Reina Silvia

First Class Sailing Ship

Overview

Beautiful, spacious and sturdy, superb crew and great itinerary.

Category	Length	Guests	Cabins
First Class	120 ft / 36.6 m	16	10

A beautiful and spacious first class 3 masted motor sailor, Sagitta is one of our favourite yachts thanks to her superb crew and a great itinerary. Built in Sweden in 1961 and completely remodelled in 1998 she carries 16 passengers in 10 air conditioned cabins. She is a very stable yacht which makes her a great choice for those finding their sea legs! The stern has a salon/bar with a shaded area for al fresco dining, whilst the prow has a spacious area perfect for lounging, birding, watching dolphins or stargazing. The Sagitta crew have one of the best reputations of any yacht, for offering fantastic service and being extremely kind and very professional. The yacht has been awarded the Smart Voyager certificate for adherence to sound environmental practices.

Cabins:

10 double cabins with private bathrooms, hot water and air-conditioning. Each is desgined with one double lower berth and a single upper berth.

Rates:

* GBP prices are approximate and may change due to exchange rate

Galaxy 2010	4 Days
Description
Double Cabin	USD $3,400 GB £2,428
Lower Deck Double Cabin	USD $48,960 GB £34,971

30% Single Supplement
30% Discount child under 12 years
Prices are per person, except charter price
Including all accomodation, food, services of a top class naturalist, $10 Galapagos Migration Card.
Excluding flight to Galapagos, $100 Galapagos National Park entrance fee, bottled and alcoholic drinks, tips and personal expenses

If you would like any more information or to chat over the details of the trip we would be delighted to help. Telephone 01482 872 716 for more information or email us today.

Itinerary

This is a complete 8-day itinerary starting Wednesday

Download large jpg version of this map: Detailed Itinerary

Baltra Arrival at Baltra Airport and tranfer to Yacht

aaa The highlands of Santa Cruz are home to fascinating geological features, like lava tubes and the twin sinkhole craters of Los Gemelos, which are home to some 300 different fern species as well as a “forest” of Sunflowers as well as some elusive endemics like the Woodpecker Finch (one of only two bird species in the world to use twigs as tools), the Small Tree Finch, Vegetarian Finch and Galapagos Rail all found in the lush forest of Scalacia (Giant Daisies) that characterise the highlands of this island. The highlands of Santa Cruz are one of the best places to see Giant Tortoises in the wild, particularly October through December as these magnificent giants undertake their seasonal migration from the lowlands to the lush grazing of the highlands.

aaa At Punta Cormorant you’ll walk on an olivine beach (a mineral known for its olive-green quality, that is found in meteorites, the moon and mars as well as on earth), visit a large lagoon where great flamingos sometimes nest, and walk over to Flour Beach, a beautiful white sandy beach to look for green sea turtle nests.

aaa A dingy (or panga ride) around this small pristine islet gives you the opportunity to see the elusive Floreana mockingbird.

aaa Devil’s Crown is one of the highlights of this area is snorkelling at Devil’s Crown, a partially submerged crater teeming with parrotfish, wrasse, surgeonfish, and damselfish among many other varieties of tropical fish.

aaa This island is one of the highlights of any visit to Galapagos (it is Santiago Bejarano’s favourite island). Espanola is the southernmost island in the Galapagos, and is considered the oldest. Numerous sea lions are seen here, plus hundreds of marine iguanas basking on the rocks. Espanola’s marine iguanas are unlike other Galapagos marine iguanas in their bright colouring, and the lava lizards are distinctive too. Espanola is home to thousands of nesting seabirds between April and November, with the Waved Albatross, perhaps the most spectacular of Galapagos birds, returning to Espanola by the thousands in late March to perform their amazing mating dance and produce the next generation. Almost the entire population breeds on this island April through November; they spend the rest of the year at sea. You’ll also witness courting blue-footed and masked boobies, and hopefully see their offspring of the year. At Gardner Bay there’s time to hang out with sea lions and snorkel, as well as walk the beautiful white sand beach.

aaa The easternmost island in the archipelago, this island has a small town, Puerto Baquerizo Moreno and is home to a fantastic interpretation centre, which provides an excellent overview to the islands natural history and the conservation work being done to protect it. Leon Dormido, sometimes called Kicker Rock, is a huge rock formation, your captain will navigate your yacht right through the middle of it!

