scientific and conservation purposes.

The biggest Land Iguana population that can be visited. There is a big ecosystem formed of Cactus Opuntia that holds a population of Land Iguanas, the smallest ones of the archipelago. The trip around South Plaza place allows the visitor see the whole population and to notice how this animals survived in this and other similar environments when they arrived and established. Rarely a hybrid of Marine and Land Iguana can be found on the trails.

South Plaza

The walk begins with an impressive cactus forest surrounded by sea lions, land and marine iguanas; as we reach its highest point 82 ft (25 m) be on the lookout for tropicbirds, Nazca and blue -footed bobbies and swallow-tailed gulls.

In South Plaza there is a large colony of the smaller sized land iguanas. The population is approximately 300 individuals. They feed on all kinds of vegetation, but during the dry season, they survive on the fruits and flowers of Opuntia cacti. Due to their proximity with marine iguanas, this is the only place on Earth where we will find the Galapagos hybrid iguana.

Land Iguana and travelers in Darwin Bay, a visitor site from South Plaza Island

Disembarking: Dry.
Type of Terrain: Rocky.
Difficulty: Medium.
Activities: 2-hour 15 min hike.
Highlights: Red island due to its vegetation made up of sesuvium, a largest colony of sea lions, the unique landscape of a cactus forest, hybrid iguanas, Nazca, blue-footed boobies, swallow-tailed gulls and red- billed tropicbirds.