Scuba Diving in the Galapagos Islands

Your Galapagos Liveaboard diving adventures in will encompass everything from sharks to nudibranchs, and more. The islands are best known for amazing shark diving around Wolf and Darwin Islands. These small and remote islands are best reached by liveaboard vessels for divers. Your diving experience here will generally include Galapagos sharks, silky sharks, and lots of schooling hammerheads being cleaned by king angelfish. Seeing marine turtles, schools of tuna, eagle rays, and sea lions are very common, and seeing a whale shark is very possible from June through November.

All the islands you travel to are amazing sites for underwater photography. Macro photographers will have their fill of sea horses, barnacle blennies, coral hawkfish, and many others. An abundance of rays is at many of the dive sites (including spotted rays, marble rays, golden rays, and stingrays) along with sea lions, sea turtles, schools of grunts, and snappers. The variety of life in the water is unlike any other place, with thick schools of the native brown striped Salema, snappers, groupers, Chevron barracuda, and huge sea turtles.

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Galapagos Island’s Unique Animals

More than 20% of the marine species in the Galapagos are found nowhere else on earth. Underwater you’ll have the chance to see marine iguanas, hammerheads, Galapagos sharks, silky sharks, and whale shark is very possible from June through November. On land, spot giant tortoises, flightless cormorants, Galapagos penguins, and many more captivating creatures.

Both Humboldt Explorer and Tiburon Explorer’s itineraries include land tours to see these local creatures: North Seymour Island walking tour; Santa Cruz Highlands tour to see giant tortoises; large colonies of blue-footed boobies and frigate birds, sea lions and marine iguanas; free time to explore beach town Puerto Ayora. Consider adding even more time to your trip to experience the land animals as well.

Galapagos Islands Diving Conditions

The weather in the Galapagos has water temperatures ranging from 65 -75 degrees F from December through May and 60 – 70 (F) June through November. Water temperatures are at the higher end of the scale in both Darwin and Wolf. Air temperatures range from 75 (F) or higher in the rainy season (December-May) to the mid ’60s (F) during the dry season (June – November), with nearly constant sea breezes.

Currents can range from 1 to 5 knots at the sites we visit, and visibility is generally between 30 and 80 feet. Most divers are comfortable with a 7mm wetsuit June – November with a hooded vest and gloves and a minimum 5 mm wetsuit December – May. Gloves and hoods are strongly recommended.

Your Galapagos liveaboard dives will be done from the pangas with an easy backward roll into the water. After you dive, your tank will be lifted back into the panga and you will board via its stern ladders or with assistance from the side.

See our Galapagos scuba diving Frequently-Asked-Question pages for more information on diving in Galapagos. 

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