aaa A perfect place to swim with playful sea lions and snorkel. This basalt island outcropping lives up to its name of “sea lion island”. As well as the sea lion colony on the beach it is also a nesting place for blue-footed boobies.

aaa A volcanic uplift, this island offers a great chance to see the land iguanas (Conolophus pallidus) endemic to Santa Fe Island. Some of these can be 5 ft long and have a beautiful golden-yellow colour that shows off the scales to advantage. In the same area you’ll also see a forest of giant prickly pear cactus. After your visit swimming and snorkelling will often follow.

aaa A beautiful mangrove lagoon on the north shore of Santa Cruz Island. The yacht anchors just outside the cove and you enter on a dingy, paddling through the calm water which is a nesting site for Green Sea Turtles (they are on the rare and endangered species list). A wonderfully quiet journey, through a beautiful and unique habitat and with good luck as well as the marine turtles you will see different types of sharks and schools of Golden Rays swimming just below the surface, whilst yellow warblers sing from above.

aaa A highlight of any visit to the Galapagos, a truly beautiful island thanks to the richness of its birdlife. Located in the northeast portion of Galapagos, the island is an outpost for many seabirds (as is Espanola in the South). Interestingly there are no land reptiles here and only very small marine iguanas, due to direction of ocean currents which apparently would not have carried terrestrial animals there. You will visit the following sites.

aaa This bay is actually the caldera of an extinct, partially eroded volcano, with the surrounding cliffs forming the inner portion of the rim. You arrive on a corral beach, and will immediately be struck by the birdlife. Great Frigatebirds (which during February –May the males have their red pouches inflated looking trying to attract a mate), Red-footed boobies nesting in the mangroves, Swallow-tailed Gulls, Lava Gulls, Yellow-crowed Night Herons. Your trail takes you past a beautiful tide pool area

aaa The tour begins with a great panga (small dingy) ride along the base of the cliffs where you an see Redbilled Tropicbirds trying to make a precise landing in their nest. Squadrons of Frigatebirds are seen flying back and forth, whilst Red-footed boobies perch on branches of Palo Santo trees which seemingly grow out of the cliffs. Once you arrive on land and climb to the cliff-top, you enter an area where nesting Masked Boobies and Great Frigatebirds are found. It is also a great place to see Galapagos Doves and Vampire Finches (sharp-beaked ground finches)…ask your guide for the full story on the name! You will also see great numbers of Storm Petrels here, sometimes in tens of thousands. If you are lucky, you may also see a short-eared owl.

aaa Home to one of the most iconic scenery shots of Galapagos, this small island located off the eastern shore of James Island is home to beautiful panoramic views. The striking volcanic landscape, looks almost lunar and provides a great introduction to the volcanic origins of the islands, with spatter cones and cinder cones. You will also see Pinnacle Rock, a striking example of a tuff cone, and good examples of pioneering plants, including some beautiful stands of lava cactus. At sea level, this is a great place for swimming and snorkelling, if you are lucky with Galapagos Penguins.

aaa Sullivan Bay offers a rare look at a recently formed lava-field. Located on the eastern coast of James Island, just across from Bartolome, this lava field is thought to have been created in eruptions that took place around 1890.

aaa The Charles Darwin Research Station offers a great chance to learn about the work being done to conserve and protect the islands wildlife. For some visitors (depending on the time of year) this is the only time to see Giant Tortoises and certainly the closest range opportunity. It is also a great chance to see the Tortoise Rearing Centre. You can also visit the pen of the famous Lonesome George

Baltra flight home, or continue with visit to the highlands (see first visitor site)

Please note: Itineraries are unlikely to change significantly but are subject to change. Weather, wildlife breeding, instructions from the Galapagos National Park, specific abilities and interests of passengers as well as operational matters may cause your guide or captain to change the times or nature of your visits. Your guide will always endeavour to have the best itinerary for you within these constraints.

Deck Plan / Spec

Facilities

A lounge area and bar area, dining area, multi-purpose audio/video room with well stocked-library, shaded salon/bar area at the stern, spacious sun deck on the prow, kayaks.