Galápagos Islands

加拉帕戈斯群岛 · Galápagos Province, Ecuador

Photo: Mary Farnkoff · CC BY-SA 4.0

Where Darwin wrote the theory of evolution — a living laboratory of evolution where the animals are not afraid of people

Know before you go

Don't bring any fresh fruit or vegetables, seeds, meat, eggs or dairy, or alien organisms (including pets) onto the islands
don't feed any animal or leave food scraps at landing sites
don't take any "souvenirs" away: shells, coral, volcanic rock and sand are all national-park property and airport X-rays will catch them

This article is Not yet verified. Please check official announcements for prices, opening hours and dates.

Stories & people

History

Stories of Galápagos Islands

In September 1835 the 26-year-old Charles Darwin arrived at this equatorial volcanic archipelago aboard the survey ship Beagle, staying only five weeks. The mockingbirds gave him the first hint: the mockingbirds on different islands looked different. Back home, an offhand remark by the vice-governor of San Cristóbal Island woke him up — local people could tell from the shape of a tortoise's shell which island it came from. Only then did Darwin grasp what his bird specimens, mixed together by island, meant: the same species of bird had grown beaks adapted to different foods on different islands. Those finches — later identified by the ornithologist John Gould as 13 distinct species, the "Darwin's finches" — together with the island-by-island differences in tortoise shells, became core evidence in On the Origin of Species for "geographical isolation driving speciation". Intriguingly, Darwin had not fully worked it out at the time; the realisation came only when he sorted his specimens back in England — the greatest gift the islands gave science was a head full of questions amassed in five weeks of observation. In 1978 this became one of UNESCO's very first World Heritage listings.

Source: Galápagos National Park Directorate; UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Galápagos Islands; Wikipedia: Galápagos Islands

History

History of Galápagos Islands

The archipelago was formed by submarine volcanic eruptions, lying on the Pacific equator about 900 km west of mainland Ecuador; the oldest islands are several million years old, and Isabela and Fernandina in the west are still erupting. In 1535 the ship of Tomás de Berlanga, Bishop of Panama, was carried here by the currents — the first European record; for the next three centuries the islands were a supply stop for pirates and whalers, and giant tortoises were taken in huge numbers as live provisions for ships, driving several tortoise subspecies to extinction. Ecuador declared sovereignty in 1832, and Darwin visited in 1835. Ecuador set up a reserve in 1936; in 1959 Galápagos National Park was formally established and the Charles Darwin Foundation founded the same year, which then built the Charles Darwin Research Station. Today about 97% of the archipelago's land area is national park and the marine reserve covers some 130,000 km², making it one of the most strictly regulated archipelagos in the world; the entry fee rose in August 2024 from US$100 to US$200 (foreign adults), the first adjustment in 26 years, with revenue going to conservation and the community.

Source: Galápagos National Park Directorate; UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Galápagos Islands; Wikipedia: Galápagos Islands

Culture

Culture & customs

Background

The Galápagos is the ethical origin point of global ecotourism: the rules here are not scenic-area management tricks but a philosophy in which "humans are the guests" — the animals have right of way and visitors walk on marked trails; if a sea lion takes a pier bench, people walk around it. This way of living together exists because the islands' animals evolved for millions of years without predators and are naturally unafraid of humans — putting the fragility of protection before every visitor's eyes.

Local customs

Island life runs on the rhythm of boat schedules and seasons: about 30,000 residents live in the towns of four islands — Santa Cruz, San Cristóbal, Isabela and Floreana. Local culture prizes "slow and self-sufficient": many families run small hotels and family restaurants, and the fishermen's daily catch (mostly yellowfin tuna and grouper) stars at the table
there are monthly community beach clean-ups, and visitors on island-hopping tours often feel the strong local conservation identity.

Religion & beliefs

Residents are mainly Catholic, with no religious taboos directly tied to the sights
note, though, that ecological norms here carry an almost "faith-level" conscientiousness: littering or touching animals will be stopped on the spot by residents and guides.

