Santa Cruz Island is a popular travel hub, and tours that leave from Santa Cruz take you to all types of wildlife attractions, like South Plaza Island and North Seymour Island — both good places for seeing some of the most unusual birds in the Galápagos Archipelago. You may also want to plan a trip to Floreana Island, home to some of the islands' most interesting human history. On Santa Cruz itself, you'll want to venture into its moist highlands to see some Galápagos tortoises roaming free. Of course, you can also see these animals up close at the Charles Darwin Research Station or El Chato Ranch. If you want to stay immersed in nature for the duration of your visit to Santa Cruz, choose from accommodations that offer their own little slice of the waterfront or the highlands. When you're done with your tours, appreciate the beauty of the island’s various beaches and well-maintained hiking trails.

Travelers come to San Cristóbal Island so they can be a mere hour away from some of the exceptionally rare sights that make the Galápagos Islands such an important destination. These sights include León Dormido, aka “Kicker Rock”— the vertical rock formation formed by an ancient eruption of lava. Around here, you can see a huge variety of fish as well as sea turtles and rays. Tours to Kicker Rock often include a stop at the Leon Dormido beach, where you'll see sea lions basking. Islands near San Cristóbal also offer incredible opportunities for birdwatching. Isla Lobos is home to albatross, blue-footed boobies, and Nazca boobies, to name just a few. Walk to the top of Frigate Bird Hill for a stunning view of the island and Kicker Rock in the distance. It takes about an hour to reach the top of the hill. The highlands offer other incredible sights like the El Junco Lagoon.

Although Isabela is one of the largest islands in the Galápagos Archipelago, it’s also one of the least developed, outside of the sleepy town of Puerto Villamil. There are many miles of nature to explore, and lots of excellent spots for observing wildlife. On Isabela, you can find unusual features like Los Humedales, a series of paths with twisted lava formations. Take a stunning nature hike from Sierra Negra Volcano to Chico Volcano. From its peak, you'll have a good view of lava flows all over the island. Concha Perla Beach is another must-see attraction on the island, known as a snorkeling hotspot — not far from the shore, you can peek into the underwater world of sea lions, sea turtles, and colorful tropical fish. Make sure to stop by Isabela's Giant Tortoise Breeding Center where you can see the five different types of Galápagos tortoises. Out of all the places to see tortoises in the Galápagos, this one offers the most insight into the life cycles of these modern-day dinosaurs. For more rare wildlife, head to Las Tintoreras, a small chain of islands near Isabela’s bay, for the chance to see the Galápagos penguin. This is one of the few islands where you can see this bird in the wild, in addition to interesting aquatic species — marine iguanas, manta rays, and white-tip reef sharks — swimming in the shallows.