About Isla Santa Cruz

The gentle sea with the purest water and the magnificent sandy beaches of Isla Santa Cruz attract more and more tourists yearly. The crystal turquoise color of the seawater sets the level of your vacation somewhere between stunning and perfect. So if you are looking for the perfect sea, this is your place!

Isla Santa Cruz Best beaches

view the highest rated beaches in area

Good for Relax

Tortuga Bay Galapagos

Puerto Ayora 2.6 km
Very good
8.6
Free entrance • Amenities beach • Exceptional beauty • Difficult access • Trail > 1km • Distant parking
1.5 Amenities index
Good for Relax

Tortuga Laguna Beach

Puerto Ayora 3.6 km
Very good
8.3
Free entrance • Virgin beach • White fine sand • Difficult access • Crowded in season • Trail > 1km
0.5 Amenities index
Good for Relax

Playa Las Bachas

Santa Rosa 18.9 km
Very good
8.2
Free entrance • Virgin beach • Picturesque • White fine sand • Access by boat • No parking
0 Amenities index
Good for Relax

Playa El Garrapatero

El Cascajo 6.5 km
Very good
8.1
Free entrance • Virgin beach • Easy access • Bright sand • Crowded in season • Distant parking
2.1 Amenities index

Playa los alemanes

Puerto Ayora 0.7 km
Very good
8.1
Free entrance • Virgin beach • Bright sand • Difficult access • Crowded in season • Trail > 500m
0 Amenities index
Good for Relax

Garrapatero Beach

El Cascajo 6.7 km
Good
7.6
Free entrance • Virgin beach • Bright sand • Turquoise pure water • Access by boat • No parking
0 Amenities index

Calm, measured rest and the sound of waves are perhaps the most common associations that arise with the word "beach". This is not surprising, as relaxation is exactly what many beach travelers are looking for. If you associate your vacation primarily with such activity, choose one of the 8 beaches in the island.

To make your choice easier, we have prepared a list of the best beaches for relaxation in Isla Santa Cruz.

Attraction and Infrastructure

As for the main features of the beaches of Isla Santa Cruz, they are as follows:

  • The island's beaches are mainly wide, moderate length and have a high level of cleanliness. The most common surface is sand of bright color.
  • Usually, entry into the water is gentle, which is very good for kids. There are 6 such beaches.
  • The average distance from the road to beach in Isla Santa Cruz is more than 1 km. 2 beaches are relatively easy to access, 3 beaches are difficult to access, which in most cases means that you have to walk a quite long distance, and 3 beaches are only accessible from the water. The latter include both island beaches and beaches with no land routes due to the natural borders.

Wild beaches with no infrastructure dominate the coastline of Isla Santa Cruz however, even here you can find a beach with a standard set of accessories: sun beds, umbrellas, restaurants, showers and toilets.

Latest reviews on Isla Santa Cruz's beaches

Tortuga Bay Galapagos
10 Lila Kessler

Tortuga Bay is a fabulous beach that has been ranked as one of the top ten beaches in the world by Conde Nest. It's a great place to take a walk from the main port, but make sure to bring water. The entire walk from the ranger station to the beach is paved, as you can see in the pictures. The beach itself is actually two beaches - one with rougher water and one with calm water. We decided to walk to the rougher beach and found it to be absolutely beautiful. There were very few people there on a Sunday afternoon, which was great. The white sand is truly remarkable. If we had continued walking, we would have reached the calmer beach, but our companions warned us that it was quite crowded. We were happy to have found a semi-isolated spot to enjoy. Getting to the beach from town is an easy walk that takes about 45 minutes.

Playa Las Bachas
10 Ethan Brooks

This part of Galapagos was absolutely beautiful. I had the incredible experience of swimming with a sea lion while snorkelling!

Playa El Garrapatero
10 Julianne Bryce

The beach is stunning and serene, with golden sand that adds to its natural beauty.

Playa los alemanes
10 Nad D.

We made a brief stop at this beach on our way to Las Grietas. It's worth noting that the beach has free public entry.

Cerro Dragon Beach
10 Michelle Scheidecker

During our visit to the beach, we took a tour that involved a bus ride to the jetty followed by a boat ride to Cerro Dragon. The walk was enjoyable, and we were able to see plenty of land iguanas. However, the snorkeling experience was average at best. It's worth noting that even during high season, the beach was deserted.

Playa de la Estacion
10 Jenelle Cunavera

This beach is absolutely stunning and offers easy access for all. The best part is that it's free to the public!

Finding hotels in relative proximity to the beaches is usually fine. Many beaches have enough nearby accommodation, which gives good opportunities to choose the right place to stay.

The hottest month of the island is March - air temperature during this time warms up to 27.9°C and water up to 28.4°C in February. The coldest month is September - air temperature drops to 20.5°C and water to 21.7°C.

Do you know how many beaches there are in Isla Santa Cruz? In total there are 8 beaches and the most popular is Tortuga Bay Galapagos.