Etiquette & taboos

Don’t DON'T

Don't bring any fresh fruit or vegetables, seeds, meat, eggs or dairy, or alien organisms (including pets) onto the islands
don't feed any animal or leave food scraps at landing sites
don't take any "souvenirs" away: shells, coral, volcanic rock and sand are all national-park property and airport X-rays will catch them
don't carry unquarantined farm produce privately between islands — island-hopping luggage goes through inspection too

Locals appreciate DO

Keep at least 2 metres from all wildlife
if an animal approaches you, stand still and don't reach out
stay only on marked trails and landing sites and follow your naturalist guide's stopping and gathering instructions
when snorkelling, look but don't touch, don't chase sea turtles and sea lions, and don't use flash close to animals' eyes
clean your shoe soles and luggage before entering, cooperate proactively with the ABG biosecurity check and declare food honestly

Plan your visit

Practical info

Travel tips

Entry is doubly controlled: before departure you must obtain the Transit Control Card (TCT, about US$20) online, on arrival you pay the national-park entry fee at the airport (for foreign adults US$200 since August 2024
official announcements prevail), and all luggage passes the biosecurity inspection (ABG)
Carrying any fresh fruit, vegetables, seeds, dairy or meat products onto the islands is strictly forbidden, and soil on shoe soles must be cleaned off too
single-use plastics are banned from entry, so check your luggage against the official list before you travel
Most protected-area sites can only be entered led by a licensed naturalist guide (on a cruise or an island-hopping day tour), and keeping at least 2 metres from wildlife is an iron rule
Fly from Quito or Guayaquil to Baltra (Santa Cruz) or San Cristóbal airport, about 2–2.5 hours
obtain the TCT transit control card online before departure (about US$20), and on landing pay the national-park fee (foreign adults US$200, children on the order of US$100, cash only or per the officially announced payment method) and pass luggage inspection. There are two ways to play: a cruise (4–8 days, including guide and all landing sites — expensive but most efficient) or land-based island hopping (staying in town hotels and joining day tours — flexible and cheaper). Allow at least 5–7 days
the dry season (June–November) has cooler water, good visibility and the animals' breeding season, while the wet season (December–May) has warm water good for snorkelling. Inter-island transport is by public speedboat and small planes — seasickness medicine is essential.

Eat nearby

What to eat nearby

Must-try

['Encebollado fish soup: Ecuador's national fish soup, tuna with yuca and pickled onions, eaten at breakfast too', 'Ceviche: shrimp or fish in lime juice with onion, served with popcorn/plantain chips

['Encebollado fish soup: Ecuador's national fish soup, tuna with yuca and pickled onions, eaten at breakfast too', 'Ceviche: shrimp or fish in lime juice with onion, served with popcorn/plantain chips; the island version uses the daily catch', 'Grilled grouper and yellowfin tuna (pescado a la plancha): straight from the fishing harbour, with rice, lentils and fried plantain (patacones)', 'Sugarcane and coffee: farms in the Santa Cruz highlands produce coffee and sugarcane products, with farm experiences available']

Where to eat	Charles Binford Street (the "food street", around Los Kioskos) in Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz turns into a long-table night market in the evening — the liveliest place for seafood; the seafront avenue in Puerto Baquerizo Moreno on San Cristóbal is dense with restaurants; cruise passengers take all three meals aboard.
Dining etiquette	the food stalls run on shared-table culture and food is cooked to order after you order, so be patient; Ecuadorian restaurant bills often include a 10% service charge, and you may leave a tip on top; be sure seafood is the day's legal catch and don't order protected species (such as sea cucumbers or lobster in the closed season).
Typical price per person	US$15–35 per person, about RMB 110–255 (typical rates); all-inclusive cruise itineraries are counted separately.
Tips	Puerto Ayora's fish market is liveliest in the early morning, with sea lions and pelicans waiting by the counters for scraps — a famous street scene — but never feed them; island prices run 50% to 100% above the mainland, and drinking water comes barreled or purified — don't drink tap water.

Prices are typical rates as of October 2026, not exact quotes; CNY equivalents are approximate where exchange rates fluctuate.

Photos

Galápagos Islands
Mary Farnkoff · CC BY-SA 4.0

Sources & verification notes

Galápagos National Park Directorate

UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Galápagos Islands

Wikipedia: Galápagos Islands